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WooCommerce Zoho Integration

In today’s dynamic online business landscape, companies are constantly seeking ways to enhance their operations. This quest for efficiency has led to the recognition of WooCommerce and Zoho as pivotal players in the arena.

Understanding WooCommerce and Zoho

WooCommerce as a Powerful E-commerce Platform

At the forefront of e-commerce solutions is WooCommerce—a platform renowned for its adaptability and ease of use. Boasting an impressive market share and widespread popularity, it has emerged as the preferred choice for businesses of all sizes. Its array of features, customizable shopping cart, and extensive plugin ecosystem make it an adaptable solution for online retailers.

Zoho is a Comprehensive Business Management Suite

Zoho enters the scene as a comprehensive suite covering various facets of business management. From Customer Relationship Management (CRM) to Inventory Management and Financials, Zoho presents a suite of applications that seamlessly interact to optimize operations. This suite is celebrated for its reputation for streamlining processes through automation.



Discover Peace of Mind: Effortless WooCommerce-Zoho Integration

woocommerce zoho integration

For almost anyone running their business online, double-entry is either a necessary evil – or it was once.  This happens because when your orders occur in your ordering software (WooCommerce), you then have to reconcile them against accounts in your customer management software (Zoho CRM, in this case).  And, of course, not all software “talks” to each other well just out of the box.  Finally, businesspeople need look no further for an integration between the two.

WooCommerce users deserve a robust Zoho CRM integration to go with their powerful online shopping cart – not something thrown together, or untested.  We’ve built one that runs on a custom platform and syncs all kinds of data between your two systems.  It gives you not only the integration your business needs to save time, but the confidence you need knowing you’re saving overhead and reducing workload.

–> Contact us for an integration assessment.

woocommerce zoho integration

Features of WooCommerce and Zoho Integration

  1. Connects Customers to Zoho Accounts
  2. Syncs Items to Zoho Products
  3. Connects Sales Orders, including Shipment statuses, to Zoho
  4. Syncs Invoices to Zoho

Note this is not just a connector for WooCommerce and Zoho CRM.  Using our integration, you can connect your WooCommerce system with Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, and even custom Zoho Creator (ERP) apps.

Key Benefits of WooCommerce-Zoho Integration

1. Automated Order Management

  • Seamless Order Creation and Tracking: The integration effortlessly combines WooCommerce’s online shopping cart with Zoho’s order management functionality. This ensures a smooth transition from purchase to processing, eliminating disruptions.
  • Reduced Fulfillment Times and Errors: By automating processes, the integration minimizes the likelihood of manual errors and accelerates the order fulfillment process. The outcome is satisfied customers receiving their products promptly and accurately.

2. Efficient Inventory Management

  • Real-time Inventory Tracking: Maintain a real-time overview of inventory levels. Thanks to the integration, changes in stock are promptly reflected across both platforms, preventing overselling or stockouts.
  • Automatic Stock Updates and Alerts: Set up automated alerts for low stock levels, empowering proactive inventory management. Stay ahead by replenishing stock at precisely the right moment to ensure uninterrupted operations.

3. Streamlined Customer Relationship Management

  • Consolidated Customer Data: Through integration, customer data from both platforms is centralized, enabling a comprehensive understanding of customer interactions. This holistic view facilitates personalized engagement and superior customer experiences.
  • Personalized Marketing and Support: The integrated data can be harnessed to tailor marketing campaigns and deliver personalized support. Gain insights into customer preferences and behaviors, enabling targeted communication.

4. Simplified Financial Management

  • Automated Invoicing and Accounting: Bid farewell to manual invoicing. The integration automates invoicing and accounting processes, slashing administrative burdens and mitigating errors.
  • Accurate Sales and Financial Reports: Generate accurate sales and financial reports with ease. Leverage real-time data from both platforms to make well-informed decisions.

How the integration works

woocommerce zoho integration

The mechanics of the integration are very simple, on the surface.  (Beneath the surface, our software does the work.)  Your customer will place an order with you, and as their information becomes available in WooCommerce, so it will sync to your Zoho app of choice, too.  That goes for Customer data, Order data, shipment data, and Invoice data.  Your products, on the other hand, can sync back to WooCommerce as Products, or vice-versa, depending on which system is your inventory master.

Our integration software syncs your records from system to system, into designated modules, so you don’t have to enter them an additional time.

Do you need to connect other ERP software with WooCommerce and Zoho, too?

Sometimes, you won’t want to use a standard Zoho app as your ERP software.  That said, if you use another system to handle your inventory or finances, you can also sync information between Zoho, WooCommerce, and that program.  QuickBooks Desktop or Online are popular choices for this option, though some other companies use Sage or SAP software.  No matter what you use, we can help you connect it to this integration if needed.

Don’t know what ERP system to use yet? No problem.  We work with ERP software every day on Zoho Creator.  Everyone has a different use case, so please let us know yours and we will provide you a solution.

See how the Zoho WooCommerce integration could tie your business all together.

woocommerce zoho integration

Start with an assessment.

We designed our integration software to work with most any business.  But, it doesn’t work that way out of the box!  We need to mold it to your specifications so it solves not only your current problems, but anticipates future ones before they start.

You know your business better than anyone – and, we know our software just the same.  Sit down and chat with us, and we’ll explore how to marry the two together in the form of this integration – and maybe more.

WooCommerce-Zoho Integration for Business Growth

As businesses strive for operational excellence, the WooCommerce-Zoho integration presents itself as a potent tool. Seamlessly bridging these platforms, it enables refined operations, elevated customer experiences, and sets the stage for expansion. Embrace this visionary approach to business management—reach out to us today to uncover how the WooCommerce-Zoho integration can catalyze your business’s ascent.

Within a realm where efficiency and accuracy reign supreme, the WooCommerce-Zoho integration stands tall as a beacon of streamlined business management. As you contemplate the integration’s potential, envisage a future where your operational landscape is finely tuned, customers are delighted, and growth becomes an inherent outcome. Step boldly into these possibilities, and let us embark on this transformative journey together.

–> Contact us for an integration assessment.

 

Zoho CRM Magento 2 Integration

The Zoho CRM Magento 2 Integration helps any online business

Most businesses suffer from some sort of double-entry issue; this tends to cost employees unnecessary time.  The problem is prevalent in many sorts of businesses, but especially so in those that use an online shopping cart like Magento.  Why is this?  It’s because when orders take place in Magento, someone has to then transfer them to your CRM.

This is a waste of time that only gets worse the busier you are.  Don’t let your increased business be a double-edged sword.  Instead, integrate Magento 2 with Zoho CRM.

Why use this Zoho integration with Magento 2?

zoho crm magento 2

The answer is simple: Zoho and Magento don’t play well together out-of-the-box.  They need some integration help in order to talk to each other.  That said, we built the integration to satisfy a need that many Zoho users and Magento users alike seem to have.  And, that is being able to sync information from Magento to Zoho, and thus avoiding having to enter information in two different places.  This could be customer information, or order or invoice information.

No matter what you end up syncing, you’ll be thankful you have the integration once you do – either from saving your own time each day, or saving your accounting team the trouble.  And, you deserve to have business software that saves you time.

Note: We call it a Magento 2 integration because Magento 1 is no longer supported – so, only Magento 2 will work with Zoho now.

–> Contact us for a Zoho & Magento 2 integration assessment.

Features of the Zoho Magento 2 integration

  • Integrates with Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, and even your custom Zoho Creator apps.
    1. Syncs Magento Customers to Zoho Accounts
    2. Connects Magento Items to Zoho Products
    3. Syncs Magento Sales Orders, including Shipment statuses, to Zoho
    4. Connects Magento Invoices to Zoho

Our integration can connect not only Zoho CRM with Magento 2, but also Zoho Books and Zoho Creator apps.  Zoho Creator is Zoho’s platform-as-a-service; you might use it to build custom Zoho ERP software, if standard Zoho apps like Books and Inventory won’t quite meet your needs.  Transactions synced to Zoho Creator from Magento 2 will show in Zoho CRM via related lists, just like those in Zoho Books.

zoho crm magento 2

How the Magento 2 Zoho integration works

To better show how the integration would work for you, let’s imagine a scenario where your customer orders from you.

  • As soon as the Customer record is created in Magento, that record can sync to Zoho as an Account.
  • Your product list can sync from Zoho to Magento – and, when your customer places an order, that item (or items) can be associated with the customer (whether through deals, invoices, or something else).
  • When a customer places an order in Magento, that order syncs back to Zoho.  You can view the order against the customer via a related list.
    • When an order is shipped in Magento, that shipping status syncs back to the order in Zoho, too.
  • When your customer pays (whether at the point of sale or another time) through Magento, that invoice will sync from Magento to Zoho with a status of paid.

Do your Magento orders require manufacturing as well?

Sometimes, you’ll have to do some work on a product in-house in order to give your customers what they want.  And, that’s perfect – you can handle that inside Zoho too, with the help of the Zoho integration with Magento 2.

zoho crm magento 2

Use the Zoho integration with Magento 2 in conjunction with any of our FieldTech (Zoho Creator) apps:

  1. Zoho Manufacturing Work Orders: This app manages your manufacturing, including labor and work centers.  It also ties into a Zoho Job Costing app.
  2. Zoho Inventory Management Software: This app allows for managing inventory in general, including purchases.  It also connects with both Zoho MRP and Zoho RMA software.

By connecting the Zoho Magento 2 integration with other Zoho apps designed especially for you, you reduce weak points in your business system and give your company a scalable system designed to take on all issues you face.

Ready to start?  Let’s chat.

The Zoho CRM Magento 2 integration is powerful, but it can indeed be used the wrong way.  To make sure that never happens with you, we’d like to get to know you and your business, then put together an integration solution that will not only solve your problems now, but attack problems later before they even come up.  It all starts with a simple chat.

–> Contact us for an assessment.

 

 

Zoho CRM Shopify Integration

Boost Sales with Seamless Shopify-Zoho CRM Integration

zoho crm shopify integration

Most anyone running an online business knows double-entry is a necessary evil – or, at least, it was at one point.  The reason for this is when your orders take place in one system, but they need to be reconciled with data in another system, there is sometimes a disconnect between those two systems.  In the case of a Zoho CRM Shopify integration, no out-of-the-box solution exists, and users simply have to look elsewhere for a fix for this problem…  And, the time you spend manually entering transaction data across platforms is time that would undoubtedly be better spent doing anything else related to your business.

In the battle of your business versus the passing of time, you deserve a true Zoho Shopify integration, not something cobbled together.  To that end, we’ve designed an integration that gives you back your time and allows you to do what you do best: run your business.

–> Contact us for an integration assessment.

zoho crm shopify integration

Features of the Zoho Shopify Integration

  1. Integrates with both Zoho CRM and/or Zoho Creator
    • Syncs abandoned carts from Shopify to Zoho CRM as leads
    • Syncs transactions, customers, and products from Shopify to Zoho Creator
  2. Syncs these modules from Shopify to Zoho Creator
    1. Customers
    2. Products
    3. Quotes
    4. Orders
    5. Shipments

This tool works as a Zoho CRM Shopify integration.  However, it truly shines when connected to a custom Zoho order management (ERP) system built in Zoho Creator.  This way, all of your transactions flow across platforms painlessly – and, those transactions housed in Zoho Creator can be reflected in Zoho CRM via a related list.

zoho crm shopify integration

How the Zoho CRM Shopify Integration Works

To better illustrate how this integration would work for you, we can imagine a few different scenarios:

Website visitor who abandons their shopping cart: In this case, Shopify gathers the potential customer’s data, but that person never submits an order to you.  Our integration grabs the customer information and syncs it to Zoho CRM as a lead.  You can follow your normal procedures with CRM leads at this point, or you can designate special assignments or followup rules for leads coming from Shopify.

Visitors who submit an order to you: Shopify houses all the information necessary to complete the order at this point, from quote to order to shipment.  (This also includes essential modules like customers and products.)  Note that not all of this information has to be synced from Shopify to Zoho – just the information you would have double-entered.  As needed, information can then be synced to your Zoho Creator order management app and then made visible inside Zoho CRM.

Do your Shopify orders require extra purchasing or manufacturing?

Sometimes, simply syncing information from Shopify to Zoho isn’t enough; you need something else to help you fulfill your orders.  Sync data from the Zoho order management app to custom Zoho Creator applications designed for your needs:

zoho crm shopify integration

  1. Zoho Manufacturing Orders, for when you need to customize products you already have in stock to complete orders.  Orders can be synced to this app based on triggers.
  2. Zoho Inventory Management software, for managing purchases.
    • This also connects to MRP and RMA modules.

Our complete solution adds value to your business where you wouldn’t have found it otherwise.

Seamless Data Synchronization:

The Zoho CRM Shopify integration facilitates seamless data synchronization between the two platforms. This means that customer information, orders, and inventory data can be automatically synced, ensuring accurate and up-to-date information across systems.

  1. Order Management: With the integration, businesses can manage their Shopify orders directly from within Zoho CRM. This feature enables sales teams to have a holistic view of customer interactions, order history, and purchase patterns, empowering them to provide personalized and targeted sales and support.

  2. Customer Segmentation and Targeting: Zoho CRM’s robust customer segmentation capabilities combined with Shopify’s e-commerce data allow businesses to create targeted marketing campaigns. By analyzing customer behavior, preferences, and purchase history, companies can segment their customer base and deliver tailored promotions, offers, and recommendations, ultimately increasing conversion rates and customer satisfaction.

  3. Centralized Customer Communication: The integration centralizes customer communication by capturing Shopify order information within Zoho CRM. Sales and support teams can access this information, enabling them to provide prompt and informed responses to customer inquiries, thus improving overall customer service.

  4. Inventory Management: The integration allows businesses to efficiently manage inventory levels and avoid stockouts or overselling. By syncing Shopify’s inventory data with Zoho CRM, companies gain visibility into product availability, track stock movements, and automate reordering processes, optimizing inventory management workflows.

  5. Streamlined Sales Process: Zoho CRM Shopify integration streamlines the sales process by providing a unified view of customer interactions and sales opportunities. Sales representatives can access real-time data, track sales activities, and collaborate with team members effectively, resulting in improved productivity and sales performance.

  6. Reporting and Analytics: The integration offers powerful reporting and analytics capabilities. Businesses can generate comprehensive reports and gain valuable insights into sales performance, customer behavior, and product trends. These insights enable data-driven decision-making, helping businesses identify growth opportunities and optimize their sales and marketing strategies.

  7. Customization and Scalability: Zoho CRM Shopify integration provides flexibility and customization options to cater to unique business requirements. The integration can be tailored to automate specific workflows, configure data mapping, and implement business rules, ensuring a seamless and scalable solution for businesses of all sizes.

Let’s see how the Shopify Zoho CRM Integration would work for you

Get an assessment from us and we’ll paint you a complete picture

We want to know you and your business to provide a solution that works and is supported for years to come.

–> Contact us for an assessment.

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Zoho for Technology, SaaS, and Subscription Businesses

Optimize Your Zoho System for Tech/SaaS Businesses

zoho technology saas business

Zoho does a great job of positioning itself as a great choice for subscription-based businesses, or anyone dealing with technology.  You’ve got the all-important Zoho CRM, Zoho Desk, and Zoho Subscriptions – which plugs wonderfully into Zoho Books.  You also have Zoho Inventory for any physical items that dovetail with your tech offerings.  And, you have Zoho Desk for managing support requests that invariably come up.  You may even decide Zoho One, with its suite of 45+ apps, is the best choice.  (For many companies, it is.)

Zoho Technology offers powerful and flexible software for technology, SaaS, and subscription-based businesses. However, to make it work for your unique needs, it requires more than just documentation.

We live in a digital world, but not everything is so intuitive.  You deserve a resource to help you with the software side of managing your business.

zoho technology saas business

Zoho gives you all the power you could possibly want to put together a system that works for you – but, without understanding your business, Zoho can’t advise you one way or the other on best practices.  That goes for:

  • Setting up the system properly to solve your current problems
  • Setting it up to anticipate future issues with growth
  • Making it so your employees (or contractors) will actually want to use the system

Technology, SaaS, or subscription-based businesses often face particular issues when deploying Zoho.  When deploying your own system, you may want to consider these listed below.  To supplement this, we also offer business assessments for deploying a Zoho system.  This is specific to tech/SaaS companies, and any deployment projects include Zoho consulting and training on any apps.

3 Challenges for Tech/SaaS Businesses with Zoho

zoho technology saas business

…And how to help alleviate them

#1. Recognition of Revenue

This obvious problem arises in any subscription-based business; it affects many technology companies who use that business model, particularly.  This comes up because subscription-based businesses have a choice: Recognize revenue for, say, an annual contract, in chunks once per year, or recognize it on a monthly basis.  There are a few different ways to accommodate this need.

  • For recurring services, you could create one deal per year with an amount equivalent to the year of service, or create recurring deals each month.
  • You could also create multiple deals ahead of time and future-date their closing dates.
  • Lastly, you could use the deals module only for current monthly deals, use the sales orders module for future monthly deals, and the invoices module for closed-won deals (in this case, paid invoices).

In tandem with or instead of using deals, you could also use Zoho Subscriptions to track monthly subscription revenue (as well as any one-time startup or deployment fees) and integrate this directly with the accounts module of Zoho CRM, as well as Zoho Books.

Bear in mind there is no simple way to determine which of these ways is best, however.  Figuring this out almost always warrants a larger discussion about how your business works generally.

#2. Complex Quoting and Job Costing

zoho technology saas business

If you only sell software, you can get by using a combination of Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, and Zoho Subscriptions as your customer hub and financial hubs.  However, if you offer physical products in tandem with software, things become a little trickier.  And, if your services involve installation or delivery of said hardware too, it can be even more confusing to figure out exactly how to get everything working correctly.  Standard Zoho apps simply aren’t enough to accommodate complex quoting needs.

  • Rather than bang your head against a wall, you could use a custom Zoho CPQ tool, built on Zoho Creator.  This tool can use your own factors, triggers, and calculations to assemble quotes that include not just software, but hardware and even services.  The app includes a quote configurator, as well as kitting or bundling.  If you need quotes assembled from in the field, you could use a mobile Zoho CPQ app, which includes these very same features plus mobile capability.

Like complex quote assembly, Zoho similarly doesn’t provide a standard solution for calculating costs of individual jobs.  Of course, it’s possible to simply integrate QuickBooks with Zoho, but those who don’t already use the program probably won’t jump at the opportunity to use it solely for job costing.

  • To that end, you might consider a custom Zoho job costing module, also built on Zoho Creator.  This tool allows for combining the values of running software, the cost of hardware, and even the cost to deploy that hardware and software on-site, so you can accurately gauge your profitability.  It’s work you could probably do yourself, given enough time.  But, for many, the opportunity cost is simply too great and it isn’t worth it to reinvent the wheel.

#3. Multiple Subscriptions for the Same Product

zoho technology saas business

If you run a business that sells more than one of a certain kind of product to any respective business where expiration dates can vary, it may not make sense to use Zoho Subscriptions.  Rather, you could utilize something simpler, the deals module of Zoho CRM.  Using the deals module for this scenario would allow for creating as many deals as necessary, associating any product with those deals, and modifying each deal closing date according to the subscription renewal dates.

This sort of fix could apply to any B2B SaaS, technology, or other subscription-based company selling to end-users within a company, where those users are expected to renew their own licenses and receive reimbursement for the costs.  As always, it’s best to talk with a certified Zoho consultant before adopting a system like this for your own business.

Get started today

Even with a modest number of apps that cater to businesses like yours, Zoho seems to expand its offerings almost monthly.  And, that’s a double-edged sword for the end-user.  It’s great that so many great apps are available.  But, it’s also not-so-great because can never be quite sure if you’re doing things the right way.

Instead of leaving it to chance, contact us for an assessment that’s geared specifically to your business, whether you deal in SaaS, other technology, or you use subscriptions in any form.

Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One Review

Zoho is at once an amazing and frustrating product.  You probably have some idea of this, or maybe you’re still in the dark – but, the truth is out there.  In this article we compare Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One.

crm plus vs zoho one

Zoho is incredible in the scope of what it can do and at the price you pay for it.  

There are very few, if any other platforms that provide so many different software apps, and so much useful functionality, for such a low price, comparatively.  But, at the same time, Zoho’s various products – whose functionality often overlap – and software bundles with the very same issue, are often not explained in enough detail for potential customers to make informed buying decisions.

There is so much information about Zoho products available.  How can none of it accurately tell you the difference between, for example, Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One?  It’s enough to drive you up the wall.  

When comparing CRM Plus vs Zoho One on the surface, the offerings seem similar enough: Bundles of Zoho apps for members of your company to use.  But, one bundle includes many Zoho apps (Zoho One) and one includes comparatively fewer (CRM Plus).  And, Zoho One is more expensive… Unless you get your whole company on the software, in which case it becomes much cheaper.  Is this gaming the system? What gives?

Well, not quite.  There’s actually a method to the madness that is the different pricing and different apps present in the Zoho One and Zoho CRM Plus bundles.  In this post, we’ll address the two problems that seem to arise from having different bundles with seemingly (but not actually) illogical pricing models.  Then, we’ll lay out some facts to help you determine which bundle is best for your business. Finally, we’ll give you a bit of history that led to the introduction of Zoho One at all.

crm plus vs zoho one

One problem: Why does Zoho offer two different bundles?

The answer here is simple on its surface.  Zoho One and Zoho CRM Plus exist to meet two different distinct software needs.

What is Zoho One? 

Zoho One is Zoho’s all-inclusive bundle, boasting 40+ fully-featured apps, all Enterprise-level (Zoho’s top tier of features).  You can purchase a license for any number of employees at your company for $105/user/month*. However, if all employees at your company use Zoho One, the price is only $45/user/month*.  Obviously, that’s a substantial difference.

What is Zoho CRM Plus? 

CRM Plus is the original Zoho bundle: Nine essential Zoho apps, all Enterprise-level, for $69/user/month*, regardless of how many employees use the apps.  This gives companies a better overall cost than they would get from buying different Zoho apps a la carte. (Apps include Zoho CRM, Campaigns, Zoho Desk, SalesIQ, Social, Projects, Survey, Analytics, and Motivator.)

*Pricing updated June 2021

So, we can see these two bundles serve distinct purposes.  We can deduce from the pricing info that CRM Plus is an intuitive choice for a company looking to save on licensing for many of the apps they would need anyway. But, they might not want to give all of their employees a license.  This situation comes up frequently for manufacturers, who often have many employees who work in a warehouse or factory and never interact with computers at all.  There’s no point in those employees having Zoho licenses they will never use.

Zoho One, on the other hand, is a great choice for a company that is either:

  1. To save significantly on software licensing costs, consider purchasing licenses for all employees, regardless of their software usage.
  2. Needs all of their employees to use Zoho One anyway, or
  3. Stands to save a considerable amount of money by allowing some of their employees to use Zoho One rather than CRM Plus or a la carte apps.

The Devil’s in the Details

This is a lot to unpack, but…better the devil you know than the devil you don’t, right?  Strap in and let’s examine the three Zoho One use cases posed above.

Use Case #1

zoho crm plus vs zoho oneBusinesses stand to save a good deal on Zoho One even if not all of them use the software.  This would happen in situations where a company with fifty employees had thirty of them in need of the software, and twenty with no need for Zoho One licenses at all.  In this case, it makes more sense to eat the cost of ten additional licenses than only buy licenses for forty employees.  This is because for only forty employees, the cost of the licenses increases by nearly a factor of three!

      • 30 users * $105/user/mo (Zoho One flexible user count) = $3,150/mo in licensing
      • 50 users * $45/user/mo (Zoho One for all employees) = $2,250/mo in licensing

Use Case #2

You can benefit from Zoho One for certain if you need all of your employees to use the software anyway.  No matter how many you employ, the offer is $45/user/mo if you purchase a license for all your employees.  Especially for smaller companies, this seems almost too good to be true – and, more on that below, shortly.

Use Case #3

For some companies who only need some of their employees to use business software, Zoho One may make more sense than CRM Plus simply because the $105/user/mo price provides more needed functionality than would be available with CRM Plus, or CRM Plus and a combination of a la carte Zoho apps.

      • 10 users of Zoho CRM Plus with Zoho Finance Plus and Zoho Webinar ($69/user/mo + $249/company/mo + $19/mo) = $958/mo
      • 10 users of Zoho One (flexible user count) ($105/user/mo) = $1050/mo

The savings may seem to favor a la carte options, but additional limitations and add-on costs should be considered. For example, webinar events are limited to 25 people, and there are extra fees for users, warehouses, orders, and labels, ranging from $9-10 each for the add-ons.

What are your next steps to implementing Zoho?

Remember, before deciding about Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One, it’s always best to get some Zoho CRM Plus consulting, or Zoho One-specific help.  You can use that consulting time to set up the apps you need. Additionally, you can use it to get an expert’s recommendation on which bundle to pick, Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One, if either are a good idea for you.

After discussing various apps and scenarios where one may outperform the other, a lingering question remains.

Another problem: Why are Zoho losing their shirts by offering Zoho One at such a discount compared to CRM Plus?

[caption id="attachment_3832" align="alignright" width="400"]selecting the correct fit Okay, not quite 80% off…but darn close.[/caption]

At first glance, this looks positively insane, and you’ll be certain you’re gaming the system by buying Zoho One.  This is especially true if you run a smaller company. Imagine having so much functionality that every employee can enjoy for only $45/user/month!

But, it’s not a mistake.  Zoho has a very, very good reason for doing this.

They’re playing what’s known as a long game.  And, to put this game into context, we have to imagine what life was like before Zoho One.

The Good Old Days

Believe it or not, there was a time when Zoho One was but a twinkle in the eye of Zoho Corporation CEO Sridar Vembu.  As they say, necessity is the mother of invention, and in this case, Zoho Corporation noticed something quite significant in their sales.

They were losing the attention of smaller businesses.

zoho one or Zoho CRM

A la carte apps and CRM Plus (the original bundle of apps offered by Zoho) were great for some companies. But, for others who needed a lot of functionality to help them off the ground, Zoho’s cost for entry was simply too high. Zoho likely lost a good number of clients to attrition during this time. Certainly many who simply could not stomach the price of CRM Plus, or even a handful of a la carte apps. Others probably liked what they were getting with the a la carte apps. But ultimately found themselves unable to scale, so they abandoned the platform.

In Zoho’s eyes, the small businesses segment was an untapped market. And, Zoho’s idea was not just to make a bigger, badder bundle that would accommodate the needs of companies who needed more functionality.  No. They were going to offer everything they had, at a price even lower than the cost of their next-best bundle.

Consider this:

Zoho Corporation makes its living on recurring revenue from their software. They want businesses to use their software as long as possible by providing customers with value. And – this is a big one – according to NAICS, there are about 1.5 million businesses that have more than 10 employees in the USA.  

This number, 1.5 million, is essentially who Zoho was marketing to in the USA with their CRM Plus software bundle. But, if you follow the link you’ll see that there are just as many businesses in just the 5-9 employee count category. As if that’s not crazy enough, look one row up and you’ll see there are seven times as many businesses listed as between 1-4 employees.

Again, what an enormous market.

Like Miracle-Gro for Small Biz

zoho crm plus vs zoho one

Zoho came up with this fantastic Zoho One package because they knew businesses needed some help just entering the world of Zoho. That way, they could realize immediate benefits of using the software. And also see what benefits they’d reap if they grew their companies!

Many small businesses remain one size forever because that’s what works for them. However, for companies that start small and grow with Zoho, those are customers Zoho never would have had access to previously.

It’s accepted that happy customers with talk with their like-minded friends who run businesses. Because of this, suddenly Zoho has potentially increased their reach by millions in the USA alone.  Perhaps tens of millions worldwide!

By offering Zoho One, Zoho is betting you’ll start small with them. Then grow into something that may not have been possible without the software. Starting with Zoho and using it to grow makes it less likely you’ll use another platform in the future. If it works for you, why try anything else? 

The Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One Review

Zoho CRM Plus and Zoho One may seem pretty confusing in how similar they are.  But look beyond the names of the familiar apps, analyze the pricing a bit. Then consider Zoho’s history, and you’ll see the distinctions between the two packages are pretty clear.

The Road Ahead for Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho one

We don’t expect you to read this blog post and suddenly know how to decide between Zoho CRM Plus vs Zoho One. You’ll still have to prepare your own cost breakdowns according to what you need. And, if you don’t have time to put all that together, let alone examine your own business thoroughly to determine that exact need, this all may not have helped your stress levels.

[caption id="attachment_3837" align="alignright" width="401"]zoho crm plus ZBrains Expert Consultants help guide you to which Zoho apps are best for your business, and we’ve helped clients like you since 2012![/caption]

So, let’s turn that around! ZBrains has helped lots of businesspeople who were strapped for time. This includes determining which Zoho apps would work best for them, and which exact package would be best.  Is it Zoho One? CRM Plus? Maybe neither of the two? It remains to be seen. But we can show you the way so you turn from would-be Zoho user to Zoho Hero.

Then, if you need help with Zoho implementation or Zoho training, you can rest assured you made the best software choice, so you’ll have the best chance of really growing your company with Zoho, as opposed to just getting by.

Contact us today for help determining which Zoho suite to use, or for anything else Zoho-related.

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3 Things a Zoho Campaigns Consultant Does For You

Zoho Campaigns Consultant = Peace of Mind

If you’re reading about marketing strategies in a blog that’s specific to Zoho consulting, chances are you’re looking for some help with Zoho Campaigns, or one of the many other apps in Zoho’s marketing stack.  And, we can definitely provide that to you. But, what you may not know is that using a Zoho Campaigns consultant is about more than just getting your Campaigns app set up the right way. It’s about giving you confidence in Zoho’s flagship marketing app (well, at least until MarketingHub usurps it) and taking stress off your plate.  It’s about giving you peace of mind in an area where you previously didn’t have much.

zoho campaigns consultant

What can a Zoho Campaigns Consultant do for you?

Zoho Campaigns gives you a lot to play with, especially during setup.  Upon first login, you’re greeted with an enormous dashboard and no good place to start.  What’s to do?

Well, that all depends.  In order to know what exactly to do with setting up Campaigns, you (or your consultant, in this case) will want to take a step back and consider some questions:

  1. What is your marketing objective by using Zoho Campaigns?
  2. How frequently do you want to email your prospects?
  3. What metrics do you use to measure marketing success?

The reason for asking these questions is simple.  Anyone can set up Zoho Campaigns so it works correctly.  But, whether or not the system is set up for your business’s needs is something else entirely.  Your answers to those questions will help your consultant set up Zoho Campaigns for you.

Diving a little deeper…

Let’s explore these questions in a little more depth.

  1. What is your marketing objective by using Zoho Campaigns?  
    • Believe it or not, your answer matters here.  For example, your app will need a different configuration for garnering new leads (outbound marketing) than it will for contacting lists of customers or prospects who already know you (inbound marketing).  You’ll use different aspects of Campaigns, either way. And, your answer will inform what kinds of information you’ll need synced to Zoho CRM.
  2. How frequently do you want to email your prospects or customers?
    • Zoho’s pricing model varies depending on the number of emails you’d like to send per month – or, the number of contacts you’d like to be able to send emails to.  For emailing large numbers of contacts, you may want to set up segments for your mailing lists. And, to protect against spam reports for very large lists, you may want to vary your sender name or even your email domain in some cases.  This ultimately protects your domain and your brand so you can use Zoho Campaigns without worrying about a blacklist every time you hit Send.
  3. What metrics do you use to measure marketing success?

zoho campaigns consultant

    • The stats you want to track to measure your own success will dictate how you set up your Campaigns.  For example, maybe you measure success in the number of signups you get for a service, or maybe you’re only tracking email opens – or, maybe you want your email marketing to lead your prospects down the entire sales funnel.  Of course, you’ll modify the content you create based on these goals too.  But, your Zoho Campaigns consultant will recommend a slightly different setup depending on your goals.

By coordinating with a Zoho Campaigns expert, you can make sure your marketing app will be set up according to the answers to these questions, and more.  Proper training would of course cover the whole spectrum of the app, but that too would be tailored to your needs somewhat to avoid confusion.

Let’s reframe: What happens without a Zoho Campaigns Consultant?

A number of things can happen.  From best to worst:

  1. Campaigns won’t be set up according to your needs.  So, even if it’s somewhat effective for boosting business, you may have untold room for improvement.
  2. Your staff will find the software too difficult to use due to improper training – or lack thereof entirely.
  3. Your marketing efforts might even confuse your customers because they misunderstand the software’s purpose, and you could actually lose business.

Don’t fall victim to improper Zoho usage!  Your success is imminent.

zoho campaigns consultant

Good email marketing can mean the difference between a flat year or a banner year for your business.  And, you have the power to decide how it all goes.

If you’re like most people involved in a business, you don’t have time for another set of responsibilities, or at the very least you’d like having some work taken off your plate.

Don’t stand for figuring out another piece of marketing software on your own.  Contact us today to get an assessment at ZBrains and begin your journey with a guide.

Zoho Data Migration

Migrate your Data to Zoho with our help

zoho data migration

If you’re planning to upgrade from a legacy system to an instance of Zoho, there’s always one nasty roadblock that can prevent you from having the smoothest project: that’s your data!  Whether it’s too complicated to export and import yourself, you aren’t sure how it will translate to Zoho, or you just don’t have time to sit through a data migration yourself, your historical data is the one thing that completes your Zoho system after it’s been properly implemented and optimized.  So, what are you to do when you find yourself in a bind?

At ZBrains, we’ve encountered this problem many a time.  And, we understand just what you need to successfully migrate your data from many, many systems to Zoho.  That goes not just for Zoho CRM, but Zoho apps like Books and Inventory, too, as needed. Even migrating from Salesforce to Zoho doesn’t have to be such a chore for you.

Zoho Data Migration: The ZBrains Difference

You probably already know data migration isn’t always just a point-and-click maneuver!  It’s not always hard to do, but it’s a lot to sit through. And, if you aren’t sure how to best export it or how it will map to Zoho CRM in the best way possible, that can absolutely quash any chance you have of going through it alone.  And, it’s possible that other consultancies will jump at the chance to help you, and offer you a quick solution to help you. Well, not so fast…

zoho data migration

We have enough experience at ZBrains to know that the best solution isn’t always the quickest one.  In fact, we have a rigorous process to make sure we migrate your data effectively.  And that involves three important steps:

  1. Planning
  2. Data migration test round
  3. Data migration approval
  4. Live migration

The purpose of the test round and approval:

Migrating your data in one fell swoop without ensuring it looks correct could be disastrous to your organization, especially if you have a lot of team members interacting with it.  Your team could be unprepared for such an influx of new (old) data, and if we don’t get the migration right the first time, it could put undue stress on everyone involved.

For that reason, we always perform a test migration after we plan your data mapping.  This test consists of just a few records of any one type. Once we’ve tested and made sure it looks right to us, we come back to you and make sure the data looks right to you.  You’ll be able to tell us if your data looks like it should in your Zoho environment.  

Once we’re in agreement about your data, we’ll perform the rest of the migration for that module.  This multi-pronged process also gives you time to alert your team of the migration schedule and tell them when they can inspect the new data to arrive.

Pricing for Zoho Data Migration

Data Migrations are required for all Integration projects and pricing varies on complexity of the integration itself. Typically, data migrations are priced based on the number of modules (ex.  Sales Orders, Invoices, Customers are examples of modules) along with the number of records. Schedule an integration assessment today with a ZBrains consultant to get a project quote. 

Systems we work with

Our clients come to Zoho from a variety of systems.  We can help you migrate to Zoho from programs like:

Need more than just a one-time Zoho data migration?

zoho data migration

Sometimes we get requests for Zoho CRM or Zoho Books migrations from companies who would like to continue to use their legacy systems.  They want to continuously migrate data to that old system from Zoho, or vice-versa. We call that kind of data migration a software integration, and we do a good deal of that at ZBrains, too.  We use our own ETL platform to set up continuous syncs between many different software systems and Zoho apps, including the ones you see above.

Ready to migrate?  Get started today!

Even the largest of Zoho data migrations, and Zoho jobs in general, begin with a single click.  No matter if you’re just getting started on Zoho and want help migrating a few modules of records, or you’re well through your Zoho consulting period and want to move over all your data from several old systems.  We can help!  Contact us to let us know exactly where your needs lie, and we’ll be sure to offer you the best kind of help for the job.

 

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Zoho Commission Calculator Webinar – Thursday, June 6th!

Simplify payroll – Pay employees effortlessly

Our in-depth webinar on the Zoho commission app shows you just what you can do

commission calculator webinar

It’s a shame that after all the hard work you can do in building and improving different facets of your business – whether through optimizing sales processes, increasing efficiency in operations or fulfillment, or making sure you retain the clients you worked so hard to earn – employee payments tend to be one of the most overlooked, and most inefficient parts of a company.  Of course, everyone you employ gets paid.  Maybe you even get everyone paid on time, every time.  But, how much time do you spent calculating payments or doing manual work to prepare payments so you can be on time?

If you have a complicated commission structure, chances are you spend a lot of time doing just that.  Maybe you even have someone who works full-time doing that for you!

Now, we aren’t in the business of putting people out of work, but we do like to help people better their businesses, and that includes making processes more efficient – including commission calculation. To that end, we’ve developed commission calculation software on Zoho Creator that helps do just that.

We’ll be demoing the commission calculator and going through all its various features during a Live Commission Calculator Webinar on June 6th at 10 AM PDT.  

What’s so hot about this particular commission calculator webinar?

Aside from the fact that we built this app on Zoho Creator (so it integrates with Zoho CRM and other programs), this commission app is part of a software suite called FieldTech.  FieldTech is a software bundle built on Zoho that improves the functionality of Zoho, especially for service, construction, and manufacturing/distribution companies.  You don’t have to use all of FieldTech to use this commission calculator.  But, if you need to, the option is there – and we consider it a great “gateway” to the FieldTech suite, for those looking to refresh and optimize their business software suite.

Some features we’ll be going over in the webinar:

  • Calculating commission based on a fixed amount, revenue amount, or profit margin
  • Spiffs and incentives
  • Splitting commission between multiple reps or teams
  • Commission overrides
  • Commission approvals
  • Clawbacks or credits for refunds
  • Sales rep portal for up-to-the-minute commission totals
  • Emailed commission statements
  • Integration with Zoho CRM
  • Integration with Zoho Finance

commission calculator webinar

Stay right there for the Q&A session after the walkthrough!

After we show the features of the commission calculator, we’ll be answering any questions you have about the app.  Stay tuned in so you can ask us questions about the app, as well as listen to others ask questions of their own.

Thank you for stopping by this post.

Zoho Creator Record Templates

Personalize Apps with Zoho Creator Record Templates

When you think of Zoho, you undoubtedly think of a few different words or phrases.  One of those is very likely “customizable.” When you use Zoho, you know you have all sorts of options for customizing all the apps in the suite.  Following that tradition, Zoho has brought customization to record templates in Zoho Creator, so you can customize even more of your experience – or, in this case, your customers’ experience.

zoho creator record templates

Custom Record Templates in Zoho Creator? What for?

Zoho Creator record templates behave pretty similarly to Zoho CRM custom inventory templates.  Those custom templates allow you to customize what your customer sees when you send them an invoice, for example.  You may track all sorts of information related to your invoice in the CRM – but, how that invoice appears to your customer is very much up to you.  Place information exactly where you want it on your template with merge fields in Zoho Creator, just like you would on inventory templates in Zoho CRM.

But, wait. Why use Zoho Creator for this stuff at all?

It’s a common question: Zoho has so many different ways of doing nearly anything.  Why use Zoho Creator to create these record templates when you could just use the CRM?

You’ll want to use Zoho Creator when you have particular business needs that standard Zoho apps won’t meet.  Creator can be customized much more heavily than even very malleable Zoho apps, so the possibilities for your custom app are far greater.  At the end of the day, you’ll likely store some data in the Zoho Creator app instead of a standard app like Zoho CRM.  Zoho Creator record templates provide a way to act on the data in that system so you don’t have to transfer it to the CRM first.

Sound confusing?  We hope not – but if so, just ask us and we can walk you through it.

zoho creator record templates

Create all kinds of record templates

The possibilities are endless; here are just a few you could use in your own apps:

  • Estimates or custom quotes
  • Brochures, catalogs, or sell sheets
  • Certificates
  • Newsletters or campaign emails
  • Name tags

These templates will all be tied to different record types.  For example, you may keep records in your Zoho Creator app called Estimates, Brochures, Certificates, or Newsletters.  The templates you design will allow you to customize how each of these records look.

Starting is a cinch!

Creating your own Zoho Creator record templates or modifying pre-built templates is easy:

  1. Navigate to your Creator app Settings menu and select Record Templates.  
  2. Click the New Template button, where you’ll choose between modifying a pre-designed record template, or creating a brand new template you can mark up as needed.

The drag-and-drop interface makes creating or editing record templates simple.  And, if you’re somewhat code-savvy, you can even drop HTML into the templates. Then your record templates are ready to use.

Once you’ve created and distributed records as needed using the record templates, you or your customers can print or export individual records as PDFs (just like inventory templates or emails) using special Zoho Creator URLs.

zoho creator record templates

The hits keep coming

With Zoho, the world really is your oyster – and this new feature in Zoho Creator reinforces that notion, making Creator an even more versatile platform on which to build custom applications.  There’s a lot you can do with Zoho Creator; in fact, we’ve even built our own vertical software for field services and construction companies on it.

In a bind? Contact us!

Let us know if you need any help architecting your own custom app – or just need help with Zoho Creator record templates – and we’ll plan it all out with you.  We can even build it for you if you so choose.

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