Zoho CRM Community Digest - August 2025 | Part 2

Hello Everyone! Here's a quick round-up of handy tips, clever workarounds, and product updates from late August.

Product Updates:

Meeting Enhancements in Zoho CRM! 

Track whether a meeting is online, in-office, or at the client’s location using the new Meeting Venue option. This enhancement lets you categorize meetings for easier organization, filtering, and reporting. You can also mark meetings as all-day, set them to repeat, or remove venue options from the picklist that doesn’t fit your business needs. For admins, a new Preferences Tab enables managing online meeting providers directly from CRM without needing to visit the Marketplace. This full post has screenshots and key notes worth checking out.

Quick Wins:

Portals: Account-Level Access Challenge

Your customers, linked as Contact records, can access their information via the CRM portal. @Ivan Staykov brought up an interesting use case where individual Contacts should only access records linked to their emails, while the CEO of their company should access all Contact records linked to their Account. As CRM portals are tied to Contacts, not Accounts, this setup isn’t straightforward. @Max explored options, and @Amy shared a workaround that sparked Ivan’s interest. If you’ve run into the same limitation, this thread is a must-read for practical insights.

Understanding how custom view un-enrollment works in Cadences?

@Matt Warner asked if leads enrolled to a Cadence through a custom view gets automatically un-enrolled when they no longer meet the view criteria. @Sunderjan Siddharth clarified that leads will remain in the Cadence and continue their scheduled steps unless an unenrolled property is specifically linked to the custom view condition. Once that property is set, the system will automatically remove leads that drop out of the criteria. Check out the full post for more on how Cadence un-enrollment works and how to fine-tune your setup!

Tip for targeted marketing campaigns for Contacts with closed Deals!

@Dalton wanted to run a marketing campaign targeting Contact records with closed Deals but faced a challenge: some contacts have multiple deals, with a mix of open and closed statuses. Simply filtering for closed deals would still include contacts who have open deals, which wasn’t desired.@Sunderjan Siddharth suggested using roll-up summary fields in the Contacts module to count total deals as well as open and closed deals per contact. This lets you build reports that accurately excludes contacts with any open deals. Check out the full post for detailed steps, screenshots, and where to set this up!

Developer's Corner: 

Can you fetch 200+ records from a Custom View at once?

@Sam wanted to pull all records from a Custom View exceeding  the 200-record limit without using pagination. @Sunderjan Siddharth clarified that COQL can fetch up to 2,000 records in a single query, and suggested using a loop to retrieve up to 100K records efficiently.Check-out the post for the full solution on  handling large datasets effectively in Zoho CRM.

Make attachments mandatory before closing Deals:

@Jhonata wanted to make it mandatory to add attachments before marking a deal as Closed-Won. @Rakesh Kumar suggested triggering a Client Scripts on the Stage field update across touchpoints like the Details, Edit, and Canvas pages to check for attachments, cancel submission if none exist, and display an alert. @Pheranda Nongpiur followed-up with step-by-step guidance and shared the sample Client Script to check attachments on save. Check the full post for the scripts and detailed setup instructions!

How Marta leveraged AI and assistance from the community to automate Quote stage updates:

@Marta wanted all quotes with stage "Next Year" to automatically update to "Draft" on a specific date. @Bhoomi Joshi suggested creating a scheduled function to fetch quotes from a custom view and update the stage, recommending that Marta test with a few records first before connecting it to a Schedule. Despite being a non-coder, Marta used AI to generate the required code and then collaborated with the Community to refine and get it working.Check this post for the step-by-step setup, code tips, and insights on how Marta made it happen!

Kaizen:

Answering Your Questions!

(Kaizen #204) - Perform Field Updates before Blueprint transition via Client Script

Learn how to enhance your lead follow-up Blueprint by prompting users for input during Blueprint transitions and updating description field with detailed comments in Zoho CRM. Kaizen #204 demonstrates how to use beforeTransition scripts to capture comments, validate input, and maintain a running comment history. In this setup, a popup prompts users to enter a comment before each transition. If the comment is fewer than 25 characters, the transition is stopped; otherwise, the system appends the comment along with the transition name and user’s name to the Description field. This is a practical way to improve transparency and traceability in your Blueprint process. Check the post for the full code and setup!


(Kaizen #205) - Managing Picklists and Enabling History Tracking via Zoho CRM APIs

Kaizen #205 breaks down the difference between Picklist and Multi-select Picklist, shows you how to set up global picklists across modules, and explains how to enable history tracking in Zoho CRM using APIs. It's super detailed and walks you through creating and updating picklist fields, removing options, assigning and updating values in records, and turning on history tracking with step-by-step API examples. The inclusion of sample code and responses for each part makes it easy to follow. Give this post a read if you want to get these features set up smoothly!

And that’s a wrap for this fortnight’s Zoho CRM Community Digest. Caught something cool we missed? Or have a favorite from this edition?

Drop it in the comments! We’d love to hear from you. We’ll be back in two weeks with more updates and community gems.

Until then, stay tuned!

• Topic Participants

• Swetha S

  

• Sticky Posts

• How to reach the official Zoho Support channels and avoid fake ones.

  Dear Customers, Thanks a lot for choosing Zoho! Our applications are built to help achieve your day-to-day business goals. We are committed to engaging with you, to understand and develop solutions that enhance your productivity.  We are happy and ready to help you use our services effectively. Understanding and avoiding fake support Just like using popular bank names and financial applications for phishing purposes, using Zoho and claiming to be providing Zoho Support or services with false numbers

• Function #35: Close all tasks associated with a lead and create a new task.

  Welcome back everyone! Last week, we learnt how to close all tasks of a deal depending upon the deal stage. This week, let's look at a custom function that lets you close all of the tasks associated with a lead while simultaneously creating a new task, like when you need to halt all progress towards a lead while the lead is not available at the moment but create a reminder task. Business scenario: The success of a company, in one way or another, is determined by the leads it gets. Each lead is just

• Zoho CRM Webinar - Redesigning Daily User Experiences with Canvas

  <br> Your users across roles use the CRM for day-to-day tasks that are necessary. Whether they perform their tasks on time, the right way, or at all depends on a lot of factors, including User Experience. Many businesses struggle with rigid layouts,

• Join us at the Canada ZUG Meetup: What’s New in Zoho CRM

  Hello Zoho Community! Start your year with fresh insights into Zoho CRM’s latest updates and tools. Whether you're a CRM beginner or a experienced user, this meetup is crafted to help you optimise your processes and leverage new features. Explore practical

• CRM Hack #2: Automate sending of birthday greetings to your customers.

    Hello everyone! What sets you apart as a sales person is your ability to add that personal touch to your business relationship with your customers. Sending a gift on a special day, or leaving a note wishing them on their birthdays, are small, yet significant actions that show your customers that you care. And these are actions done without any expectations :) You must be engaging with a lot of customers and it is highly unlikely that they all are your friends on Facebook or some social channel,

• Recent Topics

• 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

• Custom Fonts in Zoho CRM Template Builder

  Hi, I am currently creating a new template for our quotes using the Zoho CRM template builder. However, I noticed that there is no option to add custom fonts to the template builder. It would greatly enhance the flexibility and branding capabilities if

• Would be really awesome to have Created Time and Modified Time showing for custom functions list

  It would be SO HELPFUL to be able to sort custom functions by created time/ modified time. Also seeing a created by/ modified by with the little profile picture would be supremely helpful as well. Just really hard sometimes to find a function you were

• Ticket Export Does Not Include Ticket Threads

  Dear Zoho Desk Support Team, I hope you’re doing well. I would like to report an issue regarding the ticket export functionality in Zoho Desk. Currently, when exporting tickets, the ticket threads or conversation history are not included — only the ticket

• Payments made notification

  This is a really wonderful feature but we can only use it for about 50% of payments made & have to revert to sending statements which is a real chore. Credits applied to the bills paid in the notification aren't included & this causes great confusion in the accounts receivable departments. Please, please add this required feature asap ! .....

• Ability to add VAT to Retainer Invoices

  Hello, I've had a telephone conversation a month ago with Dinesh on this topic and my request to allow for the addition of VAT on Retainer Invoices.  It's currently not possible to add VAT to Retainer Invoices and it was mutually agreed that there is absolutely no reason why there shouldn't be, especially as TAX LAW makes VAT mandatory on each invoice in Europe!   So basically, what i'm saying is that if you don't allow us to add VAT to Retainer Invoices, than the whole Retainer Invoices becomes

• ZOHO DESK link with Power BI

  HI, I am using ZOHO Desk for last two years and now my client is asking to integrate ZOHO desk data to Power BI so that they can use Data for reporting. Kindly guide in details so that i can give access to ZOHO desk export data for more visibility.

• URLs being masked despite disabling tracking

  Hey, We had disabled click tracking from an email update we are sharing with our users. Despite this, the URL the end user is receiving is masked, and looks like "https://qksyl-cmpzourl.maillist-manage.net/click/1d8e72714515cda6/1d8e72714515ca70" instead

• Dashboard Autorefesh

  Good day, I am a dashboard that displays the number of tickets based on "Product Name". This dashboard is displayed on a big TV for the team to monitor. Can the dashboard auto-refresh every few minutes to display the new values? Currently, we have closed

• Deferred/ Unearned revenue

  Dear Zoho Team, Just in case you have missed out my query posted few days ago: We issue invoices relating to 12-month web hosting service. When we issue the invoice, we should record the entire amount of the invoice as DEFERRED/UNEARNED REVENUE (ie. $10

• Report Hover Setting

  Would be great if we will able to show information to the user while hovering a record in a report.

• Bigin Android app update: Zoho Books integration

  Hello everyone! We’re excited to introduce Zoho Books integration on the latest version(v1.8.5) Bigin Android app. Once the integration is completed in the web(bigin.zoho.com), the Zoho Books tab will be visible in detail View of Contacts, Companies,

• Audit Log enhancements: Increased retention period, better user visibility, and more

  Hello everyone, The Audit Log brings in the following enhancements which improve the overall ability to manage data. Why did we make these updates? Extended Data Retention: Audit data can now be filtered and exported for a 60-day period, doubling the

• Question Regarding Managing Sale Items in Zoho Books

  Good day, I was wondering about something. Right now, Zoho Books doesn’t seem to have a way to flag certain items as being on sale. For example, if I want a list of specific items to be on sale from October 1 to October 12, the user would have to export

• [WEBINAR] Smooth year-end closure with Zoho Books (KENYA)

  Hello there, This webinar is for all Kenyan businesses looking to wrap up their financial year smoothly! Join our free session to learn how Zoho Books can simplify your year-end process. What to expect from this webinar: - All the latest updates in Zoho

• System flaws and lack of response from Zoho

  I have had to go on here as no-one is replying to my emails regarding my problem (been 10 days and no email reply) and your chat facility online through your Zoho Books software opens and closes immediately, so not functioning properly. I actually called

• Customer Grouping

  Hi, how can I group multiple customers into single group. So that I can have idea of accounts receivables of all the customers in single group. Like if there are multiple subsidiaries of same company we have having a business with, and want to view the

• Two currencies

  More and more I am finding that internattional payments' fees are unpredictable. I would like, on my invoices that are in a foreign currency (eg. USD$ or EUR€) for there to be a GBP£ TOTAL display alongside the invoice's currency total. This would make

• Zoho Books | Product updates | September 2025

  Hello users, We’ve rolled out new features and enhancements in Zoho Books. From PayNow payment method to applying journal credits to invoices and bills in other locations, explore the updates designed to enhance your bookkeeping experience. Integrate

• 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

• Zoho Books | Product updates | October 2025

  Hello users, We’ve rolled out new features and enhancements in Zoho Books. From iOS 26 updates to viewing reports as charts, explore the updates designed to enhance your bookkeeping experience. Zoho Books Updates for Apple Devices At WWDC 2025, Apple

• Need Inactive accounts to be visible in Reports in Zoho Books

  I N=need Inactive accounts to be visible in Reports in Zoho Books to do recons of the accounts but when i see the same they are not visible in the Accountant - Account Transactions report

• Edit item custom fields

  Getting this error : Transactions have been created with the custom field. Hence it cannot be deleted. Not trying to delete it, just trying to change which modules to show in or to not show at all in transactions !

• Zoho Books - How to Invoke a Custom Function in Schedulers

  We have multiple schedulers that send emails to customers in batches. Currently, we are maintaining the same code across several schedulers. Is it possible to use a custom function inside a scheduler script? If yes, how can we invoke the custom function

• Use Zoho Books to bill for work done in Zoho Desk??

  I'm trying to see if something is possible (and if yes, how). We use Zoho One to manage our business. We have a lot of clients that will put in a ticket (via portal) to have work done. Out techs will pick up the ticket, do the work, and then log the time

• Zoho Finance Suite - Customer Custom Tabs - Dynamic Link

  Hi Finance Suite team, When creating a Custom Tab for a Client Portal, there is no option to add dynamic parameters. This would be very helpful for adding Zoho Analytics dashboards which can be dynamically filtered through the URL to only show information

• Modular Permission Levels

  We need more modular Permissions per module in Books we have 2 use cases that are creating problems We need per module export permission we have a use case where users should be able to view the sales orders but not export it, but they can export other

• Blueprint or Validation Rules for Invoices in Zoho Books

  Can I implement Blueprint or Validation Rules for Invoices in Zoho Books? Example, use case could be, Agent confirms from client that payment is done, but bank only syncs transactions tomorrow. in this case, Agent can update invoice status to done, and

• Feature Enhancement Request – Text Formatting Options in Item Description (Zoho Books/Quotes Module)

  Dear Zoho Development Team, Greetings from Radiant360 Integrated Technical Services LLC. We would like to bring to your attention a functional limitation we've encountered within the Item Table / Quote Description section of Zoho Books (and Zoho CRM Quotes).

• Add Option to Mass Dispatch by User

  Hello! We are using the dispatch console to dispatch service appointments to our service ressources. Right now, the process is our dispatcher verifies each ressource's route for the day and dispatches it after validation. Sadly, there doesn't seem to

• Bank Receipt Catagorization

  Hi, how can I match a bank deposit to multiple customer's invoices ? For e.g. A single person paid to us on behalf of different five customers. I need to keep the separated invoices for each customer

• Per Level Approval for admins

  We need Process admins like Zoho CRM in Zoho Books for per stage approval Currently in books, admins only have the option for Final Approval But for example, in cases like when an employee is on leave, we can't just approval one level we only have option

• Payment on a past due balance

  Scenario: Customer is past due on their account for 4 months. We suspend their billing in Zoho books. Customer finally logs into the portal and enters a new credit card. We associate that cardwith their subscription, which will permit the card to be used

• How to export all line-item descriptions for a specific item in Zoho Books?

  I am trying to audit a specific item (“Item X”) that has been invoiced multiple times with different line-level descriptions. Here’s the situation: I am using Zoho Books (Professional). Each invoice may contain the same item but with different descriptions

• List of hidden features

  Hi Friends, I had another support chat today and low and behold the feature that I wanted just simply needed to be "enabled". I thought I'd share, and maybe see if others had some similar experiences. 1. This one is from 5 ish years ago. I asked if there

• How to change a BAS that has been filed

  I have discovered that a group of expense transactions were accidentally placed in a asset account rather than an expense account. As a result I need to adjust the transaction and consequently most of my BAS to correct the error. Because the BAS have

• How to Export PDF with a custom Template

  I need to export Sales Order with a Custom Template I have created How can I do it? I see an API to export the PDF but how can I choose which template to choose to generate the PDF

• Associate email with a potential or project.

  I have a pivotal requirement to associate emails from various suppliers (contacts) with different potentials or projects, on an email by email basis as they come in. This question appears to have been raised before but I cannot find a definitive yes "it can be done". Could anyone please tell me, yes or no.  If the later I can stop wasting time and look at alternative crm systems. I would love not to have to do this. Thanks in advance.

• Function with Search Records was working until a few weeks ago, around when "Connected Records" was released

  I have a custom function that has been running for nearly a year now, which suddenly stopped working around the time Zoho released the "Connected Records" update. The function is no longer finding the record using the searchRecords function. I've changed

• Is CRM On Premise available

  Hi Zoho team, Can you please let me know that CRM Zoho is available for On Premise as well? Thanks, Devashish

• Next Page