Zoho Forms lets you build an online form, add the fields you need, and send it to customers to collect data. Integrated with Zoho CRM, it works in both directions: form submissions can be captured in CRM, and details such as name and email can be pre-populated into the form from CRM. This article walks through the whole integration, from building the form to sharing it from CRM.

A worked example

An apparel store runs an exhibition and wants interested visitors added as leads in Zoho CRM. The manager builds a form in Zoho Forms and integrates it with CRM, so each submission is captured automatically as a lead. A month later, the manager wants to refresh customer details and collect consent to an updated privacy policy. He builds a form that pre-populates the customer's name and integrates it so that submissions update the existing records instead of creating new ones.

Benefits of integrating Zoho Forms and Zoho CRM

• Pre-populate form fields with data from Zoho CRM.
• Push form submissions into Zoho CRM.
• Keep data flowing both ways between the two products.
• Share a translated form in the language you choose.
• Use UTM tracking parameters, default or custom, when sending a form or placing it in a template.

Step 1: Create a form

Go to forms.zoho.com and build a new form from scratch, or start from one of the available templates.

Step 2: Add a Zoho CRM field to the form

A Zoho CRM field can be dragged into the form builder. It serves two purposes:

• A personalised form. Existing customers receive a form with their important details already filled in.
• Pushing customer information to CRM. After submission you can add the details as a new record, add notes, events, or tasks to a related list, or update existing records.

1. Drag the Zoho CRM Field into your form.
2. In the Add Zoho CRM Field pop-up, select a Module, then the Layout and Field.
3. Tick the checkbox to map fields from Zoho CRM to Zoho Forms so the form populates automatically from CRM.
4. Map the fields and click Save.

Step 3: Integrate the form from Zoho Forms

Integrating the form decides what happens in CRM when someone submits it.

Field mapping matches mandatory and other CRM fields to the corresponding form fields, so each answer lands in the right CRM field. For instance, if the form has a Last name field mapped to CRM's Last Name field, the surname a customer types is captured there automatically.

Add a new record

1. Go to the Integrations tab, then Zoho CRM, then + New Record.
2. Select the Module and Layout.
3. Map the mandatory CRM fields to the matching form fields.
4. To map more fields, click + Add Fields, choose the CRM field, and pick the relevant form field listed under Zoho Forms.
5. Select the actions you want and click Integrate.

Add a related list

1. Go to the Integrations tab, then Zoho CRM, then + Related list.
2. Select the Module, Related list, and Layout.
3. Map the mandatory fields, and use + Add Fields for any others.
4. Select the actions (Workflows and Attachments) and click Integrate.

Update a record

1. Go to the Integrations tab, then Zoho CRM, then Update Record. The Module and Layout you chose earlier are shown by default.
2. Map the mandatory fields, and use + Add Fields for any others.
3. Select the actions (Workflows and Attachments) and click Integrate.

Step 4: Enable tracking and translation

UTM tracking

UTM tracking shows which source brought a respondent to your website before they submitted an embedded Zoho Form. You define the parameters, copy the code Zoho Forms generates, and paste it into your website's footer before the closing body tag.

1. In the form builder, go to the Share tab.
2. Click Track Entries on the left, then Start Tracking.
3. Tracking uses the default parameters utm_source, utm_medium, utm_channel, utm_name, and utm_term. You can also define custom parameters for your campaigns, such as utm_region or utm_refererURL.
4. Click Proceed to save.
5. Click Get Tracking Code and copy the code.

Translating the form

1. Once the form exists, go to Settings, then Translation & Messages, then Translation, and click Start Translating.
2. In the Form Language drop-down, choose a different default language if needed.
3. In Translate To, choose the language. If yours is not listed, use the Custom Language option to translate the form manually.
4. Click Translate.

The Translation Settings pop-up then lets you review and edit the translated text in four sections:

• Form Content: the form name, form description, tab title, and the Save, Review, and Submit buttons.
• Field Content: field labels and elements, instructions, choices in choice fields, navigation buttons on multi-page forms, subform field labels, and similar.
• Acknowledgment Content: Thank You pages and splash messages set under Acknowledgement and Redirects and Form Rules.
• Custom Messages: error, validation, and other general messages shown on the live form.

Repeat the steps to add more languages. All translated languages are listed under Translated Language(s).

Step 5: Switch on the integration in Zoho CRM

This is what lets you share forms from CRM with details pre-populated.

1. In Zoho CRM, go to Setup, then Marketplace, then Zoho, then Zoho Forms.
2. If you do not yet have a Zoho Forms account, click Create Account. A new account is also created automatically when you integrate.
3. Enable the Pre-population of data toggle.

Step 6: Share the form with customers

In an email template

For a standard email to all customers, create a template containing the form's URL, then choose that template when emailing leads or contacts.

1. Select the text you want to turn into the form link and click the add link button.
2. Choose Zoho Forms as the link type and select the form from the drop-down.
3. If needed, click Advanced Settings. There you can add UTM parameters for tracking, and switch on the translated version of the form and choose its language. Save the settings.
4. The form link fills in automatically. You can add a tooltip, then click Save.

From the email compose window

1. Open the record and click Send Email.
2. In Compose Email, click Insert Forms Link.
3. In the Insert Zoho Forms pop-up, choose the Form Name. The form URL appears automatically in the Forms link field.
4. Enter the text to display as the hyperlink, and click Preview to see the form.
5. Toggle UTM parameters to enable tracking and select the parameters. Toggle the translated version and choose a language if required.
6. Click Insert to add the URL to your email, then click Send.

Deactivate the integration

Go to Setup, then Marketplace, then Zoho, then Zoho Forms, and switch the Pre-population of Data toggle off. Once the integration is deactivated:

• The Insert Forms link option is no longer available in email templates.
• Email templates that already contain form links are kept, unless you delete them yourself.
• Forms sent through Zoho CRM no longer have pre-populated values.