Introduction of Canvas for Zoho CRM

Introduction of Canvas for Zoho CRM



All industries function in a way that is very different in many aspects. There is no one size fits all approach. The companies should be able to modify the CRM design to suit their needs after a purchase has been made. This is where customers can control their experience completely. Zoho CRM is a giant that has created a new benchmark for customization.

With Canvas, Zoho plans to offer the best possible consumer experience that there is. The customers can create their own experience using Canvas. Zoho introduces Canvas as a design so that the customers can redesign the visual interface of Zoho CRM services to suit their requirements.

Using Canvas, users can remodel the look and feel of their CRM without writing even a single line of code since a simple drag and drop interface is used. Canvas creations can immensely improve the end user’s experience that helps in increasing productivity and morale. It sets the precedent for users to experience autonomy where the user can control the experience with the product.

In this blog, we will get to know all about Canvas and everything it can do for CRM.

What is Canvas?

Canvas is a design studio that is built into the Zoho CRM. The customers can redesign the user interface from an entirely blank canvas using Canvas. It offers a better CRM user interface and supports a wide range of formatting options that help companies to re-imagine the look and feel of any module down to small details. This is how the data meets design.

The use of Canvas is similar to photoshop for databases but it is much more nuanced. Canvas completely understands how the modules, fields, buttons, and related lists in the interface get created. Hence, it offers a much more thoughtful and contextual designing experience for the customers.

You can think of Canvas as a unique tool by Zoho CRM, something that no other CRM vendor has ever considered creating. Zoho has actually pioneered the design autonomy movement allowing the customers to curate the user experience that they are looking for. With the use of Canvas, Zoho CRM has become the most customizable CRM in the market.

Canvas as a no-code design platform is one of the most powerful things to change your Zoho CRM user experience from a visual and a functional perspective. It is a simple user interface management platform that is created into the native CRM system and is applicable in various ways of the CRM. The UI can be customized with the following CRM pages using Canvas.

A unified user experience can be created at various engagement points across platforms with internal CRM, partner portals, and self-service customers. Finally, regardless of the fact if they are your customers, partners or employees, all of the groups that work with a consistent UI when it comes to page design, look and feel, yet the data organized in all layouts can be customized based on various functions and requirements.

Working of Canvas

Canvas helps companies create a custom view that is readily available as an option along with the default views. The customers can click to create a new Canvas view from a listing page or the record page so that a blank canvas is opened as the powerful editor. Some of the things that are responsible for making Canvas stand out are:

1. Right Information in the Right Place
Customers can look for all the related lists, fields, and buttons available on the left side of the menu in editor mode. This actually means that no information is lost and all associations will remain intact just the way they are. 

Canvas plays the role of helping users change the appearance of Zoho CRM with multiple design variants.

2. Drag-and-drop Interface
There is no need to become a programmer or even a designer for using Canvas. You just need to have good design taste. Canvas is the first CRM design studio that also comes with a drag and drop interface to offer a much-simplified design experience for everyone. 

With the editor, users can easily choose some components from the left menu, drag them on the interface, drop them at the desired location, and then finally click to see available formatting options. It only takes a couple of clicks to create a new design.

3. Formatting Options
Canvas provides many formatting options for playing around with so that the companies can find the exact style that fits their team the best.

Right from changing the shape of the contact image or the color of a button to changing the padding, the shadow, and the width, Canvas enables the users to make sure that all details are suitable for a personal view.

4. Templates
Templates
Canvas also comes with a set of templates that the customers can choose in case they want a good start with their design or in case they are looking for inspiration.

The templates can be easily customized to a wide range of industries and they can also be changed to suit the customers in an improved way.

5. Uniform Design All Over Modules
Canvas is a no-code design platform that can be easily copied to other modules for maintaining a uniform design and color style.

Almost any detail that is not associated with the new module can be easily reconfigured at any time. This leads to a uniform design across all possible modules.

How Does Canvas Help Users?

Canvas plays an excellent role in helping companies experiment seamlessly with multiple designs taking input from the salespeople and other end users. These are the people who end up spending a large amount of time using the Zoho CRM.

 The admins can easily remodel the list page and detail page of all modules so that everyone’s needs are solved on the basis of suggestions. Canvas can effectively solve important challenges that businesses face in the present day including lack of personalization, employee experience, and complex implementations.

Canvas is the first CRM design studio that helps the users in the following ways:

1. Creating Personalized Instances:
Canvas is responsible for helping companies design a version of CRM that suits the industry and the working culture. Administrators can easily design views with fields, buttons, lists, and labels that are relevant to business so that the end-users can get the maximum results out of Zoho CRM. The customers can also enjoy tailored experiences of a vertical CRM that comes with all possible capabilities of a general-purpose CRM.

2. Enhanced Employee Experience
Using Canvas as a no-code design platform, companies can easily build a CRM that is easy to work with. The users can create views with a minimal design and great colors that are soothing for the eye and the mind. The customers can also highlight, record, hide, and reposition fields, lists, and buttons for helping salespeople work much better.

3. Removes Complexity
Canvas makes it very simple for businesses to get started with the Zoho CRM. The implementation phases including extensive training, data prep, and onboarding experiences need less time and effort all thanks to a simple and customized design. Successful implementation is necessary for reducing any complexity of the system while ensuring that there is high usage and streamlined ROI.

Canvas Serves the Purpose of Everyone

Canvas is literally for everyone. It helps in the following things.

1. Collaborative Selling
Collaborative SellingThe companies can effectively share their Canvas views with the vendors, consultants, and partners with the use of various portals. The sales process can also become increasingly collaborative where different parties need to get involved at various stages of a sale. Canvas helps in facilitating this collaboration.

2. Superior Self-Service
It is a well known fact that millennial customers are highly protective of their data and the option of self-service is appreciated much more. The customers can fill in important information and review it directly in the company’s very own custom Canvas creation which improves the overall experience considerably.

3. Thriving Community

Thriving CommunityCanvas is a one of a kind first CRM design studio where the customers can create new Canvas views and share them with the community. In this way, other businesses can use them as well. With Canvas, Zoho CRM works to create a community of designers who can submit, edit, and implement templates very similar to the community WordPress created for websites.

Canvas sets the precedence of UX Rich Autonomy

Zoho plans to introduce Canvas to the entire Zoho CX suite and finally to complete the product range. In this way, the companies can enjoy the Zoho environment with a design all across the board. When the companies have greater control over the user experience, the results are incredibly beneficial for the end-user, organization, and even the vendor.

Conclusion

Zoho CRM is on a mission to make sure that the specific needs of all industries, companies, and teams are met with the use of Canvas. As Zoho CRM continues its journey to pioneer the new era of personalized CRM, continuous work is being done on user experience enhancements focused on making it simple for end-users to keep using Zoho CRM. Canvas – the first CRM design studio is an example of that.

Zoho claims that this is a journey that never ends and it is in it for a long time. This is one of the major milestones of Zoho for creating a high standard of CRM experience and the company continues making changes.


I hope that you learned something new today :)
Stay Tuned for more!

Cheers!
Abhi
(Seasoned Zoho Authorized and Certified Partner)

Feel free to contact me if you have any queries
Email: abhishek(@)encaptechno(dot)com
Call: +1-416-405-8185

    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

                                                                                                            • Get Workflow Metadata via API

                                                                                                              Is there a way to get metadata on workflows and/or custom functions via API? I would like to automatically pull this information. I couldn't find it in the documentations, but I'm curious if there is an undocumented endpoint that could do this. Moderation
                                                                                                            • Zoho Projects - Q2 Updates | 2025

                                                                                                              Hello Users, With this year's second quarter behind us, Zoho Projects is marching towards expanding its usability with a user-centered, more collaborative, customizable, and automated attribute. But before we chart out plans for what’s next, it’s worth
                                                                                                            • FSM setup

                                                                                                              So we have been tinkering with FSM to see if it is going to be for us. Now is the time to bite the bullet and link it to our zoho books and zoho crm. The help guides are good but it would really help if they were a bit more in depth on the intergrations.
                                                                                                            • Upcoming Updates to the Employees Module in Zoho Payroll (US)

                                                                                                              We've made a couple of updates to the Employees module in Zoho Payroll (latest version of the US edition). These changes will go live today. While creating an employee Currently, the Compensation Details section is part of the Basic Details step, where
                                                                                                            • Possible to Turn Off Automatic Notifications for Approvals?

                                                                                                              Hello, This is another question regarding the approval process. First a bit of background: Each of our accounts is assigned a rank based on potential sales. In Zoho, the account rank field is a drop-down with the 5 rank levels and is located on the account
                                                                                                            • ZOHO Creator subform link

                                                                                                              Dear Community Support, I am looking for some guidance on how to add a clickable link within a Zoho Creator subform. The goal is for this link to redirect users to another Creator form where they can edit the data related to the specific row they clicked
                                                                                                            • Allow Resource to Accept or Reject an Appointment

                                                                                                              I have heard that this can be done, is there any documentation on how?
                                                                                                            • Create new Account with contact

                                                                                                              Hi I can create a new Account and, as part of that process, add a primary contact (First name, last name) and Email. But THIS contact does NOT appear in Contacts. How can I make sure the Contact added when creating an Account is also listed as a Contact?
                                                                                                            • Custom Fonts in Zoho CRM Template Builder

                                                                                                              Hi, I am currently creating a new template for our quotes using the Zoho CRM template builder. However, I noticed that there is no option to add custom fonts to the template builder. It would greatly enhance the flexibility and branding capabilities if
                                                                                                            • Python - code studio

                                                                                                              Hi, I see the code studio is "coming soon". We have some files that will require some more complex transformation, is this feature far off? It appears to have been released in Zoho Analytics already
                                                                                                            • Sync desktop folders instantly with WorkDrive TrueSync (Beta)

                                                                                                              Keeping your important files backed up and accessible has never been easier! With WorkDrive desktop app (TrueSync), you can now automatically sync specific desktop folders to WorkDrive Web, ensuring seamless, real-time updates across devices. Important:
                                                                                                            • How To Insert Data into Zoho CRM Organization

                                                                                                              Hi Team I have this organization - https://crm.zoho.com/crm/org83259xxxx/tab/Leads I want to insert data into this Leads module, what is the correct endpoint for doing so ? Also I have using ZohoCRM.modules.ALL scope and generated necessary tokens.
                                                                                                            • Where can I get Equation Editor por Zoho Writer?

                                                                                                              I need to use Math Formulas in my document. Thank you.
                                                                                                            • Filtering repport for portal users

                                                                                                              Salut, I have a weird problem that I just cannot figure out : When I enter information as administrator on behalf of a "supplier" portal user (in his "inventory" in a shared inventory system), I can see it, "customer" portal users can see it, but the
                                                                                                            • I want to add my other zoho account in same pc

                                                                                                              why does zoho restrict me doing many things as i also want to add my second mail account bit its not allowing me to do that
                                                                                                            • Zoho Inventory. Preventing Negative Stock in Sales Orders – Best Practices?

                                                                                                              Dear Zoho Inventory Community, We’re a small business using Zoho Inventory with a team of sales managers. Unfortunately, some employees occasionally overlook stock levels during order processing, leading to negative inventory issues. Is there a way to
                                                                                                            • Sorten the domain of zoho mail ids

                                                                                                              I recently created zoho mail id and am quite excited with the features. But one issue ig nobody wanna type this big zohoaccounts.com I mean silly bold Suggestion zmail.com (sound gmail) (attraction) or some genz words looks cool
                                                                                                            • Request for Creating Multiple Email Accounts on One Mobile Number

                                                                                                              Dear Zoho Team, I am planning to shift all my work-related communication to Zoho Mail because of its reliability and features. For my work, I need to create 3–4 separate email accounts for different purposes. Could you please confirm if it is possible
                                                                                                            • BUTTONS SHOWN AS AN ICON ON A REPORT

                                                                                                              Hi Is there any way to create an action button but show it as an icon on a report please? As per the attached example? So if the user clicks the icon, it triggers an action?
                                                                                                            • Dropshipping Address - Does Not Show on Invoice Correctly

                                                                                                              When a dropshipping address is used for a customer, the correct ship-to address does not seem to show on the Invoice. It shows correctly on the Sales Order, Shipment Order, and Package, just not the Invoice. This is a problem, because the company being
                                                                                                            • RFQ MODEL

                                                                                                              A Request for quotation model is used for Purchase Inquiries to multiple vendors. The Item is Created and then selected to send it to various vendors , once the Prices are received , a comparative chart is made for the user. this will help Zoho books
                                                                                                            • Will zoho thrive be integrated with Zoho Books?

                                                                                                              title
                                                                                                            • Product Updates in Zoho Workplace applications | August 2025

                                                                                                              Hello Workplace Community, Let’s take a look at the new features and enhancements that went live across all Workplace applications this August. Zoho Mail Delegate Email Alias Now you can let other users send emails on your behalf—not just from your primary
                                                                                                            • Unable to send message; Reason:554 5.1.8 Email Outgoing Blocked

                                                                                                              Hi, I sent few emails and got this: Unable to send message; Reason:554 5.1.8 Email Outgoing Blocked And now I have few days since I cant send any email. Is there something wrong I did? Also can someone fix this please
                                                                                                            • Want to use Zoho Books in Switzerland. CHF support planned?

                                                                                                              Hi, We're a Swiss company using other Zoho suite software and I discovered Zoho Books and other accounting SaaS when looking for an accounting tool. Do you intend to cover Switzerland and CHF based accounting anytime soon? Roy
                                                                                                            • Weekly Tips : Teamwork made easy with Multiple Assignees

                                                                                                              Let's say you are working on a big project where different parts of a single task need attention from several people at the same time—like reviewing a proposal that requires input from sales, legal, and finance teams. Instead of sending separate reminders
                                                                                                            • Best way to share/download presentation files in Zoho without losing formatting?

                                                                                                              Hello Zoho Community, I often work with PPT/PDF files in Zoho Docs and share them with colleagues. While PDFs usually give a direct download option, I’ve noticed that PPT/PPTX files sometimes only open in the viewer without a clear download link. Is there
                                                                                                            • Celebrating Connections with Zoho Desk

                                                                                                              September 27 is a special day marking two great occasions: World Tourism Day and Google’s birthday. What do these two events have in common (besides the date)? It's something that Zoho Desk celebrates, too: making connections. The connect through tourism
                                                                                                            • What is Resolution Time in Business Hours

                                                                                                              HI, What is the formula used to find the total time spent by an agent on a particular ticket? How is Resolution Time in Business Hours calculated in Zohodesk? As we need to find out the time spent on the ticket's solution by an agent we seek your assistance
                                                                                                            • Adding Overlays to Live Stream

                                                                                                              Hello folks, The company I work for will host an online event through Zoho Webinar. I want to add an overlay (an image) at the bottom of the screen with all the sponsors' logos. Is it possible to add an image as an overlay during the live stream? If so,
                                                                                                            • Email Sending Failed - SMTP Error: data not accepted. - WHMCS Not sending emails due to this error

                                                                                                              I have been trying to figure out a fix for about a week now and I haven't found one on my own so I am going to ask for help on here.  After checking all the settings and even resetting my password for the email used for WHMCS it still says: Email Sending Failed - SMTP Error: data not accepted.  I have no clue how to fix it at this point. Any insight would be lovely. 
                                                                                                            • Does Zoho Learn integrate with Zoho Connect,People,Workdrive,Project,Desk?

                                                                                                              Can we propose Zoho LEarn as a centralised Knowledge Portal tool that can get synched with the other Zoho products and serve as a central Knowledge repository?
                                                                                                            • Zoho Flow - Update record in Trackvia

                                                                                                              Hello, I have a Flow that executes correctly but I only want it to execute once when a particular field on a record is updated in TrackVia. I have the trigger filters setup correctly and I want to add an "update record" action at the end of the flow to
                                                                                                            • Add Comprehensive Accessibility Features to Zoho Desk Help Center for End Users

                                                                                                              Hello Zoho Desk Team, We hope you're doing well. We’d like to submit a feature request to enhance the client-facing Help Center in Zoho Desk with comprehensive accessibility features, similar to those already available on the agent interface. 🎯 Current
                                                                                                            • Rename Record Summary PDF in SendMail task

                                                                                                              So I've been tasked with renaming a record summary PDF to be sent as part of a sendmail task. Normally I would offer the manual solution, a user exports the PDF and uploads it to a file upload field, however this is not acceptable to the client in this
                                                                                                            • in zoho creator Sales Returns form has sub form Line Items return quantity when i upate the or enter any values in the sub form that want to reflect in the Sales Order form item deail sub form field Q

                                                                                                              in zoho creator Sales Returns form has sub form Line Items return quantity when i upate the or enter any values in the sub form that want to reflect in the Sales Order form item deail sub form field Quantity Returned\ pls check the recording fetch_salesorder
                                                                                                            • Estimates with options and sub-totals

                                                                                                              Hi It seems it would be great to be able to show multiple options in an estimate. For instance I have a core product to which I can add options, and maybe sub-options... It would be great to have subtotals and isolate the core from the not compulsory items. Thanks
                                                                                                            • Optional Items Estimate

                                                                                                              How do you handle optional items within an estimate? In our case we have only options to choose with. (Like your software pricing, ...standard, professional, enterprise) How can we disable the total price? Working with Qty = 0 is unprofessional....
                                                                                                            • Important Update : Zendesk Sell announced End of Life

                                                                                                              Hello Zendesk users, Zendesk has officially announced that Zendesk Sell will reach its End of Life (EOL) on August 31, 2027 (Learn more). In line with this deprecation, Zoho Analytics will retire its native Zendesk Sell connector effective October 1,
                                                                                                            • Zoho Sheets

                                                                                                              Hi, I am trying to transition into Zoho sheets, I have attached the issues encountered. Server issues, file trying to upload for more than 30 mins, even once uploaded my data aren't loaded. Simple calculations are not working I have attached the sample.
                                                                                                            • Next Page