Unveiling the next iteration of Ask Zia in Zoho CRM: An all-new chat interface, conversation history, actions, and much more

Unveiling the next iteration of Ask Zia in Zoho CRM: An all-new chat interface, conversation history, actions, and much more

Your CRM assistant just leveled up.


Zoho CRM's Ask Zia functionality now offers a more conversational and context-aware experience to help you not just understand your data, but act on it—all from one chat window. With its redesigned interface and expanded capabilities, Ask Zia is evolving into a smarter assistant that helps you get things done faster without switching screens or writing reports manually.

You'll now find the Ask Zia icon on the next-gen vertical settings bar, right below the search icon. Once opened, you can chat with Zia using three distinct message intents: Insights, Help, and Action—each of which is designed to support your unique CRM journey.

1. Help is your go-to assistant for all things CRM—from answering simple how-to questions like "How do I create a workflow rule?" to guiding you through settings, configurations, and best practices. Whenever you're unsure about using a feature, just ask and let Zia walk you through it.

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2. Actions help you get things done in CRM, whether it's generating a record or a note summary, creating workflow rules, or building reports—all from one screen.
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For record and note summaries, simply start typing the record name and Zia will fetch related results that you can pick from.
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When it comes to workflow creation, you can configure a wide range of supported actions, including assigning owners, updating fields, creating tasks or meetings, scheduling calls, adding or removing tags, triggering email notifications, converting leads, and even invoking custom functions or webhooks. These options ensure that your workflows are not only automated but also deeply customizable to suit different business processes.
 
3. Insights component is designed to answer data-related questions and help you better understand what's happening in your CRM. It retrieves relevant data and provides context-aware information. For example, you can say, "Show deal amounts by stages," and get a quick overview based on visible and processed data.
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  • Additionally, you can add the generated visual component directly to your analytics dashboard. Simply choose the desired dashboard, rename the component if needed, and save it for future reference.
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  • You can also access the code viewer to see the underlying logic applied in the background to generate the results.
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You can review your past conversations with Zia in the left panel and continue them in the same context.

That's not all that's new—introducing the all-new co-creation mode: a guided, hands-on way to work alongside Zia while building reports directly within the Ask Zia chat window.
When you ask Zia to create a report, you'll see the entire configuration process unfold in real time. Zia takes care of everything you'd typically do manually, like choosing modules, selecting fields, setting filters, and defining charts—all without switching screens.

What sets co-creation mode apart is that you're not just watching the process; you can jump in at any point, make edits, fine-tune configurations, and continue where Zia left off. It's a collaborative setup that enables you to take over when needed and hand it back to Zia once you're done.


You can also expand the configuration view to get a detailed look at how your report is shaping up—essentially decoding the black box of AI by making every step of the setup transparent and editable.

To help you get a better sense of how it all comes together, here's a short video of Zia in action.  


A few more things to note:
  • You can maintain multiple chat sessions and start a new one anytime.
  • You can delete a session or give feedback (like/dislike) for each response.
  • You can not only type prompts, but give Zia voice prompts as well.
IdeaFor the best experience, try aligning your prompt with the intended mode. For example, ask "How do I create a lead?" under the Help component, or "How many leads were created this week?" under Insights. But even if you don't, Ask Zia will still try to interpret and respond.
Feature Availability:
  • The all new Ask Zia is available for orgs in the Enterprise and Ultimate editions of Zoho CRM, with the Next Gen CRM UI enabled.
    We'll start rolling out for orgs in the CRM bundles in a couple of weeks.
  • DC Supported: US
That's all for the current enhancement, but this is just the beginning. Please share your feedback in the comments below.