Extension pointers #14: Extend end-user benefits and allow personalization by implementing extensions with custom actions

Extension pointers #14: Extend end-user benefits and allow personalization by implementing extensions with custom actions

From our earlier post on custom actions, we know that we can create templated actions, share them with end users, and allow them to reuse those actions to achieve personalized outcomes. In this post, we'll look at how custom actions make it easy for users to carry out these templated tasks to get customized results.
 
Consider the following scenario: a hardware company that already uses Zoho CRM then utilizes Zoho Projects to implement and work on the deals they've won. Assume that the Zoho Projects portal has two projects: one for handling smaller revenue deals that require minimum development and less time, and the other for managing larger revenue dealsthat will eventually demand more time and resources for execution.
 
As an end user processing deals in Zoho CRM, it would be extremely convenient for the company to have the deals automatically fall into the appropriate projects, such as a task based on the expected revenue. Furthermore, it would be ideal to send emails to the customer with whom they have made the deal to request anything needed from their end in order to move forward with the implementation of the deal. Let's see how we can achieve this with the help of custom actions.
 
We have detailed posts on the steps to create a custom action along with a live example. Now, let's reiterate and go over the steps to achieving the above use case. 
 

Developer activities 

1. Create a connector for Zoho Projects.
2. Create a custom user interface (widget-connected app) that allows the user to select the project where the deal should be created as a task, as well as add the personalized email subject and body that will be sent to the user. 
3. Create a custom action in the Zoho Developer console. 
  • Associate the custom user interface to the custom action. 
  • Define an action that creates a task in the selected project and also sends an email to the customer based on the values entered by the end user in the custom UI. 

Extension/end-user activities 

4. Create workflows as an end-user (i.e., set criteria on expected revenue; provide personalized values for email subject and body, and choose the project in which the deal fulfilling the set criteria should be created as a task) and assign a custom action to them. 

Developer activities

1. Creating a connector 

  • Create a new connector in your extension for Zoho Projects using the Connectors feature under Utilities in the left panel of the Zoho Developer console. 
Note: Zoho Projects follows the OAuth 2.0 protocol for its authentication mechanism. You can refer to this post to learn more about the steps to register Zoho Projects and retrieve your client credentials.
  • Add the necessary connector APIs for your functionality. 
  • The Zoho Projects REST APIs added for our example are mentioned below.
Connector API Name
Method type
URL
Get Projects
GET
https://projectsapi.zoho.com/restapi/portal/${portalid}/projects/
Create project task
POST
https://projectsapi.zoho.com/restapi/portal/${portalid}/projects/${projectid}/tasks/?name=${name}&description=${description}
 
Please refer to the Zoho Projects REST API guide for details. 

2. Create a custom user interface: 

1. Create a custom user interface that allows the end user to select the project in which they want to create the deal as a task, as well as enter the email subject and body that should be sent to the contact associated with the deal.
2. You can find the HTML code for the custom UI as an attachment to the post.
  • In the HTML code, we have two text fields to get the user inputs for the email subject and body.
  • We have also invoked the connector API to get projects from a portal. The response is then populated and displayed as a dropdown list to allow the user to select the project in which they want the deal to be created as a task.
  • In the HTML code snippet, we have hard coded a static value for the Zoho Projects portal.
Note: Depending on your business use case requirements, you can create custom variables to prompt the user to input their Zoho Project portal ID, or you can create a setting widget that displays the user's portals, allowing the user to choose the portal in which they want to have the deals created as tasks as well.
  • ZOHO.CRM.ACTION.setConfig - In this example, we have utilized the setConfig method. This method can be used to set values to variables which can be retrieved later through the widget's page load response. 
➤ For our example, we have used the setConfig method to set various Zoho CRM deal and email (subject and body) user input values to variables. We have later obtained these saved values through the widget's page load response, which contains a configdata key with these set data as its values. 
➤ Sample page load response when ZOHO.CRM.ACTION.setConfig is used in our example:
"module": "Deals",
"configdata": {
DealTest: "Sample Digital Marketing Project"
Dealdescription: "${!Deals.Description}"
Dealname: "${!Deals.Deal_Name}"
Message: "Sample Message"
Subject: "Deal Won!"
To: "${!Deals.Contact_Name.Email}"
➤ We have then used the preset saved values available in the configdata key to prepopulate the widget UI every time it loads. 

3. Create a custom action

  • Go to the Zoho Developer console and select the extension in which you want to create the custom action.
  • Create a custom action by navigating through Automate - > Custom Actions, under the Build section in the left panel. Click Create Action.
  • Enter the Custom Action Name and Description. Click Next.

  • Provide the location of the html file (widget UI) to complete the resource path. Click Next, then click Create Function.

  • Enter the Deluge function to perform our use case functionality.
  • Click Save & Close, then click Save.
Deluge function code snippet:
 
dynamic_map = Map();
dynamic_map.put("portalid","xxxxxx");
dynamic_map.put("projectid",input.config.get("Dealproject"));
dynamic_map.put("name",input.config.get("Dealname"));
dynamic_map.put("description",input.config.get("Dealdescription"));
response = zoho.crm.invokeConnector("xxxxx.zohoprojects.createprojecttask",dynamic_map);
sendmail
[
from :zoho.adminuserid
to :input.config.get("To")
subject :input.config.get("Subject")
message :input.config.get("Message")
]
  • In the above Deluge code, we have performed the functionality of creating the deal as a task in Projects and sending an email to the deal's contact with the input provided by the end user in their CRM account while associating the custom action to a workflow. 

Custom action in effect (End-user):

Create workflows:

  • As an end user who has the extension which features the custom action installed in the Zoho CRM account, go ahead and create workflows to define criteria and associate the custom action.
  • In our case, we have two workflows:
➤ One for smaller deals where the expected revenue is less than 1000 USD


➤ One for larger deals where the expected revenue is greater than or equal to 1000USD


 
  • Upon choosing the custom action, the custom UI appears where-in you can provide user specific input for email body and subject and also choose the project where you want deal to be created as a task in Zoho Projects. 
Smaller revenue deals:
                                                       
Larger revenue deals:
                                                      
  • When a deal with the necessary criteria is satisfied, an email is sent out to the deal's contact with the subject and body provided by the end user. A task is also created in Zoho Projects with some specific deal details. 
This is one business case where you can use custom action. As a parallel use case to the above example itself, say you have multiple projects in Zoho Projects, each used to work on different case categories (bugs, issues, feature request, etc.). You could develop the same kind of template and allow end users to configure the criteria and outcomes accordingly. 
 
You could also use custom actions feature to perform templated actions to obtain personalized outcomes depending on your business needs. We hope you found this information helpful. Keep following this space for more information!
 
 SEE ALSO:
 

    • Recent Topics

    • Zoho Bookings - Reserve with Google

      Does Zoho Bookings plan to to integrate with Reserve with Google?

    • How to add Zoho demo site page designs to my Zoho Sites website

      Hi, I would like to add the design from the following demo URLs into my current Zoho website. I have already created two new pages on my site, named “Menu2” and “Menu3.” For the “Menu2” page, I want to use the design from this demo: https://naturestjuice-demo.zohosites.com/menu

    • Digest Août - Un résumé de ce qui s'est passé le mois dernier sur Community

      Bonjour chère communauté ! Voici le résumé tant attendu de tout ce qui a marqué Zoho le mois dernier : contenus utiles, échanges inspirants et moments forts. 🎉 Découvrez Zoho Backstage 3.0 : une version repensée pour offrir encore plus de flexibilité,

    • Text snippet

      There is a nice feature in Zoho Desk called Text Snippet. It allows you to insert a bit of text anywhere in a reply that you are typing. That would be nice to have that option in Zoho CRM as well when we compose an email. Moderation Update: We agree that

    • Kaizen #206 - Answering your Questions | Displaying Related Purchase Orders from Zoho Books in CRM Deals using Queries

      Hello everyone! We're back with another post in the Kaizen series. We're grateful for the feedback we received from all of you! One of the questions we received was "I would like to see the list of Purchase Orders in Zoho Books for a Deal in CRM." We

    • Add Analytics function for Title case (capitalising each word in a string)

      At present, you can only capitalise each word in a string in Analytics during data import. It would be really useful to be able to do this with a formula column, but there is no Title Case function.

    • How to conditionally embed an own internal widget with parameters in an html snippet?

      Hello everyone, I'm trying to create a dynamic view in a page using an HTML snippet. The goal is to display different content based on a URL parameter (input.step). I have successfully managed to conditionally display different forms using the following

    • Where can I find rejected inbound mails and their reason for rejection

      Hi, I was recently made aware by a mailing list which I am subscribed to (ffmpeg-devel@ffmpeg.org) that my Zoho mail Mail account is rejecting some emails. If I look under Admin Panel > Security & Compliance > Quarantine > Incoming, the list there is

    • Sync more than one Workdrive

      Hello Please I'm facing some difficulties since some days. In my company we have many zoho accounts in different organisations. And I have to find a way to sync all these Workdrives. I spend many hours to search it on zoho Workdrive but no solution. Could someone help me ? Any idea how I can achieve it ? Thanks in advance. Regards

    • Zoho writer unable to merge documents to PDF with basic fonts in Hebrew or fonts from my computer

      I created several forms that will be merged into PDF files through Zoho Writer and I am unable to receive the PDF in the basic fonts of the Hebrew language or in the fonts I have on my computer. The writer exports to PDF an exchange font that looks very

    • Base Currency Adjustment Reversal

      Two questions surrounding the base currency adjustments (BCA). I recently ported over from QB so I need to enter the base currency adjustments. In QB, it will calculate the BCA for you at the end of the year and then reverse it at the top of the following year. Makes sense. Does Zohobooks not do this as well? I created a BCA for Dec 31, 2016 but no reversing entry was made Jan 1, 2017. Am I supposed to manually do a reversal? I'm not even allowed to post journals directly to the 'exchange gain loss'

    • Please implement UAE Central Bank FX rates

      Hello, as I understand from your knowledge base, any UAE business account created from September 15, 2018 does not have foreign exchange rates fetched automatically. This is a serious inconvenience and I am not sure why ZOHO has not looked into the ways

    • Search Records returning different values than actually present

      Hey! I have this following line in my deluge script: accountSearch = zoho.crm.searchRecords("Accounts","(RS_Enroll_ID:equals:" + rsid + ")",1,200,{"cvid":864868001088693817}); info "Account search size: " + accountSearch.size(); listOfAccounts = zoho.crm.searchRecords("Accounts","(RS_Enroll_ID:equals:"

    • Super Admin Access to All Courses and Spaces in Zoho Learn

      Dear Zoho Learn Team, We hope this message finds you well. We are using Zoho Learn extensively for internal and agent training. While managing our courses and spaces, we encountered a significant limitation regarding admin access and course management.

    • Print checks for owner's draw

      Hi.  Can I use Zoho check printing for draws to Owner's Equity?  This may be a specific case of the missing Pay expenses via Check feature.  If it's not available, are there plans to add this feature?

    • [New Release 2024] Create and embed custom capabilities across CRM with Kiosk Studio, our latest no-code tool

      [Update | New series] We've started publishing a series of posts on Kiosk Studio. It's called Kiosk Studio Sessions and you can check out the first one here! [Update | 15 Oct} Session #2 is live! This one will look at how to create a kiosk for your call

    • Revenue Management: #10 Common Mistakes while Recognizing Revenue

      We are at the end of the series on Revenue Management, covering how different businesses recognise revenue. Even with clear standards like ASC 606 and IFRS 15 in practice, businesses often struggle with the nuances of revenue recognition. Especially growing

    • Windows Desktop App - request to add minimization/startup options

      Support Team, Can you submit the following request to your development team? Here is what would be optimal in my opinion from UX perspective: 1) In the "Application Menu", add a menu item to Exit the app, as well as an alt-key shortcut for these menus

    • integarting attachments from crm to creator

      when i tried to integrate pdf attachments from crm to creator via deluge i am getting this error {"code":2945,"description":"UPLOAD_RULE_NOT_CONFIGURED"} the code i used is attachments = zoho.crm.getRelatedRecords("Attachments","Sales_Orders",203489100020279XXX8);

    • Search Option

      🚫 Current Limitation: As of now (September 2025), Zoho FSM lacks a global search functionality, which makes it difficult to quickly: Find specific Work Orders by number or keyword Search for customer records or contact info Locate assets, jobs, or service

    • Mobile Chat Window - Full Screen

      Hello, The mobile chat window takes up the full screen, which is highly confusing for most customers! Using a desktop machine, I see the same happens when reducing the browser width to 800px or below. This suggests that it responsive web design, causing the switch to full screen. Can we fix this very annoying behaviour ourselves using a custom css file? If so, can you please let me know how? Thanks

    • Is it possible to customize ZC Themes?

      I understand you can choose a layout and customize Brand Color, App Header, Menu, and Sub-Menu components, but can you override some of the default theme settings with CSS or a config file? For example, - Table highlight color - Listview auto filter highlight

    • Is it possible to create Custom function-based Lookup field in Zoho CRM

      Is it possible to create a custom function-based lookup field in Zoho CRM? If so, how? Use case: Need to fetch users from Zoho Projects into a dropdown field in Zoho CRM.

    • @mention in comments no notification

      Hi, hope someone can help. When we @mention someone in the comments in Zoho Creator, how is that user notifed as we don't get anything on email or in the app notifications. 

    • Zoho unified inbox

      The new changes have definitely improved things for switching between accounts.  But zoho still desperately needs a unified inbox.  It sucks to have to enter filters and folders for each and every inbox.  This seems like such a simple thing, i wonder why Zoho hasn't done it?

    • Add "Running Balance" column to Account Transaction Reports

      Hello, Currently Zoho Account Transaction Reports give you the opening balance, then lists the transactions, then provides the closing balance.  It would be great if you could add a column on the far right that shows the "Running Balance" on the account after each transaction.  There are many times when analyzing or tie-ing out transactions that this would be very helpful.  I currently have to frequently run a tape on my adding machine to get balance totals after a specific transaction on the list.

    • Unified customer portal login

      As I'm a Zoho One subscriber I can provide my customers with portal access to many of the Zoho apps. However, the customer must have a separate login for each app, which may be difficult for them to manage and frustrating as all they understand is that

    • WhatsApp Channels in Zoho Campaigns

      Now that Meta has opened WhatsApp Channels globally, will you add it to Zoho Campaigns? It's another top channel for marketing communications as email and SMS. Thanks.

    • error : Object code : 6500

      b3 = map(); b3.put("name", "Test Project Name"); updateprojects2 = invokeurl [ url :"https://projectsapi.zoho.eu/restapi/portal/era0130/projects/169495000000928007/" type :PUT parameters: b3 connection:"in2" ]; info b3 ; info updateprojects2; ------------

    • How to book GST paid in zoho books

      hi, i am a new user to Zoho books and not able to book GST paid in books, kindly suggest how i can book it in books. thanks, siddharth

    • I got unknown charge from Zoho

      Good day, I need help disputing a charge I don't know from, zoho. I have ZohoMail and ZeptoMail. I purchase credits for ZeptoMail, and for ZohoMail I am not subcribed.

    • Function 56: Automatically enable the option for customers to pay via bank account

      Hello everyone and welcome back to our series! One of the key features of Zoho Books is its integration with multiple payment gateways, allowing you to receive online payments for your invoices. This ensures faster payments, automates payment tracking

    • Attach Files to Your Notecards and share them on the go!

      Hey everyone! We’re excited to share a feature many of you have been asking for — you can now attach files directly to your text notecards and share with ease! 🙌 This update was built with your feedback in mind, especially for those who wanted a simple

    • Workdrive on Android - Gallery Photo Backups

      Hello, Is there any way of backing up the photos on my android phone directly to a specific folder on Workdrive? Assuming i have the workdrive app installed on the phone in question. Emma

    • How to add a % Growth column for year-over-year comparison (2024 vs 2025)

      Hello, I am trying to build a monthly revenue comparison between 2024 and 2025 in Zoho CRM Analytics. My current setup is: Module: Deals (Affaires) Filter: Stage = Closed Won Date field: Closing Date Grouping: By Month Metrics: Sum of Amount for 2024,

    • How to searchByCriteria records that are under approval?

      I need to search for both approved and pending approval records Is that possible with this method? Or I need to a different method? var priceReqID = $Page.record_id; log(priceReqID); var records = ZDK.Apps.CRM.Price_List_Item.searchByCriteria("Price_Request:equals:"

    • How to add Simple Analytics to Zoho Pages?

      I have a website with Zoho Pages, how do I add Simple Analytics on it? They seem to have code they need to be embedded https://docs.simpleanalytics.com/script

    • Cant seem to delete an email account

      Hello, I have researching for 4 days how to delete an email account and I am absolutely without a clue. The email account I am trying to delete is support<AT>fyshoes<dot>com. It's the first email account I made and it (is???) was associated with the super user (me). I have since changed it to adming<AT>fychoes<dot>com and I see the support email in my list but I just cant seem to get rid of it. Ultimately I want to associate that email account with another user that I want to add. This is really

    • Import data into Multi-Select lookup field from CSV/Excel

      How to import data into a multi-select lookup field from the CSV/Excel Sheet? Let's say I have an Accounts multi-select lookup field in the Deals module and I want to import the Deals with Accounts field. Steps:- 1. Create/edit a multi-select lookup field

    • Script that deletes a record?

      We're using WP Plugin "Integration for WooCommerce and Zoho Pro", and have created a couple of Feeds to send data to Zoho. We are trying to create Contact records, but only based upon condition. Tried to make it with small Deluge function and Workflow,

    • Next Page