Forecast performance analysis

Forecast performance analysis

Last modified on 15/05/2023: Performance analysis in forecasts is now available for all Zoho CRM users in all DCs. Note that it was an early access feature available only upon request. As of May 10, 2023, it is rolled out for all Zoho CRM accounts. Find out more about forecasts in our help doc.

Hello everyone! 

We are thrilled to announce an exciting update on comprehensive performance analysis for CRM forecasts, including trends, gap reasons, improvement suggestions, and more.

Forecasts help organizations estimate how sales will progress in the approaching months, quarters, or fiscal years, as well as monitor current sales growth and find ways to accelerate it. They yield important insights into the company's performance and enable businesses to plan upcoming activities accordingly.

In the revamped forecast, until now, we provided the Target Achievement Report page, which showed the targets set for different roles within the organization, their achievements, and the number of open deals they had in a hierarchy. We're introducing a few enhancements to forecasts to provide even more details about performance, as well as an overview—which can be found in the User and Roles Performance pages and Forecast Overview section of the Target Achievement Report page.

We've introduced the following:
  • Performance Trend
  • Achievement Comparison
  • Comparison Across Forecast
  • Current Deals by Stages
  • Reasons for Gaps
  • Improvements


Let's have a look at these charts and at the overall enhancement in detail.

Forecast Overview

We've introduced a section at the top of the Target Achievement Report page called Forecast Overview. The analytics in this section help users track their performance and plan according to their targets and requirements.

  • Performance Trend: Users can analyze their performance with the help of the performance trend chart, which compares actual achievements across time with target achievements. The trend line predicts whether the achievement can be met within the forecast period based on the current performance, and shows the predicted achievement on particular dates. Users, therefore, have a visually clear representation of what's necessary to improve performance to reach targets.

  • Achievement Comparison: Users can compare their performance at different intervals to analyze how their performance has changed over time. They can set the chart to compare performance on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.

  • Comparison Across Forecasts: This chart helps users compare their targets, open deals, and achievements across different forecast periods. The bars signify the total deal value assigned to a particular user and contrast it with the deal value closed at the end of the period. Combined with the line plot representing targets in the selected time frame, this enables users to determine whether the target is achievable, and how much more effort is required.

User Performance page
We've introduced the User Performance page for users and admins to track individual performance in a particular period. Apart from providing insights into users' performance, on this page, there are additional details including charts and other widgets. Users can see suggestions for improving their performance or the reasons for which they're not able to meet their targets, and can therefore act accordingly.


The following details are available on the User Performance page:
  • Open deals
  • Deals in the best case, pipelines, and omitted deals.
  • Predictions
  • Targets
  • Achievements
The User Performance page also has charted—Performance Trends and Achievement Comparison—with similar functionality as those in the Forecast Overview section.


The Achievement Comparison chart compares total achievement over time with the number of available deals that can be completed, with a plot for overall targets provided for context.


Apart from these two charts, the User Performance page features the additional Current Deals by Stages chart. The main purpose of this chart is to show deal amounts in different stages. All deals in the current period are plotted as bar graphs according to the deal stage. Each bar breaks down the sum of the deal amounts into three forecast categories: pipeline, best case, and committed. If a pipeline is added, you can also view the current deals by stage based on that pipeline.


We didn't stop just at providing insight into user performance; we've also introduced two additional sections: reasons for gap, which highlights the gap between the target and the achievement and provides reasons that could have led to the gap, and the improvements section, which lists out the various improvements the user can make in order to reduce the gap.

Here are some examples:

Reasons for gaps
  • High number of untouched deals: Any untouched deals will be mentioned here, along with the actual count of untouched deals. Clicking the deal count makes a list of those specific deals pop up.
  • Failed to approach at the right time: Deals that were not approached at the right time are referenced here. Clicking on the link reveals a list of deals that weren't approached at the right time.
  • Doesn't fall in this forecast period: Deals that are outside of the forecast period are referenced for this reason.
  • Deal value insufficient to close target: Deals in the pipeline whose values are too low to reach the target are referenced here.

Improvements
  • Focus on recommended deals: Deals that are likely to be won are referenced here, along with the total deal value upon closing. The deal count is hyperlinked to summon the deal list.
  • Focus on high-value deals: This improvement recommendation suggests which deals to focus on, including high-value deals or low-value deals, based on the win rate for each type of deal. It also mentions the number of such deals available in the pipeline and lists them via a link.
  • Improve closing rate: This improvement is suggested if the user needs to improve their closing rate, along with the percentage by which it needs to increase.
  • Kick out the stalled deals: If a high number of deals in the pipeline have a low chance of being won, they will be mentioned here. Users can click on the deal count to see a list of such deals.

Role Performance page
Users can access the role performance report via the Roles Performance page by clicking on a particular role in the hierarchical view of the Target Achievement Report page.

The Roles Performance page also features sections that show reasons for achievement gaps and improvements (different than those suggested in the User Performance page). Admins can thereby analyze the performance of particular roles and their direct subordinates.

Here are examples of reasons for achievement gaps and improvement suggestions:

Reasons for achievement gaps
  • Users recently switched roles: Users who have switched roles are cited here as a potential reason for a performance gap, along with the count of such users and the percentage of the target deal value that they owned. Clicking on the count of users summons a list of users who have switched roles.
  • Mismatch found in the split and target: In case there is a delay in the allocation of values in the target, it will be mentioned as the percentage of the value in the target that is mismatched.
  • Low user performance: The number of users who closed less than 20% of their targets is cited here. The list of users is linked with the provided count.
  • Overrated targets: If users' targets are overrated, this reason will appear, along with the percentage of how overly rated the targets are.

Improvements
  • Identify users who have a low follow-up rate: Users who have contributed to a decline in customer happiness are referenced here, along with a list linked to the user count.
  • Right deals to the right person: If a certain user has a high win rate of 76% on high-value deals and 60% on low-value deals, the system will suggest assigning high-value deals to that user to get better results.
  • Reassignment yields better results: If two users have some stagnant and untouched deals, the system will suggest that those deals be reassigned to help closure.
  • Target correction: If five users have overrated targets and three users have low-rated targets compared to the individual's average performance, the system will suggest reassigning targets based on performance.

Notes:
  • The charts on the User and Role Performance pages are available only for completed and current forecasts only.
  • The Current Deals by Stages chart is available only for the Current forecast.
  • The Achievement Comparison chart is only available if there is data from previous forecast periods.
  • Improvements and reasons for performance gaps are updated once per week


      • Recent Topics

      • Important Features Missing

        Hey all I love linkthread, but i am missing some important features. I want to be able to include my Google Tag Manager. I have all the important stuff in my GTM Container: Facebook Pixel, LinkIn Pixel, Zoho Pagesense and so on. So i am able to do retargeting
      • How Do I Refund a Customer Directly to Their Credit Card?

        Hi, I use books to auto-charge my customers credit card. But when I create a credit note there doesn't seem to be a way to directly refund the amount back to their credit card. Is the only way to refund a credit note by doing it "offline" - or manually-
      • Introducing Record Summary: smarter insights at your fingertips

        Hello everyone, We’re excited to introduce the Record Summary feature. This powerful addition makes use of Zia to simplify how you interact with your CRM data, providing a seamless, consolidated view of critical record information. Scrolling through the
      • Zoho SignForms: Prefill parameters with spaces render as “+” in the document (even when using %20)

        Hello Zoho Sign team, we are using SignForms with prefill parameters passed via URL. Spaces in parameter values are being rendered as “+” in the finalized document—even when we URL-encode spaces as %20. This is critical for us because we prefill addresses
      • 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
      • Currency selector (based on variable) usage in comparsion

        Hi, I've developed a currency selector based on the following topic, and it's working well in pivot tables and charts: https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/community/topic/how-can-i-allow-my-users-to-choose-a-currency-for-the-dashboard I also have a comparison
      • Notification received when self-assigning tickets

        When I assign tickets in Zoho Desk the relevant agent gets a notification email. When assigning myself a ticket in Zoho Desk, I get a notification email. Now, as I am the person who assigned the ticket to myself, getting a notification in this regard
      • Customize Column in Projects - Default View for Template?

        Is there a way to have the columns you'd like to see added to a template? I want my customized columns to show up every single time I create a project from that template. It appears I can customize them in the template but when I create the project they do not transfer over.  Template: See below how the columns in order are : Task, Owner, Status, Assigned, Website URL, Blog H1..etc. When I create a project from that same template it comes out as: Task, Owner, Status, Tags, Start Date, End Date, etc
      • Ask the Experts 24: Analytics, data administration, and mobile experience with Zoho Desk

        Hello Everyone! Welcome back to the Ask the Experts(ATE) series! We were so focused on our Autumn 2025 release that we didn't host an ATE session last month. In this month's ATE, we'd like to expand our areas for discussion: we'd like to listen to your
      • Multi-Page Forms in Zoho Creator!

        Let’s make long applications easier to handle by dividing them into pages, adding a progress bar, and guiding users step by step through complex data entry. This would be a total game-changer for the user experience and could significantly boost completion
      • Unable to Receive Emails on Zoho Mail After Office 365 Coexistence Setup – Error: 553 Relaying Disallowed

        Hello, My domain name is bigniter.com, and I’ve been using Zoho Mail as my email service provider without any issues. Recently, I followed the steps outlined in the Zoho documentation to enable Coexistence with Office 365: 🔗 https://www.zoho.com/mail/help/adminconsole/coexistence-with-office365.html#multi-server
      • Email login error

        Login successfully but email page error
      • Shared Mailboxes Disappeared

        Zoho Mail users in our company haven't been able to see their Shared Mailboxes for the past few hours. I've checked with App and Web Access, but they can't access them. When I send emails to their addresses, I get no error messages. They're still visible
      • Remote Server is misconfigured

        Dear Team, I am unable to use email id as remote server is misconfigured. It would be really great if you could help on this and get this resolved. Thanks & Regard Rohit Gupta
      • why cant i access my email account. it keeps asking me for reverifiying my account by entering my password.

        I cant access my account. it keeps asking me for reverifcaton by entering my password. once its entered it asks for it over and over.
      • The attendees will now be redirected to the landing webpage when they exit the webinar, set by the organizer.

        Hello All, In the latest version of the Zoho Meeting iOS mobile app (v1.3.16), we have brought in the below enhancements:   Post Webinar Re-direction Revamped exit UI for Webinar Post Webinar Re-direction:  The attendees will now be redirected to the
      • Free webinar alert on October 16 - Less Complexity, More Security: Workplace + Directory

        Hello Zoho Workplace Community! Security and productivity shouldn't be at odds—and with Zoho, they're not. Discover how Zoho Workplace + Directory delivers seamless collaboration with enterprise-grade security, all in one integrated ecosystem. Join our
      • Email Recall Feature In Zoho Mail Which Should Also Work For Outside Organisation Members

        Add a feature to recall or undo sending an email within a configurable short time window (e.g., 30 seconds to 2 minutes) after hitting send, similar to Gmail’s undo send. Currently the sent email can not be recall If the recipient is not from within your
      • Workdrive and ChatGPT Team Synced Connectors

        Hi, we want to be able to integrate Zoho Workdrive with OpenAI’s ChatGPT Team plan. Google Drive and OneDrive both offer this, zoho please catch up asap. We dont want to have to put our company files in google drive, we want to allow chatgpt Team edition
      • 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
      • Alias Name (on items) use case in Zoho inventory

        Hey, Hope everyone is well. Wondering if anyone can shed some light on the use case of Alias Names on Products in Zoho Inventory? Cheers, Chris
      • Updating an Invoice Line Item's Discount Account via API Call / Deluge Custom Function

        I need help updating an invoice line item's discount account via API. Below is a screenshot of the line item field I am referring to. Now the field to the left of the highlighted field (discount account) is the sales income account. I am able to modify
      • Send e-mail with attachments

        Dear Zoho, How is that possible in Zoho Flow to send an e-mail with attachment?  Just a simple example: Zoho Flow checks my Zoho mails and if the conditions starts the trigger then I would like to send an email with the original email's attachment. Any idea? BR, Adam
      • How to I get checkboxes on a subform to update via deluge

        Hello, would someone be able to tell me what I'm doing wrong here? I am trying to take the contents of a Deals subform and add them to an invoice then update the checkbox on each row so that 'add to invoice' is unticked and 'invoiced' is ticked. The output
      • CRM Related list table in Zoho analytics

        In Zoho Analytics, where can I view the tables created from zoho crm related lists? For example, in my Zoho CRM setup, I have added the Product module as a related list in the Lead module, and also the Lead module as a related list in the Product module.
      • Cadences

        I have just started using Cadences for follow-up up email pipeline. Is it just me or do you find the functionality very basic? For example, it will tell me (if I go looking for it) if someone has replied to a follow-up and been unenrolled; but it won't
      • Account in Quick View Filter

        I have a report that I often run against a specific Account. Every time, I have to go into the edit menu and change the Advanced Filter. I would prefer to use the Quick View Filter, but it does not allow me to use the one and only field that makes any
      • Add Webhook Response Module to Zoho Flow

        Hi Zoho Flow Team, We’d like to request a Webhook Response capability for Zoho Flow that can return a dynamic, computed reply to the original webhook caller after / during the flow runs. What exists today Zoho Flow’s webhook trigger can send custom acknowledgements
      • 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
      • Tips & tricks: Make SalesIQ automations work for you

        Every day, thousands of visitors land on your website. Some browse, some buy, and some leave without a word. But, wouldn’t it be great if you could automatically know who’s interested, engage them at the right moment, and never miss a lead, and all this
      • Zoho Analytics & SQL Server - Live connect

        Below are the steps I did Created a fresh database and table in my own virtual server Created a new data source connection with live connect I was able to select the tables and created the data source successfully I am getting the error when I try to
      • Mapping a new Ticket in Zoho Desk to an Account or Deal in Zoho CRM manually

        Is there any way for me to map an existing ticket in Zoho desk to an account or Deal within Zoho CRM? Sometimes people use different email to put in a ticket than the one that we have in the CRM, but it's still the same person. We would like to be able
      • Good 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 activities
      • Urgent Security Feature Request – Add MFA to Zoho Projects Client Portal Hello Zoho Projects Team,

        Hello Zoho Projects Team, We hope you are doing well. We would like to submit an urgent security enhancement request regarding the Zoho Projects Client Portal. At this time, as far as we are aware, there is no Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) available
      • 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
      • Microsoft Teams now available as an online meeting provider

        Hello everyone, We're pleased to announce that Zoho CRM now supports Microsoft Teams as an online meeting provider—alongside the other providers already available. Admins can enable Microsoft Teams directly from the Preferences tab under the Meetings
      • Zoho Projects - Task Owner filter at Project level

        Hi Projects Team, The feature requests I would like to raise is the ability to create a custom view at the project level for projects with tasks owned by a user or users. For example "Ashley's Projects" custom view might contain a list of project in which
      • How to display Motivator components in Zoho CRM home page ?

        Hello, I created KPI's, games and so but I want to be able to see my KPI's and my tasks at the same time. Is this possible to display Motivator components in Zoho CRM home page ? Has someone any idea ? Thanks for your help.
      • Cadences

        I have just started using Cadences for follow-up up email pipeline. Is it just me or do you find the functionality very basic? For example, it will tell me (if I go looking for it) if someone has replied to a follow-up and been unenrolled; but it won't
      • Zoho Books-Accounting on the Go Series!

        Dear users, Continuing in the spirit of our 'Function Fridays' series, where we've been sharing custom function scripts to automate your back office operations, we're thrilled to introduce our latest initiative – the 'Zoho Books-Accounting on the Go Series'.
      • Next Page