Effortlessly advance through your CRM blueprints by including optional fields in transitions

Effortlessly advance through your CRM blueprints by including optional fields in transitions



Editions: Professional edition and above
DCs: All
Release plan: This enhancement is being released in a phased manner to customers. It will soon be available to all users.
[Updated on 5 Sep 2024] This enhancement has been released to all users in all DCs.

Hello everyone,

Blueprints streamline processes and ensure users adhere to required steps by guiding them through each stage. To maintain compliance, users must enter required information to progress in a blueprint. You can learn more about blueprints from our tutorial.

The case for optional fields

While blueprints ensure that processes are followed strictly, they can run into issues in some scenarios. For example, in the lead qualification process:
  • A sales development rep (SDR) needs to gather details such as company size, budget, and other factors in order to qualify a lead.
  • An account executive (AE) will pick up where the SDR left off and delve deeper to discover specific needs, pain points, decision processes, and more.
Customers aren't restricted by processes like SDRs and AEs are, and they may share specific pain points and other details directly with SDRs. This presents a dilemma to admins when designing blueprints; should they make these fields mandatory for the SDR? If yes, how should the SDR proceed in cases where this information isn't available?

To address this issue, admins have had to use workarounds, such as adding extra fields with layout rules and implementing multiple transitions. This made blueprints harder to configure, maintain, and use.

Use optional fields to enhance your blueprints

CRM blueprints can now include optional fields in stage transitions, allowing for more flexibility in meeting various process needs (like the one mentioned above).

In our example, admins can simply make those fields optional for the SDR.

Some sample use cases are as follows:
  • Users can complete detailed feedback fields in ticket resolution processes if the customer is willing to provide information.
  • Users can gather additional task details—such as estimated time, priority level, and dependencies—in task management blueprints.
  • Users can record preferences and additional information in registration processes. These could cover accessibility requirements, motivations for participation, areas of interest, and more.
  • Order fulfillment blueprints can include fields related to order consolidation, if multiple orders are being combined into a single shipment.
To do this, go to a blueprint's transition form and mark the appropriate fields as optional or mandatory based on your needs. Previously, every field in the transition form was mandatory.



Users can then proceed to the next stage even if the optional fields aren't filled.

You can mark the following items in the blueprint's transition form as optional:
  • Fields from the primary blueprint module and related modules
  • Checklist items

  • Notes, tags, and attachments

  • Other fields added under Associated Items, like tasks, meetings, etc.

In addition, a Save as Draft button has been added to the transition form to help transition owners manually save completed fields and continue later where they left off.

Moving notes, tags, and attachments

We've also introduced a new change whereby notes, tags, and attachments are now accessible in relevant locations within the UI. This update will also pave the way for future improvements as we consolidate them all under the "Add" button menu.
  • Tags will be available when you click the + Add button.
  • Notes and attachments will be available under + Add > Associated Items.


FAQ
I've marked a field as optional, but it's still shown as mandatory for transition owners. Why?
Whether a field in a transition form is marked as mandatory or optional depends on the following:
  • Whether the module field is mandatory or not
  • Whether a layout rule is marking a field as mandatory or not
  • Whether it's set as mandatory in the blueprint transition setting
If at least one of these is mandatory, then the field is marked as mandatory.


We hope you find this new update useful. As mentioned before, this is being released in a phased manner and it will soon be available to all users. Do share your feedback in the comments section below.

Thanks!

      • Recent Topics

      • Problems with email templates (HTML - Outlook)

        Hi there, I've been trying to create a newsletter from the template "Business 4". Everything looks great in the preview, but when I send it to my Outlook inbox, the layout doesn't seems to stick. More particularly: - The line-height is way more reduced, even though I used the line-height tool from the template - Columns but they are sometimes misaligned - Font size is not always the one I've selected. Could you help? Thanks!

      • Zoho CRM IP Addresses to Whitelist

        We were told to whitelist IP addresses from Zoho CRM.  (CRM, not Zoho Mail.) What is the current list of IP Addresses to whitelist for outbound mail? Is there a website where these IP addresses are published and updated?  Everything I could find is over

      • How to create a drop down menu in Zoho Sheets

        I am trying to find out, how do I create a drop down option in Zoho sheet. I tried Data--> Data Validation --> Criteria --> Text  --> Contains. But that is not working, is there any other way to do it.  Thanks in Advance.

      • Introducing Keyboard Shortcuts for Zoho CRM

        Dear Customers, We're happy to introduce keyboard shortcuts for Zoho CRM features! Until now, you might have been navigating to modules manually using the mouse, and at times, it could be tedious, especially when you had to search for specific modules

      • Zoho CRM's custom views are now deployable from sandboxes

        This feature is now available for users in the AU, JP, and CN DCs. This feature is now available for users in CA and SA DCs. New update: This feature is now available for users in all DCs. Hello everyone, We're excited to announce that you can now deploy

      • Where are Kanban swimlanes

        So i've been playing with Zoho Projects Kanban view a bit more. It appears that task lists are being used as the Kanban columns, which makes sense from the implementation point of view but not the logical one.  Kanban columns are statuses that a task can flow through, while a task list has been a logical way to organize related tasks and relate them to a mislestone. In other words a task in a particular task can go through several stages while remaining in the same task list. After doing some research

      • Send Automated WhatsApp Messages and Leverage the Improved WhatsApp Templates

        Greetings, I hope all of you are doing well. We're excited to announce a major upgrade to Bigin's WhatsApp integration that brings more flexibility, interactivity, and automation to your customer messaging. WhatsApp message automation You can now use

      • Scheduling Calls in CommandCenter / Blueprints

        I would love it if you could add a function to schedule a call in the lead's record for a future date. I know you can add a Task by going to Instant Actions > Task and completing the form: These tasks go into the lead's record under Open Actions. But

      • 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

      • Limit in number of records for subforms and multi-select lookup fields

        It is my understanding that a maximum of 100 items can be selected in a multi-select lookup field, and that a total of 200 items can be selected in total between both subforms in a given module.  Are there any ways to work around this limitation if we

      • Kaizen #136 - Zoho CRM Widgets using ReactJS

        Hey there! Welcome back to yet another insightful post in our Kaizen series! In this post, let's explore how to use ReactJS for Zoho CRM widgets. We will utilize the sample widget from one of our previous posts - Geocoding Leads' Addresses in ZOHO CRM

      • Getting Permission denied to access this portal.

        We have one user that can't login to projects even though access has been granted. This user can login to accounts.zoho.com but when login to https://projects.zoho.com/portals.do we get this error: Unauthorized login to this portal Permission denied to access this portal. Check your portal URL again. Sometimes we also get "server too busy". We have tried killing sessions (in accounts.zoho.com) and we have deleted cookies; and tried different computers and still the same problem. All others use can

      • Marketing Tip #1: Optimize item titles for SEO

        Your item title is the first thing both Google and shoppers notice. Instead of a generic “Leather Bag,” go for something detailed like “Handcrafted Leather Laptop Bag – Durable & Stylish.” This helps your items rank better in search results and instantly

      • Does Zoho Docs have a Line Number function ?

        Hi, when collaborating with coding tasks, I need an online real time share document that shows line numbers. Does Zoho's docs offer this feature ? If yes, how can I show them ? Regards, Frank

      • Setting Default Views for Custom, List and Detail Views

        Hey, Is it possible to set a default custom view, list view and detail view for a module for every user? We are onboarding a lot of non technical people that struggle with these things. Setting the views as default would really help. Btw: also setting

      • Custom function return type

        Hi, How do I create a custom deluge function in Zoho CRM that returns a string? e.g. Setup->Workflow->Custom Functions->Configure->Write own During create or edit of the function I don't see a way to change the default 'void' to anything else. Adding

      • Filter Based API request in Zoho Books using POSTMAN

        How do I GET only specified CONTACTS based on created time or modified time in Zoho Books using POSTMAN. In the api documentation, it is written we can apply filters but I need a sample request.

      • URL validation

        We use an internal intranet site which has a short DNS name which Zoho CRM will not accept.   When attempting to update the field it says "Please enter a valid URL". The URL I am trying to set is http://intranet/pm/ Our intranet is not currently setup with a full DNS name and given the amount of links using the shortname probably isn't a feasible change for us.

      • Has anyone been experiencing slow issues?

        Dear all, I just want to ask if anyone has been experiencing slow issues with Zoho Creator in the past two weeks? I worked with the ISP to improve network quality by changing routes and upgrading bandwidth, but nothing changed. I am in Vietnam.

      • Zoho Projects Roadshows 2025 - USA

        Dear Users, After an amazing response to our roadshows in 2024, we are excited to be back for the second year in a row! Join our team of experts as they walk you through the most-used features in Zoho Projects, explore powerful automation capabilities,

      • Billing Management: #6 Usage Billing in SaaS

        Imagine a customer shuffling across multiple subscriptions, a streaming service, a music app, cloud storage, and a design tool. Each one charges a flat monthly fee, regardless of how much or how little they use. Some months, the customer barely opens

      • Is there anyone who has been experiencing issues regarding the Zoho Creator Certification Website in the past 2 weeks?

        Dear all , I just wanted to ask is there anyone who was planning on taking the Zoho Creator Developer Certification Test in the past 2 weeks and have been facing errors stating that the website is under maintennance and also not allowed to access the

      • Directly Edit, Filter, and Sort Subforms on the Details Page

        Hello everyone, As you know, subforms allow you to associate multiple line items with a single record, greatly enhancing your data organization. For example, a sales order subform neatly lists all products, their quantities, amounts, and other relevant

      • GST Slabs Redefined: Stay Compliant Using Zoho Books!

        Hello Everyone! The Government of India is rolling out new GST rates, a major reform aimed at simplifying the current tax structure starting 22 September 2025. GST will move from four slabs (5%, 12%, 18%, 28%) to two main slabs (5% and 18%), plus a special

      • Allow syncing Activities from other applications

        Marketing Automation could be a much more powerful platform if you were able to sync activities into the platform (e.g. purchase, donation, etc) outside of a user doing something on your website. I'd love it if you could sync Custom CRM Modules as activities,

      • Create static subforms in Zoho CRM: streamline data entry with pre-defined values

        Last modified on (9 July, 2025): This feature was available in early access and is currently being rolled out to customers in phases. Currently available for users in the the AU, CA, and SA DCs. It will be enabled for the remaining DCs in the next couple

      • 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.

      • Introducing Profile Summary: Faster Candidate Insights with Zia

        We’re excited to launch Profile Summary, a powerful new feature in Zoho Recruit that transforms how you review candidate profiles. What used to take minutes of resume scanning can now be assessed in seconds—thanks to Zia. A Quick Example Say you’re hiring

      • 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

      • Ask the Experts #1

        Hello everyone! It’s time to transform how you manage projects. Define the processes. Automate the tasks. Streamline the workflows. Let us dive into automation in Zoho Projects — from configuring workflows and custom functions to building triggers, using

      • Option to Customize Career Site URL Without “/jobs/Careers”

        Dear Zoho Recruit Team, I hope you are doing well. We would like to request an enhancement to the Career Site URL structure in Zoho Recruit. In the old version of the career site, our URL was simply: 👉 https://jobs.domain.com However, after moving to

      • How to overcome Zoho Deluge's time limit?

        I have built a function according to the following scheme: pages = {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10}; for each page in pages { entriesPerPage = zoho.crm.getRecords("Accounts",page,200); for each entry in entriesPerPage { … } } Unfortunately, we have too many entries

      • Zoho Sheet - Printing - Page Breaks and Printing Customization

        I think the title is descriptive enough in that I cannot find help documentation on a simple task of adding in page brakes for separating pages on print. Thanks

      • Checking if Creator has Change History

        Like zForms - whenever an entry was updated there's an option to attached change history to email notif. Trigger -> Successful form submission

      • Zoho Sheet - Desktop App or Offline

        Since Zoho Docs is now available as a desktop app and offline, when is a realistic ETA for Sheet to have the same functionality?I am surprised this was not laucned at the same time as Docs.

      • Zoho sites header

        Good day, Im stuck with this situation. I choose a template for my website creation. I have tweaked every instance of the visual editor, regarding the header, I have created created customize fonts presets... I have followed every single step. and my

      • Your bot just got smarter: AI-Powered routing that reads between the lines

        What if your bot could tell the difference? Between a visitor who just needs a quick answer, someone actively comparing options, and a frustrated customer one click away from leaving? Most bots can't. They deliver the same response to everyone, missing

      • Kaizen #152 - Client Script Support for the new Canvas Record Forms

        Hello everyone! Have you ever wanted to trigger actions on click of a canvas button, icon, or text mandatory forms in Create/Edit and Clone Pages? Have you ever wanted to control how elements behave on the new Canvas Record Forms? This can be achieved

      • Unable to create embed code for resource of workdrive using API

        Hello Team, I am trying to create embed code for a resource using workdrive api in powershell, however facing some issues with injecting data in body. Followed Doc: https://workdrive.zoho.com/apidocs/v1/filefoldersharing/shareeveryone Please help, below

      • Adding contact role to a specific deal js sdk malfunctioning

        i was trying to add the contact role to a specific deal contact but repeatedly i am getting this error: { "code": "SUCCESS", "details": { "statusMessage": { "code": "INVALID_DATA", "details": { "expected_data_type": "jsonobject" }, "message": "body",

      • Next Page