Extension pointers #14: Extend end-user benefits and allow personalization by implementing extensions with custom actions
From our earlier post on custom actions, we know that we can create templated actions, share them with end users, and allow them to reuse those actions to achieve personalized outcomes. In this post, we'll look at how custom actions make it easy for users to carry out these templated tasks to get customized results.
Consider the following scenario: a hardware company that already uses Zoho CRM then utilizes Zoho Projects to implement and work on the deals they've won. Assume that the Zoho Projects portal has two projects: one for handling smaller revenue deals that require minimum development and less time, and the other for managing larger revenue dealsthat will eventually demand more time and resources for execution.
As an end user processing deals in Zoho CRM, it would be extremely convenient for the company to have the deals automatically fall into the appropriate projects, such as a task based on the expected revenue. Furthermore, it would be ideal to send emails to the customer with whom they have made the deal to request anything needed from their end in order to move forward with the implementation of the deal. Let's see how we can achieve this with the help of custom actions.
We have detailed posts on the steps to create a custom action along with a live example. Now, let's reiterate and go over the steps to achieving the above use case.
Developer activities
1. Create a connector for Zoho Projects.
2. Create a custom user interface (widget-connected app) that allows the user to select the project where the deal should be created as a task, as well as add the personalized email subject and body that will be sent to the user.
3. Create a custom action in the Zoho Developer console.
- Associate the custom user interface to the custom action.
- Define an action that creates a task in the selected project and also sends an email to the customer based on the values entered by the end user in the custom UI.
Extension/end-user activities
4. Create workflows as an end-user (i.e., set criteria on expected revenue; provide personalized values for email subject and body, and choose the project in which the deal fulfilling the set criteria should be created as a task) and assign a custom action to them.
Developer activities
1. Creating a connector
- Create a new connector in your extension for Zoho Projects using the Connectors feature under Utilities in the left panel of the Zoho Developer console.
Note: Zoho Projects follows the OAuth 2.0 protocol for its authentication mechanism. You can refer to this post to learn more about the steps to register Zoho Projects and retrieve your client credentials.
- Add the necessary connector APIs for your functionality.
- The Zoho Projects REST APIs added for our example are mentioned below.
Connector API Name | Method type | URL |
Get Projects | GET | https://projectsapi.zoho.com/restapi/portal/${portalid}/projects/ |
Create project task | POST | https://projectsapi.zoho.com/restapi/portal/${portalid}/projects/${projectid}/tasks/?name=${name}&description=${description} |
2. Create a custom user interface:
1. Create a custom user interface that allows the end user to select the project in which they want to create the deal as a task, as well as enter the email subject and body that should be sent to the contact associated with the deal.
2. You can find the HTML code for the custom UI as an attachment to the post.
- In the HTML code, we have two text fields to get the user inputs for the email subject and body.
- We have also invoked the connector API to get projects from a portal. The response is then populated and displayed as a dropdown list to allow the user to select the project in which they want the deal to be created as a task.
- In the HTML code snippet, we have hard coded a static value for the Zoho Projects portal.
Note: Depending on your business use case requirements, you can create custom variables to prompt the user to input their Zoho Project portal ID, or you can create a setting widget that displays the user's portals, allowing the user to choose the portal in which they want to have the deals created as tasks as well.
- ZOHO.CRM.ACTION.setConfig - In this example, we have utilized the setConfig method. This method can be used to set values to variables which can be retrieved later through the widget's page load response.
➤ For our example, we have used the setConfig method to set various Zoho CRM deal and email (subject and body) user input values to variables. We have later obtained these saved values through the widget's page load response, which contains a configdata key with these set data as its values.➤ Sample page load response when ZOHO.CRM.ACTION.setConfig is used in our example:
"module": "Deals", "configdata": { DealTest: "Sample Digital Marketing Project" Dealdescription: "${!Deals.Description}" Dealname: "${!Deals.Deal_Name}" Message: "Sample Message" Subject: "Deal Won!" To: "${!Deals.Contact_Name.Email}" |
➤ We have then used the preset saved values available in the configdata key to prepopulate the widget UI every time it loads.
3. Create a custom action
- Go to the Zoho Developer console and select the extension in which you want to create the custom action.
- Create a custom action by navigating through Automate - > Custom Actions, under the Build section in the left panel. Click Create Action.
- Enter the Custom Action Name and Description. Click Next.
- Provide the location of the html file (widget UI) to complete the resource path. Click Next, then click Create Function.
- Enter the Deluge function to perform our use case functionality.
- Click Save & Close, then click Save.
Deluge function code snippet:
dynamic_map = Map(); dynamic_map.put("portalid","xxxxxx"); dynamic_map.put("projectid",input.config.get("Dealproject")); dynamic_map.put("name",input.config.get("Dealname")); dynamic_map.put("description",input.config.get("Dealdescription")); response = zoho.crm.invokeConnector("xxxxx.zohoprojects.createprojecttask",dynamic_map); sendmail [ from :zoho.adminuserid to :input.config.get("To") subject :input.config.get("Subject") message :input.config.get("Message") ] |
- In the above Deluge code, we have performed the functionality of creating the deal as a task in Projects and sending an email to the deal's contact with the input provided by the end user in their CRM account while associating the custom action to a workflow.
Custom action in effect (End-user):
Create workflows:
- As an end user who has the extension which features the custom action installed in the Zoho CRM account, go ahead and create workflows to define criteria and associate the custom action.
- In our case, we have two workflows:
➤ One for smaller deals where the expected revenue is less than 1000 USD
➤ One for larger deals where the expected revenue is greater than or equal to 1000USD
- Upon choosing the custom action, the custom UI appears where-in you can provide user specific input for email body and subject and also choose the project where you want deal to be created as a task in Zoho Projects.
Smaller revenue deals:
Larger revenue deals:
- When a deal with the necessary criteria is satisfied, an email is sent out to the deal's contact with the subject and body provided by the end user. A task is also created in Zoho Projects with some specific deal details.
This is one business case where you can use custom action. As a parallel use case to the above example itself, say you have multiple projects in Zoho Projects, each used to work on different case categories (bugs, issues, feature request, etc.). You could develop the same kind of template and allow end users to configure the criteria and outcomes accordingly.
You could also use custom actions feature to perform templated actions to obtain personalized outcomes depending on your business needs. We hope you found this information helpful. Keep following this space for more information!
SEE ALSO:
Access your files securely from anywhere
Centralize Knowledge. Transform Learning.
All-in-one knowledge management and training platform for your employees and customers.
New to Zoho Recruit?
Zoho Developer Community
New to Zoho LandingPage?
Zoho LandingPage Resources
New to Zoho Survey?
New to Zoho CRM Plus?
Deliver unforgettable customer experiences
New to Zoho CRM Plus?
Deliver unforgettable customer experiences
New to Zoho Marketing Plus?
Everything you need to run your marketing
New to Zoho Marketing Plus?
Everything you need to run your marketing
New to Bigin?
Topic Participants
Nanditha Somasundaram Somasundaram
Sticky Posts
Kaizen #198: Using Client Script for Custom Validation in Blueprint
Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – 1 More to the Big Two-Oh-Oh! Do you have any questions, suggestions, or topics you would like us to cover in future posts? Your insights and suggestions help us shape future content and make this series better for everyone.Kaizen #226: Using ZRC in Client Script
Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. In today's post, lets see what is ZRC (Zoho Request Client) and how we can use ZRC methods in Client Script to get inputs from a Salesperson and update the Lead status with a single button click. In thisKaizen #222 - Client Script Support for Notes Related List
Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. The final Kaizen post of the year 2025 is here! With the new Client Script support for the Notes Related List, you can validate, enrich, and manage notes across modules. In this post, we’ll explore howKaizen #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
New to Zoho TeamInbox?
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
Design. Discuss. Deliver.
Zoho Show Resources
Get Started. Write Away!
Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.
Zoho CRM コンテンツ
-
オンラインヘルプ
-
Webセミナー
-
機能活用動画
-
よくある質問
-
Ebook
-
-
Zoho Campaigns
- Zoho サービスのWebセミナー
その他のサービス コンテンツ
Nederlandse Hulpbronnen
ご検討中の方
Recent Topics
Unable to Assign Multiple Categories to a Single Product in Zoho Commerce
Hello Zoho Commerce Support Team, I am facing an issue while assigning categories to products in Zoho Commerce. I want to assign multiple categories to a single product, but in the Item edit page, the Category field allows selecting only one categoryHow do I add todays date to merge field
I don't see any selection of todays date when creating a letter. Surely the date option of printing is standard? JohnTracking Emails sent through Outlook
All of our sales team have their Outlook 365 accounts setup with IMAP integration. We're trying to track their email activity that occurs outside the CRM. I can see the email exchanges between the sales people and the clients in the contact module. ButWhats that
Price?The same Contact associated to multiple Companies - Deals
Hi, I would like to know if there is an option to associate the same contact with multiple companies (two or more) deals, using the same contact details for all. This is because we have contacts who are linked to different companies or branches of thePortals-Adjust Column Sizes
I am trying to adjust the column widths in Portals tabs. Columns that don't need to be wide are wide and longer ones are very short. I thought adding more to the digits box in Edit would widen them, but it doesn't. Anyone know how to adjust these?Add link/button to open approved record from approval list and detail views?
Hi, How do I allow users to click on an approval record and open that submission? For example, userA submits a quotation then userB approves/rejects. They both can see the quotation on "completed task" list & detail views, but there's no way for themrecord submitted from creator and invoice is creating in books , but the workflow of books is not tiggering on create of record in books
record submitted from creator and invoice is creating in books , but the workflow of books is not tiggering on create of record in books headermap = Map(); headermap.put("X-ZOHO-Execute-CustomFunction","true"); response_inv = invokeurl [ url :"https://www.zohoapis.com/books/v3/invoices/fromsalesorder?salesorder_id="Prevent editing of a record after getting approved/rejectedr
Hi, I'd like to block any user from editing a record after it was approved or rejected, how can I do that?Formula Field/Campo de Fórmula
Hello everyone, I have a purchase requisition form in which each department submits a request, and the request is automatically routed to the person responsible for that department. In this form, I have several fields with the following link names: Quantidade1,Formatting Problem | Export to Zoho Sheet View
When I export data to Zoho Sheet View, ID columns are automatically formatted as scientific notation. Reformatting them to text changes the actual ID values. For example, 6557000335603071 becomes 6557000335603070. I have attached screenshots showing thisFeature Request - The Ability to Link A Customer with a Vendor
Hi Finance Suite Team, Many businesses buy and sell products from the same companies or individuals. For example, a car sales business may buy a car from a member of the public, and that member of the public may also buy a new car from us. This makesLong table name (sync from Zoho Creator)
Dears, How can I remove the suffix in parentheses? These tables are synced from Zoho Creator and are treated as system tables, so their names cannot be changed. This issue makes the aggregation formulas look awful.[Free Webinar] Learning Table Series - Streamlining incident management process with Zoho Creator
Hello everyone, We’re excited to invite you to another edition of the Learning Table Series webinar. As you may already know, we've moved to a purpose-based approach in the Learning Table Series this year. Each session now focuses on how a Zoho CreatorUnattended - Silent
How can I hide the tray icon / pop up window during unattended remote access for silent unattended remote access?Importing into Multiselect Picklist
Hi, We just completed a trade show and one of the bits of information we collect is tool style. The application supplied by the show set this up as individual questions. For example, if the customer used Thick Turret and Trumpf style but not Thin Turret,Text snippet
There is a nice feature in Zoho Desk called Text Snippet. It allows you to insert a bit of text anywhere in a reply that you are typing. That would be nice to have that option in Zoho CRM as well when we compose an email. Moderation Update: We agree thatMarketing Tip #18: Make your online store mobile-friendly to improve traffic
Most online shoppers browse on their phones first. If your store is hard to read, slow to load, or tricky to navigate on mobile, they’ll bounce fast. A mobile-friendly store doesn’t just look nice; it improves engagement, reduces drop-offs, and helps[Need help] Form closed. Please contact your form administrator for further assistance.
https://forms.zohopublic.com/cceinfoifly1/form/CCE2025CCEFocusGroupRegistrationForm2025Fall/formperma/s_8XcLETTbFxZ_TAS4r_W6W5UBl8o5oxEnIX35IBKg4 I checked we didn't exceed the usage limit and form availability is enabled, Please help us enable this formZoho People. Updating TabularData
I am trying to update tabular data in the record. I always have the same response. I have checked many times. Section ID is correct. May be something wrong with request structure itself. Can someone help me. Body content type: form urlencoded query paramsAutomatically CC an address using Zoho CRM Email Templates
Hi all - have searched but can't see a definitive answer. We have built multiple email templates in CRM. Every time we send this we want it to CC a particular address (the same address for every email sent) so that it populates the reply back into ourUnable to Send Different Email Templates for Different Documents in Zoho Sign
Hello Zoho Community, I am facing a limitation with Zoho Sign regarding email notifications sent to customers when a document is sent for signing. Currently, whenever I send any template/document for signing, the email notification that goes to the customerReminder needs 0 minute choice
I most use 0 minute reminders. Every other calender service has this choice. If I create an event in my Android calendar with 0 minute reminder it will change to 5 minute. Please ad 0 as a reminder choice, this should be a 5 minute fix. Thanks.Customer ticket creation via Microsoft Teams
Hi all, I'm looking to see if someone could point me in the right direction. I'd love to make it so my customers/ end users can make tickets, see responses and respond within microsoft teams. As Admin and an Agent i've installed the zoho assist app withinIs there a way to update all the start and end dates of tasks of a project after a calendar change?
Hi! Here's my situation. I've built a complete project planning. All its tasks have start dates and due dates. After completing the planning, I've realized that the project calendar was not the right one. So I changed the project calendar. I now haveHow to update task start date when project start date changes?
Hi there, When the start date of a project changes, it's important to update the start dates of the tasks associated with that project to reflect the new timeline. Is there a way to shift the start date of all project tasks when the start date of a projectIssue with Picklist Dropdown Not Opening on Mobile
Hello I am experiencing an issue with picklist values on mobile. While the arrow is visible, the dropdown to scroll through the available values often does not open. This issue occurs sporadically, it has worked occasionally, but it is very rare and quiteusing the client script based on the look up filed i wnat to fetch the record details like service number , service rate
based on selected service look up field iwant to fetch the service serial number in the serice form how i achive using client script also how i get the current date in the date field in the on load of the formZoho Books/Square integration, using 2 Square 'locations' with new Books 'locations'?
Hello! I saw some old threads about this but wasn't sure if there were any updates. Is there a way to integrate the Square locations feature with the Books locations feature? As in, transactions from separate Books locations go to separate Square locationsZoho Commerce - How To Change Blog Published Date and Author
Hi Commerce Team, I'm discussing a project with a client who wants to move from Woo Commerce / Wordpress to Zoho Commerce. They have around 620 blog posts which will need to be migrated. I am now aware of the blog import feature and I have run some tests.Does zoho inventory need Enterprise or Premium subsrciption to make Widgets.
We have Zoho One Enterprise and yet we can't create widgets on inventory.ZMA shows as already connected to Zoho CRM, but integration not working
When I try to connect ZMA with Zoho CRM, it shows as already connected, but the integration doesn’t seem to be working. I’ve attached the screen recording for reference.Automatic Email Alerts for Errors in Zoho Creator Logs
Hello, We would like to request a feature enhancement in Zoho Creator regarding error notifications. Currently, Zoho Creator allows users to view logs and errors for each application by navigating to Zoho Creator > Operations > Logs. However, there isWorkflow Rule - Field Updates: Ability to use Placeholders
It will be great if you can use placeholder tags to update fields. For example if we want to update a custom field with the client name we can use ${CONTACT.CONTACT_FIRSTNAME}${CONTACT.CONTACT_LASTNAME}, etcPassword Assessment Reports for all users
I'm the super admin and looking at the reporting available for Zoho Vault. I can see that there is a Password Assessment report available showing the passwords/weak and security score by user. However I'm confused at the 'report generated on' value. MonitorCan't change form's original name in URL
Hi all, I have been duplicating + editing forms for jobs regarding the same department to maintain formatting + styling. The issue I've not run into is because I've duplicated it from an existing form, the URL doesn't seem to want to update with the newSetting certian items to be pickup only
How do we have some items that are pickup only? I have several items in my item's list that I do not ship. But they need to be on the website to be sold, and picked up in store. Need to be able to do this as one of these products is a major seller forUsing gift vouchers
We would like to be able to offer a limited number of gift vouchers, of varying values, to our customers, and are looking for the best way to do this. We have looked at Coupons and Gift Certificates, but neither seem to fit the bill perfectly. Coupons:Automatically updating field(s) of lookup module
I have a lookup field, which also pulls through the Status field from the linked record. When the lookup is first done, the Status is pulled through - this works perfectly. If that Status is later updated, the lookup field does not update as well. AsZoho Commerce and Third-party shipping (MachShip) API integration
We are implementing a third-party shipping (MachShip) API integration for our Zoho Commerce store and have made significant progress. However, we need guidance on a specific technical challenge. Current Challenge: We need to get the customer input toNext Page