Zoho And Referral Factory Integration: A Full Guide

Discover how Zoho and Referral Factory combine to enhance your referral program. Sync contacts, generate unique referral links, and track metrics inside Zoho. Plus, import new leads and qualify them seamlessly.

 

Are you looking for referral program software that works with Zoho CRM? 

Get your referral program up and running, and integrated with Zoho, in just a few days πŸ‘‰ Try Referral Factory for free for 15 days!

If you already have a Referral Factory account, then keep reading to learn how to set up your Zoho integration πŸ‘‡


In this guideπŸ‘‡

1. What You Can Do with Zoho and Referral Factory πŸš€

2. How To Connect Your Zoho Integration

3. How To Configure Your Zoho Integration

3.1. How To Sync Zoho Leads or Contacts with Referral Factory (and Generate Their Referral Links)
3.2. How To Send Referred Users (The Person Invited) from Referral Factory to Zoho

3.3. How To Send Referred Users (The Person Invited) from Referral Factory to Zoho AND Automatically Qualify Them When They Convert

Option 1: Qualify When A Lead Converts Into A Contact

Option 2: Qualify When A Lead Field Changes

Option 3: Qualify When A Lead Converts Into A Deal

Option 4: Qualify When A Contact Field Changes

3.4. How To Send Direct Users (The Person Referring) to Zoho When They Sign Up For A Referral Link

3.5. How To Track Your Sale Value For Commission-Based Rewards

4. Uninstall your Zoho Integration from Referral Factory

5. Troubleshooting


 

1. What You Can Do With Zoho CRM and Referral Factory πŸš€

πŸ‘‰ Sync your Zoho contacts to automatically generate their unique referral links, which you can then send back into Zoho along with their referral metrics. That way, you can distribute referral links directly from Zoho and monitor your referrers' performance from within your CRM.

πŸ‘‰ Send new referred leads or opportunities generated via your referral program straight into Zoho.

πŸ‘‰ Qualify successful or converted leads simply by 

⚑️ Updating a lead field

⚑️ Converting a lead into a contact

⚑️ Converting a lead into a deal and moving it to a specific deal stage (for example, "Closed Won")

⚑️ Updating a contact field

 


 

2. How To Connect Your Zoho Integration

What You Need:

  • Any Referral Factory plan.
  • Any Zoho edition.
  • A draft or live referral campaign in Referral Factory.

β†’ In the left-hand navigation bar of your Referral Factory dashboard, click the Settings tab.

β†’ Click Connect under the Zoho logo. 

β†’ A pop-up will appear. Review the data permissions and then click Accept

β†’ Success!

❗️Please note that you can only connect one Zoho account to Referral Factory at a time. You may be able to connect additional Zoho accounts via Zapier. Please consult this guide: πŸ“– Zapier And Referral Factory: A Full Guide πŸ“– 


 

3. How To Configure Your Zoho Integration

Once your Zoho account is connected to Referral Factory, you will need to configure your integration inside your campaign(s). 

❗️ If you want to sync multiple referral programs with Zoho, you will need to configure the integration for each campaign.  

There are three main functions to configure to use your Zoho integration to its full potential:

πŸ‘‰ Sync all or some of your Zoho contacts with Referral Factory 

πŸ‘‰ Send users from Referral Factory into Zoho. 

πŸ‘‰ Qualify successful referrals when a field changes in Zoho.

πŸ’‘ Want to know more about qualifying converted or successful referrals in general? Read this guide:

πŸ“– How to Qualify Converted or Successful Referrals πŸ“–

 

3.1. How To Sync Zoho Contacts with Referral Factory (and Generate Their Referral Links)

πŸ“Œ This will generate referral links for your Zoho contacts. These contacts will NOT be notified. After your sync is complete, the contacts you synchronized will each have a referral link inside their record in Zoho.

Before you configure the sync between Referral Factory and Zoho, you will need to create a custom field in Zoho to store each contact's Referral Link. You may also want to create fields to store each referrer's performance metrics, i.e. the number of people they have referred and the number of those referrals that have been successful. 


You can learn more about creating custom fields in Zoho's help guide: πŸ”— Working With Custom Fields πŸ”—

 

You can sync your Zoho contacts from three places in the Referral Factory dashboard:

 

πŸ‘‰ From the Users Tab: β†’ Click Add Users β†’ Click Sync Your CRM Contacts.

πŸ‘‰ From the Campaigns tab: β†’ Click Sync Your Contacts.

πŸ‘‰ From the Promote section inside the campaign builder: β†’ Click Generate referral links for your contacts by syncing them.

 

You have the option to sync three different segments of contacts between Referral Factory and Zoho:

  • Only your Leads.
  • Only your Contacts. 
  • Members of a specific Campaign.

 

β†’ Select whom you want to sync between Referral Factory and Zoho. If you want to select a campaign, choose the campaign name from the drop-down list and select whether you want to sync Leads or Contacts inside the campaign.

β†’ Click Next.

 

β†’ Map the fields from Zoho to the relevant data fields in Referral Factory. 

β†’ Click Next

β†’ Map the data from Referral Factory to the fields you have created in Zoho. To surface each contact's referral link inside Zoho, you must map the field "Referral Link"

β†’ Click Next.  

β†’ In the final step, you have the option to make the sync function on an ongoing basis. Use the toggle to make the sync ongoing. 

πŸ“Œ You have the option to toggle the ongoing sync on or off from the Promote section of the campaign builder.

β†’ Click Start Sync.

β†’ Success!

❗️Contacts that you sync will not be automatically notified or sent their referral link. If you would like to notify them, please use your own marketing channels or Referral Factory's once-off email feature. You can learn more about once-off emails here: πŸ“– How To Create A Once-Off Email πŸ“– 


3.2. How To Send Referred Users (The Person Invited) from Referral Factory to Zoho

 

Referral Factory can automatically create a new lead or contact in Zoho when someone signs up using their friend's referral link. Along with all the information they fill in on the Pages for the Person Invited, we can include the details of the person who referred them as well as any default fields you choose to include. This option allows you to simply send new referral leads or deals into Zoho without any automatic qualification. For details on how to send referred leads AND automatically qualify them, please skip to the next section

 

β†’ Click Edit Campaign to enter the campaign builder. 

β†’ Navigate to the Integration step in the bottom navigation bar. 

β†’ Scroll down until you see the option to configure settings for the Person Invited.

β†’ Select whether Referral Factory should create a new lead or a new contact in Zoho. 

zoho-referral-factory-integration-send-referred-users-create-zoho-lead-or-contact

β†’ Skip the section called "Set rules that will auto-qualify the referred users that convert".

zoho-referral-factory-how-to-add-contact-lead-map-fields (1)

β†’ Use the dropdown options to map the data fields from Referral Factory to Zoho. To create a lead or contact in Zoho, you must map:

  • First Name 
  • Last Name
  • Email

β†’ Optionally, add the values for any default fields

β†’ Optionally, attach information about the person who made the referral. Note that you will need to create fields inside Zoho to store this data.  

πŸ’‘ If you don't see recently created Zoho fields, use the refresh button:

refresh-button-referral-factory

β†’ Choose how to handle duplicate records inside Zoho. 

β†’ Click Save or Next. 

 

Here is an example of how the information may appear in Zoho:

zoho (8)-webp


 

3.3. How To Send Referred Users from Referral Factory to Zoho AND Automatically Qualify Them When They Convert

Referral Factory can automatically create a new lead or contact in Zoho when someone signs up using their friend's referral link AND track if a field changes in Zoho to automatically qualify them (i.e., mark them as a successful or converted referral), which, in turn, could trigger a reward to the person who referred them. 

You have the following options to automatically qualify a referred user via Zoho:

⚑️ Option 1: Qualify When A Lead Converts Into A Contact
⚑️ Option 2: Qualify When A Lead Field Changes
⚑️ Option 3: Qualify When A Lead Converts Into A Deal
⚑️ Option 4: Qualify When A Contact Field Changes

 


 

zoho-referral-factory-option-1 (1)

To qualify when a lead converts into a contact in Zoho you'll need to configure some settings inside your Zoho CRM before completing them inside Referral Factory. 

 

Step 1: Add a Custom Lead Field for "Referral Code" in Zoho

β†’ Access your Zoho CRM and navigate to the Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Click on the "Leads" module.

β†’ Click on the "Create and Edit Fields" option. 

β†’ Drag and drop a "Single Line Text" field and label it as "Referral Code."

β†’ Save the custom field.

 

Step 2: Add a Custom Contact Field for "Referral Code" in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Click on the "Contacts" module.

β†’ Click on the "Create and Edit Fields" option. 

β†’ Drag and drop a "Single Line Text" field and label it as "Referral Code."

β†’ Save the custom field.

 

Step 3: Map the "Referral Code" Fields between the Lead and Contact Modules in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Zoho Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Hover over the "Leads" module until you see a dropdown menu, select "Lead Conversion Mapping."

β†’  Scroll down until you see the "Referral Code" field and select the corresponding "Referral Code" field under the Contact column.

β†’ Click "Save."

 

Step 4: Set Up A Workflow Automation (Webhook) in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Zoho Setup Page.

β†’ Under β€œAutomation,” select "Workflow Rules." 

β†’ Click on "Create Rule" and make sure to select the "Contacts" module.

β†’ Give your workflow rule a name (e.g., "Lead to Contact").

β†’ Set the trigger for the workflow: When a β€œRecord Action” is β€œCreated.”

β†’ In the Conditions step, select β€œAll Contacts.”

β†’ Under β€œInstant Actions”, select β€œWebhook.”

β†’ Give your webhook a name (e.g., "Lead to Contact").

β†’ In the URL To Notify field, enter this exact URL https://referral-factory.com/zoho/webhook

β†’ In the Body section, select β€œForm-Data” under the β€œType” dropdown.

β†’ Add 1 Module Parameter:

Parameter Name: code Parameter Type: Contacts Parameter Value: Referral Code

β†’ Add 1 Custom Parameter:

Parameter Name: conversion  Parameter Value: 1

β†’ Click β€œSave and Associate.” 

β†’ Save your workflow rule.

 

Step 5: Configure Your Qualification Settings in Referral Factory

β†’ From the Campaigns tab in your Referral Factory account, click Edit Campaign to enter the campaign builder. 

β†’ Navigate to the Integrations step in the bottom navigation bar. 

β†’ Scroll down until you see the option to configure settings for the Person Invited.

β†’ Select Create New Lead in Zoho.

β†’ Select A lead would convert into a contact.zoho-referral-factory-qualify-when-a-lead-converts-into-a-contact

β†’ Use the dropdown options to map the data fields from Referral Factory to Zoho. You must map:

  • First Name 
  • Last Name
  • Email
  • Referral Code (This is the field you created and mapped in the previous steps)

β†’ Optionally, add the values for any default fields

β†’ Optionally, attach information about the person who made the referral. Note that you will need to create fields inside Zoho to store this data.  

πŸ’‘ If you don't see recently created Zoho fields, use the refresh button:

refresh-button-referral-factory

β†’ Choose how to handle duplicate records inside Zoho. 

β†’ Click Save or Next. 

 


 

 

zoho-referral-factory-option-2 (1)

To qualify when a lead field changes in Zoho you'll need to configure some settings inside your Zoho CRM before completing them inside Referral Factory. Read below or watch the following video for the step-by-step instructions.

 

Step 1: Add a Custom Lead Field for "Referral Code" in Zoho

β†’ Access your Zoho CRM and navigate to the Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Click on the "Leads" module.

β†’ Click on the "Create and Edit Fields" option. 

β†’ Drag and drop a "Single Line Text" field and label it "Referral Code."

β†’ Save the custom field.

 

Step 2: Set Up A Workflow Automation (Webhook) in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Zoho Setup Page.

β†’ Under β€œAutomation,” select "Workflow Rules." 

β†’ Click on "Create Rule" and make sure to select the "Leads" module.

β†’ Give your workflow rule a name (e.g., "Lead Status Update").

β†’ Set the trigger for the workflow: When a β€œRecord Action” is β€œEdited.”

β†’ In the next step, select "Specific Field Gets Modified," choose "Lead Status" and "When Any Value Changes."

β†’ In the Conditions step, select β€œAll Leads.”

β†’ Under β€œInstant Actions”, select β€œWebhook.”

β†’ Give your webhook a name (e.g., "Lead Status Update").

β†’ In the URL To Notify field, enter this exact URL https://referral-factory.com/zoho/webhook

β†’ In the Body section, select β€œForm-Data” under the β€œType” dropdown.

β†’ Add 2 Module Parameters:

1. Parameter Name: code Parameter Type: Leads Parameter Value: Referral Code

2. Parameter Name: status Parameter Type: Leads Parameter Value: Lead Status

β†’ Click β€œSave and Associate.” 

β†’ Save your workflow rule.

 

Step 3: Configure Your Qualification Settings in Referral Factory

β†’ From the Campaigns tab in your Referral Factory account, click Edit Campaign to enter the campaign builder. 

β†’ Navigate to the Integrations step in the bottom navigation bar. 

β†’ Scroll down until you see the option to configure settings for the Person Invited.

β†’ Select Create New Lead in Zoho.

β†’ Select A field of the lead would change.

β†’ Select the lead field that will change from the dropdown list. For example, "Lead Status".

β†’  Select what the field's value should be when Referral Factory creates the lead inside Zoho. For example, "Contact in Future"

β†’ Select the field value(s) that mean the referral has been successful or converted; i.e., the value that should trigger a qualification in Referral Factory. For example "Pre-Qualified".

zoho-qualify-by-lead-field

πŸ“Œ You can use both standard and custom Zoho fields to trigger an automatic conversion. Field types that can be used include single-line text, multi-select and picklist fields. 

β†’ Use the dropdown options to map the data fields from Referral Factory to Zoho. You must map:

  • First Name 
  • Last Name
  • Email
  • Referral Code (This is the field you created and mapped in the previous steps)

β†’ Optionally, add the values for any default fields

β†’ Optionally, attach information about the person who made the referral. Note that you will need to create fields inside Zoho to store this data.  

πŸ’‘ If you don't see recently created Zoho fields, use the refresh button:

refresh-button-referral-factory

β†’ Choose how to handle duplicate records inside Zoho. 

β†’ Click Save or Next. 

 


 

zoho-referral-factory-option-3 (1)

To qualify when a lead converts into a deal in Zoho you'll need to configure some settings inside your Zoho CRM before completing them inside Referral Factory.

 

Step 1: Add a Custom Lead Field for "Referral Code" in Zoho

β†’ Access your Zoho CRM and navigate to the Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Click on the "Leads" module.

β†’ Click on the "Create and Edit Fields" option. 

β†’ Drag and drop a "Single Line Text" field and label it as "Referral Code."

β†’ Save the custom field.

 

Step 2: Add a Custom Deal Field for "Referral Code" in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Click on the "Deals" module.

β†’ Click on the "Create and Edit Fields" option. 

β†’ Drag and drop a "Single Line Text" field and label it as "Referral Code."

β†’ Save the custom field.

 

Step 3: Map the "Referral Code" Fields between the Lead and Deal Modules

β†’ Return to the Zoho Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Hover over the "Leads" module until you see a dropdown menu, select "Lead Conversion Mapping."

β†’  Scroll down until you see the {Referral Code} field and select the corresponding {Referral Code} field under the Deals column.

β†’ Click "Save."

 

Step 4: Set Up A Workflow Automation (Webhook) in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Zoho Setup Page.

β†’ Under β€œAutomation,” select "Workflow Rules." 

β†’ Click on "Create Rule" and make sure to select the "Deals" module.

β†’ Give your workflow rule a name (e.g., "Lead to Deal").

β†’ Set the trigger for the workflow: When a β€œRecord Action” is β€œCreated.”

β†’ In the Conditions step, select β€œAll Contacts.”

β†’ Under β€œInstant Actions”, select β€œWebhook.”

β†’ Give your webhook a name (e.g., "Lead to Deal").

β†’ In the URL To Notify field, enter this exact URL https://referral-factory.com/zoho/webhook

β†’ In the Body section, select β€œForm-Data” under the β€œType” dropdown.

β†’ Add 2 Module Parameters:

1. Parameter Name: code Parameter Type: Deal Parameter Value: Referral Code

2. Parameter Name: stage Parameter Type: Deal Parameter Value: Stage

β†’ Click β€œSave and Associate.” 

β†’ Save your workflow rule.

 

Step 5: Configure Your Qualification Settings in Referral Factory

β†’ From the Campaigns tab in your Referral Factory account, click Edit Campaign to enter the campaign builder. 

β†’ Navigate to the Integrations step in the bottom navigation bar. 

β†’ Scroll down until you see the option to configure settings for the Person Invited.

β†’ Select Create New Lead in Zoho.

β†’ Select A lead would convert into a deal and move to a specific deal stage.

β†’ Optionally, select what the lead status should be when Referral Factory creates the lead inside Zoho. For example, "Contact in Future".

β†’ Select the deal stage(s) that mean the referral has been successful or converted; i.e., the deal stage that should trigger a qualification in Referral Factory. For example "Closed Won".

zoho-qualify-by-deal-stage

β†’ Use the dropdown options to map the data fields from Referral Factory to Zoho. You must map:

  • First Name 
  • Last Name
  • Email
  • Referral Code (This is the field you created and mapped in the previous steps)

β†’ Optionally, add the values for any default fields

β†’ Optionally, attach information about the person who made the referral. Note that you will need to create fields inside Zoho to store this data.  

πŸ’‘ If you don't see recently created Zoho fields, use the refresh button:

refresh-button-referral-factory

β†’ Choose how to handle duplicate records inside Zoho. 

β†’ Click Save or Next. 


 

 

zoho-referral-factory-option-4 (1)

To qualify when a contact field changes in Zoho you'll need to configure some settings inside your Zoho CRM before completing them inside Referral Factory.

 

Step 1: Add a Custom Contact Field for "Referral Code" in Zoho

β†’ Access your Zoho CRM and navigate to the Setup Page.

β†’ Under "Customization," select "Modules and Fields." 

β†’ Click on the "Contact" module.

β†’ Click on the "Create and Edit Fields" option. 

β†’ Drag and drop a "Single Line Text" field and label it as "Referral Code."

β†’ Save the field.

 

Step 2: Set Up A Workflow Automation (Webhook) in Zoho

β†’ Return to the Zoho Setup Page.

β†’ Under β€œAutomation,” select "Workflow Rules." 

 β†’ Click on "Create Rule" and make sure to select the "Contacts" module.

β†’ Give your workflow rule a name (e.g., "Custom Field Update").

β†’ Set the trigger for the workflow: When a β€œRecord Action” is β€œEdited.”

β†’ In the next step, select "Specific Field Gets Modified," choose the custom field you would like to use trigger qualification, and select "When Any Value Changes."

β†’ In the Conditions step, select β€œAll Contacts.”

β†’ Under β€œInstant Actions”, select β€œWebhook.”

β†’ Give your webhook a name (e.g., "Custom Field Update").

β†’ In the URL To Notify field, enter this exact URL https://referral-factory.com/zoho/webhook

β†’ In the Body section, select β€œForm-Data” under the β€œType” dropdown.

β†’ Add 2 Module Parameters:

1. Parameter Name: code Parameter Type: Contacts Parameter Value: Referral Code

2. Parameter Name: field Parameter Type: Contacts Parameter Value: Your Custom Field

β†’ Click β€œSave and Associate.” 

β†’ Save your workflow rule.

 

Step 3: Configure Your Qualification Settings in Referral Factory

β†’ From the Campaigns tab in your Referral Factory account, click Edit Campaign to enter the campaign builder. 

β†’ Navigate to the Integrations step in the bottom navigation bar. 

β†’ Scroll down until you see the option to configure settings for the Person Invited.

β†’ Select Create New Contact in Zoho.

β†’ Select the contact field that will change from the dropdown list. 

β†’  Select what the field's value should be when Referral Factory first creates the contact inside Zoho. 

β†’ Select the field value(s) that mean the referral has been successful or converted; i.e., the value that should trigger a qualification in Referral Factory. 

zoho-qualify-contact-field

πŸ“Œ You can use both standard and custom Zoho fields to trigger an automatic conversion. Field types that can be used include single-line text, multi-select and picklist fields. 

β†’ Use the dropdown options to map the data fields from Referral Factory to Zoho. You must map:

  • First Name 
  • Last Name
  • Email
  • Referral Code (This is the field you created and mapped in the previous steps)

β†’ Optionally, add the values for any default fields

β†’ Optionally, attach information about the person who made the referral. Note that you will need to create fields inside Zoho to store this data.  

πŸ’‘ If you don't see recently created Zoho fields, use the refresh button:

refresh-button-referral-factory

β†’ Choose how to handle duplicate records inside Zoho. 

β†’ Click Save or Next. 

 

 


 

3.4. How To Send Direct Users (The Person Referring) to Zoho When They Sign Up For A Referral Link

 

If you have a use case for this function, Referral Factory can also create a Zoho Lead or Contact when someone signs up for a referral link via the campaign join link as a direct user or a Person Referring. 

πŸ“Œ If a Referral Factory user is already a Zoho lead/contact, don’t worry! Referral Factory will check the user’s email address against your contact list and will only create new leads/contacts.   

This function must be configured from inside the campaign builder. 

β†’ Click Edit Campaign to enter the campaign builder. 

β†’ Navigate to the Integrations step in the bottom navigation bar. 

β†’ Scroll down until you see the option to configure settings for the Person Referring

β†’ Select whether you want Referral Factory to create a Lead or a Contact in Zoho. 

β†’ Map the data fields from Referral Factory to Zoho using the dropdown select options. These options will pull directly from your Zoho account. 

❗️ For this function to work, you must map the fields First Name, Last Name, and Email.

β†’ You may want to create additional properties in Zoho to store Referral Factory data such as "Campaign Name" and "Source".

β†’ You also have the option to define default fields for when the contact is created inside Zoho. 

β†’ Click Save.


3.5. How To Track Your Sale Value For Commission-Based Rewards

 

If you are using your Zoho integration to qualify referrals and want to issue commission-based rewards for those referrals, you can automatically track your sale value from a field in Zoho. This means Referral Factory can automatically calculate the value of your reward!
β†’ In the Define Rules step of your Rewards Builder, select the Module and Field from Zoho from which to track the sale value. 
referral-rewards-zoho
 
In most cases, you would want to track the Zoho field Amount in the Zoho module Deals as your sale value, however, you can track any property of your choice, as long as you follow these rules: 
πŸ‘‰ You can only track the sale value from a field in the Deals module if your qualification method is set to qualify when a Lead Would Convert Into A Deal And Move Into A Specific Deal Stage.
πŸ‘‰ If your qualification method is set to any of the other options, you may only track a field in the Leads or Contacts modules. 
zoho-qualification-methods

 

 

4. How To Uninstall your Zoho Integration from Referral Factory

β†’ Navigate to the Settings tab and ensure you're in the Integrations and Pixels section in the top navigation bar. 
β†’ Under the Zoho logo, select 'Disconnect'.

❗️ Once disconnected, no user data will sync between Zoho and Referral Factory or vice versa. However, any data that was synced before will still be available in both systems. 

 


 

5. Troubleshooting

 

Having trouble with the Zoho integration? Please consult our troubleshooting guide: πŸ“– Troubleshoot Your Zoho Integration πŸ“–