Using finance applications inside Zoho CRM Plus

Using finance applications inside Zoho CRM Plus

InfoThis feature is currently available for organizations in the EU DC and will be rolled out to other data centers in phases. 

Managing customer relationships and having control of your financial operations go hand-in-hand in a business ecosystem. But that's not the case for businesses who have to juggle between multiple disconnected tools. Finance teams work in isolation, relying on manual data entry to keep CX systems up to date, leaving significant room for human error.

To solve this issue, CRM Plus now gives you the option to work from a unified dashboard, keeping all your sales, marketing and finance functions in one place. Whether it's invoice management, payments or inventory, having all your data in one place ensures a customer-focused approach to deliver a smoother and more connected experience.

Let's understand the difference and impact of having the finance suit inside CRM Plus with the help of an example.

Zylker Mart, an e-commerce company run their business on Zoho CRM Plus. Their sales team uses CRM to track lead conversion, customer relationships and sales pipeline data, and their finance team tracks expenses, inventory and invoices separately in standalone tools, involving a lot of manual data entry and keeping up between the tools. After enabling finance applications inside CRM Plus, the teams now work from a single dashboard. The sales team keeps a track of inventory, so they know when stock is running out, and the finance team can track bills and invoices against the right customer data. Working from a unified tool has given the team more confidence with fewer chances of errors, while also saving significant time.

Capabilities added in the upgrade  

You can now access the financial applications - Books, Invoice, Expense, Billing, Inventory, and Checkout right from your CRM Plus dashboard as Marketplace add-ons.

Invoice and Accounting - Powered by Zoho Books/Zoho Invoice
Expense Management - Powered by Zoho Expense
Subscription Management - Powered by Zoho Billing
Inventory Management - Powered by Zoho Inventory
Payments Management - Powered by Zoho Checkout

Invoice and Accounting

Invoice and Accounting in the suite is powered by the Books or Invoice modules depending on the size of your organization. Invoice is more suited for freelancers and small business looking for a simple invoicing solution, whereas Books offers a more comprehensive solution to take care of all your accounting needs.

Some of the major capabilities are:
  1. Create and send invoices
  2. Track payments, record partial payments and receive payments online
  3. Track expenses, manage payments to vendors
  4. Apply GST and file GSTR (for Indian customers)
  5. Generate and print bills

Expense Management  

Travel and expense management is taken care of by the Expense module inside Zoho CRM Plus. It helps track expenses during business or corporate travel based on your company policies, and covers the entire trip right from onboarding to reimbursement.

Some of the major capabilities are:
  1. Scan receipts and record expenses automatically
  2. Self-serviced platform for travel booking and management
  3. Manage corporate card expenses throughout the organization
  4. Analyze expenses and spending for every activity in detail through extensive reports
  5. Functions as a central travel desk to assist employees in planning itineraries and getting them approved

Subscription Management  

End-to-end billing, and subscription-based services are handled in the Billing module. It helps you create and handle bills, recurring billing, renewals, and other changes across the customer lifecycle.  

Some of the major capabilities are:
  1. Automated renewals and customizable billing cycles(varying billing frequency)
  2. Acts as a customer self-service portal to manage bills, subscriptions, and payments
  3. Customize plans, pricing models, and transaction documents to suit different businesses and their strategies.
  4. Use multi-language capabilities to tailor conversations with customer, and expand to new market segments
  5. Reduce customer churn by sending timely renewal and payment reminders, and focus on customer satisfaction within the product

Inventory Management  

Inventory management for small and medium businesses to manage inventory and order operations is handled inside the module Inventory. The process of tracking, overseeing and controlling inventory to have the right products at the right time and place is done here.

Some of the capabilities are:
  1. Accurate stock tracking to ensure optimal stock levels and meet customers' needs
  2. Calculate inventory value and give alerts when stock runs low
  3. Manage and track stock movement across multiple warehouses
  4. Create and manage online and offline sales orders
  5. Stay updated on inventory performance and get a complete overview on sales of each item

Payments Management  

All the payments received and sent by your business through multiple payment methods are all recorded and managed in the Checkout module.

Some of the key capabilities are:
  1. Accept and manage payments received and sent via multiple payment methods including UPI, debit/credit cards, bank transfers, and offline/in-store.
  2. Create customizable payment forms to receive payments and complete transactions without any coding
  3. Create and manage automatic and recurring payment mandates and subscription billing
  4. Handle company payroll, employee/vendor reimbursements and refunds securely
  5. All these finance applications along with CRM, support and marketing applications will provide a unified ecosystem to manage and run your business on Zoho CRM Plus.

To access the applications    

  1. Click your profile icon in the top-right corner of your dashboard and click Admin Panel.
  2. On the left panel, click Marketplace and all the finance applications will be listed here.



  3. Click Try now next to the application you want to try for the first time.

Important terms and conditions for the upgrade

  1. This upgrade can work differently for different organizations based on what tools you already use, licenses and other factors.   
  2. The finance applications are not provided by default in CRM Plus, they can be opted for if required from the Marketplace.
  3. The license of the applications are not a part of the bundle, and have to be purchased separately.
  4. Once you enable a finance application inside the CRM Plus suite, you can use it for a 15-day trial period.
  5. The required edition and add-ons for a finance application can be purchased and managed through the CRM Plus subscription page.



  6. Availability of features in individual applications depends on the edition and add-ons you purchase. 
If you're already using the applications and have any questions, or if you would like to have early access in the other data centers, please reach out to support@zohocrmplus.com. 

Read more: 

Refer here for pricing of the applications: Books, Inventory, Billing, and Checkout.