Simplify Zoho API integration with Deluge’s invokeAPI task

Simplify Zoho API integration with Deluge’s invokeAPI task

Hello all!

Happy New Year! As we kick off 2025, we’re excited to share some of the latest updates to enhance your Deluge experience. 

While Deluge already offered robust API integration capabilities, we’ve taken it to the next level with the introduction of our new invokeAPI task. The new task has been launched with the aim to streamline the process of connecting with Zoho’s extensive suite of services. Unlike the invokeURL task, where you need to provide the complete URL, with invokeAPI, you only need to specify the path. The system will automatically fetch the domain based on the respective Zoho service’s data center, ensuring seamless access across all data centers when making API calls.

This capability of the invokeAPI task is especially useful when working with multiple Zoho services across different data centers. This streamlines the development process by eliminating the need to manually specify the base domain for each service, saving you a lot of time and effort.

What is invokeAPI?

The invokeAPI task in Deluge allows you to make REST API calls to access and modify data in one Zoho service from another Zoho service. 

The invokeAPI task can be used across all Zoho services that support Deluge. However, it's currently limited to performing integrations with specific Zoho services. These include Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, Zoho Invoice, Zoho Billing, Zoho Inventory, Zoho Bookings, Zoho Cliq, and Zoho Creator.

We’re excited to share that plans are underway to extend this capability to even more services across the Zoho ecosystem!

Key benefits

The main objective of the invokeAPI task is to simplify API integrations within the Zoho ecosystem. Here are its key benefits:
  • URL requirements: You no longer need to specify the full URL; simply provide the API path.
  • Domain detection: The domain is automatically determined based on the Zoho service you’re interacting with (e.g., Zoho CRM, Zoho Books) and its corresponding data center. This ensures accurate routing of API calls regardless of the hosting data center. Further, it reduces the risk of errors associated with incorrect URLs or misconfigured endpoints.
  • Enhanced response handling: The response object includes the header and status attributes by default. This enables you to branch logic based on the status code and utilize header values effectively. For example, when the status code is 301, the redirection URL is included in the header. Further, we’re working on supporting the redirection attribute by default in future updates.
Some additional capabilities that set the invokeAPI task apart include:
  • Support for body parameters in GET and DELETE methods: Unlike the invokeURL task, which only supports query strings for DELETE requests, the invokeAPI task allows you to pass values in the request body for GET and DELETE operations.
  • This task also provides the flexibility to customize each parameter in your API request. For instance, you can set parameters such as the name, content type, and encoding type to tailor the requests to your specific needs. 

How it works

When you use the invokeAPI task, you simply need to specify the service and the path to the API endpoint. 

Here’s the basic syntax:
Quote
response = invokeapi
[
  service: <service_name>
  path: <path_value>
  type: <type_value>
  parameters: <parameters_value>
  body: <body_value>
  headers: <headers_value>
  connection: <connection_name>
  response-format: <response_format_value>
  response-decoding: <encoding_format_value>
];

Example: Creating a lead in Zoho CRM
Assume that you want to create a new lead in Zoho CRM. In the invokeAPI task, you only need to provide the service (crm) and the path (/crm/v2/Leads). 
Quote
data = {"data": [{"Last_Name": "Doe", "First_Name": "John", "Email": "john.doe@example.com", "Company": "ABC Corp"}]};
response = invokeapi
[
  service: zohocrm
  path: "/crm/v7/Leads"
  type: POST
  body: data.tostring()
  headers: {"Content-Type": "application/json"}
  response-format: COLLECTION
  response-decoding: "UTF-8"
  connection: "<connection_name>"
];
info response;
In this example:
  • service: We specify the Zoho CRM service (zohocrm).
  • path: This is the API endpoint path for creating leads (/crm/v7/Leads).
  • type: The HTTP method is POST because we're creating a new lead.
  • body: This is the data sent in the request body (the lead information).
  • headers: We specify that the request body is in JSON format.
  • response-format: We expect the response to be in COLLECTION format.
  • response-decoding: The response will be decoded using UTF-8 encoding.
  • connection: This is the TEXT that represents the name of the connection.

Use cases for invokeAPI

Here are some popular use cases of how the invokeAPI task can be utilized:
  • Sync leads between Zoho CRM and Zoho Projects: Automatically create a new project in Zoho Projects when a new lead is added to Zoho CRM.
  • Automate invoices in Zoho Books: When a deal is closed in Zoho CRM, automatically generate an invoice in Zoho Books.
  • Customer support automation: When a new support ticket is created in Zoho Desk, use invokeAPI to create corresponding tasks or issues in Zoho Projects or Zoho CRM.
  • Cross-app data synchronization: Easily synchronize customer data between Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, Zoho Desk, and Zoho Projects to ensure consistency across your applications.
Note: These are just examples—rest assured that a wide range of actions can be performed using this task.

Documentation

We've also come up with comprehensive documentation for this task, and you can take a look at it by visiting the invokeAPI Task help doc.

We believe the all-new invokeAPI Deluge task will be a game-changer for users aiming to integrate seamlessly across multiple Zoho apps. This feature is especially beneficial for teams working with multiple Zoho applications or the Zoho One bundle.

As we wrap up, we want to let you know that we are committed to expanding the capabilities of Deluge, and we’re working hard to bring even more features your way. Stay tuned for exciting updates!

If you need any assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’re always happy to help.

Regards,
The Deluge Team

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