# Zoho CRM: save WhatsApp customers as contacts

> Connect Zoho CRM to Avox so an automation can add a WhatsApp customer to Zoho CRM, or update the record that is already there. Regions, limits and what happens if Zoho fails.

Source: https://docs.theavoxai.com/connections/apps/zoho-crm

Connect Zoho CRM and an automation can save the people who message you, with what they told you in a
chat or a Flow, in your Zoho CRM. You can also browse and search your contacts and leads from inside
Avox.

## What Avox can and cannot do with Zoho CRM

- **Can:** add a contact, or update the one that is already there. Avox matches on email, or on the
  mobile number when there is no email.
- **Can:** fill email, phone (saved in Zoho's **Mobile** field), first name, last name and a note.
- **Can:** list and search the contacts and leads in Zoho CRM on the **Contacts** and **Leads**
  pages, and open one in Zoho.
- **Cannot:** work with deals or accounts. They stay in Zoho CRM.
- **Cannot:** change or delete records from those pages. They only read. Change them in Zoho.
- **One direction only:** Avox writes to Zoho. Nothing you change in Zoho starts an automation in
  Avox.

Things to know about how the record is made:

- The **Save to your CRM** step saves a Zoho **Contact**. A contact's company is not saved, because
  Zoho links it to an account. (Avox's Zoho connection can also save a Lead, where a company is
  required and Avox writes **Not given** when none is supplied, but the automation step has no way
  to ask for a lead today.)
- Zoho needs a last name. Avox sends the last name, else the first name, else the words **WhatsApp
  contact**. The first name is sent only when both names are given. Because Avox sends this field
  every time, an update can replace the name already in Zoho, so give the name whenever you have it.
- The note is saved in the record's **Description**.
- Fields you leave empty are not sent.

## What you need before you start

- A Zoho CRM account, and a Zoho user who can see and change contacts in it.
- Your region. Zoho works out which one your account is in when you sign in. Avox accepts the United
  States, Europe, India, Australia, Japan, China, Canada, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom. A
  sign-in from anywhere else is refused, and nothing is connected.
- A plan on your Switchboard, which sets how many apps you can connect
  ([AVX-3683](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3683), [AVX-3706](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3706)).
- The permission **Manage connected apps** in Avox. Admins have it, and can give it to a Manager
  ([AVX-3707](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3707)).

## Connect Zoho CRM

**1. Open Zoho CRM in Apps**

Open **Apps** in the sidebar, pick **Zoho CRM** and click **Connect**.

**2. Read what Avox will do**

The first screen, **What Avox can do**, lists the abilities. Click **Continue**.

**3. Sign in at Zoho**

Click **Continue to Zoho CRM**. Zoho's own page opens. Sign in with the account in your own region
and accept what Avox asks for: contacts and leads, and reading your user and organisation details
(Avox uses them to name the account). Avox never sees your password.

**4. Come back to Avox**

You return to Avox with **Zoho CRM is connected**. Click **Open Zoho CRM in Avox** or **See
contacts**.

If the button says **Coming soon**, Avox has not switched Zoho CRM on yet
([AVX-3682](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3682)). Nothing is wrong on your side. Allow everything Zoho lists. If
the sign-in ends with an error, see [Apps troubleshooting](https://docs.theavoxai.com/connections/apps/troubleshooting).

## What you see in Avox afterwards

Open **Apps**, then **Zoho CRM**. The menu has **Overview**, **Contacts**, **Leads** and **Activity**.

- **Overview** shows the status, the Zoho account, the **Region**, who connected it, and the last
  problem with its code. **Test connection**, **Reconnect** and **Disconnect** are here.
- **Contacts** and **Leads** each have **Sent by Avox** (what Avox saved) and **In Zoho CRM** (the
  records in Zoho, newest change first, searchable by two letters or more, with **Load more**). Open
  one for its details, **Open chat** (when Avox knows the chat) and **Open in Zoho CRM**. A lead
  whose company is **Not given** shows no company.
- **Activity** has **Usage** (calls per day over 7, 30 or 90 days) and the **Log** of every call,
  filtered by date, result, action or source.

The status is **Connected**, **Needs reconnecting** or **Having trouble**. Avox renews Zoho's access
by itself before it runs out.

## Using Zoho CRM in Avox

Flows do not call Zoho directly. To save a Flow's answers, make an automation that starts with
**Flow submitted**. Add a **Use a connected app** step, set **What to do** to **Save to your CRM**
under **CRM**, and pick **Zoho CRM** in **With**. The step is free (no credits).

Fill any of **Email**, **Phone**, **First name**, **Last name**, **Company** and **Note** with fixed
text or values like `{{flow.email}}`. Email or phone is needed ([AVX-3705](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3705)).
The email is stored in lower case. A phone is digits, spaces, brackets or dashes, optionally
starting with +, 6 to 24 characters.

Automations can use only three details of the person in the chat: `{{contact.name}}`,
`{{contact.first_name}}` and `{{contact.phone_last4}}` (the last 4 digits), plus your own custom
contact fields. The full phone number is not offered as a value, so collect the email or phone in a
Flow, or read it from a table row such as `{{row.phone}}`. Later steps can use `{{crm.id}}` (the Zoho
record id) and `{{crm.created}}` (yes or no).

**Worked example (made up for illustration).** A Flow asks for first name, last name, email and a
question. An automation starts with **Flow submitted** for that Flow and has one **Use a connected
app** step: **Save to your CRM** with **Zoho CRM**, **Email** `{{flow.email}}`, **First name**
`{{flow.first_name}}`, **Last name** `{{flow.last_name}}` and **Note** `{{flow.question}}`. Use the
names of your own Flow's fields. Set **If it can't be done** to **Carry on with the next step**, then
add a text that thanks the customer. A customer with the same email is updated, not added twice.

There is no premade automation for Zoho CRM. Build this one in the [builder](https://docs.theavoxai.com/automation/tables).

## Limits

- Each Switchboard can make 120 calls a minute to Zoho CRM. Past that, calls are refused for the
  rest of the minute ([AVX-3695](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3695)).
- Each try gives up after 10 seconds, and a step waits 30 seconds at most.
- Names: 80 characters. Company: 120. Note: 1,000. One record per step.

## When Zoho CRM fails or says no

1. **Retries.** Saving a contact is safe to repeat, because Zoho matches on email or mobile, so Avox
   tries it again, up to two more times after about 0.4 and 1.2 seconds, when Zoho is unreachable or
   answers 429, 502, 503 or 504. If Zoho says how long to wait, Avox waits up to 5 seconds. Reads
   and lists are retried the same way.
2. **The log.** Each call is logged with its tries. Names, emails and phone numbers are masked, but
   a note or a company is shown as typed (shortened), so keep private details out of the note.
3. **The status.** If Zoho stops accepting Avox's access, the status becomes **Needs reconnecting**
   at once ([AVX-3692](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3692)). Five failed calls in a row on Zoho's side make it
   **Having trouble**, and one good call makes it **Connected** again. A missing or invalid detail does
   not count against its health.
4. **Your automation.** The step stops the run or carries on, as you chose in **If it can't be done**
   (the default is **Stop the run**, and later steps such as a thank-you text then do not run).
   While Zoho **Needs reconnecting**, the step does not call Zoho and fails with
   [AVX-3596](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3596) in the automation's run log. Other failures show
   [AVX-3605](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3605).
5. **The pages.** If Zoho cannot be read, **Contacts** and **Leads** show what Avox saved, with
   [AVX-3717](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3717) and the reason.

**What happens to the person's data.** If the save fails, that person is not in Zoho, and Avox does
not try it again later on its own. The chat goes on and the Flow answers stay in your Inbox. To add
the person, correct the cause and run the automation again, or add them in Zoho.

Codes you may see: [AVX-3694](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3694) Zoho is not answering,
[AVX-3695](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3695) slow down, [AVX-3713](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3713) Zoho refused the
record (the log entry says why), [AVX-3705](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3705) a detail is missing or not valid,
and [AVX-3711](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3711) the Switchboard is paused.

## Disconnecting

Click **Disconnect** on Zoho CRM's Overview. Avox shows what uses it, asks Zoho to drop its access,
and deletes the access it saved. The log and usage stay for your retention period. The contacts and
leads it saved stay in Zoho CRM. Steps that use Zoho fail until you connect again. If you see
[AVX-3697](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3697), remove Avox in your Zoho account's connected apps too.

## Common questions

**Why is a person's name wrong in Zoho?**

Zoho needs a last name. If a step gives only a first name, Avox uses it as the last name, and with no
name at all it writes **WhatsApp contact**. Fill both names in the step.

**Where did the company go?**

A contact's company is not saved, because Zoho links it to an account. Only a lead carries a
company, and the step saves contacts.

**Can I connect a second Zoho account?**

One Zoho account per Switchboard. Signing in with another account is refused
([AVX-3703](https://docs.theavoxai.com/error-codes/avx-3703)). Disconnect first to switch.

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