Revamped forecasting in Zoho CRM
Forecasting is an important part of a business's strategy to help set meaningful targets, optimize their sales strategies to help users achieve said target and drive revenue for the business.
With this in mind, we've brought a number of different enhancements to Zoho CRM's forecasting capabilities to help businesses understand their pipeline better, make accurate forecasts, set realistic targets, and help sales teams achieve them. Earlier in December, we briefed about these enhancements in forecasts in our Winter '21 announcement. We are thrilled to talk about these changes in detail here.
Create multiple and condition based forecasts across different periods
Businesses were limited to just a single forecast that encompasses all deals, but now you can create multiple forecasts, which can include all your deals or deals that match specified conditions, with a greater control of the forecast periods.
Forecasts can be created for all the available hierarchy:
- Role/Reporting to
- Territory
Forecasts can be created monthly or quarterly for the following forecast periods.
- Current - 4 Quarters / 12 months of current fiscal year
- Future - 4 Quarters / 12 months of the next fiscal year
- Completed - The previous 2 fiscal years
Forecast types
Two forecasts types can be created which are based around the attribute that is used to set targets for your users:
- Deal Revenue based forecasts - These are forecasts where the targets are based on currency fields like deal amount, expected revenue or other custom currency fields defined the deals module
- Deal Quantity based forecasts - These are forecasts where the targets are based on system defined fields like "count of deals" and other custom number fields
Introducing Best Case and Committed deals under "Forecast Category"
In the current forecasting, deals only had three forecast categories that were associated with them.
- Closed won - Deal was marked "Won"
- Closed lost - Deal was marked "omitted"
- Open - Deal was marked "Pipeline"
Now open deals can be tagged with new options under the forecast category:
- Best case - Open deals that have a high chance of being won
- Committed - Open deals that sales reps commit to winning
Instead of generalising all open deals as pipeline deals, this split gives a better picture as to where a particular sales rep stands in terms of the deals in their pipeline. This allows the administrator to make a more informed decision when setting targets for a particular user.
Sales reps also have the option to update the forecast category in a specific deal manually, to the appropriate option when the situation calls for it. The deal amount will then be updated in your forecast during its next sync
Transparent split of deals in your pipeline for optimal targets
When setting targets for your users, a popup with your pipeline data shows the split of deals to give you a better picture of where each user stands in-terms of sales numbers.
The deals are split into open and closed won deals, with the open deals being further split into best cases, committed and pipeline deals.
Zia offers target suggestions and predicts target achievement
When creating forecasts, there are two choices. They can be built from the ground up as a completely new forecast, or they can be linked and created from an existing forecast.
When creating a continuous forecast, Zia will calculate and suggest targets based on the historical data of your selected forecasts. This will be available in the forecast create page when setting targets.
The historical and current deal closure pattern of users will be analysed as well to give you the predicted target achievement for the users. Achievement predictions will be available in the target achievement report.
Compare your performance across different forecast periods
All your created forecasts will be available in a list view under the forecast module. You can now drill down into a particular forecast and compare how your business performance fared across the years.
Depending on the duration selected in the filter, the following data will be consolidated and shown at the top :
- Total target
- Achievement
- Gap
Under the consolidated data, the forecast data for each quarter/month for the selected duration will be listed for a bird's eye view analysis. You can then drill down further to analyse the performance of individual users or roles if required.
Archived Forecast
The purpose of having forecasts is to keep track of the company's performance on various levels of the organization. Thus far, the forecast list view page shows data only for the completed two years, the current year, and one future year. So, as your business continues, you would be losing forecast records beyond two previous years. This clearly beats the purpose of having forecasts as the past data might still be significantly important. Hence, we have introduced archived forecasts as our latest enhancement.
- The forecast list view displays up to 2 completed years' data. Now, the forecasts created beyond these two years will be archived automatically.
For example, suppose the current forecast is for Q3 2021. The list view has records for completed forecasts since Q1 2019. The forecasts before Q1 2019 would be archived. - If a forecast configuration is edited, the current and future forecasts based on old configuration will be deleted while the completed forecasts will be archived.
For the above example of point 1, if you edit the hierarchy or any other configuration, the completed forecasts will be archived, and the current forecast for Q3 2021 will be deleted along with any future forecasts created.
When will forecasts be archived?
- Completed forecasts over two years from the current year will be archived. For example, if the current year is 2022, forecasts of 2021, and 2019 will be available on the forecast list view page. Forecasts older than 2019 will be archived.
- Forecasts will be archived automatically upon editing forecast configuration- changing either the hierarchy or forecast type.
For example if the Hierarchy is Reporting To, and its changed to Territory, or edit the forecast type, the existing forecasts would be archived. - Forecast will be archived if the hierarchy preferences are modified in Company Details.
In the archived forecast page, the forecasts are listed in chronological order. You can also filter them based on Hierarchy, Forecast Type, and Time.
Notes
- The archived forecasts cannot be edited, they are just for viewing purposes. Users can delete a forecast.
- Up to 5 years of forecasts records would be available as archive.
- Changing when the Fiscal Year of your org begins, say changing it from January to April, will delete all the existing forecasts as well as the archived forecasts.
Empowering forecast managers
Forecast managers can now build their own forecasts and assign targets to their role, their own target, their peers and sub roles & users. Individual teams can have their own distinct forecasts and targets which can be focused on. These forecasts will be visible for the Admin, CEO and the forecast manager of a higher role who can monitor these forecasts and update them when needed.
If a forecast manager's target has been modified by the CEO, admin or a forecast manager from a higher role, the modified target is locked and cannot be changed by the forecast manager.
That's all about the enhancements. For more details check out our help page Creating and Working with Forecasts.
We have opened this new forecast for all users subscribed to the paid editions of Zoho CRM, in all DCs. For users who are currently using the old forecasts, they will have the option to switch to new forecast till June end. Post which, it will be mandatory to switch to the new forecasts to access the forecast module.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Access your files securely from anywhere
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
Nizamuddin Sohel SK
gavinpereira
Ishwarya SG
Jackie Koehler
Sunderjan Siddharth
Sticky Posts
Presenting ABM for Zoho CRM: Expand and retain your customers with precision
Picture this scenario: You're a growing SaaS company ready to launch a powerful business suite, and are looking to gain traction and momentum. But as a business with a tight budget, you know acquiring new customers is slow, expensive, and often deliversGood news! Calendar in Zoho CRM gets a face lift
Dear Customers, We are delighted to unveil the revamped calendar UI in Zoho CRM. With a complete visual overhaul aligned with CRM for Everyone, the calendar now offers a more intuitive and flexible scheduling experience. What’s new? Distinguish activitiesCreate and populate a record in an instant: Introducing zero-shot field prompting to Zia's ICR
A couple of months ago, we upgraded our in-house AI image detection and validation tool, Zia Vision, with intelligent character recognition (ICR). By training Zia with sample images, you could create and enrich CRM records with data extracted from standardIn-person ZUG Meetups for Real Estate Professionals - US Q1 2026
The Real Estate Zoho User Group is going on a multi-city, in-person meetup tour across the US, and we’d love to see you there! These meetups are a great opportunity to: Connect with fellow real estate professionals using Zoho Share challenges and discoverNimble enhancements to WhatsApp for Business integration in Zoho CRM: Enjoy context and clarity in business messaging
Dear Customers, We hope you're well! WhatsApp for business is a renowned business messaging platform that takes your business closer to your customers; it gives your business the power of personalized outreach. Using the WhatsApp for Business integration
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
Zoho Flow + QuickBooks Estimates – Line items not created from CRM subform
Hi everyone, I’m trying to create QuickBooks Estimates from Zoho CRM Quotes using Zoho Flow. I’m aware that Zoho Flow’s native “Create Estimate” action does not support multiple line items, so I followed the community guidance for Invoices using a customIntegration with...
Dear Zoho Commerce team, Please could you consider the integration within Zoho Commerce / Inventory and Qapla'? (https://www.qapla.it/en/) This app is better than Aftership in many ways: - Aftership integration require PRO plan and price start from moreZoho Sign - Zoho CRM extension upgrade
Hi everyone, We've updated Zoho Sign extension for Zoho CRM with significant internal changes. Impact on existing Zoho Sign extension users Users using the extension without customization If you are using the integration without implementing Zoho Sign'sConsultant-Only Booking Page
Zoho Bookings does not allow for Meeting Type OR Workspace-Wide booking pages to be turned off. This is detrimental to organizations that have territory-based or assigned accounts, because if prospects can go to these booking pages and either select theStart Workflow from Deluge Script
I have developed a customized process from our CRM that leverages a deluge script to create a statement of work document. Once the document has been created via the merge and store function, I would like the ability to start a workdrive review & approveRequest for Auto PO - Min–Max based Automated Purchase Feature
Dear Zoho POS Team, I’m writing to request a feature enhancement that would significantly streamline inventory management for businesses using Zoho POS — particularly supermarkets, FMCG retail, and multi-store operations like ours. Feature Requested:Masters in UK – Experiences, Universities, and Career Outcomes
This forum discussion is for students who are planning or considering a Masters in UK and want to gain practical insights beyond official university websites. The UK attracts international students due to its globally recognized universities, diverseExport your notes from Notebook!
Dear users, The long awaited feature is now live. Yes, you can now export your notes from Notebook app in bulk. But the feature has just started with web app alone for now. You can try the export feature as mentioned below: Go to our web app, https://notebook.zoho.com Go to 'Settings' > 'Export' Now, select the format: You can select either ZNote or HTML Once done, you can use the same to import or can have this a local backup of your notes. Note: Export for other platforms are in development andPrepopulating Fields
Hello, I have a form (Assets) with 2 lookup fields: Client (from Clients) Site (from Client Sites) I modified the code (highlighted in red below), so the Site dropdown shows the list of sites related to the Client. must have Client_Site ( type = picklistUnable to sort as Descending order
Trying to change the sort order for a lookup field (checkboxes) from Ascending to Descending and keep getting an error in Deluge that the order must be Ascending Did anyone ran into this? Thanks EyalExport Invoices to XML file
Namaste! ZOHO suite of Apps is awesome and we as Partner, would like to use and implement the app´s from the Financial suite like ZOHO Invoice, but, in Portugal, we can only use certified Invoice Software and for this reason, we need to develop/customize on top of ZOHO Invoice to create an XML file with specific information and after this, go to the government and certified the software. As soon as we have for example, ZOHO CRM integrated with ZOHO Invoice up and running, our business opportunitiesCan I change the format of the buttons in the email templates?
Hi all! We have been working hard trying to brand our email templates, and have some way to go yet. One of the things we can't seem to edit is the green ${Cases.CUSTOMER_PORTAL_BUTTON} button and the font of the View Ticket text. Is there any way of doingissue with deluge script
i used chat gpt to build this script and I am getting 2 errors which I cannot figure out how to fix: void monthly_sales_order_generation() { try { // ---------------- CONFIG ------------------- analytics_url_1 = "https://analytics.zoho.com/api/<workspaceID>/report/<reportID1>/data";Introducing LinkedIn Apply Connect for Zoho Recruit
Attract up to 3x more qualified candidates and hire more efficiently with LinkedIn Apply Connect. Let candidates fill-in job applications without any redirections, gain deeper insights with applicant highlights within Zoho Recruit, and keep candidatesRecruit paid support?
Hi all, Could anyone who has paid support package advise if it provides value for money with regards to support response times? Exploring the idea as unfortunately when we have faced issues with Recruit it has been a 7+ day timescale from reporting toIntroducing Dedicated Modules for Plans, Addons, and Coupons in Zoho Billing
We’ve enhanced the way you manage Plans, Addons, and Coupons in Zoho Billing. Previously, all three grouped together under Subscription Items. Now, each one has its own dedicated module, giving you a cleaner and more intuitive experience. This updateTicket Status email
Good day, This was discussed in the past, but it would be helpful if we could have the system assign a custom response to a status. We have various statuses for tickets, e.g. "closed due to no response", or "Pending Status", it would be helpful for theCustomer 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 withinHolidays
Hi; For defining Holidays, you need to add logic to handle the year as well as the month & day. We need to be able to enter Holidays for the next year. I need to add a holiday for January 2, 2017, but I can't until January 1st, which is a Sunday and weCan I use a Standalone CRM Function as the Callback URL For Async Export Data API?
I am creating an export job using this API https://www.zoho.com/analytics/api/v2/bulk-api/export-data-async/create-export/view-id.html There is a "callbackUrl" key in the CONFIG object. I tried copying the URL for a standalone function in CRM which canFuture Orders - Due Date
Hi In my role, I can receive tickets where the work required is requested months in advance. Using a Future Orders option, which I believe was setup under the On Hold status type, hides the Due Date, in all views/ticket etc. Whilst I understand the reasoningIntroducing Withdrawal Reasons for Offers
We’re excited to introduce a new enhancement to the Offer module that brings more clarity and accountability to every withdrawn offer. The Withdrawal Reason update ensures that each withdrawal — manual or automatic — is backed by a clear explanation,Zoho Creator customer portal users
Hi, I'm in a Zoho One subscription with our company. I'm running a project now that involves creating a Zoho Creater application and using the Zoho Creator Customer Portal. At most we need 25 customer portal users. In our Zoho One plan we only get 3GPS tracking only or Check out facility
Dear Team, Zoho CRM is quite robust CRM but till date i was waiting for the feature of having GPS tracking of Sales employees which is a common demand by all customers for thier field sales executives. We cover them by saying that CRM provides CheckinHTML Tags added to Reports with Notes
Recently Zoho added the ability to markup text within notes. That way, users can change font size, colors, etc. It's a great change. However, since the change, reports that include a column for "Note Content" are printing HTML tags within the report.In App Auto Refresh/Update Features
Hi, I am trying to use Zoho Creator for Restaurant management. While using the android apps, I reliased the apps would not auto refresh if there is new entries i.e new kitchen order ticket (KOT) from other users. The apps does received notification but would not auto refresh, users required to refresh the apps manually in order to see the new KOT in the apps. I am wondering why this features is not implemented? Or is this feature being considered to be implemented in the future? With theAppraisals on Employee Information Profile
Is it possible to show completed appraisals on each employee's "Employee Information" page? I would presume at the bottom - similar to the "Related Lists" concept in Zoho CRM. Obviously view access would be limited to employee and appropriate other rolesAI Interview Insights: Turn Recorded Interviews into Quick Transcripts & Summaries
Evaluating interviews shouldn’t require replaying long recordings or taking manual notes. With AI Interview Insights, you can now review complete transcripts and AI-generated summaries of your One-way (Recorded) interviews right inside Zoho Recruit. ThisKaizen #220: Actions API - Webhooks APIs - Part 2
Hello all!! Welcome back to the follow-up Kaizen post of Kaizen #219: Actions API - Webhooks APIs - Part 1. In the previous week, we covered how to configure a basic Webhook and how to include Headers, Body, and URL Parameters using both the POST WebhookStandard Payment Term is not pulled from account to quotation
Hey Team There seems to be something off. I do have "Net 30" as my default payment term in Zoho Books for my customers. If, from the customer overview or quote section, I create a new Quotation, the payment terms field stays blank and doesn't get theCanva Integration
Hello! As many marketing departments are streamlining their teams, many have begun utilizing Canva for all design mockups and approvals prior to its integration into Marketing automation software. While Zoho Social has this integration already accomplished,Manage your invoices from Bigin's mobile app (iOS)
Hello everyone! We're happy to announce that users can now integrate Zoho Books with the latest version of Bigin's iOS app. Zoho Books can be integrated with Bigin only via the web application. Users can view the Zoho Books tab in the detail pages ofHubSpot CRM to Zoho Creator Integration
I'm trying to create an integration between HubSpot CRM and Zoho Creator with HubSpot being the push source (if a contact is created or updated in HubSpot, it pushes the information to Zoho Creator). I have two questions: 1- Is it best to use Zoho FlowSystematic SPF alignment issues with Zoho subdomains
Analysis Period: August 19 - September 1, 2025 PROBLEM SUMMARY Multiple Zoho services are causing systematic SPF authentication failures in DMARC reports from major email providers (Google, Microsoft, Zoho). While emails are successfully delivered dueAccessibility controls and multilingual captcha authorization for Help Center users
Hello everyone, As part of our ongoing effort to improve user experience, we are excited about the accessibility controls and predefined accessibility personas added in the Help Center, similar to what is already available in Zoho Desk. Help Center usersGain control over record sharing with portal users through our new enhancement: criteria-based data exposure
Dear Customers, We hope you're well! Portals is a self-service avenue through which your clients can access and manage their direct and related data in Zoho CRM. This empowers them to be more independent and enables them to experience a sense of transparencyZoho Sign + Zoho CRM : la solution pour simplifier vos accords de vente
La conclusion d’un contrat de vente nécessite de nombreuses étapes : préparation de documents, validations successives et collecte des signatures. Les équipes commerciales passent souvent par plusieurs cycles de collaboration et de révision, tout en assurantZoho Desk Limitations
Good day, all, I would like to know whether others share my frustration with some of Zoho's limitations. Don't get me wrong, I like Desk (and I also have a subscription for Analytics), I have been with them for close to 10 years, and unfortunately, IItem/service subtotal
Just discovered & really pleased that we can drag to re-order the line items in Sales orders & Invoices, a very nice feature which doesn't seem to be documented? It would be nice to be able to insert a subtotal as a line item to complete this great featureConverting Sales Order to Purchase Order
Hi All, Firstly, this code works to convert a sales order(SO) to a purchase order (PO) via a button, however I am running into an issue when I convert the SO where the values from the line items are not pulled across from the SO to the PO. The ones inNext Page