Tip of the fortnight 3 - Create merged documents with form responses

Tip of the fortnight 3 - Create merged documents with form responses

Hello fellow form builders,

It's another fortnight, and I am back with an exciting new tip. In the previous post, we discussed how to deliver the PDFs of the submitted form  to your customers. To continue with this process, let's take a look at how to create dynamic documents with the responses that fall in your form.

Sending Order Receipts upon successful purchases, Interview Call Letters to chosen candidates, Invoices for your customers, Certificates on course completion, etc, is crucial for your business. Instead of the default process of manually entering in form data into an external document and dealing with the chaos of paper documents, I'll share a useful solution!



Using this tip, you can quickly integrate your document template with the form you create, and automate them as customized documents by merging the form responses. This ensures that there is no room for manual errors during the pre-filling process. Let's take a deep dive to understand how it's done!


Leave your mark 

Whether it's an Order Invoice or a Sales Contract, the scenarios require customized solutions. To satisfy this, create custom documents using Zoho Writer or WebMerge by adding your company logo, tables, etc. and design them to reflect your business. 

Here's a preview of how a document will look inside Zoho Writer (I've illustrated an Order Invoice and an Interview Invitation here). Include your form responses inside the document by clicking the field labels under INSERT FIELDS header.  






We've learned how to construct various documents as per business needs, and now let's explore the different ways it can be sent to your customers. 

Deliver to every submitter

If you want all of your customers to receive the document (say, an Order Receipt), try setting up an automated email by configuring the customer's email as the To address and include the merged document as an attachment. This configuration delivers custom documents right away when the customers make a form submission.

Deliver to specific submitters

If you want to analyze all your received form entries and send the documents to a few of the customers (say, a Course Completion Certificate), you can follow our manual workflow. For a Zoho Writer document, configure the email set up in the Merge and Send Email tab that appears. You can check the status of the document (if it is successfully merged or sent) by routing to the Mail Merge Status column under the All Entries/ Report section. You will receive a success message like this. 




That's all there is to it! Try this out and get started with the document merge for your forms by learning the set up from our help documentation. And, it's a wrap! What are the different documents you create for your business? Comment below - we'd love to hear from you!  

Until next fortnight, 
Prasana.

    Access your files securely from anywhere







                            Zoho Developer Community





                                                  Use cases

                                                  Make the most of Zoho Desk with the use cases.

                                                   
                                                    

                                                  eBooks

                                                  Download free eBooks and access a range of topics to get deeper insight on successfully using Zoho Desk.

                                                   
                                                    

                                                  Videos

                                                  Watch comprehensive videos on features and other important topics that will help you master Zoho Desk.

                                                   
                                                    

                                                  Webinar

                                                  Sign up for our webinars and learn the Zoho Desk basics, from customization to automation and more

                                                   
                                                    
                                                  • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                  • Meetups


                                                  • Ask the Experts


                                                  • Kbase


                                                  • Resources


                                                  • Glossary


                                                  • Desk Marketplace


                                                  • MVP Corner




                                                            • Sticky Posts

                                                            • Tip #10: Automatically add tags to Zoho CRM records using form responses

                                                              You may be using tags to filter records, create reports based on specific tags, or let your sales team to know which clients to give priority to. Don't skip tagging for the crm records added via forms. The tags can be set to be automatically captured during the form submission. How it works When you set up a configuration to push form entries into CRM, you can add a tag to them automatically. The tag value can vary based on the respondent's input (captured using form fields), or you can include a
                                                            • Tip #2: Prefill forms automatically with existing Zoho CRM data

                                                              How to automatically prefill a form with existing Zoho CRM data? Prefilled forms can be useful when you want your prospects to view and confirm their data, and in a wide range of other situations. In Zoho Forms, we prefill the fields with the values from Zoho CRM using the Zoho CRM field. What is a Zoho CRM field? A Zoho CRM field acts as a two-way communication channel, by sending data to Zoho CRM from forms and fetching information from CRM into Forms. The field will look up data from your CRM
                                                            • Tip #8: Pass Adwords data (GCLID) and UTM parameters to Zoho CRM using forms

                                                              When you are using forms to capture leads, you may wonder: " How did they find me? Which marketing campaign worked best?"  You can answer this question by capturing the Google Adwords data (GCLID) or the UTM parameter details in your CRM using forms. This can be a great way to gauge the effectiveness of your campaigns and identify the most effective ways to capture leads.  Capturing GCLID parameters How it works If a person finds your form by clicking an ad, a GCLID gets created. When they fill out
                                                            • ZUG (Zoho User Group) In-person Meetups - Maximize Data Efficiency with Zoho Forms & Beyond

                                                              Hello Zoho Community, Join us for our upcoming meetups in ANZ, where we'll dive into seamless data handling and maximizing efficiency through Zoho Forms and beyond. Explore the potential of Zoho Forms customization and integration, from mastering the
                                                            • Tip #9: Modify deal properties in Zoho CRM using form responses

                                                              How to modify deal properties of Zoho CRM records using form responses? Deal properties in Zoho CRM records are constantly modified based on the status of the deal. You can automatically modify deal properties (like the deal closing date, or deal name) and even update the deal stage, using form inputs. This can drastically reduce the work your team would otherwise do to search and change individual record details manually. How it works This works by integrating the form with the Deals module of Zoho


                                                            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

                                                                                                            • Mass Mail Statistics - Number of unsent emails

                                                                                                              How do I find out which emails were not sent?
                                                                                                            • Button to add product to cart

                                                                                                              Is there a way to have a button on a page, that when clicked, will add Qty 1 of a product to the cart?
                                                                                                            • Est-il possible d'annuler l'envoi d'un mail automatique ?

                                                                                                              Bonjour, Lorsque je refuse un candidat, il reçois un mail dans les 24h pour l'informer que sa candidature n'est pas retenue. J'ai rejeté un candidat par erreur. Savez-vous s'il possible d'annuler l'envoi de ce mail ? Merci d'avance pour votre aide.
                                                                                                            • Can'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 new
                                                                                                            • New in Cadences: Option to Resume or Restart follow-ups when re-enrolling records into a Cadence, and specify custom un-enrollment criteria

                                                                                                              Managing follow-ups effectively involves understanding the appropriate timing for reaching out, as well as knowing when to take a break and resume later, or deciding if it's necessary to start the follow-up process anew. With two significant enhancements
                                                                                                            • embed a form in an email

                                                                                                              Hello, how to embed a form in an email that populates Zoho CRM cases? I would like to send emails to a selected audience offering something. In the same email the recipients - if interested - instead of replying to can fill in a Zoho CRM form that creates
                                                                                                            • Zoho Bookings - Reserve with Google

                                                                                                              Does Zoho Bookings plan to to integrate with Reserve with Google?
                                                                                                            • How to add Zoho demo site page designs to my Zoho Sites website

                                                                                                              Hi, I would like to add the design from the following demo URLs into my current Zoho website. I have already created two new pages on my site, named “Menu2” and “Menu3.” For the “Menu2” page, I want to use the design from this demo: https://naturestjuice-demo.zohosites.com/menu
                                                                                                            • Digest Août - Un résumé de ce qui s'est passé le mois dernier sur Community

                                                                                                              Bonjour chère communauté ! Voici le résumé tant attendu de tout ce qui a marqué Zoho le mois dernier : contenus utiles, échanges inspirants et moments forts. 🎉 Découvrez Zoho Backstage 3.0 : une version repensée pour offrir encore plus de flexibilité,
                                                                                                            • Global Sets for Multi-Select pick lists

                                                                                                              When is this feature coming to Zoho CRM? It would be very useful now we have got used to having it for the normal pick lists.
                                                                                                            • 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 that
                                                                                                            • Kaizen #206 - Answering your Questions | Displaying Related Purchase Orders from Zoho Books in CRM Deals using Queries

                                                                                                              Hello everyone! We're back with another post in the Kaizen series. We're grateful for the feedback we received from all of you! One of the questions we received was "I would like to see the list of Purchase Orders in Zoho Books for a Deal in CRM." We
                                                                                                            • Add Analytics function for Title case (capitalising each word in a string)

                                                                                                              At present, you can only capitalise each word in a string in Analytics during data import. It would be really useful to be able to do this with a formula column, but there is no Title Case function.
                                                                                                            • How to conditionally embed an own internal widget with parameters in an html snippet?

                                                                                                              Hello everyone, I'm trying to create a dynamic view in a page using an HTML snippet. The goal is to display different content based on a URL parameter (input.step). I have successfully managed to conditionally display different forms using the following
                                                                                                            • Introducing AI-powered Assessments & Zoho's native LLM, Zia

                                                                                                              We’ve shipped a cleaner, faster way to create assessments in Zoho Recruit. 🚀 Instead of manually building question banks or copying old templates, you can now generate ready-to-use assessments in just a few clicks, all tailored to the role you’re hiring
                                                                                                            • Where can I find rejected inbound mails and their reason for rejection

                                                                                                              Hi, I was recently made aware by a mailing list which I am subscribed to (ffmpeg-devel@ffmpeg.org) that my Zoho mail Mail account is rejecting some emails. If I look under Admin Panel > Security & Compliance > Quarantine > Incoming, the list there is
                                                                                                            • Sync more than one Workdrive

                                                                                                              Hello Please I'm facing some difficulties since some days. In my company we have many zoho accounts in different organisations. And I have to find a way to sync all these Workdrives. I spend many hours to search it on zoho Workdrive but no solution. Could someone help me ? Any idea how I can achieve it ? Thanks in advance. Regards
                                                                                                            • Zoho writer unable to merge documents to PDF with basic fonts in Hebrew or fonts from my computer

                                                                                                              I created several forms that will be merged into PDF files through Zoho Writer and I am unable to receive the PDF in the basic fonts of the Hebrew language or in the fonts I have on my computer. The writer exports to PDF an exchange font that looks very
                                                                                                            • Base Currency Adjustment Reversal

                                                                                                              Two questions surrounding the base currency adjustments (BCA). I recently ported over from QB so I need to enter the base currency adjustments. In QB, it will calculate the BCA for you at the end of the year and then reverse it at the top of the following year. Makes sense. Does Zohobooks not do this as well? I created a BCA for Dec 31, 2016 but no reversing entry was made Jan 1, 2017. Am I supposed to manually do a reversal? I'm not even allowed to post journals directly to the 'exchange gain loss'
                                                                                                            • Please implement UAE Central Bank FX rates

                                                                                                              Hello, as I understand from your knowledge base, any UAE business account created from September 15, 2018 does not have foreign exchange rates fetched automatically. This is a serious inconvenience and I am not sure why ZOHO has not looked into the ways
                                                                                                            • Unable to enable tax checkboxes

                                                                                                              Hi Zoho Commerce Support, I'm writing to report an issue I'm having with the tax settings in my Zoho Commerce store. I've created several tax rates under Settings > Taxes, but all of them appear with the checkbox disabled. When I try to enable a checkbox,
                                                                                                            • Search Records returning different values than actually present

                                                                                                              Hey! I have this following line in my deluge script: accountSearch = zoho.crm.searchRecords("Accounts","(RS_Enroll_ID:equals:" + rsid + ")",1,200,{"cvid":864868001088693817}); info "Account search size: " + accountSearch.size(); listOfAccounts = zoho.crm.searchRecords("Accounts","(RS_Enroll_ID:equals:"
                                                                                                            • Making digital signatures accessible to all: Introducing accessibility controls in Zoho Sign

                                                                                                              Hi there! At Zoho Sign, we are committed to building an inclusive digital experience for all our users. As part of our ongoing efforts to align with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), we’re updating the application with support that will go
                                                                                                            • Super Admin Access to All Courses and Spaces in Zoho Learn

                                                                                                              Dear Zoho Learn Team, We hope this message finds you well. We are using Zoho Learn extensively for internal and agent training. While managing our courses and spaces, we encountered a significant limitation regarding admin access and course management.
                                                                                                            • Print checks for owner's draw

                                                                                                              Hi.  Can I use Zoho check printing for draws to Owner's Equity?  This may be a specific case of the missing Pay expenses via Check feature.  If it's not available, are there plans to add this feature?
                                                                                                            • [New Release 2024] Create and embed custom capabilities across CRM with Kiosk Studio, our latest no-code tool

                                                                                                              [Update | New series] We've started publishing a series of posts on Kiosk Studio. It's called Kiosk Studio Sessions and you can check out the first one here! [Update | 15 Oct} Session #2 is live! This one will look at how to create a kiosk for your call
                                                                                                            • Revenue Management: #10 Common Mistakes while Recognizing Revenue

                                                                                                              We are at the end of the series on Revenue Management, covering how different businesses recognise revenue. Even with clear standards like ASC 606 and IFRS 15 in practice, businesses often struggle with the nuances of revenue recognition. Especially growing
                                                                                                            • Windows Desktop App - request to add minimization/startup options

                                                                                                              Support Team, Can you submit the following request to your development team? Here is what would be optimal in my opinion from UX perspective: 1) In the "Application Menu", add a menu item to Exit the app, as well as an alt-key shortcut for these menus
                                                                                                            • integarting attachments from crm to creator

                                                                                                              when i tried to integrate pdf attachments from crm to creator via deluge i am getting this error {"code":2945,"description":"UPLOAD_RULE_NOT_CONFIGURED"} the code i used is attachments = zoho.crm.getRelatedRecords("Attachments","Sales_Orders",203489100020279XXX8);
                                                                                                            • Search Option

                                                                                                              🚫 Current Limitation: As of now (September 2025), Zoho FSM lacks a global search functionality, which makes it difficult to quickly: Find specific Work Orders by number or keyword Search for customer records or contact info Locate assets, jobs, or service
                                                                                                            • Mobile Chat Window - Full Screen

                                                                                                              Hello, The mobile chat window takes up the full screen, which is highly confusing for most customers! Using a desktop machine, I see the same happens when reducing the browser width to 800px or below. This suggests that it responsive web design, causing the switch to full screen. Can we fix this very annoying behaviour ourselves using a custom css file? If so, can you please let me know how? Thanks
                                                                                                            • Is it possible to customize ZC Themes?

                                                                                                              I understand you can choose a layout and customize Brand Color, App Header, Menu, and Sub-Menu components, but can you override some of the default theme settings with CSS or a config file? For example, - Table highlight color - Listview auto filter highlight
                                                                                                            • Is it possible to create Custom function-based Lookup field in Zoho CRM

                                                                                                              Is it possible to create a custom function-based lookup field in Zoho CRM? If so, how? Use case: Need to fetch users from Zoho Projects into a dropdown field in Zoho CRM.
                                                                                                            • @mention in comments no notification

                                                                                                              Hi, hope someone can help. When we @mention someone in the comments in Zoho Creator, how is that user notifed as we don't get anything on email or in the app notifications. 
                                                                                                            • Zoho unified inbox

                                                                                                              The new changes have definitely improved things for switching between accounts.  But zoho still desperately needs a unified inbox.  It sucks to have to enter filters and folders for each and every inbox.  This seems like such a simple thing, i wonder why Zoho hasn't done it?
                                                                                                            • Add "Running Balance" column to Account Transaction Reports

                                                                                                              Hello, Currently Zoho Account Transaction Reports give you the opening balance, then lists the transactions, then provides the closing balance.  It would be great if you could add a column on the far right that shows the "Running Balance" on the account after each transaction.  There are many times when analyzing or tie-ing out transactions that this would be very helpful.  I currently have to frequently run a tape on my adding machine to get balance totals after a specific transaction on the list.
                                                                                                            • IMAP Server not responding.

                                                                                                              Trying to connect a phone via IMAP and getting "imap.zoho.com not responding." Is the server down, for maintenance or otherwise? I've tried this on two different devices and got the same error on both.
                                                                                                            • Unified customer portal login

                                                                                                              As I'm a Zoho One subscriber I can provide my customers with portal access to many of the Zoho apps. However, the customer must have a separate login for each app, which may be difficult for them to manage and frustrating as all they understand is that
                                                                                                            • WhatsApp Channels in Zoho Campaigns

                                                                                                              Now that Meta has opened WhatsApp Channels globally, will you add it to Zoho Campaigns? It's another top channel for marketing communications as email and SMS. Thanks.
                                                                                                            • error : Object code : 6500

                                                                                                              b3 = map(); b3.put("name", "Test Project Name"); updateprojects2 = invokeurl [ url :"https://projectsapi.zoho.eu/restapi/portal/era0130/projects/169495000000928007/" type :PUT parameters: b3 connection:"in2" ]; info b3 ; info updateprojects2; ------------
                                                                                                            • Next Page