What's New - April 2025 | Zoho Backstage

What's New - April 2025 | Zoho Backstage

Hello there,

Phew! It’s been a busy month—and it’s all for you.

You know that feeling when your to-do list is long, your coffee’s gone cold, but your team is absolutely crushing it behind the scenes? That’s been us this month. Between brainstorming, building, tweaking, and testing—we've had our heads down, sleeves rolled up, and minds focused on one thing: helping you run smoother, smarter, and more engaging events. 

Every little update we pushed live this month was sparked by a real need from organizers like you. And honestly? That’s our favorite way to build. You throw us the challenges, and we’ll keep showing up with better, faster, and (hopefully) cooler ways to handle them.

So as the calendar flips, we hope you’ll take a moment to explore what’s new, give it a spin, and tell us what you think. 

Automated refunds with cancellation fee deductions

Plan availability: Included in the Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans



Event organizers often face the challenge of handling last-minute cancellations and issuing partial refunds. With our new custom cancellation policy, you can now automatically deduct a cancellation fee from the refund amount when an attendee cancels their booking.

How it works:
  • Set a cancellation fee as a percentage of the ticket price.
  • The system automatically handles fee deduction and tax adjustments.
Setting up:
  1. Navigate to Registrations > Cancellation Policy.
  2. Select Custom Cancellation Policy.
  3. Define up to 10 cancellation rules. (maximum window: 60 days before event)
Attendees will see the applicable policy:
  • During registration
  • On their Your Orders page
  • While canceling their order
The deducted fee is automatically logged in the cancellation and refund history, viewable by both attendees and organizers.


Notes
Fee changes apply only to new orders. For partially refunded orders, any remaining amount can still be refunded later.

Order and attendee activity logs  

Plan availability: Included in the Free, Essentials, Premium and Ultimate plans

Get complete visibility into every update made to attendee and order data with our new activity log. Whether changes were made by an organizer, purchaser, or attendee, you can now view a detailed activity trail.

This audit log captures a record of updates and changes related to attendee and order management. Whether an organizer updates an attendee’s name, a purchaser reassigns a ticket, or a ticket class is changed, the system now logs each of these actions automatically for full traceability.

The log currently captures the following types of activities:
  • Updates to attendee details, such as name, email, or custom fields.
  • Changes made to order details, including purchaser info and billing data.
  • Ticket reassignment, when a ticket is transferred to another attendee.
  • An order being marked as paid or unpaid, reflecting changes in payment status.
  • Ticket class changes, such as upgrading or downgrading an attendee's ticket.
These logs are grouped into three categories for easy review:
  1. Portal Activities – actions performed via the organizer portal.
  2. Order Activities – all modifications related to individual orders.
  3. Attendee Activities – updates and changes linked directly to attendees.
This enhancement is especially helpful for teams managing large events, providing an added layer of accountability and operational clarity. With audit trails now available, you can confidently trace back who made what change and when, minimizing confusion and improving team collaboration.

Export attendee data with deleted fields 

Plan availability: Included in the Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans



Managing attendee information often requires flexibility, especially when event organizers make changes to registration forms mid-way through the event setup or after registrations have already started. To support this, Zoho Backstage now offers a new enhancement that allows organizers to include deleted fields when exporting attendee data.

This enhancement ensures that you won’t lose access to that data, even if the field no longer appears on the live form. This gives full control over whether historical data from removed fields should be preserved and reviewed offline.

How to use:
  1. Navigate to Registrations > Attendees.
  2. Click Export.
  3. There, you'll find a new option: Include deleted fields. When selected, any data submitted for removed fields will be included in the export.
In the exported file, these deleted fields will be clearly marked using the following format: {fieldName}_Deleted. This helps distinguish them from currently active fields while still making the historical data available for review or reporting purposes.

Add attachments to scheduled emails 

Plan availability: Included in the Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans

Attachments are a common and essential part of email communication, especially in event planning. Organizers often need to send event brochures, images, venue maps, or other materials to attendees ahead of time. With this update, they can now do so simply within their scheduled emails.



How to use:
  1. To add an attachment, simply go to Communicate > Emails > Scheduled Emails > Create an Email > Options > Add Attachment. You can upload relevant files from your event or space library during the email creation process.
  2. You can upload relevant files from your event or space library during the email creation process.
When you preview the email, the attachments will be visible so you can verify everything is in place before sending. If any attached file is later removed from the event or space library, it will be shown as “deleted” in the email preview—helping you avoid broken links or missing files.

Try it out the next time you send a scheduled email!

Session details in speaker emails   

Plan availability: Available in the Free, Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans



We’ve enhanced speaker communication in Zoho Backstage by adding session details directly to speaker emails. This ensures speakers have all the information they need—without requiring additional follow-ups or manual updates.

Two key email updates have been introduced:
  • Welcome Speaker email now includes the speaker’s assigned session details, helping them understand exactly when and where they’re expected to present.
  • Session Updated email is a new automated email that gets triggered whenever sessions are assigned to a speaker or when existing session details, such as timing or location, are changed. The email will show either a New Sessions section, an Updated Sessions section, or both, depending on the changes made.


You can find and manage these templates under:
  • Communication > Emails > Automated Emails > Speakers

Enable/disable Workflows during event creation 

Plan availability: Included in the Premium and Ultimate plans
 



This feature gives event organizers more control over workflow management during the event creation process in Zoho Backstage. Any workflows configured at the portal level are automatically listed when creating a new event. By default, these workflows are enabled, but organizers can choose to disable specific ones based on the needs of the event—directly during setup.

This flexibility helps prevent workflows from being overlooked or incorrectly applied, making the event setup more efficient and consistent. Organizers can also revisit and update these settings later, ensuring each event has the most relevant workflows in place.

SalesIQ chat in OnAir  

Plan availability: Included in the Premium and Ultimate plans



We’re excited to share that SalesIQ Chat is now integrated with the OnAir platform, enabling real-time communication between participants and organizers during live events and rehearsals.

 Attendees can now initiate chats directly within OnAir, ensuring timely responses to their questions. Speakers and exhibitors can also use the chat feature during rehearsals for smooth coordination.

Organizers can configure chat visibility from:
  • Design > Edit Website > Integrations > Zoho Sales IQ
  • Settings > Integrations > Live Chat
You can choose to display the chat on the event website, within OnAir, or both. All conversations are managed through your existing SalesIQ portal.

This integration enhances engagement and simplifies event communication for a better overall experience.

Gamification Leaderboard now supports public display links  

Plan availability: Included in the Premium and Ultimate plans

Leaderboard display allows event organizers to showcase real-time competition results across the venue, encouraging attendees to engage more actively through visible, friendly competition.

This encourages friendly competition and boosts attendee engagement.

You can generate secure, public links directly from the Manage Leaderboard page. These links display only ranking information—no sensitive attendee data—and are ideal for projection screens throughout your event space. Multiple links can be created, each with a unique session ID, screen name, browser, and IP, giving you full visibility and control.



Key features include:
  • Expiration controls: Links expire at the event’s end time, with the option to extend or set a custom expiry date.
  • Security: A password-protected interface ensures only authorized users can access the leaderboard. Use the Copy Password button to easily share credentials with your AV team or display partners.
  • Screen tracking: Each display session requires a screen name, which appears alongside session data in your dashboard, making it simple to identify and manage screens.
  • Session control: End individual sessions instantly or reset the password to terminate all active sessions for added security.


Info
Important: If you don’t copy the link at the time of creation, it can’t be retrieved again—make sure to save it immediately.

 To set it up, go to Manage > Engagement > Gamification.

 Bring your leaderboard to life—visibly, securely, and with complete control.

Time field in forms  

Plan availability: The availability of this feature depends on the type of form:

  • Registration form – Included in Premium and Ultimate plans
  • Custom forms – Included exclusively in the Ultimate plan
  • Exhibitor request form – Included in the Premium and Ultimate plans. Also available in the Essentials plan when used with the Exhibitor add-on.
  • Sponsor request form – Included in the Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans
  • Session feedback form – Included in the Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans

You can now collect time-specific responses using the newly introduced Time field in the form builder. Ideal for gathering details like arrival times, session preferences, or any time-based input, this feature gives you greater precision and control during data collection.

Organizers can configure the field to accept inputs in 12-hour or 24-hour format, and optionally define a time range to limit selections. The default format shown to respondents will align with the event’s time format set under Manage > Event Info.

For example, if you're coordinating airport pickups or hotel transfers, you can easily request attendees’ expected arrival times during registration or through custom forms.

Registered session participants export  

Plan availability: Included in the Free, Essentials, Premium, and Ultimate plans



You can export the list of registered attendees for individual sessions, making it easier to manage participation and access attendee details at the session level.

To use this feature, navigate to Manage > Sessions, select the relevant session, and go to the Participants > Registered tab. From there, you’ll find the option to export the list of participants who have registered for that specific session.



The export file will include the following columns:
    1. Name
    2. Email
    3. Ticket ID
    4. Ticket Class
    5. Session Title
This update provides quick access to session-specific attendee data, helping organizers better plan logistics, monitor participation, and coordinate follow-ups.


You keep the ideas coming—we’ll keep delivering.

Let’s make May 2025 even better.

Info
All the features and enhancements mentioned in this article are available across all Zoho Backstage-supported data centers.
If you have any questions, please contact support@zohobackstage.com. 

    • Recent Topics

    • How to see history on Bulk send of Customer Statements

      Hi, We bulk send statements to customers every month via Books - every month we have customers emailing requesting a statement. Currently I have no visibility on if a customer was sent the statement or not and if our process is being followed or overlooked

    • Guided Conversations - Ticket Creation

      Hi there, Using Guided Conversations to Take Customer Data and apply it into a Support Ticket for internal use, Is there a way to take multiple Textual Variables Inputs (A series of questions), and have the answers all appear in the Description of the

    • How to add buttons elements in the Header

      I am trying to add CTA (Call to Action) buttons in the right side of the main navigation menu. This is a common practice for sites but I can't seem to figure this out for Zoho Sites. Is there a custom workflow that could be shared with me? 

    • Automatic back up - Zoho Recruit, books, people,crm, analytics

      Hello, Has anyone found a good way of automatically backing up Zoho (CRM, expense, recruit, people, books, analytics).? I have found with tool that does, but it doesn't include recruit or analytics It's a bit annoying and time consuming having to go to

    • delete departments on zoho desk

      I created test departments on zoho desk. how can i delete them now?

    • Validation, checking if a file has been attached to the ticket

      A very useful option would be to allow checking, under specific conditions, whether the user has attached a file to the application, e.g., a bug report. Some applications require files to be attached, and the system could enforce this after the system

    • AI & Zoho Recruit

      Hello, I guess we all are using AI in our personal and professional lives. Now, let's imagine. Recruitment is just a succession of stages and steps. For which step would you like to see AI implemented into Zoho Recruit ? I'll start : - Automatic translation

    • Zoho Flow not handling Boolean properly

      Hi, I have a checkbox in one system that I'm trying to sync with a checkbox in Zoho CRM. The value from the source system comes in as blank (unticked) or 1 (ticked). I've written the following custom function to convert the output to either boolean false

    • Quotes Module - import data

      Hello Zoho, is it possible to import Quotes records? I was trying and i have no results. Raport shows no data imported. Could you help me please how to do it?

    • Balance Sheet - Zoho Analytics

      Hi Team, I’m looking to implement a feature that captures the conversion rate based on the filters applied. By default, it should fetch the most recent conversion rate, and when a filter (such as a timeline filter) is applied, it should return the conversion

    • files sent will not open for recipient

      work files (done in writer) which previously opened will not open for the recipient

    • How to Print the Data Model Zoho CRM

      I have created the data model in Zoho CRM and I want the ability to Print this. How do we do this please? I want the diagram exported to a PDF. There doesnt appear to be an option to do this. Thanks Andrew

    • Cisco Webex Calling Intergration

      Hi Guys, Our organisation is looking at a move from Salesforce to Zoho. We have found there is no support for Cisco Webex Calling however? Is there a way to enable this or are there any apps which can provide this? Thanks!

    • Migration of Mails from Pipedrive

      Hi, so far the migration from Pipedrive to ZOHO works pretty good. For full completeness of the migration we miss all the mails linked to Deals, Contacts, Customers, ... What possibilities do we have to have Pipedrive fully migrated to ZOHO? Best Regards,

    • Published sheets don't work anymore

      Hi, Published sheets don't work anymore. The display of values is very very slow and calculations are not displayed at all. Thanks!

    • WorkDrive TrueSync for macOS 26 (Tahoe) Beta

      Hello everyone, With Apple unveiling the macOS 26 (Tahoe) Beta, we know many of you are eager to explore the latest features and enhancements. We’re excited to support your enthusiasm! As part of our commitment to delivering seamless cross-platform experiences,

    • Limited layout rules in a module

      There is a limit of 10 layout rules per module. Is there a way to get that functionality through different customization or workflow + custom function (easily accessible), etc. Having just 10 is limiting especially if module contains a lot of data. Are

    • #1 Zoho Billing vs. Zoho Books: Which one should I choose?

      Managing your business finances isn't just about sending invoices. It's about keeping everything organized, accurate, and moving towards your organization's goals. At Zoho, we understand the complexity, which is why we offer two powerful yet distinct

    • Is Zoho tables still being developed?

      Has this product been abandoned? I haven't seen any useful new features or stability improvements over the past six months or more. I think Tables is a great concept, filling a niche between spreadsheets and full database tools, but the current implementation

    • How to connect oracle ADW with Analytics

      I want to add Oracle ADW as a data source in Zoho Analytics, but I couldn't find any relevant documentation. Can anyone suggest how to do it, or let me know if it's even possible? Thanks!!

    • RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) Type Q+A Environment with Zoho Learn

      Hi All, Given the ability of Zoho Learn to function as a knowledge base / document repository type solution and given the rapid advancements that Zoho is making with Zia LLM, agentic capabilities etc. (not to mention the rapid progress in the broader

    • add attachments to automated emails?

      Hi, I'm looking for a way to have documents saved under an account, be grabbed and sent to an email address once a specific status has been updated.  For example we have a tab we've labeled as sales orders, when the status is changed to shipped, it emails the customer the tracking number and estimated delivery date.  I'd like it to also grab pdf docs (COA, BOL, etc) from that order and send in that email.   Currently we have to go into zoho change the status to shipped, then email all the docs to

    • [Action Required] Zendesk - Zoho Analytics integration requires re-authentication

      Dear Zendesk integration users, Zendesk is transitioning to a new OAuth model that uses refresh tokens for improved security and stability (read more). As a result, all Zendesk users in Zoho Analytics must re-authenticate their Zendesk connections on

    • Rerun Migration?

      I migrated a mailbox a few days ago, but didn't do the cutover on the MX records until today.  How can I rerun the migration to sync the mailboxes?  The old account has had a fair amount of activity since the first migration. I am used to other systems

    • طلب حذف الدومين والمؤسسة من حساب zoho

      السلام عليكم، أود طلب حذف الدومين التالي من حسابي في Zoho، حيث لا يظهر لي خيار الحذف في لوحة التحكم: اسم الدومين: hudajstore.com البريد المرتبط: [contact@hudajstore.com] علمًا بأنني المسؤول عن المؤسسة، ولا أستخدم الدومين حاليًا، وأرغب في إلغاء ربطه وحذف

    • Microsoft Outlook Add-in Update: Enhancing Efficiency for Recruiters

      We've released an update to the Zoho Recruit Microsoft Outlook Add-in, which brings a host of features designed to streamline your recruiting process and boost productivity. Let's delve into the details: Associate Emails with records in Zoho Recruit You

    • New integration: Zoho Books + Zoho Forms

      Hello Zoho Forms community! We are thrilled to announce the addition of another integration that brings speed and efficiency to your financial workflows. Zoho Forms can now be integrated with Zoho Books! Here’s a quick rundown on Zoho Books! For anyone

    • Witness Sign - Automation with Zoho Creator

      Hi there, I used to be able do automatically send a Zoho Sign document from Zoho Creator where each signer had one witness. The action code was as follows for each signer and witness:       // CLIENT eachActionMap1 = Map(); eachActionMap1.put("signing_order","1");

    • Announcing: custom color palette + free workshop

      Hello everyone, We're excited to share new feature in Zoho Bookings—a color palette within booking page themes. You'll find this option under Manage Bookings > Workspaces > Booking Page Themes. You can customize the color of every element in your booking page and even alter the transparency of your background image. Please note that this is a paid feature included in the Basic and Premium plans. At the moment, it's available only under the Modern Web theme. This means you can create billions (7,

    • Removing To or CC Addresses from Desk Ticket

      I was hoping i could find a way to remove unnecessary email addresses from tickets submitted via email. For example, a customer may email the support address AND others who are in the helpdesk notification group, in either the TO or CC address. This results

    • Ability to Export Field Dependency Structure in Zoho Desk

      Hi Zoho Team, We’d like to request a feature enhancement in Zoho Desk that would greatly improve configuration management for organizations like ours: Requested Feature: The ability to export the full structure of Field Dependencies, especially for multi-level

    • [URGENT] Allow reorder (drag&drop) of subform record

      Very simple user case: a wedding planning app where you want to send your client a form to fill with information about their wedding. Form includes some field for general purpose information and a subform for event pacing/schedule. Clients are invited to create a new row (When? - What? - Where? - Who?) for each thing happening during their wedding chronologically. Ex: When                  What 10h                      Something TBD                    Speech After speech      Yet another thing happening

    • Departments in Zoho

      I'm trying to set up a department. It looks like Departments have been removed from Zoho One. Is there another option? We have our main account setup, but want to set up a separate small department that can't see our tabs.

    • Add Timer for Agent Status Duration in Zoho Desk Dashboard

      Hello Zoho Desk Team, We hope you're doing well. We would like to submit a feature request to further enhance the agent status tracking functionality within the Zoho Desk Dashboard. 🎯 Current Functionality As it stands, Zoho Desk allows us to view the

    • [Beta Feature] Parent-Child Ticketing

      Hello there, a beta parent-child ticketing feature has recently been made available for some, read more here: https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/desk/ticket-management/articles/understanding-parent-child-ticketing-system#Business_scenarios I would like

    • Enable Sorting by Ticket Count in Category Reports

      Hi Zoho Desk Product Team, I hope you're doing well. We would like to submit a feature request to improve the reporting capabilities in Zoho Desk. 🎯 Feature Request: Sorting by Ticket Count in Category Reports Currently, category-based reports in Zoho

    • Reactivating a CRM user...

      I'm a 1-man business primarily using CRM under my Zoho1 subscription (I have NO other employees or users). I wish to re-activate a prior user (my son, once more working with me) but when changing his status from inactive to active I receive this message:

    • Zohoサポートにスコープ開放を依頼する

      お世話になっております。 現在、弊社にてZoho DeskのナレッジベースをAPI経由で取得し、AIツール（NotebookLM等）に連携する仕組みの構築を検討しています。 つきましては、ZohoDesk.articles.READ スコープを使用したOAuth認証の許可をいただけますでしょうか。 API Console から Server-based アプリを作成済みですが、認可URLにアクセスすると「スコープが登録されていません」と表示されます。 お手数をおかけしますが、スコープの開放をご

    • Where can I configure the notifications for everything KB-related?

      Hi all, I'm receiving notifications for some actions happening in our Knowledge Base (e.g. someone leaving a feedback) and I would like to customise the template or have the choice to enable/disable such notifications like it is possible for ticket notification

    • Increase Round Robin Scheduler Frequency in Zoho Desk

      Dear Zoho Desk Team, We hope this message finds you well. We would like to request an enhancement to the Round Robin Scheduler in Zoho Desk to better address ticket assignment efficiency. Current Behavior At present, the Round Robin Scheduler operates

    • Next Page