Bulk user onboarding for Cliq Channels in a jiffy

As developers, we frequently switch between coding, debugging, and optimizing tasks. The last thing we want is to be burdened by manual user management. Adding users one by one to a channel is tedious and prone to errors, taking up more time than we could devote to actual development. 

Let's explore how to create a custom workflow using Cliq's platform components to streamline the process of bulk-adding users to a channel via a Zoho Sheet or CSV file. This approach facilitates a smooth onboarding experience without the need for manual effort.

---

Pre-requisite :

Before beginning to script the code below, we must create a connection with Zoho Cliq. Once a connection is created and connected, you can use it in Deluge integration tasks and invoke URL scripts to access data from the required service.

Create a Zoho Oauth default connection with any unique name and the scopes -  ZohoCliq.Channels.All and ZohoSheet.dataApi.ALL

Refer to the below links to learn more :

• Connections in Cliq
  
• Zoho Cliq REST API Documentation
  

---

Step 1  : Creation of slash command

• After a successful login in Cliq, hover to the top right corner and click your profile. Post clicking, navigate to Bots & Tools > Commands.
  
• At your right, click the button - Create Command.
  
• To know more about slash commands and their purposes, refer to Introduction to slash commands.
  
• Create a slash command using your preferred name. Specify the following details: the command name, a hint (to give users an idea of what the command is for), and the access level.
  
• Finally, click "Save & edit code".
  

1. inputs = List();
2. inputs.add({"name":"channels","label":"Pick a channel","placeholder":"Choose a channel where you need to add members","max_selections":"1","multiple":false,"mandatory":true,"type":"native_select","data_source":"channels"});
3. inputs.add({"name":"headername","label":"Header name","placeholder":"Email ID","hint":"In which the Email ID is present","min_length":"0","max_length":"25","mandatory":true,"type":"text"});
4. inputs.add({"type":"radio","label":"Import type","name":"import_Type","hint":"Choose a type that you need to import users","options":[{"label":"CSV","value":"csv"},{"label":"Zoho sheet","value":"zohosheet"}],"trigger_on_change":"true"});
5. return {"name":"addbulkuser","type":"form","title":"Add bulk users","hint":"To add maximum of upto 1000 users in a channel.","button_label":"Add Users","inputs":inputs,"action":{"type":"invoke.function","name":"addbulkusers"};

Step 2  : Scripting form function

• We need to create a function for the form that manages submission responses, including the Zoho Sheet link or CSV file, the name of the column containing the email addresses, and the channel details where users should be added in bulk.
  
• Hover to the top right corner and click your profile. After clicking, navigate to Bots & Tools > Functions.
  
• To your right, click the Create Function button.
  
• Name the function "addbulkusers," provide a description as desired, and select "form" as the function type. Then, click "Save and edit code," and paste the following code.
  

1. emailIdList = list();
2. successlist = list();
3. failedlist = list();
4. try 
5. {
6. info form;
7. formValues = form.get("values");
8. columnName = formValues.get("headername");
9. headerName = formValues.get("headername");
10. if(formValues.get("import_Type").get("value") == "zohosheet")
11. {
12. url = formValues.get("url");
13. spreadSheetId = url.getPrefix("?").getSuffix("open/");
14. sheetName = url.getSuffix("?").getPrefix("&").getSuffix("=");
15. worksheetname = sheetName.replaceAll(" ","%20");
16. columnName = columnName.replaceAll(" ","%20");
17. allDatas = list();
18. params = Map();
19. params.put("column_names",columnName);
20. params.put("method","worksheet.records.fetch");
21. params.put("worksheet_id",sheetName + "#");
22. sheetDetails = invokeurl
23. [
24. url :"https://sheet.zoho"+environment.get("tld")+"/api/v2/" + spreadSheetId
25. type :GET
26. parameters:params
27. connection:"addbulkusers"
28. ];
29. info sheetDetails;
30. if(sheetDetails.get("status") == "success" && sheetDetails.get("records").size() <= 1000)
31. {
32. allDatas.addAll(sheetDetails.get("records"));
33. }
34. else if(sheetDetails.get("status") == "success" && sheetDetails.get("records").size() > 1000)
35. {
36. return {"type":"form_error","text":"I can only able to add 1000 user. Kindly try passing with 1000 records in the sheet!!!"};
37. }
38. else
39. {
40. return {"type":"form_error","text":"I can't find any email ids. Kindly re-check the column name and header row!!!"};
41. }
42. info "allData: " + allDatas.size();
43. if(allDatas.size() > 1000)
44. {
45. return {"type":"form_error","text":"I can only able to add 1000 user. Kindly try passing with 1000 records in the sheet!!!"};
46. }
47. for each  data in allDatas
48. {
49. if(data.get(formValues.get("headername")) == null)
50. {
51. return {"type":"form_error","text":"I can't find any email ids. Kindly re-check the column name and header row!!!"};
52. }
53. emailIdList.add(data.get(formValues.get("headername")));
54. if(emailIdList.size() == 100)
55. {
56. channelID = formValues.get("channels").get("id");
57. params = {"email_ids":emailIdList};
58. info "Params: " + params;
59. addUsers = invokeurl
60. [
61. url :environment.get("base_url") + "/api/v2/channels/" + channelID + "/members"
62. type :POST
63. parameters:params.toString()
64. detailed:true
65. connection:"addbulkusers"
66. ];
67. info "Adduser: " + addUsers;
68. if(addUsers.get("responseCode") == "204")
69. {
70. successlist.addAll(emailIdList);
71. }
72. else
73. {
74. failedlist.addAll(emailIdList);
75. }
76. info "100: " + emailIdList.size();
77. emailIdList = list();
78. }
79. }
80. if(emailIdList.size() > 0)
81. {
82. channelID = formValues.get("channels").get("id");
83. params = {"email_ids":emailIdList};
84. info "Params: " + params;
85. addUsers = invokeurl
86. [
87. url :environment.get("base_url") + "/api/v2/channels/" + channelID + "/members"
88. type :POST
89. parameters:params.toString()
90. detailed:true
91. connection:"addbulkusers"
92. ];
93. info "Adduser: " + addUsers;
94. if(addUsers.get("responseCode") == "204")
95. {
96. successlist.addAll(emailIdList);
97. }
98. else
99. {
100. failedlist.addAll(emailIdList);
101. }
102. info "Email id: " + emailIdList;
103. }
104. info "Successlist: " + successlist;
105. info "Failedlist: " + failedlist;
106. if(successlist.size() > 0 && failedlist.size() > 0)
107. {
108. postMessage = {"text":"Successfully added " + successlist.size() + " member(s) and failed for " + failedlist.size() + " Member(s)"};
109. }
110. else if(successlist.size() > 0 && !failedlist.size() > 0)
111. {
112. postMessage = {"text":"Successfully added " + successlist.size() + " member(s)"};
113. }
114. else if(!successlist.size() > 0 && failedlist.size() > 0)
115. {
116. postMessage = {"text":"Adding members in channel failed for " + failedlist.size() + " member(s)"};
117. }
118. info zoho.cliq.postToChat(chat.get("id"),postMessage);
119. }
120. else
121. {
122. csvFile = formValues.get("csvFile");
123. csvFile = csvFile.getfilecontent();
124. allDatas = csvFile.toList("\n");
125. i = 0;
126. indexValue = 0;
127. indexBoolean = false;
128. for each  data in allDatas
129. {
130. if(i == 0)
131. {
132. headers = data.toList(",");
133. for each  header in headers
134. {
135. info header;
136. if(headerName == header)
137. {
138. indexBoolean = true;
139. indexValue = headers.indexOf(headerName);
140. }
141. }
142. if(indexBoolean == false)
143. {
144. return {"type":"form_error","text":"I can't find any email ids. Kindly re-check the column name and header row!!!"};
145. }
146. }
147. else 
148.             {
149. emailIdList.add(data.get(indexValue));
150.             }
151. i = i + 1;
152. if(emailIdList.size() == 100)
153. {
154. channelID = formValues.get("channels").get("id");
155. params = {"email_ids":emailIdList};
156. info "Params: " + params;
157. addUsers = invokeurl
158. [
159. url :environment.get("base_url") + "/api/v2/channels/" + channelID + "/members"
160. type :POST
161. parameters:params.toString()
162. detailed:true
163. connection:"addbulkusers"
164. ];
165. info "Adduser: " + addUsers;
166. if(addUsers.get("responseCode") == "204")
167. {
168. successlist.addAll(emailIdList);
169. }
170. else
171. {
172. failedlist.addAll(emailIdList);
173. }
174. info "100: " + emailIdList.size();
175. emailIdList = list();
176. }
177. }
178. if(emailIdList.size() > 0)
179. {
180. channelID = formValues.get("channels").get("id");
181. params = {"email_ids":emailIdList};
182. info "Params: " + params;
183. addUsers = invokeurl
184. [
185. url :environment.get("base_url") + "/api/v2/channels/" + channelID + "/members"
186. type :POST
187. parameters:params.toString()
188. detailed:true
189. connection:"addbulkusers"
190. ];
191. info "Adduser: " + addUsers;
192. if(addUsers.get("responseCode") == "204")
193. {
194. successlist.addAll(emailIdList);
195. }
196. else
197. {
198. failedlist.addAll(emailIdList);
199. }
200. }
201. info "Successlist: " + successlist;
202. info "Failedlist: " + failedlist;
203. if(successlist.size() > 0 && failedlist.size() > 0)
204. {
205. postMessage = {"text":"Successfully added " + successlist.size() + " member(s) and failed for " + failedlist.size() + " Member(s)"};
206. }
207. else if(successlist.size() > 0 && !failedlist.size() > 0)
208. {
209. postMessage = {"text":"Successfully added " + successlist.size() + " member(s)"};
210. }
211. else if(!successlist.size() > 0 && failedlist.size() > 0)
212. {
213. postMessage = {"text":"Adding members in channel failed for " + failedlist.size() + " member(s)"};
214. }
215. info zoho.cliq.postToChat(chat.get("id"),postMessage);
216. }
217. }
218. catch (e)
219. {
220. info e;
221. return {"type":"form_error","text":"I can't find any email ids. Kindly re-check the column name and header row!!!"};
222. }
223. return Map();

Step 3  : Configuring form change handler

• After copying and pasting the code into the form submission handler, navigate to the form change handler for the created form function.
  
• You can find this in the top left corner of the editor, where you will see an arrow next to the form submission handler. Clicking on this arrow will display the form change handler in a dropdown menu.
  
• Click it to edit the code in the form change handler, which is necessary for real-time modifications to a form's structure or behaviour based on user input in a specific field. 
  

1. targetName = target.get("name");
2. info targetName;
3. inputValues = form.get("values");
4. info inputValues;
5. actions = list();
6. if(targetName.containsIgnoreCase("import_Type"))
7. {
8. fieldValue = inputValues.get("import_Type").get("value");
9. info fieldValue;
10. if(fieldValue == "csv")
11. {
12. actions.add({"type":"add_after","name":"import_Type","input":{"label":"CSV File","name":"csvFile","placeholder":"Please upload a zCSV File","mandatory":true,"type":"file"}});
13. actions.add({"type":"remove","name":"url"});
14. }
15. else if(fieldValue == "zohosheet")
16. {
17. actions.add({"type":"add_after","name":"import_Type","input":{"name":"url","label":"Enter the sheet url","placeholder":"https://sheet.zoho.com/sheet/open/6xhgb324f142e91d845e5b4b472f7422379c9","min_length":"0","max_length":"400","mandatory":true,"type":"text","format":"url"}});
18. actions.add({"type":"remove","name":"csvFile"});
19. }
20. }
21. return {"type":"form_modification","actions":actions};
    

Business use cases:

• HR onboarding: Seamlessly add new employees to internal communication channels.
  
• Event management: Quickly invite attendees to event-specific channels.
  
• Education platforms: Enroll students in course groups in one go.
  
• Community building: Grow large communities by importing member lists effortlessly.
  

Bottom line

Bulk user addition in Cliq channels through Zoho Sheet or CSV files allows us to eliminate tedious tasks, reduce errors, and manage large-scale data effortlessly. Is onboarding consuming too much of your valuable development time? If so, it might be time to shake things up with a customized workflow!

We're here to help, so don't hesitate to reach out to support@zohocliq.com with any questions or if you need assistance in crafting even more tailored workflows.

• Topic Participants

• Harsha SS

  

• Sticky Posts

• Automating Employee Birthday Notifications in Zoho Cliq

  Have you ever missed a birthday and felt like the office Grinch? Fear not, the Cliq Developer Platform has got your back! With Zoho Cliq's Schedulers, you can be the office party-cipant who never forgets a single cake, balloon, or awkward rendition of

• Automate attendance tracking with Zoho Cliq Developer Platform

  I wish remote work were permanently mandated so we could join work calls from a movie theatre or even while skydiving! But wait, it's time to wake up! The alarm has snoozed twice, and your team has already logged on for the day. Keeping tabs on attendance

• Customer payment alerts in Zoho Cliq

  For businesses that depend on cash flow, payment updates are essential for operational decision-making and go beyond simple accounting entries. The sales team needs to be notified when invoices are cleared so that upcoming orders can be released. In contrast,

• Accelerate Github code reviews with Zoho Cliq Platform's link handlers

  Code reviews are critical, and they can get buried in conversations or lost when using multiple tools. With the Cliq Platform's link handlers, let's transform shared Github pull request links into interactive, real-time code reviews on channels. Share

• App Spotlight : PagerDuty for Zoho Cliq

  App Spotlight brings you hand-picked apps to enhance the power of your Zoho apps and tools. Visit the Zoho Marketplace to explore all of our apps, integrations, and extensions. In today's fast-paced world, seizing every moment is essential for operational

• Recent Topics

• Zoho Projects - Add Feed to Project Tabs

  Hi Projects Team, I'm working on a lightweight communications requirement for one of my customers in relation to communicating with their client users via Zoho Projects. I noticed that the Feed is only available in the Collaboration section, but you can

• Flow - Fetch info from drop down in another module

  I am running into a road block which I thought would be a simple task. My goal - The account is assigned to a "route" which can be selected from a drop down menu and adds a tag to the account accordingly (easy enough). Now when I create a task for this

• Show unsubscribed contacts ?

  Hello, I would like to display the unsubscribed contacts. Unfortunately, I do not have this subscription type as described in the documentation (https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/kb/marketing-automation-2-0/user-guide/contacts/contact-management/articles/subscription-type-24-1-2024#Subscription_Type_field.)

• Zoho Developer Community Hackathon 2025 is LIVE!

  Hey developers! It’s that time of the year again — the Zoho Developer Community Hackathon 2025 is officially open for registrations! If you’ve been waiting for a chance to stretch your skills, try something new, or finally bring that idea to life, this

• Converted Leads Not Showing in Lead Reports

  Converted leads are not showing in the Lead reports. How can I make converted leads visible in the report,

• Text widgets in dashboards

  Having a text widget in a dashboard would help immensely. It would allow adding links to related documents, relevant CRM views, etc. It would allow adding explanations of the data displayed in the other widgets, about how to interpret them or about filtering.

• [Webinar] Zoho Writer for content creators and publishing houses

  Managing multiple drafts, edits, and client reviews doesn't have to slow you down. Join our upcoming webinar to see how Zoho Writer helps content creators and publishing houses create, edit, and publish seamlessly—all in one place. You'll learn how to:

• Adding Reports to Portals

  Is there a way to add Reports to portals so only the user can see report templates relevant to them?

• How to assign one Manual to multiple Spaces?

  Hello, I have two spaces, one called tech knowledge and the other one called HR knowledge. I have a manual that is called HR tech. I want to assign this manual to HR knowledge and tech knowledge. How should I do that?

• 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

• How can I assign courses to Spaces?

  How can I make courses show up here in this space?:

• When will Zoho Learn be able to support SCORM files on the mobile app?

  When I click the SCORM content, I just get a message saying it's not possible yet. Yet implies that it will be coming soon. All I'm asking for is a realistic timeline so I know whether or not to invest my time in using it. If it will be soon, then I will

• Announcing new features in Trident for Windows (v.1.35.6.0)

  Hello Community! Trident for Windows just got better with an update that makes working with your emails even more efficient. Let’s dive into what’s new! Work with PST files more efficiently. You can now do more than just view mounted PST files. You can

• Marketing Tip #9: Track your traffic sources

  Not all marketing channels work equally well. Knowing whether your visitors come from Google, Instagram, or email helps you focus on what actually drives sales. Try this today: Check your Zoho Commerce reports or connect Zoho PageSense to see your top

• Google Analytics import data inaccurate (as of October 11, 2025)

  We have Zoho Analytics connected to GA4 to import daily event data. This has been running without issue for a couple of years. However, a month ago we started noticing discrepancies. All data until October 10 lines up perfectly - October 11 onward is

• Zoho Books | Product updates | November 2025

  Hello users, We’ve rolled out new features and enhancements in Zoho Books. From translating email notification templates to the new transaction locking restrictions, explore the updates designed to enhance your bookkeeping experience. Making Tax Digital

• Insert Image into Notebook page

  Prior to today, I could add images to my notebook pages. Today when I tried to do this I got an error message that said something like, "There's been a problem on our end. Try again later." So, I've tried all the ways I know how, but I can't insert an

• 【開催報告】名古屋 ユーザー交流会 Vol.2 2025/11/21 Zoho Analytics / Inventory で実現する在庫の"未来予測"

  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。 11/21(金)に名古屋 ユーザー交流会 を開催しました。 本投稿では、当日実施したセッションの様子及び投影資料をお届けします。 会場にて参加できなかった皆さまも、ぜひご参照ください。 （Zoho 社員セッションの登壇資料については、11/28(金)開催の東京回の開催報告で共有いたします） 今年2回目の開催となる名古屋 ユーザー交流会では、株式会社エンツナクリエイト 野末さんによる Zoho Analytics / Inventory

• Is there a way to automatically add Secondary Contacts (CCs) when creating a new ticket for specific customers?

  Some of our customers want multiple contacts to receive all notifications from our support team. Is there a way to automatically add secondary contacts to a ticket when our support team opens a new ticket and associates it with an account? This would

• 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.

• 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.

• Updating Secondary Contact (CCs)

  We use Zoho Forms to capture the user request and integrated with Zoho Desk to raise tickets. Active Microsoft login is captured in our Zoho forms and registered as Primary contact in Zoho desk ticket. We also an have an option to raise ticket on behalf

• blank page after login

  blank page after logging into my email account Thanks you

• WriterTh

  After every space Writer goes to capital letters mode in my Android tablet. The cap mode stays till the second letter is typed in the word then it comes to normal mode.

• Zoho writer unable to merge documents to PDF with basic fonts in Hebrew or fonts from my computer

  I created several forms that will be merged into PDF files through Zoho Writer and I am unable to receive the PDF in the basic fonts of the Hebrew language or in the fonts I have on my computer. The writer exports to PDF an exchange font that looks very

• I have already created some Bots, Commands, and Widgets in Cliq, but I am still not seeing the “Create Extension” option in my account. Could you please help me enable or access this option?

• Infinite loop of account verification

  Hi I can't do anything on my zoho account.  I always get this message Hi Sheriffo Ceesay As a security measure, you need to link your phone number with this account and verify it to proceed further. When ever I supply the details, it displays that the number is associated with another account. I don't have any other account on zoho so this is really annoying. 

• How we cut CRM updates from ~20 minutes down to 2, our real workflow

  Updating the Zoho CRM after every call used to be one of the biggest time sucks for our team. By the time you write your notes, clean them up, fill in the fields, and log everything properly… you’ve easily lost 15–20 minutes per call. We started experimenting

• Arattai App Features Update

  1. Offline Messaging & Sync Enable users to compose messages without internet and deliver them automatically via peer-to-peer methods (Bluetooth/WiFi Direct) when nearby users are available. This would be a game-changer for rural India with unreliable

• How to add Product Add-Ons, Mandatory Forms, and Auto-Save Address in Zoho Commerce

  Hi all, I need help setting up several behaviors in Zoho Commerce. I can’t find the correct configuration options, so I want to confirm whether these are supported or if there is a workaround. 1. Product-Specific Add-Ons (Example: GWB Subscription) When

• 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?

• 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

• 'email address already exists'

  I deleted a user from my organization and want to use the same email address that user had, but the email address seems to still exist somewhere as I get 'email address already exists' when I try and create it. I have deleted the entire organization and

• 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

• Next Page