Kaizen #112 - Signals in Zoho CRM

Kaizen #112 - Signals in Zoho CRM

Hello everyone!
Welcome back to another week in the Kaizen series!
This week, we will discuss Signals in Zoho CRM.

What are Signals in Zoho CRM?

One of the most important aspects of any business is staying on top of customers' needs and understanding how they use the product, their pain points, what they look for, etc.
Now, customers have multiple channels by which they communicate with your company. From visiting your website to filling up surveys, from raising support tickets to posting on X and Facebook, customers get in touch with several people from various departments in your organization. So, it is difficult for a relationship manager to stay on top of all these channels.

This is where Signals in Zoho CRM come into play.
Signals allow you to get real-time notifications of various customer touchpoints across multiple channels. What's more? you can get all the information in your Zoho CRM account!

For example, if you have sent out a survey, you can raise a signal in CRM when users respond. If someone created a ticket in Zoho Desk, you can view it in CRM.

Default Signals

Zoho CRM has native integrations with many other Zoho products. A few of these such as Zoho PhoneBridge, Zoho Survey, Zoho Campaigns, Zoho SalesIQ, Zoho Desk, Zoho Webinar, and Zoho Backstage have default signals configured for each of these services.

You can simply enable or disable them from the Manage Signals page under Setup > Channels > Signals.
When you have turned on these signals, when an event occurs in one of these services, you will receive a notification in your CRM account. To know how each notification looks upon receiving, refer to View Signals.

Custom Signals

When you use a third-party application, and want to raise a signal in Zoho CRM when an event occurs in the third-party app, you must create a custom signal.
For steps to create a Signal, refer to Creating a custom signal.

You can disable this signal anytime from the Manage Signals page under Setup > Channels > Signals > Manage Signals.

How can you Raise/Trigger Signals?

There are three ways you can raise a signal:
  1. Through an API
  2. Using Zoho Flow
  3. Through a function
Let us see when to use each of these methods.

1. Raising a signal through an API

You must choose this method when:
  • The third-party allows you to make a POST request with the details of the event and supports the OAuth2.0 authentication.
  • The third-party allows you to customize the way it sends the data in the callback. Refer to this page for more details.

2. Raising a signal through Zoho Flow

Zoho Flow is an integration platform that allows you to automate workflows and connect various applications, including Zoho CRM. Using Zoho Flow to raise a signal in CRM can be beneficial in certain scenarios, particularly when you want to automate processes, trigger event-specific actions, or integrate CRM data with other applications.
Refer to this page for details.

3. Raising a signal through a function

You should use a function to raise a signal when:

  • The third-party application (in which the event occurs) allows you to only register a webhook URL in their service.
  • The third-party application does not send the data back to the webhook URL in the format that the Signals API accepts.
We will discuss this method in this post.

Sample use case for raising a signal through a function

Let us consider the example where you create a survey in Typeform and users respond to it. When they do, you want to raise a signal in Zoho CRM. Let's see how this works.
  1. Create a survey in Typeform. This form has a form ID. You will also get an API key.
  2. Create a function in Zoho CRM of the type Signals that has the logic for the following:
    a. Triggering the API to get the details of the form you sent out through Typeform.
    b. Parsing the data you got from Typeform API and constructing the pay load to trigger the signal.
    c. Raising the signal using the built-in raisesignal integration task. This eliminates the need for a connection.
  3. Enable REST API for this function to get the webhook URL.
  4. Register this webhook URL in Typeform. This means that you want Typeform to trigger this function whenever a survey is answered.
  5. Create a custom signal in Zoho CRM.
  6. Choose "Function" for the Trigger Function via drop-down.
  7. Choose the function that has the logic to raise the signal and whose webhook URL is registered with Typeform.
So, whenever a survey is answered, the user in CRM gets a notification of the same. You can choose to view the signal either in the default view or add a widget of your choice. You can configure this while creating a signal.

Here is the function code that uses the raisesignal integration task and raises the signal.

namespace = "typeform_typeform";
sub = "Sample Poll Results";
email = "email_id_here";
signalMap = Map();
signalMap.put("signal_namespace",namespace);
signalMap.put("email",email);
signalMap.put("subject",sub);
mess = crmAPIRequest.get("body");
formId = mess.get("form_response").get("form_id");
token = mess.get("form_response").get("token");
apiUrl = "https://api.typeform.com/forms/" + formId + "/responses?included_response_ids=" + token;
authMap = Map();
authMap.put("Authorization","Bearer tfpxx9PQ");
response = invokeurl
[
url :apiUrl
type :GET
headers:authMap
];
selectedOption = response.get("items").get(0).get("answers").get(0).get("choice").get("label");
signalMap.put("message","Selected Option :: " + selectedOption);
result = zoho.crm.invokeConnector("raisesignal",signalMap);
info result;

Logic
  1. Construct a map that takes the signal's namespace, email ID of the user you want to notify(raise the signal), and the subject of the signal.
  2. Make an API call to Typeform to get the details of the survey.
  3. Use the crmAPIRequest object to get the details from the response body of the Typeform survey. This includes the fields "choice", "answers", "label" from the form.
  4. Provide authorization details. This should be the API key from the third party.
  5. Construct a map with the survey fields and pass it to the raisesignal integration task. This triggers the signal.
Here is the custom signal that is created for Typeform.



Here is a gif of the signal.



To view function's execution,
  1. Go to Setup > Developer Space > Functions > "Your Function".
  2. Click the three-dot icon and select Logs.

  3. Click one of the executions. You will get the details.


We hope you found this post useful. Let us know your feedback. Get in touch with us at support@zohocrm.com.
Cheers!

    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



                                                          • Sticky Posts

                                                          • Kaizen #197: Frequently Asked Questions on GraphQL APIs

                                                            🎊 Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – We want to hear from you! 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 #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.
                                                          • Celebrating 200 posts of Kaizen! Share your ideas for the milestone post

                                                            Hello Developers, We launched the Kaizen series in 2019 to share helpful content to support your Zoho CRM development journey. Staying true to its spirit—Kaizen Series: Continuous Improvement for Developer Experience—we've shared everything from FAQs
                                                          • Kaizen #193: Creating different fields in Zoho CRM through API

                                                            🎊 Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – We want to hear from you! 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.
                                                          • Client Script | Update - Introducing Commands in Client Script!

                                                            Have you ever wished you could trigger Client Script from contexts other than just the supported pages and events? Have you ever wanted to leverage the advantage of Client Script at your finger tip? Discover the power of Client Script - Commands! Commands


                                                          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

                                                                                                          • it is possible to open a widget via deluge script function

                                                                                                            I have one function that is workflow action I call my fucntion I need to call the internal widget it is possible to open or it have to please tell me the solution
                                                                                                          • Creator - Portal Custom Domain

                                                                                                            I will pay $100 in crypto to anyone who can actually get my Creator Custom Domain to function (actually tell me how you got yours to).  Domain verifies, Nothing. I've been fighting it a week, multiple chats to customer service. Clearly I'm doing something wrong.  Some datapoints Domain name itself unimportant, can be a string of numbers.  I need to know what registrars are working for you because GoDaddy does NOT.  Do I need hosting? I've tried both ways and nothing works.  I pushed through Cloudflare
                                                                                                          • steps and options to change Domain DNS/Nameservers settings

                                                                                                            Please share the options or steps to change  Domain DNS/Nameservers settings 
                                                                                                          • Employees in Leave Policy exceptions

                                                                                                            In the Leave Policies we should be able to add specific employees to the exception list So it will be like All Employees except A,B,C in the exception list, currently we can only add departments etc
                                                                                                          • Searching customer field

                                                                                                            Hello, When entering a receipt, we select customer information. The customer information is synced with Zoho CRM. However, we can't find the customer information because it searches for words that begin with the entered value. It needs to search for words
                                                                                                          • How I set default email addresses for Sales Orders and Invoices

                                                                                                            I have customers that have different departments that handle Sales Orders and Invoices. How can i set a default email for Sales Orders that's different than the default email for Invoices? Is there a way I can automate this using the Contact Persons Departments
                                                                                                          • Modular Permission Levels

                                                                                                            We need more modular Permissions per module in Books we have 2 use cases that are creating problems We need per module export permission we have a use case where users should be able to view the sales orders but not export it, but they can export other
                                                                                                          • Kaizen #157: Flyouts in Client Script

                                                                                                            Hello everyone! Welcome back to another exciting edition of our Kaizen series, where we explore fresh insights and innovative ideas to help you discover more and expand your knowledge!In this post, we'll walk through how to display Flyouts in Client Script
                                                                                                          • How get stock name from other column ?

                                                                                                            How get stock name from other column ? e.g. =STOCK(C12;"price") where C12 is the code of the stock
                                                                                                          • Adding a developer for editing the client application with a single user license

                                                                                                            Hi, I want to know that I as a developer I developed one application and handed over to the customer who is using the application on a single user license. Now after6 months customer came back to me and needs some changes in the application. Can a customer
                                                                                                          • Download an email template in html code

                                                                                                            Hello everyone, I have created an email template and I want to download it as html. How can i do that? I know you can do it via the campaigns-first create a campaign add the template and download it as html from there. But what if i don't want to create
                                                                                                          • Attachment is not included in e-mails sent through Wordpress

                                                                                                            I have a Wordpress site with Zeptomail Wordpress plugin installed and configured. E-mails are sent ok through Zeptomail but without the included attachment (.pdf file) Zeptomail is used to send tickets to customers through Zeptomail. E-Mails are generated
                                                                                                          • Upcoming Changes to the Timesheet Module

                                                                                                            The Timesheet module will undergo a significant change in the upcoming weeks. To start with, we will be renaming Timesheet module to Time Logs. This update will go live early next week. Significance of this change This change will facilitate our next
                                                                                                          • Best way to schedule bill payments to vendors

                                                                                                            I've integrated Forte so that I can convert POs to bills and make payments to my vendors all through Books. Is there a way to schedule the bill payments as some of my vendors are net 30, net 60 and even net 90 days. If I can't get this to work, I'll have
                                                                                                          • Cant update image field after uploading image to ZFS

                                                                                                            Hello i recently made an application in zoho creator for customer service where customers could upload their complaints every field has been mapped from creator into crm and works fine except for the image upload field i have tried every method to make
                                                                                                          • Billing Management: #4 Negate Risk Free with Advances

                                                                                                            In the last post, we explored how unbilled charges accumulate before being invoiced. But what happens when businesses need money before service begins? Picture this: A construction company takes on a $500,000 commercial building project expected to last
                                                                                                          • Is there an equivalent to the radius search in RECRUIT available in the CRM

                                                                                                            We have a need to find all Leads and/or Contacts within a given radius of a given location (most likely postcode) but also possibly an address. I was wondering whether anyone has found a way to achieve this in the CRM much as the radius search in RECRUIT
                                                                                                          • Zoho CRM Inventory Management

                                                                                                            What’s the difference between Zoho CRM’s inventory management features and Zoho Inventory? When is it better to use each one?
                                                                                                          • Cannot Enable Picklist Field Dependency in Products or Custom Modules – Real Estate Setup

                                                                                                            Hello Zoho Support, I am configuring Zoho CRM for real estate property management and need picklist field dependency: What I’ve tried: I started by customizing the Products module (Setup > Modules & Fields) to create “Property Type” (Housing, Land, Commercial)
                                                                                                          • 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.
                                                                                                          • How can I get base64 string from filecontent in widget

                                                                                                            Hi, I have a react js widget which has the signature pad. Now, I am saving the signature in signature field in zoho creator form. If I open the edit report record in widget then I want to display the Signature back in signature field. I am using readFile
                                                                                                          • Creator roadmap for the rest of 2022

                                                                                                            Hi everyone, Hope you're all good! Thanks for continuing to make this community engaging and informative. Today we'd like to share with you our plans for the near future of Creator. We always strive to strike a good balance of features and enhancements
                                                                                                          • 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
                                                                                                          • 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
                                                                                                          • Integración Books para cumplir la ley Crea y Crece y Ley Antifraude (VeriFactu)

                                                                                                            Hola: En principio, en julio de 2025, entra en vigor la ley Crea y Crece y Ley Antifraude (VeriFactu). ¿Sabéis si Zoho va a cumplir con la ley para cumplir con la facturación electrónica conectada a Hacienda? Gracias
                                                                                                          • Zoho One - Syncing Merchants and Vendors Between Zoho Expense and Zoho Books

                                                                                                            Hi, I'm exploring the features of Zoho One under the trial subscription and have encountered an issue with syncing Merchant information between Zoho Expense and Zoho Books. While utilizing Zoho Expense to capture receipts, I noticed that when I submit
                                                                                                          • Is Zoho Sheet available for Linux ?

                                                                                                            Is Zoho Sheet available for Linux ?
                                                                                                          • Zoho Sheet for Desktop

                                                                                                            Does Zoho plans to develop a Desktop version of Sheet that installs on the computer like was done with Writer?
                                                                                                          • Next Page