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How to Create a Sales Pipeline with Zoho CRM

Published on: October 26, 2024Category: Zoho CRM, Zoho CRMLast Updated: November 6, 2024 Comments: 0

How to Create a Sales Pipeline with Zoho CRM

All business leaders have at one time or another felt the pain of missed opportunity. The difference between maximizing potential and letting some of them get away is in the details. Zoho CRM, a powerful tool for businesses of all sizes, can help you create a sales pipeline that ensures no potential opportunity falls through the cracks. In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to build and customize a sales pipeline using Zoho CRM.

Understanding the Sales Pipeline

migrate quickbooks to zoho books

 

Before diving into the practical steps, it’s essential to understand what a sales pipeline is and why it’s critical for managing your sales process. A sales pipeline is a visual representation of where prospects are in the sales process, from lead generation to closing a deal.

The power of a well-defined sales pipeline cannot be overstated. It allows you to track prospects, forecast revenue, and allocate resources effectively. Typically, sales pipelines consist of stages such as:

  • Lead Generation: The initial stage where leads are captured.
  • Qualification: Determining whether a lead is a good fit for your product or service.
  • Proposal: Presenting an offer to the lead.
  • Negotiation: Finalizing the terms of the deal.
  • Closing: Sealing the deal and converting the prospect into a customer.

One of the key advantages of Zoho CRM is the ability to customize the pipeline to suit your business’s unique needs. Different companies have different sales processes, and your CRM should reflect that. At ZBrains, we help businesses tailor their sales pipeline to their specific workflows, whether they need multiple sales pipelines or specific customization.

Customizing the Sales Pipeline

Customization is the heart of making Zoho CRM work for your business. From customizing lead data capture, to a strong, tailored dashboard within Zoho CRM that provides you with real-time insights into your sales process, a properly customized pipeline ensures that nothing is missed. Below are the key steps to set up and customize your sales pipeline:

Setting Up Pipeline Stages

  1. Assess Business Requirements: Begin by identifying your unique sales stages. For some businesses, this might mean only three or four stages, while others might have many more.
  2. Define Stages: Clearly define each stage based on the steps your sales reps typically follow to convert a lead to a customer.
  3. Customize Stages in Zoho CRM: 
    1. Within Zoho CRM navigate to Setup > Customization > Module and Fields
    2. Hover over the three dots (…) next to the Deals module and select  Stage-Probability Mapping.
    3. From here, you can add, modify, or remove stages to match your sales process.
    4. As you create stages be sure to attribute a probability and a contract category. These settings help the system know if a deal is open or won and what revenue percentage to use in sales forecasting.
    5. You can also drag and drop stages to ensure they are represented in the proper order.

Custom Fields and Modules

In many cases, you’ll need to collect specific information about your leads and deals that standard CRM setups don’t cover. Zoho CRM allows for extensive customization through custom fields and modules.

  1. Identify Necessary Data: Determine which key data points your team needs to track to ensure effective sales management.
  2. Create Custom Fields: Zoho CRM makes it easy to create custom fields that capture this information. 
    1. Within Zoho CRM navigate to Setup > Customization > Module and Fields
    2. Select the module within which you’d like to add or modify fields.
    3. Select the layout within which you’d like to modify fields
      1. Generally modules only have one “Standard” layout but if your CRM has been in service for some time other admins may have added other layouts.
  3. Modify Existing Modules: In addition to adding fields, you can also modify existing modules or create new ones if your business requires more complex tracking.

Mapping Your Sales Process

zoho crm shopify integration

Once you’ve customized your pipeline and modules, it’s time to map out your entire sales process:

  1. Analyze Your Sales Process: Break your sales process into actionable steps. This is the foundation of an effective pipeline.
  2. Establish Workflows: Use Zoho CRM’s automation features to create workflows. These workflows will help automate repetitive tasks, such as sending follow-up emails or assigning leads to sales reps.
    1. Within Zoho CRM navigate to Setup > Automation > Workflow Rules
    2. Click Create New Rule
      1. Select the module your rule will operate within and give your rule a name.
      2. Select a trigger for your rule (Creation, Editing, Date/Time, etc).
      3. Set the criteria for your rule.
      4. Select an action that your rule will trigger (Email Notification, Create a Task, Assign a New Owner, etc)
      5. Test your rule 
  3. Integration: One of the most powerful features of Zoho CRM is its ability to integrate with other apps, such as email marketing platforms, invoicing systems, or customer service tools. This ensures seamless data flow across different business functions.

Sales Pipeline Management Automation

Once your pipeline is built, automation becomes key in managing it effectively. Zoho CRM offers several features to help you automate and optimize your sales process.

Lead Generation and Capture

Zoho CRM simplifies the process of capturing leads from multiple channels and automatically assigning them to sales reps based on predefined criteria. This ensures that no lead goes unassigned or ignored.

Lead Scoring

To help prioritize which leads to focus on, Zoho CRM allows for lead scoring based on various factors such as interaction with your brand or fit with your target customer profile. This helps your sales reps focus their efforts on leads most likely to convert.

Sales Activity Tracking

Tracking sales activities is essential for accountability and performance evaluation. Zoho CRM’s logging capabilities make it easy to track calls, meetings, and emails. The system keeps a record of all interactions, so your team stays aligned and you can easily monitor progress.

Sales Rep Performance

With all activities logged, Zoho CRM provides reports and insights into individual and team performance. This allows you to track key metrics and make data-driven decisions to improve your overall sales strategy.

Forecasting and Deal Closure

With your sales pipeline in place, Zoho CRM gives you the tools to track deal progress and create sales forecasts based on real-time data. You’ll know where each deal stands and can predict future revenue more accurately.

Zoho CRM also fosters better communication and collaboration among team members, so everyone is on the same page when it comes to deal management and customer relationships.

Conclusion

Building an effective sales pipeline is crucial for growing your business and streamlining your sales process. With Zoho CRM’s robust customization options, workflow automation, and reporting features, you can create a tailored sales pipeline that reflects your business’s unique processes. At ZBrains, we specialize in helping businesses unlock the full potential of Zoho CRM through custom solutions that enhance productivity and drive results.

Whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to optimize your current setup, Zoho CRM has the tools to help you succeed.

zoho crm

 

Migrating from Hubspot to Zoho with help of ZBrains

When to Use Zoho CRM for Sending Emails vs. Zoho Campaigns

Published on: October 13, 2024Category: Zoho Campaigns, Zoho Campaigns, Zoho CRM, Zoho CRMLast Updated: November 6, 2024 Comments: 0

For people working in sales and marketing, email is the water we swim in. Email communication is an essential component of nearly any business’s marketing and customer engagement strategy. Among the dizzying array of tools available to help with the challenges of email communication, Zoho provides two robust options—Zoho CRM and Zoho Campaigns. Each of these options cater to different aspects of email communication. While both platforms are designed to help you reach your audience effectively, understanding when to use each will improve the impact of your communication efforts. In this article, we’ll explore the key differences between Zoho CRM and Zoho Campaigns, and provide guidance on when to use each tool.

Understanding Zoho CRM for Email Communication

zoho crm

Zoho CRM Overview

Zoho CRM is a customer relationship management tool designed to help businesses manage one to one interactions with customers and prospects. You can send emails directly from the CRM, allowing sales and customer service teams to communicate quickly with leads and customers. Zoho CRM integrates email communication with customer records, creating a comprehensive view of each contact’s email history.

When to Use Zoho CRM

  1. One-on-One Communication: Zoho CRM is ideal for personalized, one-on-one email interactions. If you’re a sales representative nurturing a prospect or a customer service rep responding to an inquiry, Zoho CRM enables you to send personal emails directly from the contact’s profile. This ensures that all communication is tracked and accessible in one place, making it easier to manage ongoing relationships
  2. Small-Scale Personalized Campaigns: If you need to send emails to a small group of contacts or specific segments, Zoho CRM can handle this effectively. The ability to send a number of emails at once, directly from the CRM, coupled with features like templates, merge tags, and automated workflows, allows sales teams to consistently communicate with groups of customers. This is especially useful for sending timely follow-up emails in bulk, scheduling meetings, or sharing custom offers merging in personalized details from the customer record. You can create a segment of leads who have expressed interest in a particular product and send them a personalized email. Zoho CRM’s email capabilities are well-suited for these targeted, smaller-scale campaigns.

Understanding Zoho Campaigns for Email Marketing

Zoho Campaigns Overview

Zoho Campaigns is a dedicated email marketing platform designed for creating, managing, and analyzing large-scale email campaigns. It provides tools for designing professional emails, segmenting audiences, automating email sequences, and tracking campaign performance. Zoho Campaigns is built to handle high-volume email sends and offers features that ensure compliance with email marketing regulations.

When to Use Zoho Campaigns

  1. Large-Scale Email Campaigns: Zoho Campaigns excels at managing mass email marketing efforts. If you need to send newsletters, promotional emails, or announcements to thousands of recipients at once, this is the tool to use. Zoho Campaigns allows you to design visually appealing emails using its drag-and-drop editor and offers a range of templates to suit different needs. Additionally, you can schedule campaigns to be sent at optimal times, ensuring maximum engagement.
  2. Advanced Email Marketing Features: For marketers who require advanced features, Zoho Campaigns offers a suite of tools that go beyond basic email sending. You can set up A/B testing to determine the most effective subject lines, email content, or call-to-action buttons. Automation features allow you to create drip campaigns, trigger emails based on specific actions or behaviors, and set up autoresponders. Zoho Campaigns also provides detailed analytics, enabling you to track open rates, click-through rates, and overall campaign performance.
  3. Compliance and Deliverability: Zoho Campaigns includes built-in features to help you comply with email marketing regulations such as GDPR and CAN-SPAM. It offers tools for managing subscription preferences, handling opt-outs, and ensuring that your emails are delivered to recipients’ inboxes. The platform also provides insights into bounce rates, spam reports, and other metrics that can affect deliverability, allowing you to take corrective action if needed.

Key Differences Between Zoho CRM and Zoho Campaigns

1. Purpose and Focus

– Zoho CRM: Primarily designed for managing customer relationships, Zoho CRM is focused on individual interactions with leads and customers. Its email features are integrated with contact management, making it ideal for personalized communication.  

– Zoho Campaigns: Zoho Campaigns is a specialized email marketing tool built for designing and executing large-scale campaigns. Its focus is on mass communication, offering advanced features for campaign management and analysis.

2. Email Volume and Scale

– Zoho CRM: Best suited for low to moderate email volumes, especially when emails are part of a broader customer relationship management strategy. It’s perfect for sending emails to small groups or specific segments.

– Zoho Campaigns: Designed to handle high-volume email sends, Zoho Campaigns is ideal for businesses that need to reach large audiences with their email marketing efforts. The platform is optimized for sending thousands of emails at once.

3. Customization and Personalization

– Zoho CRM: While Zoho CRM offers some customization options, such as templates and merge tags, its email capabilities are more focused on personalization at the individual level. This is beneficial when you need to tailor messages to specific contacts based on their history and interactions.

– Zoho Campaigns: Zoho Campaigns provides more extensive customization options, allowing you to design visually appealing emails with advanced formatting, images, and dynamic content. The platform also supports extensive personalization, enabling you to send targeted emails to specific segments of your audience based on various criteria.

4. Integration and Automation

– Zoho CRM: Integration with other Zoho apps and third-party tools is a key strength of Zoho CRM. It allows for seamless data flow between your CRM and other platforms, including Zoho Campaigns, Zoho Analytics, and external email services. Automation features in Zoho CRM are primarily focused on sales workflows, lead nurturing, and customer engagement.

– Zoho Campaigns: While Zoho Campaigns integrates with Zoho CRM and other Zoho apps, its automation capabilities are more focused on email marketing. You can set up complex email sequences, trigger emails based on specific actions, and automate responses to subscriber behavior, or even create a follow up task in CRM based on customer interaction with a campaign email.

Use cases for Zoho CRM vs. Zoho Campaigns: Scenarios and Examples

1. Nurturing Leads and Managing Sales Pipelines

When managing leads and sales pipelines, Zoho CRM is the preferred tool. For example, if a sales representative is nurturing a prospect who has shown interest in a specific product, they can send personalized emails directly from Zoho CRM. These emails can be tracked, and follow-ups can be scheduled based on the recipient’s engagement. The CRM’s integration with other sales tools ensures that all interactions are recorded, helping the sales team move leads through the pipeline efficiently.

2. Launching a New Product or Service

If you’re launching a new product or service and want to reach a large audience, Zoho Campaigns is the better choice. You can create a visually engaging email campaign, segment your audience based on their interests or previous purchases, and send the campaign to thousands of recipients simultaneously. Zoho Campaigns also allows you to analyze the performance of the campaign, track which recipients opened the email, clicked on links, or took specific actions, and adjust future campaigns accordingly.

3. Conducting Customer Satisfaction Surveys

For customer satisfaction surveys, the choice between Zoho CRM and Zoho Campaigns depends on the scale. If you’re conducting a survey with a small, targeted group of customers, Zoho CRM’s email features may suffice. However, for large-scale surveys where you need to send emails to a broad audience and analyze the results comprehensively, Zoho Campaigns offers more advanced tools and better reporting capabilities.

4. Sending Regular Newsletters

Zoho Campaigns is the ideal platform for sending regular newsletters to your subscribers. You can design newsletters that are visually appealing, include multiple sections, and feature dynamic content tailored to different segments of your audience. The platform’s scheduling and automation features ensure that your newsletters are sent at the best times, and the analytics tools help you measure their impact and effectiveness.

5. Managing Event Invitations and Registrations

For managing event invitations and registrations, both Zoho CRM and Zoho Campaigns can be used, again, depending on the scale of the list. For small events, Zoho CRM allows you to send personalized invitations and track RSVPs directly within the CRM. For larger events, Zoho Campaigns can be used to send invitations to a wide audience, manage registrations, and follow up with attendees through automated email sequences.

Conclusion

Choosing between Zoho CRM and Zoho Campaigns depends on your specific needs and the scale of your email communication efforts. Zoho CRM is best for personalized, one-on-one communication, small-scale campaigns, and managing sales and customer relationships. On the other hand, Zoho Campaigns excels at handling large-scale email marketing campaigns, offering advanced features for designing, automating, and analyzing email campaigns at scale.

By understanding the strengths of each platform and selecting the right tool for the right job, businesses can improve their email marketing strategy and personal customer engagement.

And remember, they integrate with one another so it’s not a “either/or” situation, it’s a “both/and”. You can use Zoho Campaigns to warm up your audience and then feed hot leads to Zoho CRM for a more personal touch as you usher them through your sales pipeline.

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How to Set Up a Custom Zoho CRM Integration

Published on: October 7, 2024Category: Zoho CRM, Zoho CRMLast Updated: November 6, 2024 Comments: 0

Custom Zoho CRM integrations with other apps and services give new meaning to the term “empowerment” by allowing organizations to streamline operations and maximize the value of their technology solutions.

Integration requirements can vary widely and may include business applications for marketing, collaboration, telephony, messaging, customer support, finance, events, social media, storage, live chat, and more. 

What is a Custom Zoho CRM Integration?

Zoho crm logo.

In simplest terms, a Custom Zoho CRM Integration is a project that results in Zoho CRM being able to fluidly communicate with other applications and vice-versa. The integration lets you take advantage of the best features of both software applications and eliminates any need for duplicated data entry or processes.

If there is no pre-existing integration tool available for the software you want to integrate with Zoho CRM, or the tool doesn’t handle the modules or datasets you want to sync, custom integration is the answer.

What are the benefits of Custom Zoho CRM Integrations?

Zoho CRM is designed to address the primary needs of companies across countless industries including education, finance, insurance, life sciences, non-profits, real estate, software, technology, and start-ups. With such a wide scope, it’s not possible to meet the needs of all customers.

By integrating with other tools in your workflow, or building custom applications that expand the basic Zoho CRM functionality, you can maximize the value of Zoho CRM for your business.

Why would I want to pursue a Custom Zoho CRM Integration?

The Zoho suite of products can do just about anything, but in some cases, companies need to continue using legacy software for business purposes. 

Zoho recognized this when building its product and created several ways to integrate its CRM with other applications, including built-in integrations, the Zoho Flow migration tool, and other pre-built integration engines like Zapier. 

Common applications to integrate with Zoho CRM include:

  • Google Workspace  
  • PandaDoc
  • Microsoft 365 
  • RingCentral
  • Twilio 
  • Knowlarity
  • SMS-Magic 
  • BurstSMS 
  • Klenty
  • GoToWebinar
  • GoToMeeting 
  • Eventbrite 
  • Zoom 
  • Quickbooks 
  • Zero
  • Saasu 
  • Proposify
  • QuoteWerks 
  • iQuoteXpress 
  • DocuSign 
  • Adobe Sign 
  • Leadfeeder
  • Address Locator 
  • Google Ads
  • MailChimp 
  • ActiveCampaign 
  • Facebook Ad Manager 
  • Dropbox 
  • Google Drive 
  • Box 
  • Google Sheets 
  • Slack
  • Kanban Board 
  • Mail Parser 
  • Front 
  • Idle Deal Alert 
  • Lead Queue 
  • Get Response 
  • Pie Sync 
  • Zapier 
  • SurveyMonkey
  • Chatbot

Don’t see yours on that list? Don’t worry. Using ZBrains’ expertise, experience, and integration tools, practically any third-party legacy software or system can be integrated with Zoho CRM.

Preparing for Your Custom Zoho CRM Integration

A group of people preparing for Zoho Integration.

  • Identify pain points

Why do you need a custom integration? What functionality are you missing that you’d like to build? Understanding these “requirements” is essential to determining the integration tools and processes best suited to achieving the outcome you’re investing in.

  • Define business needs

Determine your scope, defining which modules or data needs to be synced, the sync direction, and the sync interval (Is it enough to sync once per day in batches, or do you need immediate sync every time data is undated?). 

This information is necessary to determine which type and how many API calls will be needed (REST APIs, Bulk APIs, Notification APIs, and Query APIs). The number and type of API calls needed directly impacts the project budget.

  • Define goals and objectives

Set and define goals and the objectives needed to reach them regarding the integration timeline and budget. 

Steps To Setting Up a Custom Zoho CRM Integration

  1. Set up and enable basic CRM features, including organizational details, user roles and profiles, data security, and data visibility rules
  2. Customize fields and modules, creating a detailed mapping plan for the two applications
  3. Establish workflow automation processes, including email notifications, field updates, record creation, actions defined through functions, and webhooks.
  4. Decide on an integration method, including Zoho Flow, built-in CRM integrations, or another pre-built integration engine such as Zapier. 
  5. Execute the integration
  6. Troubleshoot any problems encountered
  7. Test to confirm accurate migration and syncing
  8. Refine and optimize, an ongoing process post-integration

How ZBrains Can Help with Custom Zoho CRM Integration

Zbrains Logo 10.

Zbrains is a top Zoho Premium Partner for business solutions. Since 2012, we’ve built end-to-end solutions to transform organizations through technology. 

Advantages of working with ZBrains

  • Expertise/experience

Simply stated, our experience and expertise save our clients time and money. We provide consulting, training, customization, development, and other services related to the Zoho suite of apps. Our clients include organizations of all sizes in practically all industries, although we primarily serve companies in field services, construction, manufacturing, distribution, technology, and SaaS.

  • Tailored solutions

Zbrains is not your “normal” Zoho consulting shop. We offer tailored solutions.

AgilitySync is our proprietary ETL (extract-transform-load) platform for connecting Zoho apps to third-party ERP apps, connecting Zoho CRM, Finance, and Creator to programs like QuickBooks and Sage 100 ERP, among others.

Conclusion

Organizations don’t have to forego the benefits of Zoho CRM because they aren’t ready to let go of their other systems. Custom Zoho CRM integrations with other apps and services allow you to streamline operations and maximize the value of your technology solutions.

Ready to explore a custom Zoho CRM integration? Reach out to Zbrains, a trusted partner, to understand what will be the fastest, most reliable, and most economical way to integrate your third-party application with Zoho CRM.

At ZBrains, we understand what it takes to get your system up and running, and we know how to save you time and money. Contact our team for guidance and support. 

Group of people having a Zoho CRM discussion.

When Should You Use Zoho Writer vs. Zoho Contracts?

Published on: September 24, 2024Category: Uncategorized, Zoho Contracts, Zoho Writer AppLast Updated: October 1, 2024 Comments: 0

How often have you wanted to generate a document from your CRM with fields automatically populated, ready to send for review and signature? Whether that document is a letter, email, brochure, proposal, or contract, Zoho has you covered.

With the Zoho Writer, you can craft well-written documents with ease, collaborate in real-time, and seamlessly integrate with popular platforms. When creating legally binding documents, Zoho Contracts provides valuable tools such as compliance tracking, digital signature, and more.

At their very core, Zoho Writer and Zoho Contracts are both word-processing applications.  While Zoho Writer is a good choice for basic document needs, Zoho Contracts provides advanced functionality for more complex contract processes. Here’s how to know which is best suited for your projects and workflow.

What is Zoho Writer?

Zoho writer logo

Zoho Writer is a powerful cloud based word processor for all devices. Users can collaborate with teammates in real-time to create accurate, elegant documents. In addition to producing native documents, the application can open and edit documents created in other word-processing applications and save files in many popular file formats.

Who is Zoho Writer for?

If you do a lot of writing and content creation – personally or professionally – Zoho Writer is for you. Use of Zoho Writer’s desktop, tablet, mobile, or extension app is free of charge. 

To gain storage space, the ability to upload documents, share with multiple users, etc., plans start at $2.50/user per month (minimum 3 users). Automation features can be accessed in exchange for credits, which range in price from $0.01 to $0.05 per credit.

When Should I Use Zoho Writer?

With its powerful word processing, AI, collaboration, and automation capabilities, Zoho Writer enables you to create well-written business correspondence, resumes, business forms and reports, charts and graphs, simple agreements, brochures and flyers, posters and invitations, emails, labels, personal documents, and more.

However, unlike Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Grammarly, and similar applications, Zoho Writer lets you take things a step further. This application has the power to generate proposals and other documents merging in information from the Zoho CRM using templates. If you’re a small business looking to streamline your front office efforts, these additional features are key. 

Why Zoho Writer?

  • Collaboration
  • Customization 
  • Versatility 
  • Integration with CRM, WordPress, Blogger, and more

Where Zoho Writer Shines

1. Creative and general writing tasks

Zia is Zoho Writer’s AI-powered assistant, trained to help you write better. As you write, Zia constantly monitors readability and sentence structure, alerting for common issues such as run-on sentences, polysyllabic words, sentence length, wordy phrases, passive sentences, cliches, and overuse of adverbs.

2. Collaboration

Rather than trying to incorporate changes into a document based on discussions held elsewhere, Zoho Writer lets you engage right inside the document. Make and respond to comments, track changes, hide sensitive content from specific collaborators, and lock text blocks that you don’t want anyone to alter.

3. Managing, tracking, and auditing documents

Pre-built, ready-to-use workflows route your documents through parallel and sequential review and approval processes. Collect feedback from peers and in-house SMEs and get documents approved by managers and process owners. See who changed what and when with Zoho Writer’s comprehensive workflow history and detailed audit trails.

Features:

  • Zia writing assistant

Zia makes suggestions to improve grammar, punctuation, spelling, and writing style and knows English, Spanish, and French. You can also add Zia as a browser extension for proofing anywhere you’re writing on the internet.

  • Collaborative review & approval

Zoho writer’s review and collaboration features were created with both authors and editors in mind. You can receive and manage feedback while keeping a document’s essence intact. In addition to inserting comments and tracking changes, you can lock sections of a document to prevent editing or pause collaboration altogether to lock the entire document. 

  • Document workflows

Choose from four ready-to-use workflows with due-date options that trigger an email reminder to reviewers to act before the deadline.

  • Offline use

Although web-based, Zoho Writer lets you create and edit documents offline. Once you’re back online everything is automatically saved and synced to your account.

  • Merge documents

Zoho Writer lets users create a template, select a data source, choose the desired output, and track merges. Users can also specify merge conditions and add personalized attachments per recipient.

  • Sign documents

Built-in e-signing options allow documents to remain digital (paperless) from creation through signature. Set deadlines and reminders,  track progress, and automate what happens after signatures are collected.

  • Fillable documents

Whether creating a new document or using an existing one scanned in, Zoho Writer lets you create fillable documents and then manage, embed, and handle responses. Auto-populate field values from selected data sources without having to create macros.

  • Fillable PDFs

Any static PDF document can be converted into a fillable form online using Zoho Writer’s interactive PDF creator. 

  • Workflow automation

Create integrated experiences using Zoho Writer’s merge APIs, such as automatically generating custom documents for new leads added to Zoho CRM, and pulling information from any product in the Zoho CRM database. 

  • WordPress Integration

Automatically publish content directly from Zoho Writer to a WordPress blogging site or publish manually with just a few clicks. Properties such as the blog title, category, and tags can be set in Zoho Writer before publishing. 

What is Zoho Contracts?

Zoho Conttracts logo.

Zoho Contracts is a cloud-based, contract lifecycle management (CLM) app that helps individuals and businesses streamline their contract processes at scale. Users can conquer common challenges such as long contract cycle times, high operational costs, missed renewal opportunities, and poor compliance. 

Who is Zoho Contracts for?

Zoho Contracts is for individuals and businesses seeking to manage the entire contract lifecycle and automate contract workflows all in one place.

Here are a few of the benefits you can expect with this kind of contract life management (CLM):

  • Quickly generate compliant contract agreements and have standard clauses that can be inserted into agreements
  • Redline and keep track of document changes quickly and easily
  • Accurately tracking term durations keeping your business protected once agreements are reached. 

Subscription-based pricing ranges from $50 to $60 per user per month for the Standard plan, which applies to customers who process up to 25 contracts per user per month and do not need the CRM integration, obligations management, and audit log functionality.

For the Professional plan, which includes unlimited contracts, counterparties, and workflows each month, along with CRM integration, obligations management, and audit log functionality, pricing ranges from $65 to $78 per user per month.

There is also a Free plan for up to 3 users at the same entity. This plan allows up to 10 contracts, 5 counterparties, 1 approval workflow, and 2 built-in contract templates per month.

When Should I Use Zoho Contracts?

Common types of contracts and agreements that Zoho Contracts are used with include, but are not limited to:

  • Product sales agreements
  • E-commerce vendor agreements
  • Reseller agreements
  • Data sharing agreements
  • Master services agreements
  • Investor rights agreements
  • Employee stock purchase plans
  • Executive employment agreements
  • Independent contractor agreements
  • Severance agreements
  • Non-disclosure agreements
  • Licensing agreements
  • Catering service agreements
  • Subscription agreements

Why Zoho Contracts?

  • Comprehensive contract lifecycle management
  • Security
  • Compliance
  • Integration

Where Zoho Contracts Shines

1. Contract creation and management

Zoho Contracts provides a built-in document editor (Zoho Writer) and industry-standard, time-tested contract templates and clause language that significantly accelerate the contract lifecycle. In addition to faster authoring, templates provide language consistency across all contracts, easy incorporation of organization-wide policy changes, accelerated revision, and approval, improved compliance, reduced legal dependence and costs, and reduced incidence of human error.

2. Tracking and reporting of compliance

With the fast-growing emphasis on risk mitigation and improved compliance, the contract approval process is crucial. Manual processes are too slow, hard to keep up with, and challenging to audit. Zoho Contracts allows for complete control over approval while promoting informed decision-making and internal transparency. 

3. E-signature feature

Legally recognized and enforceable globally for most situations, digital signatures empower effortless contract signing from anywhere at any time. In addition to reducing contract execution costs and turnaround times, they enhance security through data integrity.

Features:

  • Predefined templates

Pre-approved templates allow all users (even those with no legal background) to provide relevant information quickly, tweak clauses to suit the engagement or counterparty, and roll out the contract for speedy execution.

  • Instant content creation

Add the contract and counterparty information in a form for generating contracts with all the right details in place. Templates empower all team members to create contracts that include consistent language regardless of the creator.

  • Built-in document editor

The document editor built into Zoho Contracts features many of the same powerful features found in Zoho Writer.

  • Digital signatures

Not to be confused with an electronic signature, digital signatures include protective features which make them legally valid worldwide.

  • Zoho CRM integration

When a new sale is imminent, salespeople without an integrated system must email, call, or directly message Legal to request the contract be drafted. Zoho Contracts integrates with Zoho CRM to hasten the contract lifestyle.

  • Leegality integration

Leegality is a digital stamping, e-signing, and document workflow platform. After paying Indian stamp duty, you receive stamp paper that must be affixed to the contract document to be legally valid. With Zoho Contracts, this process can now be done online, digitizing stamp papers in a legally-compliant manner. 

  • Contract templates and authoring

Zoho Contracts automatically generates a contract document based on the contract template and the other details entered in the New Contract form.  Existing contract drafts can be imported and manipulated using the built-in document editor. Changes by collaborators are tracked, and older versions can be restored if desired.

  • Approval workflows

Zoho Contracts allows for complete control over approval while promoting informed decision-making and internal transparency. Approval workflows are customizable, with effortless collaboration, granular visibility, and analytical insights.

  • Negotiation and review

Negotiation strategy and process set the tone for business relationships. Seamlessly negotiate entirely online, improve the quality of your negotiations, and reduce operational costs with Zoho Contracts.

  • Obligation management

Zoho Contracts streamlines obligation management and helps you avoid oversights, improve compliance, mitigate business risks, and enhance performance.

  • Change management

Evolving technologies, uncertain geopolitical environments, and regulatory changes keep the business landscape in flux. Using clause-based reports from Zoho Contracts, companies can effectively assess the impact of changes across all of their business deals.

  • Analytics and reporting

Zoho Contracts offers advanced analytical capabilities and over 30 standard reports, transforming contracts into strategic assets which help companies increase revenue, improve governance, and mitigate risks. 

  • Data protection

To achieve data security, Zoho has built robust internal mechanisms into all of its software, many of which are incorporated in Zoho Contracts. PII information and contract data remain encrypted at rest. 

  • iOS mobile app

The Zoho Contracts iOS app gives users a high-level overview of business contracts, enabling them to make informed decisions on a daily basis.

Zoho Writer vs. Zoho Contracts: Which Should I Use?

Group of people having a Zoho CRM discussion.

Zoho Writer is a powerful word processor that goes far beyond just creating documents. It is commonly used for proposals and mail merges directly from CRM while also offering simple and easy integration with other apps in the Zoho system and other common digital signature platforms. On top of that, it boasts great collaboration features that make it appropriate for all individuals and businesses that want to be able to create well-written, effective documents that work well with other applications. 

Most companies that currently use Zoho Writer instead of Zoho Contracts are classified as Small-to-Medium Businesses (SMBs) with 50 employees or less. Their legal obligations are comparatively easy to pinpoint and manage, with little need for day-to-day variability in their legal documents or widespread collaboration across multiple locations.

On the other hand, Zoho Contracts is for businesses whose operations include frequent or complex legal agreements, especially when multiple parties or locations are involved in document creation and approval. Most companies that currently use Zoho Contracts have up to 250 employees. 

These companies typically have an internal legal team to ensure compliance. The complexity of their operations and legal agreements require extensive monitoring, and failure to maintain compliance can result in substantial monetary, relationship, and/or reputational damages.

Conclusion

Zoho Writer can create all types of business documents and includes templates for simple legal agreements such as basic human resource documents, non-disclosure agreements, and credit memos. Pricing is very low, making it affordable for practically anyone.

Larger entities with more complex operations and multiple collaborators and approval processes will find Zoho Contracts a powerful tool for saving time and money. From basic requirements like  document creation and processing to more complex and technical needs like reducing risk from inconsistent document preparation and non-compliance with deadlines and other legal obligations.

Still need help deciding which one is right for you? Ready to begin integrating Zoho Writer or Zoho Contracts with your current systems? Contact our team for guidance and support.