[Early Access] — Presenting a new and improved email parser in Zoho CRM!

[Early Access] — Presenting a new and improved email parser in Zoho CRM!

====EDIT==============================
Latest update: As on 20th Feb, 2023

Old Email Parser will reach end-of-life on June 1, 2023. After EOL, old email parser will not be available in your CRM account. In the spirit of preparing for this deprecation, we encourage all of you to try the all-new email parser at the earliest.
======================================

Dear Customers,

We are thrilled to present to you, a refreshingly new set of enhancements and flows for email parser. Email parsing is now much easier, more contextual and powerful than ever before.

As part of this "early-access" release, we'd be delighted to enable the new version of email parser if you are interested to try it out. In that case, please submit your request using this Early Access Request Form. 

Please note:
  • Once you submit a request, the new version of email parser will be enabled in the requested email account. 
  • You will also get an invitation to join our exclusive CRM Early Access (EA) Community. 
  • Since this is a Beta version, we would like to keep our discussions on this restricted, until the feature is made available to all.
  • Therefore we request you to join the EA Community to post your questions and suggestions regarding this Beta version. For the same reason, comments on this particular post will be disabled. 

What's email parser — a quick overview:

Email parser is a data extraction tool in Zoho CRM that helps an organization in various business functions such as lead generation and information updates. It is designed to automate the process of adding records to Zoho CRM by extracting information from incoming emails.

For instance, a real estate company may want to add all email enquiries they receive via a property portal as CRM leads. Doing this manually for hundreds of enquiries may become tiring, so here is where they can use email parser. By simply getting the emails sent to a "parser ID" generated in CRM and, they can automatically extract information from the enquiry emails and add them as records in CRM with desired field values. All it requires is a few minutes of initial setup and then you are good to go.

What's new and what's changed

While email parser has been largely functional, a few areas of this feature needed to be ironed out, which is what this post is all about. We are thrilled to present the following enhancements, which you can now see when you switch to the new version of email parser.


1) Single parser email ID for all parser rules

Earlier, for each parser rule, there was a different parser address. It could have been tedious to assign a new parser ID for different vendors and also keep a track of it. The logistics involved in the tracking and maintenance of these parser IDs could be time-consuming in itself. However, in the new version of email parser, there's only a single, common parser email ID for all rules. Regardless of how many vendors you are working with or how many rules you create, you can use this single parser ID for all. This makes working with email parser much easier and cuts down your setup and maintenance time significantly.

Also, a maximum of 5 approved parser addresses can be set up in common for all rules, early on during the configuration.

2) Configuration Interface Made More Powerful and Intuitive

In the latest version of email parser, the entire configuration interface allows free parsing and is highly intuitive, powerful and most importantly, user-friendly, unlike the previous version which involved rigid adherence to delimiters.


The email parser interface —automatically gives you a preview of the parsed data on the same screen where the field mapping occurs, so it is easier for you to get a snapshot of all the fields that are being parsed.


There's also an advanced configuration tab which involves options for filtering emails applicable for the parser based on criteria and associating automated actions such as sending for approval, field update and record assignment to chosen users based on assignment rules.

You can also parse HTML emails directly, as opposed to converting them to plain text emails which was the case previously with the old parser. You can also create email parser rules for each layout in a module.

3) Custom Functions — Configure email parser without associating a module

Email parser now supports execution of custom functions based on parsed data. In this case, the parser rule is not attributed to a particular module. Using custom functions helps you with extensibility and interoperability in Zoho CRM. You can extend the email parser function to more than one module within Zoho CRM, and even to connect with other Zoho services. You can also perform ad-hoc actions in third party applications based on the parsed data.

  • For example, based on an incoming email enquiry, a property management company called Zylker wishes to update both Contact and Account records in CRM. The name of the email sender, their phone number and address will go to the Contacts module, whereas their company information should go to the Accounts module.
  • The same company has another requirement — based on an incoming email from customer regarding the status of their property, they want to update corresponding information on a third party listing website automatically. They can achieve this via email parser using custom functions.
Once you have the required custom functions written, you can associate them to the parser rule and have the action executed for subsequent incoming emails.

4) Update Record and Send for Approval

Update Record is a function using which you can update the latest information on a record from an incoming parsed email.


For example, say you receive an incoming email from a prospect called Jane Evans. Normally, a new lead record would be created for a new enquiry email but, if Jane is already in the CRM system, you want the CRM to update Jane's information on the same record as opposed to creating a duplicate record. If this is your expectation, you may check the Update Record option in the Advanced Configuration settings of the parser rule.

Note:
CRM will use the email field to detect duplicate records. For the Update Record option to show up, you must have first mapped the "Email" field from the email content, which serves as the primary identifier or a "unique field" for a record.

You can also choose the Send for Approval option, in which case, records parsed via email parser need to be reviewed and approved from the Waiting for Approval tab in the selected module in order to become a part of the CRM system.

5) Informative parser reports

In the new version of email parser, you are presented with accurate, detailed insights on the number of emails being parsed per rule, the fields extracted and a list of customized actions associated to the records created via the parser. This summary of details gives you a clear picture of how effective your rules have been and indicates the revisions you may need to make to those rules based on the insights.

Detailed weekly performance reports can be sent to the creator of these rules or a custom email ID. Email reports are also sent on record creation failure, so that immediate action can be taken by the users.


6) Reorder and filter

You now have an option to reorder the list of parser rules based on order of preference. This is important because, the email parser system is designed to execute only the very first rule whose criteria is met by an incoming email. Therefore the order of the parser rules becomes essential for effective performance email parser.

 
You can also filter rules by status (active/inactive) and also by module.

7) Contextual access to parsed emails

While on the one hand, you can view Configuration Info for each parser rule, on the other hand, you can also view insights based on emails that are parsed.




This way, both from the angle of parser rules and parsed emails, you are presented with useful insights.

An "Email" tab, lists the most recent email in your parser inbox, where you can check properties like parsing status, rule parsed with, and more. If the email has not met any rule, you may also create a new parser rule contextually from this email page.


You can also re-run an email in the event of parser failure if there's no match found.You can also parse emails in bulk. (Note that this is applicable only for the emails that have a template match and the parsing was unsuccessful.)

These are some of the key highlights of the new and improved email parser. We encourage you to try this and offer your feedback. We'd also like to reassure you that upon switching to the new parser, your old parser rules will be intact, there will be no hassles. There will be no data loss— your old parser rules will continue to bring in emails and corresponding data to CRM.

Please note:

  • While this new version of email parser will become the default version over a period of time, as of now, the old and new versions will co-exist.
  • This is an early-access release. In a few more weeks, as we get closer to public launch of the new version, we will keep you posted regarding details about EOL of the old version. Watch this space for updates.

Further Reading

Help Doc: Click here
What's New and What has Changed — A comparison guide: Click here
Request access to the new version: Register Now

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to let us know by commenting below. We look forward to receiving your requests and feedback! 

    Access your files securely from anywhere







                          Zoho Developer Community






                                                • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                • Digest


                                                • Functions


                                                • Meetups


                                                • Kbase


                                                • Resources


                                                • Glossary


                                                • Desk Marketplace


                                                • MVP Corner


                                                • Word of the Day


                                                • Ask the Experts





                                                          Manage your brands on social media



                                                                Zoho TeamInbox Resources



                                                                    Zoho CRM Plus Resources

                                                                      Zoho Books Resources


                                                                        Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                                                                          Zoho Projects Resources


                                                                            Zoho Sprints Resources


                                                                              Qntrl Resources


                                                                                Zoho Creator Resources



                                                                                    Zoho CRM Resources

                                                                                    • CRM Community Learning Series

                                                                                      CRM Community Learning Series


                                                                                    • Kaizen

                                                                                      Kaizen

                                                                                    • Functions

                                                                                      Functions

                                                                                    • Meetups

                                                                                      Meetups

                                                                                    • Kbase

                                                                                      Kbase

                                                                                    • Resources

                                                                                      Resources

                                                                                    • Digest

                                                                                      Digest

                                                                                    • CRM Marketplace

                                                                                      CRM Marketplace

                                                                                    • MVP Corner

                                                                                      MVP Corner







                                                                                        Design. Discuss. Deliver.

                                                                                        Create visually engaging stories with Zoho Show.

                                                                                        Get Started Now


                                                                                          Zoho Show Resources


                                                                                            Zoho Writer Writer

                                                                                            Get Started. Write Away!

                                                                                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                                                                                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ




                                                                                                Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


                                                                                                    ご検討中の方




                                                                                                          • Recent Topics

                                                                                                          • Automation Assistance for Zoho Form Integration and Workflow

                                                                                                            Hi, We are currently using a Zoho Form to send out our Global Credit Application and would like to automate the process further. Specifically, we’d like the ABN number submitted through the form to automatically populate the GST/VAT Number field in Zoho
                                                                                                          • COQL does not return queryable value if the result set is empty

                                                                                                            See linked video for running code illustration of the problem: https://workdrive.zohoexternal.com/external/d49bb40033b43b288d56fdf843095b7c65b28391d3ec5d09c854f416d853003d Moderation update: We are appending the comment that was removed, to add context
                                                                                                          • Zoho CRMでの商談の管理のしかたについて初歩的な質問です。

                                                                                                            先月からZoho CRMを試験的に導入して運用しています。 商談の管理(運用?)の仕方について教えてください。 商談の数が増えてくると、ダッシュボードの「ステージ別進捗状況」にどんどん過去の商談が蓄積されてくると思うのですが、 現在動きのあるものを中心に確認したくなる気がします。 そのあたりについては、どのように運用が一般的なのでしょうか? アドバイスいただけるととてもありがたいです。 よろしくお願いします。
                                                                                                          • Composite Items & Purchase Orders

                                                                                                            The Composite Item is great way to bundle different products and services into a single line and sell it as a single line item in Estimates, Sales Orders and Invoices. However, on the other side - i,e,. Purchasing - this item creates quite a bit of a
                                                                                                          • using custom function is it possible to update the created by field in Zoho Crm custom module

                                                                                                            using custom function is it possible to update the created by field in Zoho Crm custom module
                                                                                                          • Slow Sloww Slowwww Responses

                                                                                                            Good day, Has anyone been experiencing slow responses from support? Since Thursday I migrated my Whats app to Sales Iq and I had to synch with Social to get the otp they were sending. Apparently What's app can't be automatically added so I reached out
                                                                                                          • You have exceeded the maximum number of attempts for this action. Please retry doing the same in 30 minutes.

                                                                                                            When one of Zoho Books user tries to select a vendor, recording a new bill, these message appears: You have exceeded the maximum number of attempts for this action. Please retry doing the same in 30 minutes. Other user, at the same time, but different
                                                                                                          • Enable Conversation Context Retention for SalesIQ Answer Bots

                                                                                                            Hello Zoho SalesIQ Team, We hope you are doing well. We have noticed that SalesIQ bots currently fail to maintain conversation context in Hebrew. For example, when we follow up on a previous answer or ask for clarification in Hebrew, the bot either provides
                                                                                                          • Automatic Hebrew Small Talk Setup Without Duplicate Term Errors & Manual Configuration

                                                                                                            Dear Zoho SalesIQ Team, Greetings, We would like to request an enhancement to the Small Talk feature in Zoho SalesIQ, specifically for Hebrew language support. Current Challenge: When setting up Small Talk for Hebrew, we encounter multiple issues: Simple
                                                                                                          • Should I Add Leads in Bigin?

                                                                                                            ok, first off I'm new here. I just started using Bigin. I'm debating if it's appropriate to enter leads. by leads I mean a list of contacts that I have not yet reached out to...it's a cold calling list.  if I enter them I can track them (I understand
                                                                                                          • Zoho Books - Perform a validation check before an invoice is marked as sent or sent

                                                                                                            Allow the validation rules to apply to button actions. For example: an invoice could not be sent or marked as sent if it has an empty value in a custom field. (The field could remain blank while it is being worked on.)
                                                                                                          • Flow error "given url is wrong"

                                                                                                            when I setup a flow to update a task status, I get an error when it runs that says "given url is wrong."
                                                                                                          • Upgrade Zoho Desk Agent-Side Answer Bot to GenAI

                                                                                                            Hello Zoho Desk Team, We hope you're doing well. Following the recent announcements and rollout of the GenAI-based Answer Bot in Zoho SalesIQ (Nova '25), we’d like to formally request a similar upgrade for the Answer Bot used by agents inside Zoho Desk.
                                                                                                          • Bigin Android app update: Email filters enhancement, change owner for related records.

                                                                                                            Hello, everyone! In the most recent Bigin Android app update, we have introduced additional email filters and an option to change the owner of related records. Email filters: We have now brought in support for 'All Emails' and 'Added from Widgets' filter
                                                                                                          • How can I get all conversations and comments of a Zoho Desk ticket using ZOHODESK

                                                                                                            Hi everyone, Currently, I am developing a Zoho Desk extension, and I am following the guide available at https://www.zoho.com/desk/extensions/guide/#ticket-object. While working with Zoho Desk, I have noticed that I can only retrieve the general information
                                                                                                          • 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
                                                                                                          • Workdrive and ChatGPT Team Synced Connectors

                                                                                                            Hi, we want to be able to integrate Zoho Workdrive with OpenAI’s ChatGPT Team plan. Google Drive and OneDrive both offer this, zoho please catch up asap. We dont want to have to put our company files in google drive, we want to allow chatgpt Team edition
                                                                                                          • widget url 404'ing

                                                                                                            I'm creating a widget for the first time. When I grab the url from the base url section of the widget builder and append /widget.html it 404's Just wrote a very basic test. I have a folder structure app.zip - widget.html --js/app.js /widget.html <!DOCTYPE
                                                                                                          • Unable to Edit Pick-List Items in Custom Project Field(s)

                                                                                                            I can edit most fields normally, but if I try to edit - in any way - a Pick List field, I just get this error: To be perfectly clear, I'm trying to edit an existing Pick List field (adding or removing items), not adding a new instance. If I rename it,
                                                                                                          • How to display results from zoho.crm.searchRecords in message window

                                                                                                            Hello, I've created a custom function which is linked to a custom button which pulls a date from our contacts module and searches a date field in our quotes module and returns all records matching the date. My issue is, how to I get this to display the
                                                                                                          • Domain Transfer

                                                                                                            Hello there! I wanted to know if I can transfer my domain from Zoho to other hosting providers or use a different hosting provider instead of zoho's services.
                                                                                                          • Select CRM Custom Module in Zoho Creator

                                                                                                            I have a custom module added in Zoho CRM that I would like to link in Zoho creator.  When I add the Zoho CRM field it does not show the new module.  Is this possible?  Do i need to change something in CRM to make it accesible in Creator?
                                                                                                          • New User - Opening Stock Aging Report

                                                                                                            I am setting up new client and am entering Opening Stock - created items and entered quantity/price details. Now the aging report is showing all the opening stock as new. How do I enter the Purchase Dates of these items so that I get accurate Inventory
                                                                                                          • Bulk Receive Multiple Purchase Orders

                                                                                                            Is there a feature or function that will allow you to bulk receive issued purchase orders? I have about 100 that need to be received from 5 years ago.
                                                                                                          • Manual Invoice

                                                                                                            How to create a Manual invoice, I need to enter Amount directly instead of (qty*Rate). our company is a service sector
                                                                                                          • Effective Inbox Organization: Folders vs Tags in Zoho Mail?

                                                                                                            I'm exploring the best ways to organize a busy inbox, especially when managing multiple clients or project using Zoho Mail. I’d love to know what works best for others: 1. Do you prefer **folders** (possibly with sub-folders) for each client or project?
                                                                                                          • Merging contacts and or accounts

                                                                                                            Hello, In a prior CRM we were able to merge contacts and or accounts.  We have turned on the function to stop multiple contacts with the same email, so we can prevent multiple contacts from happening, however, we now have multiple contacts that have the
                                                                                                          • Capture Reason for absence next to Campaign Member Status. Is there a reasonable workaround?

                                                                                                            I've reviewed the topics I could find to do with this but still couldn't find anything that satisfies our requirements: We would like to track a *reason* (picklist or text, doesn't matter which) why a Campaign Member (Lead or Contact associated with a
                                                                                                          • Zoho Learning Management System - Certificate Upload by Employees

                                                                                                            We are planning to enroll employees in courses which are hosted by coursera or similar sites. I want to share the links of those courses and also want employees to upload their completion certificate once they are done. Is this function possible in
                                                                                                          • Add RTL and Hebrew Support for Candidate Portal (and Other Zoho Recruit Portals)

                                                                                                            Dear Zoho Recruit Team, I hope you're doing well. We would like to request the ability to set the Candidate Portal to be Right-to-Left (RTL) and in Hebrew, similar to the existing functionality for the Career Site. Currently, when we set the Career Site
                                                                                                          • Button or Links order

                                                                                                            Is there a way to re-order the buttons or links that are created?
                                                                                                          • 'Pin' notes, so that specific ones are always visible at the top of the 'notes' tab.

                                                                                                            It doesn't appear Bigin has the functionality to 'pin' a note to then have it always show at the top of the notes tab section of a record. Often times we have a large number of records, but key information we may want to have easily visible to all at
                                                                                                          • Request for Subform Support in Zoho CRM Webforms

                                                                                                            Hi Team, I hope you're doing well. I would like to bring to your attention that currently, Zoho CRM Webforms do not support Subforms, which limits our ability to send forms that mirror the actual structure used within Zoho CRM. This feature is extremely
                                                                                                          • Formatting Mailing Labels

                                                                                                            I want to use the "Print Mailing Labels" function on the drop down list, but I am not seeing a way to change the formatting on the mailing labels. At the moment, the information that appears on the mailing labels ARE NOT mailing addresses, but random
                                                                                                          • Maxima Address on FSM Customer

                                                                                                            Im trying to add probably 50 customers from one company but couldn't make it since it has limit..how do i add the limit?
                                                                                                          • How to Track Inventory Usage from Zoho FSM to Zoho Inventory?

                                                                                                            Hi everyone, We’re currently working on integrating Zoho FSM with Zoho Inventory, and we’ve encountered a challenge we’re hoping the community can help us understand better. Here’s the context: When we create a Work Order in Zoho FSM that involves parts
                                                                                                          • View subform entries without viewing a record in Zoho CRM | Kiosk Studio Session #8

                                                                                                            In a nutshell Have you ever wanted to take a quick peek at a record's subform? Examples might be invoiced items in an invoice, ordered items in a sales order, or purchased items in a purchase order. Let's say you're viewing your list of invoices in Zoho
                                                                                                          • Transforma tu Inventario: Control Inteligente y Funciones Clave en Zoho Inventory (Spanish Webinar)

                                                                                                            ¿Tu empresa necesita mayor trazabilidad y control en almacenes? Conoce cómo gestionar tu inventario con eficiencia y automatización... ¡y descubre las sorpresas que trae Zoho Analytics! Participa en nuestro webinar gratuito en español, este 19 de agosto
                                                                                                          • Dashlane discontinued its free plan: Here's why Zoho Vault's free plan is worth the switch

                                                                                                            Hey everyone, Dashlane password manager has officially announced that its free plan will be discontinued starting September 16, 2025. This change means that current free users will need to either upgrade to a paid subscription or export their data and
                                                                                                          • Mails are not being sent from custom Deluge function

                                                                                                            We are having troubles to implement sending Invoices / Sales_Orders etc. automatically using following deluge script: attachment_template_id = "aaaa"; record_id = "bbbb"; mail_template_id = "cccc"; //NEW aproach fileUrl = "https://www.zohoapis.com/crm/v8/settings/inventory_templates/"
                                                                                                          • Next Page