Extension pointers #10: Define and raise a signal to receive timely notifications in Zoho CRM

Extension pointers #10: Define and raise a signal to receive timely notifications in Zoho CRM

Customer relationship management is a significant factor involved in the success of a business. When interaction with customers at all touch points is properly targeted, customers are satisfied and business flourishes. This makes it a necessity to stay updated about your customer interactions.

The Signals feature in Zoho CRM provides real-time notifications, helping you keep track of all your customer interactions from different channels in a single platform. It supports actionable alerts, so you can respond to notifications instantly and resolve them right away. Signals also enable alerts from integrated third-party apps to simplify the process of handling multiple applications. You can build customized notifications for different events and keep track of them in your Zoho CRM account.

Suppose a Zoho CRM user plans to pull their prospects from Zoho Desk, their customer support solution. Let's consider a possible scenario they might face and look at the solution.

Say that whenever a new customer/contact is added under the type "Prospect" in Zoho Desk, it is pushed into the Leads module of Zoho CRM. Once it's there, the sales rep needs to be notified that there's a new lead to process. The sales rep will also want to be able to visit the lead source page (in this case, the Zoho Desk page where the customer was created) to view the complete lead details.

In order to implement this solution, the Zoho Developer platform provides a feature called Signals. Creating a signal on the platform involves two major steps:
  • Defining a signal
  • Raising a signal
Now let's look at the steps in detail.

Defining a signal

In order to receive Signal notifications in Zoho CRM, it is necessary to create a signal.
  • Log in to Zoho Sigma, then go to the Extension Details page.
  • Expand the Automate options under Build in the left panel of the Zoho Developer console, and choose Signals.
  • Click Define Signal.

  • Enter the name for the signal and choose an icon for it. Click Save.

  • The signal is now defined and a namespace is auto-generated for it.


Registering a webhook request and raising a signal

In our example, Zoho Desk sends an alert to Zoho CRM, so it is necessary to register a webhook. The webhook posts a callback request whenever a new customer with type "Prospect" is added in Zoho Desk. The response from Zoho Desk will be handled via a REST API function. Using the response data, we can push the lead to Zoho CRM and raise a signal. Now, let's see how.

     1. Establishing a connection between Zoho CRM and Zoho Desk
  • Create a connector between the two applications.
  • Add the CreateWebhook API with the parameters specified by Zoho Desk. Learn about connectors.

API Name
Method
URL
CreateWebhook
POST

Refer to the Zoho Desk API documentation for the header and body parameter specifications of the API. 
  • After creating the connector and adding the APIs, publish and associate the connector with the extension. 
     2. Defining a REST API function and raising a signal
A webhook needs to be created to receive real-time notifications from Zoho Desk. But before creating the webhook, you need to define a REST API function that will provide the subscription URL parameter required to construct the CreateWebhook API.
  • Expand the Automate options under Build in the left panel of the Zoho Developer console, and choose Functions.
  • Provide a name for the function and choose Yes for Invoke as REST API. Click Next.
  • Enter the code for the function.

Code snippet
crmAPIRequestMap = crmAPIRequest.toMap();
request_body = crmAPIRequestMap.get("body");
data = Map();
leadsource = "";
for each item in request_body
{
payload = item.get("payload");
firstname = payload.get("firstName");
lastname = payload.get("lastName");
type = payload.get("type");
email = payload.get("email");
title = payload.get("title");
leadsource = payload.get("webUrl"); 
if(type == "Prospect")
{
data.putAll({"First_Name":firstname,"Last_Name":lastname,"Email":email,"Designation":title,"Lead_Source":"Zoho Desk"});
resp = zoho.crm.createRecord("Leads",data);
}
}
signalMap = Map();
signalMap.put("signal_namespace","desksynccrmsignal__testsignal");
signalMap.put("email",data.get("Email"));
signalMap.put("subject","New Notification");
signalMap.put("message","A new lead from Zoho Desk");
actionsList = List();
actionMap = Map();
actionMap.put("type","link");
actionMap.put("display_name","Lead Source");
actionMap.put("url",leadsource);
actionsList.add(actionMap);
signalMap.put("actions",actionsList);
//Raising a signal
sigResp = zoho.crm.invokeConnector("raisesignal",signalMap);
return "";

  • In the code snippet, the response from Zoho Desk is obtained through the input variable of "signalfunction", crmAPIRequest. The required parameters are retrieved from the response and pushed as a new lead into the Lead module if the customer type is "Prospect." A signal map variable is created and the required specifications to raise a signal are assigned to it. In our example, we have also included an actionable item, a lead source URL. When clicked, it will redirect to the Zoho Desk page of the newly created lead, indicating its source and holding its complete details. Finally, the raisesignal task is invoked in order to raise the signal whenever a new lead is created from Zoho Desk.
  • After the code is defined, click Invoke as REST API. The sandbox URL obtained is used for locally testing the functionality in the sandbox environment. Meanwhile, the production URL is used as the subscription URL while creating a webhook.

  • Close the Invoke function dialog box. Click Save & Close to save the function. 
    3. Creating a webhook
Now that we have obtained the subscription URL, let's go ahead and create a webhook. We have chosen to create a webhook during the authorization of the connector.
  • Expand the Install Actions options under Build in the left panel of the Zoho Developer console, and choose Connectors.
  • Enter the code for creating a webhook under the On Authorization tab. Click Save to Connector.

m = {"nameSpace":"xxx.desksynccrmsignal"};
apikeyresp = zoho.crm.invokeConnector("crm.zapikey",m);
zapikey = apikeyresp.get("response");
dynamic_map = Map();
dynamic_map.put("url",subscription_url);
resp = zoho.crm.invokeConnector("desksynccrmsignal.deskconnector.createwebhook",dynamic_map);

  • In the code snippet above, the subscription URL obtained from the REST API function is constructed as a parameter for the CreateWebhook API. The ZAPI key value required for the subscription URL is fetched and passed to the URL. Finally the Create Webhook API is invoked and the webhook is created. 
  • After a new customer is added to Zoho Desk with the type "Prospect," a signal is raised in Zoho CRM and the customer is added as a lead in the Lead module.

  • On clicking the notification symbol, the signal appears, along with the subject. On further clicking the SalesSignal region, the details contained in the signal are displayed along with a link pointing to the lead source.

  • On clicking the lead source link, the user is redirected to the Zoho Desk page.


You can further modify the functionality of the signal based on your business requirements. Hope you found this information useful! For more extension tips, keep following this space.


Next>>

    Access your files securely from anywhere








                            Zoho Developer Community



                                Bootcamp
                                Community
                                Pricing
                                Webinars
                                What's New
                                Integrations
                                Contact Support
                                Contact Sales
                                  Zoho Survey Resources
                                    Features
                                    Survey Templates
                                    Integrations
                                    Community
                                    iOS Mobile Surveys
                                    Pricing
                                    Android Mobile Surveys
                                    Insurvey Blogs
                                    Insight Blogs
                                    Tips & Tricks





                                                Latest Feature Updates

                                                  • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                  • Digest


                                                  • Functions


                                                  • Meetups


                                                  • Kbase


                                                  • Resources


                                                  • Glossary


                                                  • Desk Marketplace


                                                  • MVP Corner


                                                  • Word of the Day


                                                  • Ask the Experts




                                                      Zoho SalesIQ Resources

                                                            • Sticky Posts

                                                            • Kaizen #217 - Actions APIs : Tasks

                                                              Welcome to another week of Kaizen! In last week's post we discussed Email Notifications APIs which act as the link between your Workflow automations and you. We have discussed how Zylker Cloud Services uses Email Notifications API in their custom dashboard.

                                                            • Kaizen #216 - Actions APIs : Email Notifications

                                                              Welcome to another week of Kaizen! For the last three weeks, we have been discussing Zylker's workflows. We successfully updated a dormant workflow, built a new one from the ground up and more. But our work is not finished—these automated processes are

                                                            • Kaizen #152 - Client Script Support for the new Canvas Record Forms

                                                              Hello everyone! Have you ever wanted to trigger actions on click of a canvas button, icon, or text mandatory forms in Create/Edit and Clone Pages? Have you ever wanted to control how elements behave on the new Canvas Record Forms? This can be achieved

                                                            • Kaizen #142: How to Navigate to Another Page in Zoho CRM using Client Script

                                                              Hello everyone! Welcome back to another exciting Kaizen post. In this post, let us see how you can you navigate to different Pages using Client Script. In this Kaizen post, Need to Navigate to different Pages Client Script ZDKs related to navigation A.

                                                            • Kaizen #210 - Answering your Questions | Event Management System using ZDK CLI

                                                              Hello Everyone, Welcome back to yet another post in the Kaizen Series! As you already may know, for the Kaizen #200 milestone, we asked for your feedback and many of you suggested topics for us to discuss. We have been writing on these topics over the


                                                            Manage your brands on social media
                                                            Access Zoho Social

                                                              Zoho Pagesense Resources


                                                                  Zoho TeamInbox Resources

                                                                    Zoho DataPrep 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

                                                                                              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

                                                                                                              • Introducing SecureForms in Zoho Vault

                                                                                                                Hey everyone, Let’s face it—asking someone to send over a password or other sensitive data is rarely straightforward. You wait. You nudge. You follow up once, twice—maybe more. And when the information finally arrives, it shows up in the worst possible

                                                                                                              • Clickjacking: Zoho Vault's Response

                                                                                                                Issue: Password manager browser extensions are found to be vulnerable to clickjacking security vulnerabilities that could allow attackers to steal account credentials, TFA codes, and card details under certain conditions. Reported by: Marek Toth, Independent

                                                                                                              • Free webinar: Security that works: Building resilience for the AI-powered workforce

                                                                                                                Hello there, Did you know that more than 51% of organizations worldwide have experienced one or more security breaches, each costing over $1 million in losses or incident response? In today’s threat landscape, simply playing defense is no longer enough.

                                                                                                              • Free webinar—Redefining workforce security with Zoho Vault: Passwords, passkeys, and multi-factor authentication

                                                                                                                Hi everyone! Did you know that in Q2 alone, 94 million data records were leaked globally? Behind every breach is a combination of poor password habits, phishing attacks, privilege misuse, and simple human error. The fallout—including reputational damage,

                                                                                                              • Fill Colors

                                                                                                                Hello, Just curious, is it possible to manage the Used and standard colors in the fill drop down menu ? I would like to change/edit them is possible to colors I frequently use. Thanks for you reply, Bruce

                                                                                                              • Client scripts for Zoho Books ?

                                                                                                                Good day everyone, I am looking for a way to be able to interact with the Quotes and Invoices as they are being created. Think of it like Zoho client script in Zoho CRM. But for the life of me I dont see a way to do this. The issue with having function

                                                                                                              • Fillable template with dynamic tables?

                                                                                                                Is there a way to build a fillable template so that users can add rows to a table? To describe what I'm trying to accomplish the table has 3 sections; a header row, some number of rows with custom information, and a summary row with totals. I can't figure

                                                                                                              • Invoicing multiple expense items as a single line item

                                                                                                                      My client would like me to invoice them for multiple expense items on a single line item on an invoice.  Can this be done?  I know I can import billable expenses to an invoice, but I don't know how to show them as a single line item or have them

                                                                                                              • Need a Universal Search Option in Zohobooks

                                                                                                                Hello Zoho, Need a Universal Search Option in Zohobooks to search across all transactions in our books of accounts. Please do the needful Thanks

                                                                                                              • Tables improvement ideas / features

                                                                                                                Heya, I've been using Zoho Tables for a few months now and wanted to post some features that I think will be greatly beneficial for the tool: 1. Ability to delete a record in automation or move a record in automation. - Usecase: I move a record from one

                                                                                                              • Announcing offline payment modes for event tickets

                                                                                                                Hello everyone,   Collecting ticket payments from prospective attendees can be a tricky part of event planning. While Zoho Backstage has always allowed you to collect payments online as people buy tickets from your event microsite, we have now enabled

                                                                                                              • Gmail is ramping up its email sender policy from November 2025

                                                                                                                Hello marketers, As you may be aware, Gmail introduced a guideline for bulk senders starting February 2024. If not, here's a quick refresher straight from Google: After this policy was announced first in 2023 and soft-implemented in February 2024, we

                                                                                                              • Deluge Error Code 1002 - "Resource does not exist."

                                                                                                                I am using the following script in a Custom Button on a Sales Return. Basically, the function takes the information in the sales return (plus the arguments that are entered by the user when the button is pushed) and creates a return shipping label via

                                                                                                              • Is there a list of Zoho Icons?

                                                                                                                Is there a list of Zoho Icons you can reference: i.e. business-gold is <image marginRight='7px' color='#2A70E7' bgColor='#FFFFFF' width='52px' height='52px' type='icon' value='business-gold' size='24px' cornerRadius='26px' iconType='solid' /> Thanks!

                                                                                                              • Item images

                                                                                                                Can we get an "On hover" expanded image for items please ?

                                                                                                              • Ability to Create and Manage YouTube Video Chapters in Zoho Social

                                                                                                                Hi Zoho Social Team, How are you? We would like to request an enhancement to Zoho Social that would allow users to create and manage YouTube video chapters directly within the platform. Currently, Zoho Social does not support manually adding chapters

                                                                                                              • What happens to my current site SEO if i opt for zoho creator?

                                                                                                                I have an existing website and I need to use Zoho creators for the rapid creation of my webpage creation. Currently, my IT team is creating the web pages, but I am concerned about the SEO of my current website if I shift to zoho will i loose it all?

                                                                                                              • Preview Emails with Merge Fields before sending

                                                                                                                Hello, Are there plans to preview an email with merge fields before sending out? Currently, all you see in the preview are the merge field values, but before I send out the email I want to make sure the merge is working. Also, the saved emails only show

                                                                                                              • User Filter not selecting All Items

                                                                                                                We are encountering 2 issues when using the user filter. When users are trying to search using the filter option, the OK button is grayed out. Users have to unselect or make a change before it filters properly. 2. When filtering and the OK button works,

                                                                                                              • Support Nested JavaScript Variables in PageSense Pop-up Targeting

                                                                                                                Hello Zoho PageSense Team, I hope you're doing well. I’d like to request a feature enhancement for the PageSense pop-up targeting functionality. Current Limitation: Currently, PageSense pop-ups can be triggered using simple JavaScript variables. However,

                                                                                                              • Cannot Invert Axis for Rankings

                                                                                                                Hi there I want to be able to create a ranking graph in Analytics/BI, with 1 at the top of the Y axis, but I am unable to invert the axis. Super simple example in Excel below. Higher rankings need to be higher up on the graph to give the correct visual

                                                                                                              • How to copy value from a single line field into a picklist field within a module's subform?

                                                                                                                Hello there, I have a single line field in a module's subform. I would like the value in the field to automatically update a picklist field within the same subform (both have items with the same names). Is this possible via function? Unfortunately, workflows

                                                                                                              • Committed Stock and To Be Received Stock via API?

                                                                                                                Is it possible to retrieve Committed Stock and/or To Be Received Stock for an Item via the API? I want to use this information for calculating the amount of inventory needed to be purchased.

                                                                                                              • Creating Email template that attaches file uploaded in specific field.

                                                                                                                If there's a way to do this using Zoho CRM's built-in features, then this has eluded me! I'm looking to create a workflow that automatically sends an email upon execution, and that email includes an attachment uploaded in a specific field. Email templates

                                                                                                              • Marketer’s Space - Automate a Personalized Holiday Workflow with Zoho Campaigns

                                                                                                                Hello marketers, Welcome back to another post in Marketer’s Space! From Thanksgiving through Christmas, you have a flurry of opportunities to connect with your audience. In this post, we’ll see how you can plan an entire month-long automated workflow

                                                                                                              • Service Account Admin for API Calls and System Actions

                                                                                                                Hello, I would like to request the addition of a Service Account Admin option in Zoho product. This feature would allow API calls and system actions to be performed on behalf of the system, rather than an active user. Current Issue: At present, API calls

                                                                                                              • Sorting columns in Zoho Projects

                                                                                                                Hi, In project management best practice, sorting columns (ascending, descending) is an important tool. Sorting dates to see the order of tasks starting, sorting on priority or even on planned hours is a must for an efficient project control. Currently,

                                                                                                              • Zoho CRM - Calendar Cards View - Let Users Decide What Is Displayed On Calendar Entries

                                                                                                                Imagine planning your week of face-to-face meetings across three counties. You’re trying to group appointments by location to make the best use of your time, but Zoho CRM’s calendar doesn’t show where each meeting is happening. You’re left trying to remember

                                                                                                              • Zoho Inventory - How to pay a supplier up front then receive multiple deliveries

                                                                                                                How do we manage situations where we pay a supplier up front, then the receive the products in increments? Example Workflow: Create Purchase Order > Receive Bill for full amount > Receive Items 2 or more deliveries. Currently, once a Bill is created against

                                                                                                              • How can I add or change the active customer in Zoho Projects?

                                                                                                                I'm trying to change the customer in an active Zoho project. Is it possible to add or change the customer?

                                                                                                              • What happens when someone clicks 'unsubscribe' in a zoho CRM email

                                                                                                                Hello, As per, i am going round in circles trying to find an answer to these 2 question. I have an email template that has an unsubscribe link in the footer in zoho CRM. First, what happens when someone clicks it - where does the contact get unsubscribed

                                                                                                              • Zoho CRM - Scheduled Reports Which Contain Chart

                                                                                                                Hi Zoho CRM Team, I'm requesting that the Report Export and Scheduling feature be enhanced to include a chart, if one has been created on a report. At the moment I have a report which shows Sales This Week by Deal Owner and a pie chart at the top of the

                                                                                                              • Can I add Conditional merge tags on my Templates?

                                                                                                                Hi I was wondering if I can use Conditional Mail Merge tags inside my Email templates/Quotes etc within the CRM? In spanish and in our business we use gender and academic degree salutations , ie: Dr., Dra., Sr., Srta., so the beginning of an email / letter

                                                                                                              • Cadences

                                                                                                                I have just started using Cadences for follow-up up email pipeline. Is it just me or do you find the functionality very basic? For example, it will tell me (if I go looking for it) if someone has replied to a follow-up and been unenrolled; but it won't

                                                                                                              • Canvas View in Zoho Recruit

                                                                                                                Is it possible or would it be possible to have the new 'Canvas View' in Zoho Recruit?

                                                                                                              • Zoho Inventory - Move Orders

                                                                                                                Quick question about Move Orders... Why is there no status to say something like "Draft", "In Progress" and "Completed", similar to Transfer Orders? I'm assuming that when something needs to be moved it should be planned in Inventory, executed and then

                                                                                                              • Kaizen #215 - Workflow APIs - Part 3 - Create and Update Workflow Rules

                                                                                                                Welcome back to another week of Kaizen! Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve joined Zylker Cloud Services as they review and improve their workflows. In Part 1, we discovered and audited their sprawling workflow landscape. In Part 2, we learned how to

                                                                                                              • DataPrep Bigquery Connection failed

                                                                                                                Hello everybody, I want to create a connnection beetwen Bigquery and Dataprep but when I try to connect my project I got this error Loading tables has failed. Table list fetched from the data source expired.

                                                                                                              • Utilisation de Zoho en conformité avec l’article 286 du Code général des impôts (CGI)

                                                                                                                Cher(e) client(e), Conformément à l’article 286 du Code général des impôts (CGI) impose aux entreprises assujetties à la TVA d’utiliser des systèmes de caisse ou de gestion commerciale certifiés lorsqu’elles enregistrent des ventes à des particuliers.

                                                                                                              • Issue in Zoho People Regularization – Incorrect Hour Calculation

                                                                                                                I have noticed that when applying attendance regularization in Zoho People for previous dates, the total working hours are not calculated correctly. For example, even if the check-in is 10:00 AM and check-out is 6:00 PM, the system shows an incorrect

                                                                                                              • Next Page