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Author : Chelsea Wharton

Maximize Business Processes with Zoho Flow

Maximize Your Business Processes with Zoho Flow

Published on: February 15, 2018Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho FlowLast Updated: June 14, 2021 Comments: 0

Even if it’s not immediately apparent, your business has all kinds of moving parts that contribute to its overall performance. Sometimes one bad part can bring down the whole lot. Even if you have a suite of Zoho apps that function like a well-oiled machine, if you aren’t automating simple workflow processes between apps, chances are you’re losing out on valuable productive work time.

With this in mind, Zoho has created Flow, a tool to do just that: help your business do what you want it to do with very little extra input by helping information flow across your third-party apps to your Zoho apps automatically! Zoho Flow brings the power of Zoho into even more of your business and allows for all sorts of optimization that wasn’t possible before, giving you the power to make the very most of your most significant and repetitive workflows.

 

Zoho Flow iconSix ways Zoho Flow helps you maximize your Business Processes

Within the workspace, you’ll find a handful of tools to keep your workflows organized and manageable. Here’s a breakdown of six key areas to get you started!

 

1) User-friendly Flows Custom Builder

Search and create new workflows in the Zoho Flow Builder Tab! Here, you can connect and integrate the key applications that your business uses. This dynamic builder helps you to visualize and customize your workflows as needed.

  • Begin by giving your workflow a name and description if desired.
  • Then use the easy drag-and-drop function to configure the apps you use, and the triggers, actions, and steps that follow.
  • Use Flow’s logic to create contextual workflows and introduce decision branches.
  • Build, configure, or edit your workflow by using four simple builder tools: Save, Auto Arrange, Undo, and Redo.

 

[caption id="attachment_3143" align="aligncenter" width="900"]Zoho Flow builder Zoho Flow’s dynamic builder helps you visualize and customize your workflows so you can connect and integrate the key applications that your business uses.[/caption]

2) Advanced Flow Design

Need to customize your integrations further? Zoho Flow allows you to get down to the nitty gritty using Zoho’s Deluge scripting language. Using the Customer Functions tool, you can solve your integration complications and create more detailed automated decisions.

Flow gives you the ability to use Deluge scripting for complex functions, workflow reformatting, and creation of advanced decision workflow trees. Whether you choose the simplified editor or custom function, Zoho Flow enhances visibility into your workflows and makes it easier to automate processes than ever before.

 

3) Data-driven Insights Dashboard

[caption id="attachment_3144" align="alignright" width="401"]zoho flow data-insights Get real-time data driven-insights about your workflows with Zoho Flow.[/caption]

Using Zoho Flow means you don’t have to sift through multiple applications and platforms to manage and track your business workflows. Keep track of total, live, paused, and drafted flows in the Dashboard.

You get full visibility of your processes and metrics to get real-time data driven-insights about your workflows, up to the current year’s execution success or failure rate.

Also, the Dashboard gives you actionable insights into your flows to help you determine what works best. As soon as a workflow isn’t executing properly, you’ll know, and you’ll be able to address it! View your top five flows and recent executions as well to stay on top of your business processes.

 

4) Monitor and Troubleshoot Flow History

[caption id="attachment_3145" align="alignleft" width="400"]zoho flow history-monitor Troubleshoot and fix any issues as they arise with the Zoho Flow history monitor.[/caption]

Every action of your workflows is recorded, making it convenient to track and troubleshoot what may have gone wrong. A centralized log of the history of each of your workflows helps you identify any actions and problems as they occur.

Then, apply filters to view a specific timeframe on the specific workflow in mind. As a result, this tool allows you to troubleshoot and fix any issues as they arise. You don’t have to wait until they occur again, or turn into bigger issues.

 

5) Coordinate and collaborate with your team

When building workflows across multiple teams, or across multiple departments, it’s important that you orchestrate your processes and functions together. Collaborate with your team, and save time with the ability to add members to your flows, and build workflows that will benefit everyone involved. Manage the members of your team and decide their user-level and deactivate, reactivate, or remove members. Your team can also share, unshare, test, and reconnect connections to limit and allow the flow of data as needed.

 

6) Explore Templates and Apps in the Flow Gallery

Wondering if there’s an app you aren’t using yet that will maximize your control and automate your business to perfection? Zoho has identified common workflows and created convenient templates for you to explore and use if you see fit.

The gallery has over 90 applications (and counting) to choose from, and 200 templates (or Flows) that cover the most important automations. You can explore ideas and solutions you may not have thought of on your own. This growing collection features the bios, triggers, and actions of all the apps available that you can use to simplify your business’s workflow processes. And from Zoho, here are 9 useful flows for project management automation!

 

[caption id="attachment_3146" align="aligncenter" width="900"]Zoho flow gallery Explore ideas and solutions you may not have thought of on your own with templates and apps in the Flow gallery![/caption]

 

 

Interested in learning more about Zoho Flow?

Reach out to a member of our team today! We’re Zoho Certified Consultants here to help! 

 

Connect with a Consultant

 

4 Common Problems Manufactuers Face and how zoho and zbrains can solve them

Solving Top 4 Manufacturer Problems: Zoho Applications by ZBrains

Published on: February 1, 2018Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho ERPLast Updated: July 20, 2023 Comments: 0

zoho manufacturing

Manufacturer problems can range from supply chain management to quality control issues. However, with the right solutions in place, these challenges can be overcome, and businesses can thrive.

Manufacturers play a crucial role in producing goods, yet many struggle to reach their full potential due to internal problems. These challenges, although controllable, can be difficult to address and hinder business success.

Zoho & ZBrains: Enhancing Manufacturing Solutions

Lack of Lean Manufacturing Methodology

Lean may be the way to go for some. Businesses may struggle with outdated production methods, inventory exchanges, large lots, and subpar quality. Many of these manufacturer problems stem from a simple need for a system to help manage production correctly. Lean manufacturing systems can turn a struggling business around and boost sales while increasing productivity. Zoho Inventory can help manage inventory in multiple warehouses. The more robust Zoho Creator ERP can help you order your raw materials more effectively, manage your picking, and even optimize your production routing, all ultimately helping to reduce wasted product and time.

zoho manufacturing forecasting mobile

Subpar Forecasting

If you don’t know who’s buying what and when they’re buying it, you’re left with too much or too little to move your product at the correct pace. Future forecasting in Zoho Inventory gives you better visibility into what is needed with custom dashboards and fewer data inputs. Insights into customer trends and demands provide valuable feedback into your optimal reorder point and can help you use older inventory as needed. Data-driven insights help you understand your customers on a whole new level, allowing for more accurate forecasting of the material needs for production.

Bad Customer Experience, Leading to Worse Business Experience

Are you getting your customers what they want, when they want? Online reviews and instant gratification have increased consumer input. Insufficient data and slow turnaround can hurt sales. At times, products are even sent to market without proper development because of manufacturer problems somewhere else in the supply chain, and you’re left to pick up the slack. Maybe you have a supplier that doesn’t suit your operation anymore. These are all common issues that can contribute to a less-than-stellar customer experience. However, a tool like Zoho CRM can give you the visibility you need to gauge the overall health of your manufacturing or distribution business. It can directly help your sales staff engage your customers and vendors – and, in the process, help you see where to improve things.

zoho manufacturing chart

Resistance to R&D

Changing the way your business operates to adapt to the technological environment may seem daunting if you’re not already ahead of the curve, and using a streamlined ERP solution to manage your inventory and orders ERP solution to manage your inventory and orders, changing the way your business operates to adapt technological environment may seem daunting. Why bother if resistance from your team or adaptation to new technology will only take away from the primary goal of delivering a product? Adopting new technology to fuel your business isn’t just a set-it-and-forget-it phase; it requires continuous input and adaptability. But, when done correctly, you’ll find your business flows like never before, with less waste and even less money spent!

At ZBrains, we’re here to help you face all these problems head-on with the help of our Zoho certified consultants and our slew of software solutions.  Are you interested in learning more? Reach out to a member of our team today! Call us at (888) 207-4111 or click the button below, and we’ll contact you.

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Zoho forms New Updates

Zoho Forms Updates – Take Payments and More!

Published on: January 27, 2018Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho FormsLast Updated: July 1, 2024 Comments: 0

Zoho Forms Upgrade: New Payment Features and More!

If you use Zoho in any capacity, you know that the more information you have, the easier it is for you to sell to your clients – and, by the same token, the easier it is for your clients to give you information, the easier it is for you to sell to those very same clients!  Zoho Forms is built to collect information, of course, but Zoho Corporation has recently augmented it with a couple of great new features designed especially to make your customers’ lives easier: Collecting payments and sorting answer options by relevance.

What is Zoho Forms?

Zoho Forms is a form building tool that gives you the ability to create and share online forms for your business. This is a great tool to use for reaching out to your customers to easily collect information. You can fully customize the forms to match your company’s aesthetic. The easy-to-use drag-and-drop editor allows you to build forms to ask the right questions, and includes the ability to perform calculations and use conditional logic.

Zoho Forms Homepage

Along with these basic functions, you can also customize field rules, form rules, and personalize the end pages. You can share these forms through public links, email campaigns, or embed them on your web page! Reach your customers wherever they are and customize your email notifications so you know exactly when a form is submitted! Zoho Forms also integrates with Zoho CRM, Campaigns, and Desk, helping you stay on top of your data!

New Features!

Zoho Forms Now Accepts Payments

zoho forms paymentsYou can now accept payments to your organization from right within Zoho Forms, saving you even more time and improving your customer experience! With the addition of a payment field, you can now accept payments or donations in fixed or variable amounts. Collect payments in your preferred currency, through your choice of these pre-integrated third-party gateways: PayPal, Stripe, and 2Checkout.

The Addition of Group Choices

Organize the dropdown fields of your form with the addition of group choices! This allows for further customizing your dropdown choices by categorizing them under a parent choice. For example, if you run a sports equipment store and you’re gathering information on what equipment your clients need based on which sport they play, you can create an option for Baseball with the group choices being, baseball bat, glove, and cleats. You can then create a second for Football with the group choices being helmet and shoulder pads.

After creating your group choices, you can further customize the information your client sees to only show options relevant to them in the field rules tab. By using our previous sports example, you can add an additional field to your form to include Sports options. Then, create a field rule to only show the group options which are related to their previous answer. So if they choose Baseball, the grouped options will only show the Baseball equipment options, and will not include options for other sports.

Interested in learning more? Reach out to a member of our team today! We are Zoho Certified Consultants here to help! Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the button below and we’ll reach out to you. You can also register for our upcoming Zoho Q&A webinar tomorrow, Friday, Feb 9th at 9 am PST. Ask your Zoho questions, and if you stump us, we’ll buy you coffee!

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A look at Zoho updates in 2017

A Look Back At 2017 : Zoho is Growing!

Published on: January 5, 2018Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho CRMLast Updated: July 1, 2024 Comments: 0

Zoho’s Rapid Growth in 2017: New Features and Updates

2017 is suddenly behind us – and, for some, the year probably seems like it’s

flown by.  Interestingly, it’s said that the more new life experiences you accumulate, the slower time seems to go by – and, if that’s true at all, Zoho Corporation must have had the slowest-feeling year of all, as they revamped a significant portion of their offerings.  But, this is about the only area Zoho did anything slowly.  With 50 new features, 100 marketplace extensions, and 4 product updates every week, Zoho is definitely growing! Here is a recap of some of Zoho’s new features and updates from 2017!

The Newest Additions

Zoho One – The biggest and most exciting development from is Zoho One. This revolutionary all-in-one business suite packs a punch with 35+ applications, including Zoho CRM, Zoho Desk, Zoho Campaigns, Creator, and more! Account administrators have one secure account for applications and overall control, giving them the ability to access all programs from just one account.

Zia – Zoho’s AI-powered sales assistant that helps you make the most of your CRM account. She learns the ins and outs of your business by studying the strings of activities performed every day by you and your team. Zia then interprets performance and anticipates the needs of your business, providing solutions to you on-the-fly, detecting anomalies in your activities, and making suggestions to automate workflow!

Zoho Sprints – This agile project management solution encourages and enables teams to focus their energy on building the best products possible. Your team can take a look at the big picture with an easy-to-read dashboard. Track your team with the scrum board, and log time with the Timesheet function. Advanced reporting will give you actionable insights into your team’s progress and predict any roadblocks or bottlenecks in your process. In short, Zoho Sprints enables your team to get ahead and be prepared for the next development sprint.

Zoho Cliq – Easily communicate and collaborate with your colleagues with Zoho Cliq. Zoho’s new chat app eliminates the standby time of waiting on email responses from your team and allows you to exchange ideas more fluidly. Multi-panel chat, unlimited file sharing, and audio and video functionality keep your conversations at the forefront of your mind and easily accessible. Not to mention, it integrates, it’s secure, and it’s mobile!

Updates to Your Favorite Applications

New Zoho Campaigns UI – Zoho Campaigns got a facelift this year with a sleek new interface design. Along with the new look, you can get even more from Zoho Campaigns now with a customizable dashboard, image editing capabilities, additional automation, and more advanced reporting. Take your email campaigns to the next level!

Zoho Social now Adapted for Digital Agencies – Zoho Social also got a great update that makes it much easier for digital agencies to manage their clients’ social media platforms. With this new version of Social, agencies can manage all their client accounts from one platform. It also allows for agency branding and logos, with increased collaboration abilities to keep your team and your clients in the loop.

Zoho Notebook Improvements – Notebook began as a simple note-taking app on mobile but has now adapted to become even smarter, and now works as a desktop application as well. Added Mac and iOS 11 Support expands the devices from which you can use Notebook. With new intelligent formatting, Smart Cards, and document scanning, you can simplify and ease your note-taking process even further.

CRM Improvements

Marketplace Extensions – In 2017, Zoho expanded its marketplace to allow Zoho CRM to integrate with some of the biggest technology partners out there! With more than 80 new extensions available, you can optimize the potential of your CRM further than ever before. These new extensions will not only help you make the most of your CRM but can also help your business run more efficiently and avoid juggling multiple systems.

New Integrations and Platforms – Zoho CRM has further increased its capabilities with new integrations and platforms! The Finance Plus integration allows your sales reps to easily track the details of their deal expenses in the CRM. The Telephony Platform integration allows you to bring all of your phone conversations, including call recording, into the CRM. The SalesSignals platform helps consolidate all of your notifications, such social media, email, and third-party apps, into an organized timeline. These are just 3 of the new integrations that were released this year!

CRM Improvements – Amidst all the improvements to the other Zoho apps, Zoho has also polished up the CRM itself. Updated workflow rules make automation easier and advanced filters which update in real-time help you keep track of your leads. Speaking of leads, you can now add leads directly from social media, and use new lead scoring rules to ensure you focus on the right leads in your funnel. And, don’t forget the new Sticky Notes to help you stay on top of it all!

How Zoho can help you with your bad data

We know that was a lot to take in, and Zoho is improving faster each day, seemingly.  Now, you can catch up with the big boys, improve your business, and slow things down a bit yourself – only figuratively, though.  Check out Zoho’s 2017 recap for more updates and improvements!

Interested in learning more about Zoho, or have a question? Reach out to our team today! We are Zoho Certified Consultants here to help with all your Zoho needs.  Give our team a call at (888) 207-4111, or click the button below and we will reach out to you!

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BPA blog hero

The Benefits of Business Process Analysis for Your Business Success

Published on: January 4, 2018Category: Certified Zoho ConsultantsLast Updated: July 1, 2024 Comments: 0

One of the most common things we hear from our clients when we speak to them for the first time is that they know Zoho is capable of handling their business. They’re just not sure how – or, they wish they had figured out the correct way to use Zoho before.  This is where the importance of a business process analysis comes into play. Setting your business software up correctly gives your sales, operations, accounting, and other departments the ability to communicate effectively. Many business owners are left wondering what to do after seeing a demonstration of Zoho, or worse, after a failed implementation.

Fortunately, there is a way around this.  By sitting down with a ZBrains Zoho expert and deep-diving into your system, we can deliver to you the exact method by which your system can be implemented in order to ensure the most success for your business down the road.

5 Tips for Successful Business Process Analysis

zoho surveyA Thorough Review of Your Business

A Business Process Analysis is an integral part of all ZBrains consulting projects. In order to help your business overcome its challenges and hurdles, we must fully understand it first. We will sit with your team to thoroughly review your sales and operations processes, as well as the systems you use for them, so we can understand where you may be falling short currently, and what you will expect when using Zoho to its fullest extent. Analyzing expectations and performance gaps in your business processes takes an even broader look at your business, from the perspective of the world at large. A BPA ensures that we can develop the best solutions and a successful implementation that fits with your business processes.

zoho surveyGet Your Team On Board

In order for an implementation to really be successful, you’ll want your team engaged before, during, and after the entire process. It’s important to get buy-in from your employees through training, but you can also ease that buy-in process through the Business Process Analysis, which gives your team a firsthand look at the planning phase for your improved system. With a BPA, we conduct interviews of department heads or other key personnel in order to first see what Zoho will be able to fix currently, and also how the system will scale along with your business over the years.  We then deliver our findings to you in an Executive Summary document.  Positioning Zoho as a tool to make work easier will help get your team on board. The Executive Summary explains exactly how the system will work in order to do so.

zoho surveyBridge The Gap

Where are you, and where do you want to be?  Posed as technical questions, our BPA puts your systems to the test. First, we take an in-depth look at your business’ procedures and systems, examining their purposes, identifying any weaknesses. Places where the results fall short we determine a way (or ways) to fix them. Our experts examine the gap(s) in your system. Then we help determine whether the system can handle other task. And additionally, whether the tasks can be delegated or implemented somewhere else, or if another option can achieve the same end.

zoho surveyIdentify Current & Future Challenges

By taking a look at your business through the lens of technology, we are able to identify not only your current challenges, but potential future challenges. With our BPA we can help you determine which departments can work in greater synchrony to create the good kind of change: increased top line, increased bottom line, and increased relevance in today’s technological world. We’ll even increase visibility with better reporting into your business. With this data, you can make actionable decisions, predict trends, and prepare for any roadblocks to your success. For example, you can determine where a department is struggling to better tailor training to remedy any issues.

zoho surveyOpen The Door To New Solutions

Our overall goal is to consolidate your business operations into a centralized platform with Zoho as the hub. Based on the thorough BPA, we can make expert recommendations. For example: what can be changed, augmented, or implemented to meet your goals? We give you a strategy that to execute with precision. Then you can create a successful business plan for the upcoming quarters and beyond. Using our BPA has helped our clients increase visibility into their respective companies. They get better data and reporting, save time, and integrate systems for one cohesive machine.

Interested in learning more? See how we’ve helped clients in the past! Reach out to a member of our team today! We are Zoho Certified Consultants here to help! Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the link below and we will reach out to you!

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The New Zoho Campaigns UI

The Zoho Campaigns UI Has A Fresh New Look

Published on: December 29, 2017Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho CampaignsLast Updated: May 16, 2023 Comments: 0

Experience the New Look of Zoho Campaigns UI: Enhanced Design for Improved User Experience

Keeping your customers and clients-to-be engaged when they have so many other things going on in their lives is one of the most valuable things one can do when managing a business – otherwise, what are you to them?  Will they even remember you after your most recent conversation?  Zoho Campaigns is Zoho’s email marketing tool, and although it’s historically been a fine tool for sending emails and tracking statistics, it’s just added a load of customizable options and a good dose of marketing automation –  so you can engage your audience even more easily, and do it in style through the new Zoho Campaigns UI.

Here are 6 great ways the new Zoho Campaigns UI helps keep your marketing machine in gear and can help keep you at the top of your audience’s minds.

1. Updated interface designed your way.

The new Zoho Campaigns UI allows you to work smarter with a new, customizable dashboard, to maximize your efficiency. With this dashboard you can get an overview of your email campaigns, and add only the widgets that you want to see, so you aren’t wasting valuable space on your screen. With the My Short tab, you can achieve smooth transitions with tabs that group your favorite features together, allowing for effortless focus on just the tasks that make up your workday.

2. Advanced Email Design Capabilities

Creating email campaigns has now become even easier. The new Zoho Campaigns UI allows you to create responsive and more complex email templates. The new drag-and-drop editor makes building email templates easy, and the new UI also makes it much easier for you to add pre-header text, attachments, and links to your social media pages. You can even preview what your campaigns will look like on any device using the built-in Litmus test. Want to go back to a previous version of your email? Well, Campaigns now saves all past iterations so you can!

3. New Image Editing Precision.

In the previous version of Campaigns, you could only upload and resize an image.  Now, you can combine your creativity and knowledge with added tools that allow for editing images from within Zoho Campaigns. That means you can crop, retouch, and even add text to the images that you upload! You can extend your creative capabilities with more image editing options. And increase your ability to connect with your audience by using engaging images.

zoho campaigns ui dynamic-content-updated4. Automation Puts More Flow Into Your Workflows.

Gain back valuable time in your day with expanded automation. With a number of added customizable autoresponders, triggers, and workflows, you can target your audience based on their behavior, clicks, and actions. Take automation a step further with the introduction of dynamic content, which can change the content of your emails based on subscriber or list segmentation. Ensure that your clients aren’t bombarded by emails by setting up your own rules.

5. Define User Roles and Permissions.zoho campaigns ui roles-and-privileges

Ever worry that a new Zoho Campaigns user will accidentally delete one of your email campaigns? Well, the new Zoho Campaigns UI even takes care of this problem with new settings for team member permissions and roles, just like in the CRM. You can also set managerial approvals so no campaign ever goes out without being approved first!

6. Reporting Features to Campaign Smarter.

Knowing how your campaigns are performing is integral in the structuring and design of future campaigns. The new UI allows you to track your campaign’s success with comprehensive analytics on a customizable dashboard. You can drill down into your campaign data even further than before with reporting on specific devices, email clients, and browsers that your clients used to view your campaigns. Add Google Analytics to Campaigns and track activity back to your website, and suddenly you have access to much more data – and ways to bridge gaps to connecting with your clients – than ever before.

The new Zoho Campaigns UI is available for all users! Pricing for Zoho Campaigns begins at $6/mo for unlimited emails and up to 500 subscriptions. Interested in learning more, implementing Zoho Campaigns, or starting on another Zoho app like Marketing Automation? Contact a member of our team! We are Zoho Certified Consultants here to help. Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the button below and we will reach out to you!

Connect with Us

The ZBrains Fit and Partnership Business Growth with Zoho

The ZBrains Fit – A Partnership Focused On Your Growth

Published on: December 27, 2017Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho ERPLast Updated: May 8, 2024 Comments: 0

When it comes to choosing a Zoho partner to be your number one resource for all things Zoho, you already know you have options – pages and pages of them, according to Zoho’s list of resellers.  We’re acutely aware of this, and we’re so glad we have your attention right now.  Knowing you have so many options means we’ve had to go to great lengths to differentiate ourselves from other firms – and, having spent nearly six years as a Zoho partner, we can confidently say we offer just the service you need to ensure your success on the platform. Whether it’s a customized consulting session, a made-to-order automated solution, or even an integration to a third-party system, we’re committed to growing your business with Zoho.

Unlock Success with Our Zoho Implementation Partnership

zoho surveyConsulting Services

As a Zoho Premium Partner and Zoho Certified Consultancy, we focus on expertise, impact, and efficiency. We aim to bridge the gap between a business’ needs and available technology solutions, bringing a specialized skill set that enables you to make smart technology investments, improve your practices, and save time and money. Our Business Process Analysis (BPA) aims to increase your company’s efficiency, using the Zoho stack as a framework, and ensure a successful implementation by allowing us to truly understand your sales and operations processes with an in-depth review and analysis. And, with a range of options for your other Zoho needs, we are here to maximize your potential!

zoho surveyZoho ERP

Not all businesses are alike, and this is especially true of manufacturers and distributors. With Zoho ERP software, you’ll be able to customize every aspect order management and vendor tracking with the power of Zoho Creator, as well as generate accurate insight into performance by syncing with inventory and financial data. Zoho ERP is the solution for businesses who are seeking to create efficiency, automate processes, gain insights and more.  Update: Zoho ERP has evolved into the FieldTech suite, which packs all the features above and more.  It’s great for businesses in field services, construction, manufacturing/distribution, and tech/SaaS.

zoho surveyIntegrations and Custom Solutions

We are proud to have a team of developers and strategists who are focused on solving any problem that comes our way.  Having this team in our very own office means we can think of solutions and build them relatively quickly. In fact, this is how we created custom add-ons like our Commission Calculator and our SmartScheduler. We also provide completely customized integrations to programs like QuickBooks Desktop, Online, and Sage Intacct, and we provide even more plugin power for Google Apps, and more.

zoho surveyTeam Training and Support

When it comes to an implementation of any kind, if your staff is not trained on the new software system, they won’t know what to do once the job is over and the consultant is gone. With the ZBrains team, you don’t have to worry about that! We offer training on Zoho applications to ensure that your team has everything it needs to be fully on board. We work with every level of management to ensure success, and even provide annual support plans for that extra push you might need throughout the year.

The ZBrains Team Members Zoho Consulting and Consultants

Want to learn more about us? Check out our one of our case studies here or here to learn about how we’ve helped them or Meet the Team!

Interested in learning more about Zoho? Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the button below and we will contact you!

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Zoho vault keeps your secrets safe and passwords protected

Zoho Vault Review – Keep Your Passwords, and Your Secrets, Safe

Published on: December 22, 2017Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho VaultLast Updated: July 27, 2023 Comments: 0

Zoho Vault Review: Is This Password Manager Right for Your Business?

If you’re looking for a reliable password manager that can provide top-notch security for your sensitive data, then Zoho Vault is definitely worth considering. As evident from their strong security protocols, Zoho takes security very seriously and their commitment to data protection extends to Zoho Vault, an app specifically designed for managing and securing sensitive information. With ISP/IEC 27001 global level security standards and SOC compliance, Zoho Vault provides a robust solution for businesses looking to safeguard their passwords and confidential information.

Experience Enhanced Business Security with Zoho Vault

First Off, What is Zoho Vault?

Passwords have become pretty elaborate these days, and if you count the number of online password-protected accounts you have, it’s no coincidence that our inboxes become flooded with password retrieval emails, especially if you’re using unique passwords for each individual account that you have (which you should!). Password management is a great step you can take to organize and protect your passwords and solve the aforementioned problems. Zoho Vault helps you manage all of your passwords in one place – and, it doesn’t just store passwords: it protects your other secrets as well!

Zoho vault home screen and mobile apps

Zoho Vault Features

Organization

Keep your secrets stored and organized in Zoho Vault! While primarily used for password storage, Vault can also be used to store other important information. This includes bank account details or sensitive employee data. You can create your own digital chambers or use Zoho’s provided chambers to organize your data (called secrets in Zoho Vault parlance) by type or by other factors you set. A few of the default chambers include: bank accounts, email accounts, web accounts, operating systems, and other secrets such as social security numbers.

Share with Your Team

Have members of your team that need access to the same passwords? With Zoho Vault, you have complete control over who can access your secrets. You can assign roles or owners of the contents in your vault and create user groups. This means you can ensure that your team can access the secrets or chambers they need. Secure Zoho Vault secrets with easy access removal, ownership transfer, and emergency contact designation.

Main passphrase

For an added level of security, Zoho Vault requires a master passphrase to access your secrets. To use Vault effectively, users create a master passphrase that only they know. Zoho never stores this as an encryption key, so remembering this passphrase is essential for accessing Zoho Vault – period.

Extensions and Single Sign-On (SSO)

If you’re on a secure computer, you may consider using the Zoho Vault browser extension.  This allows Vault users to easily use stored secret login credentials. They can access their respective accounts without manually enter usernames and passwords. With one-click auto-logon, you can manage passwords, automatically log onto websites or applications, access passwords, and add new secrets without leaving the site or tab you’re in.

Mobile and Offline Access

For another layer of security, Zoho Vault allows for cold data storage – that is, users are allowed to download stored secrets to their desktop computers or mobile devices.  Secrets downloaded this way are stored as HTML. As a result, they can be completely disconnected from the internet, but are still protected by the master passphrase.

Zoho Vault Review: Pros & Cons

 

Regarding password security, Zoho Vault stands out with its impressive features. Thanks to robust security measures like strong encryption, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and role-based access control, your passwords protect against unauthorized access.

Navigating Zoho Vault is a breeze, thanks to its user-friendly interface. Whether you’re tech-savvy or not, managing your passwords becomes a seamless experience with Zoho Vault across various platforms like web browsers, desktop applications, and mobile devices.

Collaboration and security go hand in hand with Zoho Vault’s secure password-sharing feature. Team members and colleagues can access shared passwords without seeing the actual password, ensuring sensitive information remains protected.

Monitoring password access and spotting suspicious activities is easy with Zoho Vault’s detailed audit trails and reports, adding an extra layer of security to your account.

On the downside, the accessible version of Zoho Vault has its limitations. For users with extensive password management needs, upgrading to a paid plan might be necessary.

While Zoho Vault integrates well with other Zoho products, there could be some limitations regarding integration with specific third-party applications.

The tool’s advanced features require some time and effort to grasp fully, making it challenging for some users to utilize its full potential.

 

Zoho Vault FAQ:

 

  • Q1. Can I use Zoho Vault for personal purposes?
  • A1. Absolutely! Zoho Vault caters to both individual users and businesses. The free version is perfect for personal use and offers essential password management features.
  • Q2. Can I securely share passwords with my team?
  • A2. Yes, Zoho Vault allows you to share passwords securely with your team using role-based access controls and permissions, ensuring only authorized individuals have access.
  • Q3. How does Zoho Vault ensure password security?
  • A3. Zoho Vault ensures the security of your passwords through strong encryption protocols and multi-factor authentication. Additionally, it provides audit trails and reporting for monitoring and tracking password activity.
  • Q4. Can I access Zoho Vault on my mobile devices?
  • A4. Absolutely! Zoho Vault provides dedicated mobile applications for iOS and Android devices, enabling secure access to your passwords on the go.
  • Q5. Are there any limitations in the free version of Zoho Vault?
  • A5. While the free version is an excellent starting point, it does have some limitations on the number of passwords and sharing options available. Upgrading to a paid plan unlocks more advanced features and capabilities.

 

Conclusion:

In summary, Zoho Vault is a trustworthy and secure password protection solution that offers robust features and ease of use. Its advanced security measures, cross-platform compatibility, and secure password sharing make it an ideal choice for individuals and businesses. However, it’s essential to be aware of the limitations of the free version and consider an upgrade to access the tool’s full potential. Zoho Vault provides a solid password management solution to keep your digital credentials safe and organized.



It’s no Secret – Your Secrets Need Protection These Days

As you may recall, 2015 was the year of the data breaches (Target, Home Depot), but hackers seemingly grow more sophisticated by the minute. Now, even credit reporting agencies like Equifax aren’t impervious to breaches.  Let Zoho Vault add an extra layer of security to the place you need it most – your business and your personal information.

Pricing for Zoho Vault begins at free for personal use and $1 per user a month for the standard version. Interested in learning more? Contact a member of our team! We are Zoho Certified Consultants here to help. Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the button below and we will call you!

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Zoho ShowTime is a virtual training solution made for the digital age to bring presentations online

Zoho Showtime: Virtual Training for the Digital Age

Published on: December 15, 2017Category: Certified Zoho Consultants, Zoho ShowTimeLast Updated: June 14, 2023 Comments: 0

Passing knowledge from one party to another can encompass a wide range of emotions, from the banal to the bang-up. But often – especially as collective attention spans dwindle to an average of 8 seconds – these tend towards the first option, and this makes it difficult to get anything worthwhile done during a presentation at all. Zoho knows about these struggles, and they’ve come up with a handy way of not only delivering engaging presentation content to your audience, but letting you know exactly how to improve so you never miss a beat again. Zoho ShowTime is a virtual training solution made for the digital age.

Here’s how Zoho ShowTime will change the way you present!

showtime scheduling screenshotReach Out to Anyone, Anywhere

Whether you are an educator, trainer, or presenter, planning training sessions and presentations of any kind can be strenuous, especially so if you have attendees from different corners of the globe. Last-minute travel and meeting space arrangements can be costly and ultimately unproductive. However, with Zoho ShowTime you can include everyone you need present through both audio and video conferencing. You can bring your presentation to the fingertips of your attendees through their personal computers or their mobile devices, making it easy to engage them wherever they – and you – are.

Standardize Training

If you have a large audience or many team members working remotely, it can be difficult to get everyone in the same room for a training session. Zoho ShowTime solves this problem! Whether it be for large groups or face-to-face sessions, ShowTime allows you to get everyone on board and give the same attention and information to your entire audience, ensuring you don’t have any knowledge gaps from one attendee to the next.

Customize For Your Needs

ShowTime simplifies the scheduling and registration process, allowing you to invite all trainees virtually and making it much easier for those who aren’t present physically. Zoho ShowTime allows you to customize and name your sessions as needed, as well as gain valuable insight on your attendees with specialized registration forms. You can further customize your experience by using the ShowTime plug-in for PowerPoint, which allows for creating entire presentations outside the standard ShowTime platform.

showtime active engagement pollsInteractive Training Environment

Worried about losing your attendees’ attention during your session? ShowTime’s interactive environment makes everything much more interesting for your audience. Presentation attendees can virtually “like” slides within a presentation, use the in-app chat, or respond to you directly with a virtual Q&A. You can also create live audience polls with multiple choice questions, ratings, and text-box responses. With screen sharing, attendees can review prior slides to clarify ideas, make connections, and enhance their learning.

Content Library and Knowledge Base

Once your presentation is over, it can be difficult to recall what you learned afterward. To remedy this, you can save presentations to the ShowTime course library or knowledge base for future use, along with any polls you administered – or, you can make past content available on your personal profile. Shareable links make it easy to pass content around on social media, so you can use it to further relationships with new clients who may be interested in your work!

Analytics and Feedbackshow time analytics dashoboard

And for the grand finale, analytics on engagement! ShowTime will track any session details to give you more insight into where you did, or did not, connect with your audience. Detailed analytics and reports are based on poll and chat engagement, likes, and ratings. Analytics and feedback will help you gauge the effectiveness of your training efforts to help you to improve future sessions!

There is a free version of Zoho Showtime available, with paid plans starting at $7 per user per month. Interested in learning in learning more? We are Zoho certified consultants here to help. Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the button below to have us call you!

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Prepare You Business for the New Year 2018 Office party

Zoho Success Guide: 10 Tips for New Year Business Preparation

Published on: December 13, 2017Category: Certified Zoho ConsultantsLast Updated: September 21, 2023 Comments: 0

As 2018 looms just ahead, the activity du jour in our personal lives is the new year’s resolution.  These resolutions usually come without much thought, and fittingly they rarely come to fruition.  However, as a business owner you think about a good deal more than simple resolutions: your needs are complex, and they depend upon the activities – and indeed, the needs – of other people and things in your organization.  So, your resolutions require the planning necessary to take all those things into account.  

Organizing the needs of your entire business can seem like a daunting task, but we’ve put the best 10 points together to get you started off on the right foot, and to make sure your new year’s resolution for your company is backed by solid processes and reasoning, a resolution you can truly keep.

Here are 10 Tips for Preparing Your Business for the New Year!

Gears1. Review Your Year

First and Foremost, take a look at your company as a whole. No matter what type of business you have, taking a look at your business performance and infrastructure is vital to creating a strategy for the new year. From sales metrics to manufacturing costs, it’s important to know where you’ve been to determine where you are going. Reviewing your year will help you create a secure infrastructure and better understand your company’s growth, scalability, and potential weaknesses.  This could mean surveying different department heads, or reviewing past performance reports in your CRM to gauge where you might be headed in 2018.

2. Review Customer Experience

Don’t be afraid to reach out to your customers and survey them about their experience with your company. It will help you determine if there are any shortcomings when it comes to customer happiness and help improve these for the coming year. This is also a great time to ask for testimonials from your happy customers, and perhaps sending out an accompanying survey from which to gather more actionable data. Featuring testimonials on your website can improve your opportunities with future customers as it instills trust, in fact, 85% of consumer trust online reviews as much as they would a recommendation from someone they know.

zoho docs3. Get Informed!

Take time to do your research on new trends for the year. Whether it be marketing or consumer trends, it’s important to stay informed and ensure that your business’ goals are in line with the rest of the market. It’s also important to do research on any new laws taking effect, and how those may affect your business. For example, in California, we have few new laws and changes regarding leave of absence, hiring practices, and workplace safety and workers’ comp. You can learn more about those laws here.

4. Start with a Clean Slate and Organize

Is your desk, or desktop, cluttered? Or maybe your emails and calendars have just gotten out of control. It’s important that you start the New Year with a clean slate. Take some time to declutter and organize! Start the New Year fresh and put your mind at ease with a clutter-free workspace, a clean calendar, and without 999+ unread emails.

5. Set Goals and Business ResolutionsZoho Campaigns

We normally set personal New Year’s resolutions, but why not set business resolutions as well? With the information and data you’ve gathered from your company review, your customers, and trends, you’re perfectly within your ability to set goals for yourself and your team. Make sure your team is aware of the importance of your business resolutions, how these will affect their day-to-day work, and how these fit in with (or change) the overall vision or goal of your organization.

6. Speak with your Team

It’s important to stay in touch with your team’s needs and processes. That way you can be sure that they have allotted the right tools and resources to complete their jobs efficiently. Be sure to take note of any bottlenecks and how those can be resolved. Your team may have great insights about working out inefficiencies in the day-to-day processes that they are a part of!

7. Refresh your Skills and Those of Your Team – Training

The New Year is a great time to refresh skills! Just as systems and applications used day to day may have several updates throughout the year, it is important that your team also receives updates so no one falls behind and everyone is on the same page. Hold training sessions for your team to ensure that everyone has a clear understanding of your processes and systems. Here at ZBrains we offer Zoho CRM training – even for our own staff, on a set basis!

zoho projects8. Evaluate your Finances

Take the time to compile financial reports from the past year. Review your growth and revenue to evaluate your company’s spending versus your company needs. This will help you to plan where your company can spend more for maximum benefit, and where you can cut costs and negotiate pricing. As well, make sure your payroll and accounting softwares are up-to-date to ensure those systems are running efficiently in the new year.

9. Marketing Optimization

Marketing trends change quickly, and it is important to start the year off with a fresh marketing plan and revamp your image. Create a content calendar for the year highlighting campaigns, important holidays, and events. Overhaul your social media accounts with new branded imagery and messaging in line with your new business resolutions. Looking back on the performance of the past year can help you shape your lean, mean, marketing machine.

10. Optimize Your Businesszoho smart scheduler

After reviewing the steps above it’s important to ask yourself a few questions. How can you improve? Are you using any outdated systems which seem to be slowing your team down? Is your CRM able to integrate with your daily apps, even on the go? Now is the time to implement changes and ensure your business is using the proper software and applications to run efficiently! Leave your outdated systems in the past and make the changes to enable your team in the new year. We here at ZBrains are Zoho Certified Consultants here to help you with Zoho implementations, integrations, or custom add-ons like our Commission Calculator or SmartScheduler.

Interested in learning more? Reach out to a member of our team! Give us a call at (888) 207-4111 or click the link below and we will call you! You can also check out a few of our past blogs listed below for more ways Zoho can optimize your potential!

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