Automation #15: Automatically Adding Static Secondary Contacts

Automation #15: Automatically Adding Static Secondary Contacts



Rockel is a top-tier client of Zylker traders. Marcus handles communications with Rockel and would like to add Terence, the CTO of Zylker traders to the email conversations. In this case, the emails coming from user address rockel.com should have Terence looped in automatically as the secondary contact.

Like Zylker, many users have the requirement to include secondary contacts while communicating with their customers. Here's for you the custom function to automatically add static secondary contacts while responding to an email.

Prerequisite
1. Enable Secondary Contacts (CCs) in Tickets
Navigate to Setup >> Customization >> General Settings >> Tickets >> Secondary Contacts (CCs) in Tickets >> Configure(If not enabled) or Edit Configuration(If enabled), select the department to which you want to implement the automation.


2. Create a Connection
To establish a connection, perform the following steps:

      2.1 Go to
Setup and choose Connections under Developer Space.
      2.2 Click
Create Connection.
      2.3 Select
Zoho OAuth under Default Connection.
      2.4 Give the connection name as
secondarycontact.
      2.5 Under
Scope choose the below scope values:
            Desk.search.READ
            Desk.tickets.READ
            Desk.tickets.UPDATE
            Desk.tickets.CREATE
            Desk.contacts.READ
            Desk.contacts.UPDATE
      2.6 Click Create and Connect.
      2.7 Click
Connect and click Accept.
Connection is created successfully.

Create a Workflow Rule
1. Go to Setup, choose Workflows under Automation.
2. Under Workflows, click Rules >> Create Rule.
In the Basic Information section
3. Select Tickets under Module.
4. Enter a Rule Name and Description for the rule.
5. To activate the rule, select the Active checkbox. Click Next.
In the Execute on section, follow these steps:
6. Select Create checkbox to execute this rule every time a new ticket is created. Click Next.
7. In the Criteria section, specify the criteria as "Email contains @zylker.com" and click Next
8. In the Actions section, click the + icon and select New next to Custom Functions.
9. Enter a name and description for the custom function.
10. Under Argument Mapping, give a desired Method Name. Map the arguments as below 
   10.1 In the Argument Name field , type ticketId, and from the Value drop-down list select Ticket Id under Ticket Information.
   10.2 In the Argument Name field , type ticketContactId, and from the Value drop-down list select Contact Id under Contacts Information.
   10.3 In the Argument Name field, type orgId, and from the Value drop-down list select specify custom value and enter your Zoho Desk. OrgId. To  get Zoho Desk OrgId, navigate to Setup >> Developer Space >> API.                  
11. In the script window, insert the Custom Function given below:
  1. //--------------- User Input -----------------
  2. Email = "STATIC_EMAIL_ID"; // Static email ID
  3. deskURL = "https://desk.zoho.com";
  4. //-----------------------------------------------
  5. logs = Collection();
  6. secondaryContacts = list();
  7. ticketDetails = zoho.desk.getRecordById(orgId, "tickets", ticketId, "secondarycontact");
  8. logs.insert("ticketDetails": ticketDetails);
  9. secondaryCC = ticketDetails.get("secondaryContacts");
  10. if (secondaryCC != "" && secondaryCC != null)
  11. {
  12. secondaryContacts = secondaryCC.toList(",");
  13. }
  14. searchParam = Map();
  15. searchParam.put("from", 0);
  16. searchParam.put("limit", 1);
  17. field1 = "email:" + Email;
  18. encryptEmail = zoho.encryption.urlEncode(field1);
  19. searchParam.put("field1", encryptEmail);
  20. contactSearch = invokeurl
  21. [
  22. url: deskURL + "/api/v1/contacts/fieldSearch"
  23. type: GET
  24. parameters: searchParam
  25. connection: "secondarycontact"
  26. ];
  27. logs.insert("contactSearch": contactSearch);
  28. if(contactSearch != null && contactSearch.get("data") != null && contactSearch.get("data").size() > 0)
  29. {
  30. contactId = contactSearch.get("data").get(0).get("id");
  31. }
  32. else
  33. {
  34. createConatctParam = Map();
  35. lastName = Email.getPrefixIgnoreCase("@");
  36. createConatctParam.put("lastName", lastName);
  37. createConatctParam.put("email", Email);
  38. createContact = invokeurl
  39.     [
  40.      url: deskURL + "/api/v1/contacts"
  41.      type: POST
  42.      parameters: createConatctParam.toString()
  43.      connection: "secondarycontact"
  44.     ];
  45. logs.insert("createContact": createContact);
  46. contactId = createContact.get("id");
  47. }
  48. logs.insert("contactId": contactId);
  49. if(contactId != null && contactId != ticketContactId)
  50. {
  51. secondaryContacts.add(contactId);
  52. updateParam = Map();
  53. updateParam.put("secondaryContacts", secondaryContacts);
  54. updateTicket = invokeurl
  55.     [
  56.         url: deskURL + "/api/v1/tickets/" + ticketId
  57.         type: PATCH
  58.         parameters: updateParam.toString()
  59.         connection: "secondarycontact"
  60.     ];
  61. logs.insert("updateTicket": updateTicket);
  62. }
  63. info logs ;
Note: In Line 1 Email = "STATIC_EMAIL_ID", replace the "STATIC_EMAIL_ID" with the email address you prefer to be added in the secondary contact automatically. eg:  Email = "terence@zylker.com"
12. Click Save to save the custom function
13. Click Save again to save the workflow.

We hope this custom function fosters your experience with Zoho Desk. Stay tuned for regular updates and insights on our automation features in this space.

    • Sticky Posts

    • Register for Zoho Desk Beta Community

      With the start of the year, we have decided to take a small step in making the life of our customers a little easier. We now have easy access to all our upcoming features and a faster way to request for beta access. We open betas for some of our features
    • Share your Zoho Desk story with us!

      Tell us how you use Zoho Desk for your business and inspire others with your story. Be it a simple workflow rule that helps you navigate complex processes or a macro that saves your team a lot of time; share it here and help the community learn and grow with shared knowledge. 
    • Tip #1: Learn to pick the right channels

      Mail, live chat, telephony, social media, web forms—there are so many support channels out there. Trying to pick the right channels to offer your customers can get pretty confusing. Emails are most useful when the customer wants to put things on record. However, escalated or complicated issues should not be resolved over email because it's slow and impersonal.  When you need immediate responses, live chat is more suitable. It's also quick and convenient, so it's the go-to channel for small issues. 
    • Welcome to Zoho Desk Community - Say hello here!

      Hello everyone! Though we have been here for a while, it’s time to formally establish the Zoho Desk Community; we’re really happy to have you all here! This can be the place where you take a moment to introduce yourself to the rest of the community. We’d love to hear all about you, what you do, what company or industry you work for, how you use Zoho Desk and anything else that you will like to share! Here’s a little about me. I am Chinmayee. I have been associated with Zoho since 2014. I joined here
    • Webinar 1: Blueprint for Customer Service

      With the launch of a host of new features in Zoho Desk, we thought it’ll be great to have a few webinars to help our customers make the most of them. We’re starting off with our most talked about feature, Blueprint in Zoho Desk. You can register for the Blueprint webinar here: The webinar will be delivered by our in-house product experts. This is a good opportunity to ask questions to our experts and understand how Blueprint can help you automate your service processes. We look forward to seeing
      • Recent Topics

      • Kanban View for Projects.

        At our organization, we describe active projects with various statuses like "In Proofing" or "Printing" or "Mailing". In the Projects view, one can set these project statuses by selecting from the appropriate drop-down. While this works, it's difficult to view and comprehend the progress of all of your projects relative to each other in a table. Creating a Kanban view for projects where I can move them from one status to another allows me to see where each project is in the order of our workflow.
      • Useful enhancements to Mail Merge in Zoho CRM

        Dear Customers, We hope you're well! We're here with a set of highly anticipated enhancements to the Mail Merge feature in Zoho CRM. Let's go! Mail Merge in Zoho CRM integrates with Zoho Writer to simplify the process of customizing and sharing documents
      • How can I see the actual copy sent to the specific contact?

        I have setup a journey in Marketing Automation and created addition of contact in a specific list as the trigger, emails are sending to the contacts, but I can't see the actual copy sent to any specific contact in the list. Please guide me, where can
      • Client Script for Task Module

        When do we expect the client script for the tasks module?
      • Formula Fields inside of Blueprint Transitions

        We would like to have formula fields inside of blueprint transitions. We type in currency fields and would like to see the result inside of a formula field. Our use case: Send out a price for XY 1. Filling out cost fields 2. See gross profit
      • inventory based on bills and not physical stock

        Hello, I have noticed a very annoying issue with zoho books/inventory. I use composite items. If I have an sub assembly item on back order, I am unable to make up the composite item, even when I have received the goods and it is in my stock. I have to convert the PO into a BILL in order for the item to show as 'Accounting Stock'. The problem is that the supplier Invoice is not shipped with the goods, but can follow even a week later. So I have to make the bill have a 'dummy name and number' until
      • Using Zoho Inventory for managing Item compatibilities

        Use case: Using Zoho Inventory for managing (as an example) aftermarket car parts, where a single part can suit many makes, models and years. How do most businesses assign and manage compatibility for each part? Do ZI users typically do this using multi-select
      • Unable to enter manual journal entries in AR/AP.

        Hi there, i am facing some problem relating to AR/AP. I want to make some entries in AR/AP through manual journal. for example. some time I send cash 500 to Mr. A (Customer) for any purpose and then after 2 or 3 days Mr. A returned back 700 to me and
      • Questions regarding WorkDrive

        Here are my questions regarding WorkDrive: Does WorkDrive have a limit on the number of downloads? What will happen if a file is downloaded excessively? Does WorkDrive have any restrictions on download speeds? Are there any limitations on downloading
      • How to record tips from customers

        I run a cleaning service business and on occasion customers include a tip with their check payment. How can I record the amount paid for service and the tip separately? Any amount over the invoice is looked at as an overpayment and suggest a credit note
      • Multi-currencies in Zoho Books

        I'd like to request multiple currencies in Zoho Books. I have customers paying in USD, CAD, CNY. I need to bill customers in these currencies too. I can set up a base currency, and then set up a exchange-rate table to convert these currencies.
      • I want refund of Zoho standard subscription on WEB payment

        Hi, Kindly help to refund the WEB payment made on 13/07/2025 for Zoho standard annual subscription. I didn't find the software useful for my project. Regards
      • Is Conditional display of field(s) possible in a Canvas Customer Portal?

        Is Conditional display of field(s) possible in a Canvas Customer Portal? How?
      • Automate Backups

        This is a feature request. Consider adding an auto backup feature. Where when you turn it on, it will auto backup on the 15-day schedule. For additional consideration, allow for the export of module data via API calls. Thank you for your consideration.
      • View Linked Subscription on Invoice list

        When looking at the list of invoices in billing is it possible to see the subscription that an invoice is for. This would allow you to see if it's a subscription a customer is behind on, or they simply haven't paid a one time invoice.
      • Recording Credit Card Fees when Recording Payment for Bills

        It seems I am unable to record credit card fees when paying a bill. I pay close to 100% of my bills with a company credit card via online portals. I'm happy for the CC fess to be recorded as Bank Charges but it will not allow that field to be used if
      • Workerly/Zoho One Pricing

        Hi What is the pricing model that is suppose to be as a Zoho One user? If i use the services of a freelancers or temp workers (Sometimes for a few hours a week/month), I need to purchase a zoho one license for each of them as well as workerly licenc
      • DKIM

        I have my DKIM in Titan, which is another email service provider. I get this notification on my portal. What shall I do? ( Improve the deliverability of emails sent from Zoho Social by adding DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) records to your DNS settings.
      • Show All Notes For A Single Record

        I would like to be able to view a list of all Notes for a particular record. We can add several (unlimited) Notes for the Leads, Contacts, Accounts and Potentials records. The subject line and some of the note content for up to 10 notes is visible on the first page. You can select the arrow to view additional notes in the list. I would like a button next to the New Note button that says View All. This would bring up a printable list of all notes listed in descending order by Modified Time (newest
      • Zoholics Europe 2025: Build Smarter with the Zoho Creator Low-code Workshop!

        Why should you attend? This year, Zoholics Europe 2025, Zoho’s official user conference, is your opportunity to connect directly with the teams behind the tools you use every day. Don’t miss one of the most requested sessions: dedicated, hands-on workshop
      • Assigning multiple roles to a user in Creator

        Hi I find we can assign only one role and permission to an user in creator. There is a requirement to assign multiple roles and corresponding permission to one user. Is there any solution or workaround for this? Refer the screenshot below
      • 【Zoho CRM】ウィザード機能のアップデート:セクション要素の追加

        ユーザーの皆さま、こんにちは。コミュニティチームの中野です。 今回は「Zoho CRM アップデート情報」の中から、ウィザード機能のアップデートをご紹介します。 ウィザード機能に新たに「セクション要素」が追加されました。 各ウィザード画面内で項目、テキスト、サブフォーム、ウィジェット要素などをより柔軟に整理できるようになりました。 セクション要素とは? ウィザードの中で、関連する項目や要素をひとつの「サブエリア」 としてまとめられる新しい構成要素です。 セクション要素活用メリット 入力内容やプロセスによっては、より細かな構造や階層化が求められる場合があります。
      • Edit PDFs from within your web app using Zoho Office Integrator

        Hi users, We are excited to introduce PDF editing capabilities in Zoho Office Integrator. You can now open, edit, and collaborate on PDFs from within your web app—in addition to documents, spreadsheets, and presentations—and save them in your configured
      • Zoho CRM Workflow and Function Backup Options

        Hi everyone! I have been able to make several backups of my CRM data and noticed that the Workflows and Functions are not included in these backups. To my knowledge, there is no backup feature for workflows and functions, which is problematic in of itself.
      • Zoho Recruit > Job Opening Module> Editing, Deleting, Adding (Fields)

        Hello All In the Job Opening Modules How do i go about deleting the Positing Title or changing to Job Title or can i hide it from all? I want to add a Look Up User Field, however when i select the look up field i do not see that Can i have the industry
      • Can you create a lead without assigning an owner?

        Here is the question I have:   Is there a way I can create a bunch of leads without assigning it an owner?   What I want is for my salespeople to pick and choose their own leads without me assigning them..   right now all leads are owned by me because
      • Bug - Incorrect example in the documentation

        I found an issue in the Zoho API documentation. The example "Sample Request" on this page is incorrect — it shows the example for "Get Email Attachment Info" instead of "Get Email Attachment Content". Wrong example: curl "https://mail.zoho.com/api/accounts/12345678/folders/9000000002014/messages/1710915488416100001/attachmentinfo"
      • Power of Automation :: Dynamically generate Tasklists based on values selected in Task Custom Fields

        Hello Everyone, A custom function is a software code that can be used to automate a process and this allows you to automate a notification, call a webhook, or perform logic immediately after a workflow rule is triggered. This feature helps to automate
      • WhatsApp Enhancements to Boost Customer Engagement

        We're excited to introduce a series of powerful enhancements to the WhatsApp integration in Zoho FSM, making customer interactions faster, smarter, and more actionable—right from your Zoho FSM interface. Here’s a quick rundown of what’s new: Try It Out
      • Store reviews module just got smarter in Zoho Apptics

        Hello, Apptics community! Every app deserves better visibility in the marketplace, and reviews play a crucial role in improving your app's App Store Optimization (ASO), rankings, and credibility across stores. That's why we've rolled out a set of enhancements
      • Try CRM for everyone button in the way of workflow

        Please consider using the bottom bar for offers. Using the top bar for offers like "Try CRM for everyone" really gets in the way of my day to day workflow.
      • Include EVERYTHING in Language Files

        Hey, we are building out a system, that needs to be translated. The language files lack a few things though. 1. Blueprint names 2. Canvas View elements like tab names Please include everything into these files, otherwise it's not really a multi language
      • A way to create kits (groups of items) that do not require bundling and are added to an order as the individual items

        We are evaluating moving off of Sage BusinessWorks (which handles accounting, order entry, inventory control, accounts receivable, etc) to Zoho Books/Inventory. One of the things we heavily use is a feature called Kits, which allows creating a group of
      • Allocating Salesman To Customer

        Hello, please add a feature to allocate a salesman to a particular business customer/account. Regards
      • Shipment

        I have 70 shipments Out of which 40 delivery date are updated( since it is live tracked) 30 numbers i need to update manually. How to do it in bulk?
      • arabic not printing

        Qatar has a legal requirement to have invoices in English and Arabic. When writing invoice fields in Arabic, they don't print. Why?
      • How to show Order Number/SO Ref on Invoice emails

        When creating a sales order or invoice we have an option to input an order number or ref# (see attached images). For the Sales Order email template we can add a placeholder for the SO_REF. However, for the Invoice email template there's no option to reference
      • Specify in-line image size in question

        I have an image inserted into a file upload type question. I can click and drag the corner of the image to make it larger or smaller, but I would like to manually input the dimensions I need. No matter what size I make the image in photoshop before uploading
      • Can you limit who creates tags?

        Hi there, I'd like to find out if it's possible to limit which Agents create tags on Zoho desk. Thank you. 
      • Auto CC - Moving Departments

        We have Auto CC e-mail replies to your support mailbox enabled. We have two departments: Helpdesk (helpdesk@domain.com) Delivery (delivery@domain.com) If we create a Helpdesk ticket, and reply, replies are CC'd to helpdesk@domain.com (OK) We then move
      • Next Page