Handling identifiers during an import

Handling identifiers during an import

Importing your data

When importing data into an application, it is crucial to prevent data loss or duplication. These types of errors can hinder the development of a clean and well-organised database, which is essential for effective data management and security.


 
Zoho Desk provides robust functionality for importing your data. The system intelligently automates the mapping of modules and fields to reduce the risk of data loss and maintain data integrity. Users have the advantage of verifying the field mappings in advance, thus adding an extra layer of security to the import process.
 
This capability is essential not only for clarity but also in mitigating the challenges associated with user adoption. For instance, clients can be accurately mapped to the Contact name field, while company names can seamlessly align with the Account name field. This approach to data management helps maintain an organised database, thereby enhancing productivity and user trust in the system. 

Related knowledge base article: Importing data into Zoho Desk.
Info
Prerequisites
  • Users can upload a .csv file or a .zip file containing multiple .csv files. 
  • The .zip file must be named, for example, Contacts.zip, Accounts.zip, etc.

Working with the Identifier Field

When importing data into Zoho Desk, the Identifier Field is essential because it helps identify existing records and avoid duplicate entries. 



What are the Identifier Fields?  

Identifier fields are fields used to find and match existing records when importing data into the product. They also help link related records, like connecting a contact’s name with their email address.

Each module supports different unique identifier fields for identification, as described in the table below:


Module

Unique Identifier Fields

Accounts

Account ID 

Account External ID

Account Name

Contacts

Contact ID

Contact External ID 

Last Name

First Name

Email

Phone Number

Mobile

Tickets

Ticket ID

Ticket External ID

Ticket Number

Products

Product ID

Product External ID

Product Name

Tasks

TaskId

Task External ID

Calls

Call ID

Call External ID

Events

Event ID

Event External ID

Article Translation

Translation: External ID

Translation ID

Custom Modules

Record External ID

Custom Module Name


Idea

Points to remember:

  • While these fields help find matching records.
  • So, if multiple records match the value, the first matching record will be selected automatically.
  • This can lead to unexpected matches or data being updated in the wrong record if you're not careful.

For your understanding:

Some users expressed a preference for matching Contacts by Last Name instead of Email, highlighting the importance of flexibility in their workflow. Furthermore, some additional users approached matching through the use of a custom field, emphasising the need for tailored solutions to fit their unique requirements. Moreover, users requested that the functionality be enhanced by updating existing records with the relevant entity's Zoho Desk ID, aiming to streamline their processes and improve data accuracy.

Commonly used identifier fields:

  • Find By is used to identify an existing record during the import process.
  • Map By is utilized to link a child record to a parent record, for instance, by linking a Contact to a Ticket.

 

You can now select specific fields for matching, providing enhanced control and customization during bulk processes or integrations. This functionality enables more precise data handling, ensuring that the information aligns with your specific requirements. By tailoring the matching criteria, you can streamline processes, ultimately leading to enhanced efficiency and better outcomes for your team. This flexibility enables you to harness the full potential of your data.

Import Systems

Let's start by preparing the CSV file.

A sample tickets module CSV file is given below,


External ID

Subject

Contact Email

Contact Name

About

101

Hitman

rohit@bcci.com

Sharma

Rohit Sharma's journey from a gifted schoolboy to an international icon and fierce competitor reflects resilience, elegance, and remarkable leadership.

102

King Kohli

virat@bcci.com

Virat

Virat Kohli is a world-renowned Indian cricketer known for his aggressive batting, unmatched consistency, and passionate leadership across all forms of the game.

103

Lambu Ishanth

ishanth@bcci.com

Sharma

Ishant Sharma is a tall and experienced Indian fast bowler known for his 300 test wickets and key performances in overseas conditions.


Then choose the appropriate Find By identifier field.

The Find By field is selected from a predefined set of fields specific to each module. It is used to determine whether a record already exists in Zoho Desk.


When using the import tool, the system searches the Desk portal for a record (e.g., a ticket) that matches the value mapped to the selected Find By field. This prevents duplicate records by identifying existing entries based on the chosen field.  


  • Once the file is uploaded, you need to choose a Find By Field — for instance, Ticket External ID.
  • Whichever Find By field we choose must correspond to the relevant column in the CSV file. Since we've selected the Ticket External ID, the Case External ID column in your file should be mapped to the Ticket External IDfield.
QuoteIf the chosen operation is to 'create new records while avoiding duplicates', and there is no existing ticket with the External ID 101, the import tool will generate a new ticket using the mapped fields. To associate the ticket to the correct Contact, the import tool utilizes the Map By field feature.

Finally, choose the appropriate Map By field.

The Map By field enables users to link imported records to their corresponding dependent records, such as associating a ticket with a specific contact. This functionality ensures that when you import ticket data, the import tool actively searches for a matching Contact in Zoho Desk based on the value defined in the selected Map By field.


For instance, during the field mapping process, you can specifically choose to map the Ticket to a Contact using criteria such as the Contact's email ID. This approach enhances the accuracy of data integration by ensuring that each ticket is correctly associated with the relevant Contact, thereby improving data integrity and streamlining the support process. This meticulous mapping not only minimizes the chances of errors but also facilitates a more organized and efficient ticket management system, ultimately leading to improved customer experiences and satisfaction.


Idea

Map by identifier field functionality

The tool efficiently searches for contacts associated with the provided email address.    


Search: When a user submits a ticket, the system initiates a search for contacts associated with the specified email address.   


Match found: If a single match is identified, the ticket is seamlessly associated with that Contact, ensuring that all relevant customer information is readily accessible for support agents.   


Multiple Matches: If numerous contacts are found with the same email address, the system will prioritize and use the first match. This helps streamline the ticketing process while maintaining clarity in customer support.   


No Match Found: If no matches are found within the system, the ticket will not be created. This prevents unnecessary duplication and ensures that support agents are only working with valid, existing customer records. 

In summary, the strategic use of Custom Unique Fields and External ID fields as identifiers, along with the potential for composite identifiers, positions support teams to operate more effectively and improve overall customer interactions.

Significant improvements in user experience 

Transparent process and status tracking 

We’ve implemented a straightforward, step-by-step process for data imports, complete with real-time status updates for each stage. This transparency enables users to monitor import progress and understand the current state of the process.

Unique identifiers for entity mapping 

New fields have been introduced to help users identify if a parent entity already exists when importing related child entities. For example, users can seamlessly map a contact to an existing account in Zoho Desk, streamlining the import process while minimizing the risk of duplicate entries.

Enhanced error handling and log accessibility

We’ve made significant improvements in error handling by allowing users to download detailed error logs directly from the history page in the event of import failures. This enhancement provides users with greater insight into any issues, facilitating faster troubleshooting and resolution.

Support for custom modules

The import UI has been revamped to support custom modules, providing users with greater flexibility and customization options. This enables a more personalized and efficient data import experience.

Takeaway

For instance, a large corporation merging client data from multiple legacy systems into Zoho Desk modules will benefit significantly from automatic field mapping, ensuring that contact and account names are accurately aligned. This attention to detail not only improves the user experience but also enhances overall data integrity during the merging process.
 
Please stay tuned for more Desk updates.
 
Cheers,
 
Kavya Rao
The Zoho Desk Team

      • Sticky Posts

      • Zoho Desk Partners with Microsoft's M365 Copilot for seamless customer service experiences

        Hello Zoho Desk users, We are happy to announce that Zoho Desk has partnered with Microsoft's M365 to empower customer service teams with enhanced capabilities and seamless experiences for agents. Microsoft announced their partnership during their keynote
      • WhatsApp pricing changes: Pay per message starting July 1, 2025

        Starting July 1, 2025, WhatsApp is shifting from conversation-based pricing to per-message billing. That means every business-initiated message you send will count. Not just the first one in a 24-hour window. Pricing updates on the WhatsApp Business Platform
      • Live Webinar - Work smarter with Zoho Desk and Zoho Workplace integration

        Hello customers! Zoho Desk and Zoho Workplace are coming together for a webinar on 14th May, 2024. Zoho Workplace is a suite of productivity apps for email, chat, docs, calls, and more at one single place. Zoho Desk is closely integrated with a few tools
      • Apple iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 updates for Zoho Desk users

        Hello Zoho Desk users! Apple recently announced the release of iOS 17 and iPad OS 17. These latest OS updates will help you stay productive and efficient, through interactive and seamless user experiences. Zoho Desk has incorporated the updates to help
      • Zoho Desk Cheat Sheet For The Year-End

        Check out these Zoho Desk best practices to end this year on a high and have a great one ahead! #1 Set Business (Holiday) Hours - If you have limited working hours, please make sure you restrict your business hours or set them as holidays for the coming days. Let your customers know when you will, and won't, be available. #2 Update the Annual Holiday List - Check the holidays for the new year and update the holiday schedule. Usually, holidays from the current year will be carried over for the next

        • Recent Topics

        • Request for Auto PO - Min–Max based Automated Purchase Feature

          Dear Zoho POS Team, I’m writing to request a feature enhancement that would significantly streamline inventory management for businesses using Zoho POS — particularly supermarkets, FMCG retail, and multi-store operations like ours. Feature Requested:
        • Zoho CRM mobile app update: Reports module for Android app

          Hello everyone You can now access the Reports module in your Zoho CRM Android app. With this update, you can view any report created in CRM web app in your mobile app. <br> Once you open the report, you can tap on any record to view its details.
        • Zohomail

          Im trying to setup email address zoho
        • PROBLEMA

          Salve, non riesco a inviare email, e mi esce una tabela errore temporaneo. come posso risolvere il problema ?
        • Forever FREE Business Email with Zoho Mail

          Forever FREE Business Email with Zoho Mail: is it available?
        • CRM: hosting a single html file in Zoho and displaying it as a widget

          I have seen that CRM offers the option of uploading a web project to Zoho itself and displaying it as a widget in CRM. The instructions then talk about setting a development environment with Node and developing an application to upload to Zoho. But I
        • Weekly Tips : Make collaboration effortless with Whiteboard in Zoho Mail

          Working with your team often means switching between emails, notes, and other applications just to explain an idea. Maybe you are trying to sketch a layout, plan a workflow, or quickly brainstorm ideas—with text alone, things can get confusing. So how
        • Formula field number of days between 2 dates

          Hi, I want to have a formula field which calculates the following: IF EndDate < TODAY and Oproep is true (this is a checkbox field) than EndDate - StartDate, otherwise TODAY - StartDate It should calculate the number of days How can I write this for
        • Show Custom Button in Portal Listview Canvas

          I have created a custom button that shows in a list view of deals (internally I can see it). I have permissions to allow this button on the portal. But it is not displaying in the canvas list? Before I do too much leg work, is this function allowed?
        • Improved RingCentral Integration

          We’d like to request an enhancement to the current RingCentral integration with Zoho. RingCentral now automatically generates call transcripts and AI-based call summaries (AI Notes) for each call, which are extremely helpful for support and sales teams.
        • Zoho CRM for Everyone's NextGen UI Gets an Upgrade

          Hello Everyone We've made improvements to Zoho CRM for Everyone's Nextgen UI. These changes are the result of valuable feedback from you where we’ve focused on improving usability, providing wider screen space, and making navigation smoother so everything
        • search and Smart Bar both missing in Mail

          One of the users on my account does not have the search bar at the top right or the Smart Bar at the bottom left of the desktop Mail app. Any ideas how to get those back?
        • What's New in Zoho Analytics - November 2025

          We're thrilled to announce a significant update focused on expanding your data connectivity, enhancing visualization capabilities, and delivering a more powerful, intuitive, and performant analytics experience. Here’s a look at what’s new. Explore What's
        • ZOHO reporting DKIM entries are not configured, when they have been configured and verified by 3rd parties

          Why is ZOHO reporting to my organisation users the following: "The DKIM entries in your domain's DNS records are not configured. Please contact your administrator for configuring DKIM to ensure optimal RSVP invite delivery." When I have configured the
        • Manage Bookings directly from Zoho Mail

          Greetings from the Zoho Bookings team! We’re introducing the new Zoho Bookings extension for Zoho Mail, designed to help you view appointments, copy time slots and share booking links without leaving your inbox. This integration brings scheduling right
        • My notes from the past 2 months have disappeared

          Hola, necesito ayuda urgente. Hoy, al iniciar sesión en mi Zoho Notebook como todos los días, me llevé una gran sorpresa al descubrir que todas mis notas de los últimos dos meses habían desaparecido. Estas notas son muy importantes para mí, ya que uso
        • How can I load a network into the cliq desktop app?

          I have both the standard cliq log in for my org and I am part of a cliq network. In the browser I can choose which I log in to. However, in teh desktop app if I log in it will alwasy load my org's cliq. Can I switch this to the network I have create
        • Ability to modify what displays in calendar invite?

          I am a long time calendly user and want to make the switch to bookings.  I understand that there is not currently a meets/hangouts integration, is one on the roadmap? Is there anyway I can modify the calendar invite to include the meet link?  I can add it to the emails no problem, but I would also like it to display on their calendar.  Is there some work around I can do to get it on the calendar?  Also am I able to modify the calendar event title?
        • Issue with Booking Confirmation Page Not Displaying, Leading to Customer Anxiety and Unnecessary Support Calls

          I am writing to express my growing concern regarding the confirmation process in Zoho Bookings, particularly the inconsistent display of the confirmation page after a successful payment. As a mobile service provider, I rely on Zoho Bookings platform for
        • Is it possible to turn off all capabilities for a customer to schedule, reschedule or cancel an appointment?

          Is it possible to turn off all capabilities for a customer to schedule, reschedule or cancel an appointment? I would like to set it up so only staff can schedule appointments. Is this possible?
        • Is there a way to generate a virtual meeting for a group service in Zoho Bookings?

          Are virtual meetings not supported for group services/meetings? I have integrated Zoom with one-on-one services, but I need a way to create an online group meeting. Thanks
        • Tracking Snippet not working in Zoho Marketing Automation!

          First off, the fact that you have to wait about 12-24 hours for every response is terrible. How are we supposed to conduct business? Second, we have been trying for several days to get the Tracking Code Snippet in marketing automation to work, to no avail.
        • Introducing VeriFactu Support in Zoho Books

          Hello users, Spain has introduced the VeriFactu system under Real Decreto 1007/2023 to ensure integrity, traceability, and anti-fraud compliance in e-invoicing. Starting January 1, 2026, all B2B invoices must be reported to Agencia Estatal de Administración
        • Where we can change the icon in social preview

          Hi, we changed our logo, and the image that appear in preview (ex : when we post a appointment link somewhere) is still our old logo. I did change our logo in the org setting. https://bookings.zoho.com/app/#/home/dashboard/settings/basic-info?clview=false
        • Zoho Bookings changes Lead Source

          Hi. i would like to know if there's a way for Zoho Bookings to not change the lead source when booking a lead for an appointment as the lead source will be used in a report. Scenario: Lead source: Website after booking an appointment Lead source: Zoho Bookings Thanks. Dan
        • Need to set workflow or journey wait time (time delay) in minutes, not hours

          Minimum wait time for both Campaigns workflows and Marketing Automation journeys is one hour. I need one or the other to be set to several minutes (fraction of the hour). I tried to solve this by entering a fraction but the wait time data type is an integer
        • Suggestion: Associating Assets with Company in Zoho FSM

          Hello Team, I would like to share an idea based on practical experience. Currently, all assets in the Zoho FSM Asset module are linked to a specific contact person. I would like to know if it is possible to associate assets with a company instead. This
        • Zoho Inventory / Finance Suite - Extend Visibility of File Names on Attachment Fields

          Hi Inventory / Finance Suite team, I noticed recently that when you add an attachment field to a module in Inventory, only the first 8 characters of the file name are visible on the details view. 8 characters is not a useful amount and there is plenty
        • AI Interview Insights: Turn Recorded Interviews into Quick Transcripts & Summaries

          Evaluating interviews shouldn’t require replaying long recordings or taking manual notes. With AI Interview Insights, you can now review complete transcripts and AI-generated summaries of your One-way (Recorded) interviews right inside Zoho Recruit. This
        • Edit Pinned Comments in Zoho Desk

          It's great that private comments can now be pinned to the top of the ticket but what would be extremely helpful would be to allow for the pinned comment to be edited vs. having to find the comment in the ticket to edit it.
        • Many Notes Becoming Unusable

          Hello. The Notebook app is becoming unusable. I'm getting odd-looking results from my searches. Some of the notes, after clicking on them, show an update button that does absolutely nothing. Not sure what has happened, but it would be nice to get this
        • Kaizen #218: Actions APIs - Field Updates

          Hello all!! Welcome back to a fresh Kaizen week. In the previous weeks, we covered Workflow Rules APIs, Actions APIs - Email Notification APIs, and Tasks Update APIs. This week, we will continue with another Actions API - the Field Update API in Zoho
        • How Contract Types and Templates Form the Backbone of Zoho Contracts

          Every contract in Zoho Contracts starts with two essential elements: Contract Type and Template. These are not just administrative steps. They define how every contract in your organization is created, governed, and managed over time. Let us look at the
        • E-Invoicing in Belgium with Zoho Books

          Starting January 1, 2026, Belgium is introducing mandatory electronic invoices (e-invoicing) for all B2B transactions between VAT-registered businesses. This means that invoices and credits notes must be exchanged in a prescribed digital format. How E-Invoicing
        • Proposal for Creating a Unique "Address" Entity in Zoho FSM

          The "Address" entity is one of the most critical components for a service-oriented company. While homeowners may change and servicing companies may vary, the address itself remains constant. This constancy is essential for subsequent services, as it provides
        • Zoho Books Finance Modules Not Accessible in Zoho CRM Mobile App

          We have integrated Zoho CRM with Zoho Books using the Zoho Finance Suite integration. In the CRM web version, we can see the Finance modules (Estimates/Quotes, Invoices, Sales Orders, Items, Payments) and are able to create invoices and quotes directly
        • Greek character in Deluxe script

          Hi, We have been using a script since 2022 which replaces characters in Greek contact names using replaceAll. Since this morning, all the Greek characters used in the script have turned to question marks. I tried retyping the characters, copy-pasting
        • 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.
        • Work Order Assignment for Engineers Handling Their Own Requests

          I’m setting up FSM for a business where there are multiple engineers, but each engineer handles their own process end-to-end receiving the service request, creating the work order, and completing the field service job. I noticed that I must create an
        • Zoho Flow Credits

          Hi , I would like to ask the reason why every time I added plus credit but few days later I will return back to default? (as below I add credit to 3000 but today It change back to 1000) Most important is, when the credit fully used, not any reminder to
        • Next Page