Custom Schedulers is one of our newest features, which helps you save time by scheduling frequently performed tasks. In this week's post, we'll be taking a look at how you can set up custom schedulers to address niche use-cases for your subscription business.
Missed our previous post? Give it a read to learn how you can prevent contact duplication with existing leads from Zoho CRM.
1. Schedule crucial sales reports to stay informed about your business' health
Reports like Lost Opportunities, Churned Subscriptions and Under Risk provide actionable insights about your sales. They can help your sales team proactively follow up with customers on crucial events like errors while signing up, subscription payments that are overdue and subscriptions that have been cancelled.
Accessing this information on time can be vital--that's where custom schedulers come in handy. With custom schedulers, you can schedule a summary of these reports to be sent directly to your email, which will allow you to make informed decisions about your business' sales.
Apart from the reports mentioned above, the custom scheduler that you're about to create will also include the number of trial subscriptions that are about to expire in the next seven days.
The script for this custom scheduler has already been written and works thanks to Zoho Subscriptions' powerful APIs. All you have to do is configure the scheduler with the script, which we've made available on Github. Here's how to set it up: - Go to Settings > Automation > Custom Schedulers.
- Click + New Custom Scheduler.
- Set the Frequency as Daily (or Weekly, based on your needs) and the Start Date as your current date.
- Copy the script for the custom function from Github and paste it in the Deluge script editor.
- Make sure to edit the script with your Auth Token as well as any other changes that you'd like.
- Click Save.
Now, the scheduler will automatically send a summary of these reports along with a link to the full report to your email address.
2. Schedule a subscription to get cancelled on a particular date
Zoho Subscriptions lets you cancel your customers' subscriptions immediately or at the end of the current cycle. However, there may be cases where you or your customers want a subscription to be cancelled on a particular date in the future. This custom function will let you handle such cases.
How It Works
To achieve this, we'll be using custom schedulers. First, you'd have to create a custom field that can store a custom cancellation date in your subscriptions. Next, a custom scheduler, which runs daily, will go through subscriptions that have custom cancellation dates. If the scheduler finds a custom cancellation date that matches the current date, it will cancel the subscription.
End result? You'll be able to cancel a subscription simply by updating it with a cancellation date and let the custom scheduler do the rest.
Setting It Up
There may be a lot of steps involved with this one, but the setup is fairly simple and shouldn't take you more than 5-10 minutes.
To start things off, create a custom field that can store a date in your subscriptions.
- Go to Settings > Preferences > Invoice.
- Navigate to the Custom Field tab and click + New Custom Field.
- Enter the Label Name as "Custom Cancellation Date".
- Select the Data Type as Date.
- Ensure that you leave the Default Value field empty.
- Click Save.
When you want to cancel a subscription at a future date, update the custom field. Here's how:
- Go to the Subscriptions module from the left sidebar and select the subscription that you want to cancel.
- Click the More dropdown and select the Update Custom Fields option.
- Set the subscription's cancellation date in the custom field that you created earlier.
- Click Save
You can also customize the columns in the default subscription list view to make it easier to view cancellation dates. In the Subscriptions module, click the Column Customization icon and mark the custom field for cancellation dates. Click Save to show the cancellation date in the default subscription list view.
Our custom scheduler will also need a Custom View, which will help it sort through subscriptions with cancellation dates. To create the custom view:
- Go to the Subscriptions module and click the View Filters dropdown.
- Click + New Custom View.
- Enter a Name for the custom view.
- Add a criterion with the Field as your cancellation date's custom field, the Comparator as is and the Value as This Month.
Now, it's time to wrap things up and finally create our custom scheduler. - Go to Settings > Automation > Custom Schedulers.
- Click + New Custom Scheduler.
- Set the Frequency as Daily and the Start Date as your current date.
- Copy the script for the custom function from Github and paste it in the Deluge script editor.
- Edit the script to suit your needs and also make sure to copy and paste the previously created script's customview_id parameter.
(You can find the customview_id parameter by going to your custom view and copying it from your browser's URL bar.)
You're all set! Now, the scheduler will automatically cancel subscriptions whenever it finds a subscription that has a cancellation date in the custom field that you created.
Note: Zoho Subscriptions will not charge your customer for their pro-rated usage. So, if you want to charge your customer for their usage until the cancellation date, you can do it by adding an additional charge to their subscription before it gets cancelled.
We hope you try this out and let us know how it goes in the comments below. We're always open to suggestions, so let us know if you have a specific business scenario that you'd like to see us tackle in our weekly tips and tricks. Until next time!
Cheers,
Varun Steven
The Zoho Subscriptions Team
Sticky Posts
Tip #4 : Refer and Earn Workflow system for your Subscription Business
Hello everyone, We've been coming up with a tip every week to address specific business scenarios which can be implemented for your business. In continuation to the previous post, this week we will be seeing about how you can implement the Refer and Earn Workflow system to acquire more customers. Why are Referrals important? Customer Acquisition is crucial for any business to sustain itself in a constantly evolving market. It involves persuading new consumers to purchase your products. Customers
Tip #2 - Cancellation of Offline Subscriptions based on the Expected Payment Date
Hello everyone, As you all know, we are coming up with a custom function workflow every week to address specific business scenarios. In continuation of this previous blog, this week we will be seeing about Cancellation of Offline Subscriptions based on the Expected Payment Date. Business Scenario: In general, for any business, the customers make payments via online as well as offline. In case of subscription where the automatic collection of charge is enabled (aka online subscription), the customer's
Tip #3 : Send SMS Reminders for your Subscription Business
Hello everyone, As you all know, we are coming up with a tip every week to address specific business scenarios. In continuation to the previous blog, this week we will be seeing how you can use SMS reminders for your Subscription Business. Using SMS messages for your Subscription Business: While managing your subscription business, more often than not, you need to keep your customers informed about upcoming renewals, payment reminders and cancellations. By keeping them informed in advance, you can
Tips And Tricks - Announcement
Hello everyone, Every business is unique and each of them follows a specific workflow. While managing your customers' subscriptions with Zoho, you might have some needs unique to your business. Custom Functions helps you address such needs. This is a start to a series of posts, where we will be coming up with a custom function workflow every week that addresses specific business scenarios. Watch this space for further updates! Also, if you have any specific business scenario which needs to be addressed,
Tip #6 : Accessing external URLs from Zoho Subscriptions
Hello everyone, We have been sharing a tip every week to address specific business scenarios which you can implement for your subscription business. Last week, we shared a tip about implementing the Approval Workflow system. This week, let's look at how you can access external URLs with the help of Custom Link. Business Scenario: Every business functions differently and has its unique requirements. At times, businesses might want to access other websites or applications by appending specific information
Recent Topics
Tailoring the Share info on an IFrame link
I want to adjust my form size. It's customised on a theme and normally you would be able to edit the parameters in the attached image. Now all I can do is click on it to copy it. I want to stop it having to be scrolled when people access the form. The
Custom Related List anchor tag with tel protocol
The following code worked great for about a year to create clickable tel and mailto links in a related list in the Deals module. Just this morning, it started displaying the HTML as text. For example: <a href='tel:8882490100'>8882490100</a> Zoho support
Client Can't View Ticket
Hi, I created a ticket for my Client since he had an issue. I added him as a Contact as well. My client got a notification in his email that the ticket has been created. When he went to view the ticket on his desktop, the screen was blank. He then viewed
Custom Status for Purchase Orders
Currently Zoho books has functionality to create custom statuses for Sales Orders. Can this be extended to include custom status for purchase orders as well? It was a great decision to add this functionality to sales orders. Our use case is for tracking
My workflows not working
Hi I have created my first workflow I want it so when a customer responds to a ticket that the status is changed to "reopened" We want this so its clear there is a ticket to deal with again. We only have 2 agents responding to tickets and do not have
Waiting Room
Is there any plans to implement a Virtual Waiting Room for Attendees on Meetings and or Webinars?
Error AS101 when adding new email alias
Hi, I am trying to add apple@(mydomain).com The error AS101 is shown while I try to add the alias.
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.
What's New - January 2025 | Zoho Backstage
Hi there! As we step into a brand-new year, we’re thrilled to bring you some exciting updates to make event management more enjoyable and efficient. Here’s what we rolled out in January to kick off 2025: Backstage 2.0 now enforced for all users We've
How do you do ticket add ons in Backstage?
Hi Everyone, If you wanted to have general admin tickets and allow for add ons, like camping, or car or Carbon offset. What would you do? Peace Robin
Re-create auth token
I need to re-create a self-client auth token, with the same scopes (and additional ones) as the current token. Is there a way to view the scopes assigned to the current token to ensure that no scopes are missing when creating the new one?
Writing on sketch cards is bugged when zoomed in
When zoomed in, it writes a noticeable distance above or to the side of where you're actually trying to write. The further you're zoomed in, the more noticeable it is. Zooming is also entirely absent on the desktop version.
Doesn't let me test my newsletter.
Hello, I click "Preview and Test". I select the email address to send the test (usually my own email). I send the test email, appears the message "Your test email has been sent", but nothing happens. I mean, there is nothing in my inbox. I also tried
reset of user password
User forgot her password, so she requests a password rest, but never gets the email. How do I reset her password, since that function is not an option, even for an administrator?
In what case it's better to use Developer Console? Only for marketplace?
As I can see from the documentation, the limitations are challenging. No Custom API No Page Variables No Custom Connections.
commision tracker
I am after a zoho developer to finish my commission tracker as I hired someone on oDesk that started but now will respond to my emails.I really need to get It finished as it is holding up my plans Thanks Budget : $500 | Duration : a.s.a.p To leave a private message, please click the link for private response in post Action section.
Generate a Zoho Sign link
From time to time I get a response "I never received your you e-document for electronic signature" is there a way to generate a Zoho Sign link to share.
Error 403: Forbidden When Updating Email Signature via API
Hi Zoho Desk team, First, congratulations again on the excellent Zoho API. But, I’m encountering an issue while attempting to update an email signature via the API. Whenever I make a request to update the signature, the response returns an HTTP 403 Forbidden
Queues Management ?
I need to assign the new requirements equally between my support agents. How I can configure this feature in Zoho? Thanks
Automating Custom Web Link Messages to Customers via Instant Messaging in Zoho Desk
Hello, I am looking for assistance with Zoho Desk's Instant Messaging feature. Is there a way to automate the sending of a custom web link to customers every day at 6:30 PM? Any guidance or suggestions on how to achieve this would be greatly appreciated.
How do you apply field validation to a date field?
We are using Sign for remote e-signature of liability waivers. The signer must enter a date of birth, and if they are a minor their legal guardian must sign for them. However we have had numerous problems with signers returning an invalid date of birth
Implement Regex in Layout and Validation rules
Hello all, We are excited to announce that users can now implement Regular Expressions (Regex) in our layout and validation rules. This new functionality allows for more flexible rules to be created when designing and validating forms. What is Regex?
Zoho Desk Validation Rule Using Custom Function
Hi all, I tried to find the way to validate fields using custom function just like in Zoho CRM but to no avail. Is there a way to do this?
Editing landing page after signup for a webinar
Hi, how can I edit the landing page after signing up for a webinar. I personalized the email "registration confirmation", which is working fine. Nevertheless after submitting the form, the participant gets redirected to a page, which looks like the standard
Kiosk GetRecords can't compare formulas
(submitted as a help request by accident - should have been a topic) Scenario: I have an "email domain" formula whose value is "@xyz.com" if the e-mail address is brent@xyz.com . I have the same field in Leads and Contacts. So, theoretically, I should
Kiosk can't merge picklist or multiselect
There is no ability to load a multiselect or picklikst field into a kiosk with the values that have been previously selected. So, I essentially have 3 unacceptable options: 1.)Load the value into a text string and include instructions like this: "Picklist
Fillable template with dynamic tables?
Is there a way to build a fillable template so that users can add rows to a table? To describe what I'm trying to accomplish the table has 3 sections; a header row, some number of rows with custom information, and a summary row with totals. I can't figure
Tip of the Week - Timeline User Filter for Dashboard
Does the Date User Filter in your Dashboard leave out a few reports from filtering? This happens when the reports are not created over the same table and the (time) column over which the user filter is created. To solve this, Zoho Reports has a Timeline User Filter. This filter applies the criteria on all reports, matching it with the best possible date column associated with a report. i.e., if your reports are based on a date column, then it will filter it for that data column. To know more on
Zoho Forms Webhooks - Only sends on submission not on edit.
Hi There, We have a slightly unique use case for Zoho Forms. We used Zoho Forms for the collection of Guest Lists. When a customer submits their guest list they get an email confirmation. Within this is a link for them to update their guest list before
Add Knowledge Base KB Articles to multiple categories
Greetings, Love you help center system. One item that would be incredibly helpful to many of us would be able to add a single Knowledge Base KB article to multiple categories in our system. It seems it could be quite easy to use a checkbox form, instead
What does "Tickets for Review" do?
What is the purpose of the va nilla view " Tickets for Review?"
Report of Leads/Accounts/Deals with no open activities
How can we replicate the option in filter to only show Leads/Accounts/Deals with no open activities ? The option is present in the filters (please find screenshot) but I am unable to find them in the report. Thanks
Cannot set Subform Multiline field to read-only using Client Script
I am using client script to set different subform fields as read-only It works for Single Line Fields, but when I try to set a Multiline field as Read-only it doesn't work var subform = ZDK.Page.getSubform("Subform_1"); var item_Code_old = subform.getField('Item_Code_Old').setReadOnly(true);
Changing Color Theme of Guided Conversations
Hello, We have recently added Guided Conversations to one of our websites, but I am wondering if there is a way to customize the color scheme so it matches the appearance of the website? Thank you in advance!
Lost the ability to sort by ticket owner
Hi all, in the last week or so, we have lost the ability to sort tickets by Ticket Owner. Unlike the other columns which we can hover over and click on to sort, Ticket Owner is no longer clickable. Is it just us, or are other customers seeing this too?
Can't login to Zoho mail
I'm logged into Zoho but when I try to go in zoho mail I get: Invalid request! The input passed is invalid or the URL is invoked without valid parameters. Please check your input and try again. I just set up my mx records and stuff with namecheap a few
Social Media Simplified with Zoho Social: Bridge sales and social media marketing
Social media marketing has become the go-to strategy for most businesses who are trying to boost awareness of their product/service, create a brand image in the minds of their audience, increase website traffic and engagement, and generate leads. Posting
This domain is not allowed to add. Please contact support-as@zohocorp.com for further details
I am trying to setup the free version of Zoho Mail. When I tried to add my domain, theselfreunion.com I got the error message that is the subject of this Topic. I've read your other community forum topics, and this is NOT a free domain. So what is the
Work Orders / Bundle Requests
Zoho Inventory needs a work order / bundle request system. This record would be analogous to a purchase order in the purchasing workflow or a sales order in the sales cycle. It would be non-journaling, but it would reserve the appropriate inventory of
Create Quote does not show the "Product Description" entered as part of the Product setup.
The product description created as part of the product setup page, does not show in the Create Quote module; The module allows for an additional description to be added but without access to the original stored description. By selecting the product from the "Product Name Lookup" pop-up, the "Product Description" part should be populated from the product record where the user is allowed to further modify it.
Next Page