Automation#33: Automate Splitting Names for Existing Contact Records

An organized directory – who doesn't love one?

Previously, we explored how to split contact names into First Name and Last Name for new contacts in Zoho Desk. But what about existing contacts already in your database? This week, we bring you a custom function that automates this process, ensuring a well-structured and easily searchable contact list.

​

Handling Existing Contacts

• On ticket creation for an existing contact, this custom function will scan the email and split the name stored in the "Last Name" field into "First Name" and "Last Name."
• To avoid unnecessary modifications, we introduce a checkbox in the contact layout. This allows you to mark contacts that have already been split, preventing duplicate actions.

Let's walk through the steps needed to ensure a smooth and error-free execution. 

I. Create a Checkbox Field in the Contacts Layout

a. Go to Setup >> Customization >> Layouts and Fields >> Select the Contacts module >> Select the layout >> Drag the checkbox field >> Give a desired name for the checkbox (e.g., Name Split).

b. Click on the gear icon of the checkbox field, select Edit Properties, and note the API name. This API name must be pasted into the custom function on line 4.

c. Uncheck the Enable by Default checkbox if it is marked.

II. Configure Custom Function within the Workflow Rule

Prerequisites

1. Create a connection

  1.1 Go to Setup(S) and choose Connections under Developer Space.

  1.2 Click Create Connection.

  1.3 Select Zoho OAuth under Default Connection.

  1.4 Set the connection name as deskcontact.

  1.5 Under Scope, choose the below scope values:

Desk.contacts.UPDATE

Desk.contacts.READ

  1.6 Click Create and Connect.

  1.7 Click Connect and click Accept.

Connection is created successfully.

2. Create a Workflow Rule

 2.1. Go to Setup, choose Workflows under Automation. 

 2.2 Under Workflows, click Rules >> Create Rule.

In the Basic Information section,

2.3. Select Tickets from the drop-down menu under Module.

2.4. Enter a Rule Name and Description for the rule.

2.5. If you want to activate the rule right away, select the Active checkbox. Else, create the rule and activate it later.

2.6. Click Next.

 

In the Execute on section, follow these steps:

2.7. Select Create.   

2.8. Click Next.

 

2.9. In the Criteria section, add criteria if required. click Next. 

2.10. In the Actions section, click the + icon and select New next to Custom Functions.

2.11. Enter a Name and Description for the custom function. Choose Tickets under Module.
2.12 Under Argument Mapping, give a desired Method Name. Map the arguments as below:       

         2.12.1 In the Argument Name field, type contactId and select Contact ID under the Contacts Section.                                     

2.13. In the script window, insert the Custom Function given below:

1. //------------- User Input ----------
2. orgId = "60xxxxxxxx0"; //replace with your Org ID
3. operator = "."; 
4. checkBoxFieldAPIName = "enter_the_field_api_name"; //Enter API name of the checkbox
5. //---------------------------------
6. logs = Map();
7. try {
8. contacts = zoho.desk.getRecordById(orgId,"contacts",contactId, "deskcontact");
9. firstName = contacts.get("firstName");
10. lastName = contacts.get("lastName");
11. if(lastName.contains(operator))
12. {
13.        if(operator.contains(".")){
14.          lastName = lastName.subString(0,lastName.indexOf("@"));
15.        }
16.        firstName = lastName.subString(0,lastName.indexOf(operator)).trim();
17.        lastName = lastName.subString(lastName.indexOf(operator) + 1);
18.        updateContact = zoho.desk.update(orgId,"contacts",contactId,{"firstName":firstName,"lastName":lastName,"cf":{checkBoxFieldAPIName:true}},"deskcontact");
19.    }
20. }
21. catch (errorInfo)
22. {
23. logs.insert("errorInfo":errorInfo);
24. }
25. info "logs: \n" + logs;
26. 
    
27. if(logs.containKey("errorInfo"))
28. {
29. throws "Error happen in the CF execution";
30. }

NOTE

a. In Line 2, Enter your OrgId with  "  ". To access OrgId, go to Setup (S) >> Developer Space >> APIs >> API Authentication.

b. In Line 4, enter the API name of the check box created within the Contacts layout.  

Information

This custom function will split the contact name as First Name and Last Name based on the "." operator between the names in the email. 

2.14. Click Save to save the custom function.

2.15. Click Save again to save the workflow.

By implementing this custom function and workflow rule, you can automate the process of splitting contact names within Zoho Desk, ensuring a clean and organized database, which will enhance searchability. 

We hope this guide helps streamline your contact management! If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to share in the comments. Happy Organizing!

Best regards, 

Lydia |Zoho Desk

• Topic Participants

• Lydia | Zoho Desk

  

• info

• Shivani | Zoho Desk

  

• Sticky Posts

• Register for Zoho Desk Beta Community

  With the start of the year, we have decided to take a small step in making the life of our customers a little easier. We now have easy access to all our upcoming features and a faster way to request for beta access. We open betas for some of our features

• Share your Zoho Desk story with us!

  Tell us how you use Zoho Desk for your business and inspire others with your story. Be it a simple workflow rule that helps you navigate complex processes or a macro that saves your team a lot of time; share it here and help the community learn and grow with shared knowledge. 

• Tip #1: Learn to pick the right channels

  Mail, live chat, telephony, social media, web forms—there are so many support channels out there. Trying to pick the right channels to offer your customers can get pretty confusing. Emails are most useful when the customer wants to put things on record. However, escalated or complicated issues should not be resolved over email because it's slow and impersonal.  When you need immediate responses, live chat is more suitable. It's also quick and convenient, so it's the go-to channel for small issues. 

• Welcome to Zoho Desk Community - Say hello here!

  Hello everyone! Though we have been here for a while, it’s time to formally establish the Zoho Desk Community; we’re really happy to have you all here! This can be the place where you take a moment to introduce yourself to the rest of the community. We’d love to hear all about you, what you do, what company or industry you work for, how you use Zoho Desk and anything else that you will like to share! Here’s a little about me. I am Chinmayee. I have been associated with Zoho since 2014. I joined here

• Webinar 1: Blueprint for Customer Service

  With the launch of a host of new features in Zoho Desk, we thought it’ll be great to have a few webinars to help our customers make the most of them. We’re starting off with our most talked about feature, Blueprint in Zoho Desk. You can register for the Blueprint webinar here: The webinar will be delivered by our in-house product experts. This is a good opportunity to ask questions to our experts and understand how Blueprint can help you automate your service processes. We look forward to seeing

• Recent Topics

• dealing with post dated cheques

  Hi, can you help me please the best way to deal with this We sell an item of three months duration that is paid for with post dated cheques in monthly stages example - item is sold £3000 Cheque 1 is for £1000 due at time of sale (say Sept) cheque 2 is dated 25th of next month (Oct) cheque 3 is dated 25th of next month +1 (Nov) Now, with invoice number one it's simple - i send a standard invoice as usual But with the other two here's what i want zoho to do next month i want it to send an invoice on

• Using Contains as a filter

  We are using Zoho Reports, ServiceDesk Plus analytics. I do not see how to create a report filter using Contains comparison of a string values, is one string contained in another. For example, Task Title contains the word Monitor. Is this possible in Zoho Reports?  This reporting feature is available in SDP reporting. Thanks in advance, Craig Rice

• Set off Unearned Revenue

  Hi, I would like to get a clarification on the below. I have an opening balance of BD.725/- in my Unearned Revenue A/c which includes the overpayments of 6 clients. No One of my clients settled his invoices by paying the value of the invoice less the

• How Zoho Desk contributes to the art of savings

  Remember the first time your grandmother gave you cash for a birthday or New Year's gift, Christmas gift, or any special day? You probably tucked that money safely into a piggy bank, waiting for the day you could buy something precious or something you

• 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

• When moments in customer support get "spooky"

  It’s Halloween again! Halloween is celebrated with spooky symbols and meanings based on history and traditions, with each region adding its own special touch. While we were kids, we would dress up in costumes along with friends, attend parties, and enjoy

• email moderation issue when email is sent in the name of a mail group

  Symptom: an email that is sent by a mail group moderator in the name of a moderated mail group is held back for approval. Reproduction: Create a moderated mail group with members and moderators. Allow that mails can be sent in the name of the group (extended settings). Send an email to the group as a group moderator, but in the name of the group. This mail is held back for moderation which is unexpected. Expected: A mail sent by group moderator to a moderated group are not held back for moderation

• Questions about Zoho mail

  Hello, I had up until recently, the free version. I got a warning message that said, "The user account (Redacted email address) 6.02 GB in your organization is almost nearing the allocated storage of 5.00 GB. If the storage exceeds the allowed limit,

• How can I delete duplicate transactions?

  I want to delete the duplicates not simply exclude them. I have duplicates, because I had automatic bank feeds turned on (had to make sure this critical functionality was working before migrating to Zoho). Now when I import my csv's exported from Wave,

• Multiple email addresses

  Multiple email addresses: I understand there is the ability to add an additional email field to a contact, but the functionality here needs to be drastically revised. Currently, this second email address does not log under the contact email history, nor is it available as a send address when using the Send Mail button within CRM. We recently migrated from GoldMine. I hate GoldMine, but there is one thing they did well: Email. I suggest copying them. Change the email field to an editable picklist,

• ViewID and Zoho Desk API

  I'm looking at the documentation for Listing contacts and it looks like you can filter by ViewID. I assume this is views created in a department or all departments. Is this correct? And if so, how do I find the ViewID for that view? EDIT: I see the view

• Ability to Link Reported Issues from Zoho Desk to Specific Tasks or Subtasks in Zoho Projects

  Hi Zoho Desk Team, Hope you're doing well. When reporting a bug from Zoho Desk to Zoho Projects, we’ve noticed that it’s currently not possible to select an existing task or subtask to associate the issue with. However, when working directly inside Zoho

• Print Tickets

  We have field engineers who visit customers. We would like the option to print a job sheet with full details of the job and account/contact details.

• Zoho Desk integration with Power BI

  Hi, I want to be able to create a Power BI report which has live updates of ticket data from zoho desk, is this possile at all? Thanks Jack

• Ability to Attach Images When Reporting Issues to Zoho Projects from Zoho Desk

  Hi Zoho Desk Team, Hope you’re doing well. We’re using the Zoho Desk–Zoho Projects integration to report bugs directly from support tickets into the Zoho Projects issue tracker. This integration is extremely useful and helps us maintain smooth coordination

• Ability to Choose Task List and Add Subtasks When Creating Tasks from Zoho Desk

  Hi Zoho Desk Team, Hope you’re doing well. We’re using the Zoho Desk–Zoho Projects integration to seamlessly connect customer tickets with project tasks. While the integration works great overall, we noticed two important limitations that affect our workflow

• Sync Task Status from Zoho Projects to Zoho Desk

  Hi Zoho Desk Team, Hope you’re doing well. We’re actively using the Zoho Desk–Zoho Projects integration, which helps our support and project teams stay aligned. However, we noticed that when we change a task’s status in Zoho Projects, the change is not

• Default/Private Departments in Zoho Desk

  1) How does one configure a department to be private? 2) Also, how does one change the default department? 1) On the list of my company's Zoho Departments, I see that we have a default department, but I am unable to choose which department should be default. 2) From the Zoho documentation I see that in order to create a private department, one should uncheck "Display in customer portal" on the Add Department screen. However, is there a way to change this setting after the department has been created?

• 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

• Color of Text Box Changes

  Sometimes I find the color of text boxes changed to a different color. This seems to happen when I reopen the same slide deck later. In the image that I am attaching, you see that the colors of the whole "virus," the "irology" part of "virology," and

• The difference between Zoho Marketing Automation and Zoho Campaigns

  Greetings Marketers! This post aims to differentiate between Zoho Marketing Automation and Zoho Campaigns. By the time you get to the end of the post, you will be able to choose a product that objectively suits you. What is Zoho Marketing Automation?

• How to use Rollup Summary in a Formula Field?

  I created a Rollup Summary (Decimal) field in my module, and it shows values correctly. When I try to reference it in a Formula Field (e.g. ${Deals.Partners_Requested} - ${Deals.Partners_Paid}), I get the error that the field can’t be found. Is it possible

• Zoho Mail Android app update - View emails shared via Permalink on the app.

  Hello everyone! In the latest version(v2.8.2) of the Zoho Mail Android app update, we have brought in support to access the emails shared via permalink within the app. Earlier, when you click the permalink of an email, you'll be redirected to a mobile

• Let us view and export the full price books data from CRM

  I quote out of CRM, some of my clients have specialised pricing for specific products - therefore we use Price Books to manage these special prices. I can only see the breakdown of the products listed in the price book and the specialised pricing for

• How to create a Zoho Mail extension similar to Outlook's OnSend add-in?

  Hi, I want to create a Zoho Mail extension similar to Outlook’s OnSend add-in. The extension should: Let the user select headers and footers from a taskpane while composing an email. When the user clicks Send, the extension should: Automatically insert

• 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.

• 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

• Delegates should be able to delete expenses

  I understand the data integrity of this request. It would be nice if there was a toggle switch in the Policy setting that would allow a delegate to delete expenses from their managers account. Some managers here never touch their expense reports, and

• Function #9: Copy attachments of Sales Order to Purchase Order on conversion

  This week, we have written a custom function that automatically copies the attachments uploaded for a sales order to the corresponding purchase order after you convert it. Here's how to configure it in your Zoho Books organization. Custom Function: Hit

• Kaizen #8 - Handling Recurrence and Participants in the Events Module via API

  Hello everyone! We are back this week with an exciting post—Handling recurrence and participants in the Events module through API. First things first—What is the Events module? "Events" is a part of the Activities module in Zoho CRM.  An event is an activity that happens at a given place and time. You can find Events on the user's Zoho CRM's home page, Activities home page, Calendar, and in other related records. What are the types of Events? Events are of two types—Recurring and non-recurring events.

• Marketer’s Space - Get Holiday-Ready with Zoho Campaigns

  Hello marketers, Welcome back to another post in Marketer’s Space! Q4 is packed with opportunities to connect with your audience - from Halloween, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, to Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year. In this post, we’ll look at how

• Personalized demo

  can I know more about the personalized demo we are construction company and

• Can I collect email addresses in a form??

  Can I add new subscribers to my email list (hosted in FloDesk) when they check a box and add their email address on a Zoho form?

• Zoho CRM Android app updates: Kiosk and multiple file upload support for subforms

  Hello everyone, We've rolled out new enhancements to the Zoho CRM Android app to bring better mobile CRM experience and efficiency. Let's take a quick look at what's new: Kiosk Multiple file uploads for subforms Kiosk Kiosk is a no-code tool in Zoho CRM

• Alerts for mentions in comments

  We are testing the use of Writer internally and found that when a user is mentioned in a comment, there is no email alert for the mention. Is this something that's configurable, and if so, where can we enable this option?

• OAuth integration issues

  I'm experiencing persistent OAuth errors when trying to connect Make with Zoho API. I've tried multiple approaches but keep encountering the following issues: First error: 'Invalid Redirect Uri - Redirect URI passed does not match with the one configured'

• Zoho Mail Android app update: Manage folders

  Hello everyone! In the latest version(v2.9) of the Zoho Mail Android app update, we have brought in support for an option to manage folders. You can now create, edit, and delete folders from within the mobile app. You can also manage folders for the POP

• validation rules doesn't work in Blueprint when it is validated using function?

  I have tried to create a validation rule in the deal module. it works if I try to create a deal manually or if I try to update the empty field inside a deal. but when I try to update the field via the blueprint mandatory field, it seems the validation

• Get Zoho Mail API working (including DRE Connector, Oauth Token, ZUID, ZOID & ACCOUNT_ID)

  Disclaimer: I’m not a professional coder! Do you need to use Zoho Mail API? Me too. It lets you do all sorts of things — like reading the complete header of an email, or forwarding an email with its attachments — which is what I wanted to do. But setting

• Revenue Deferrals

  Does ZOHO books and subscriptions handle Revenue Deferrals?   

• Next Page