zoho

name	zoho
description	How to use the Zoho CRM connector's tools — finding, reading, creating, and updating records across modules (Leads, Contacts, Accounts, Deals), searching with criteria, converting leads, and discovering module/field metadata. Use when the user works with Zoho CRM, leads, contacts, accounts, deals, pipeline, the sales pipeline, or CRM records.

You are using the Zoho CRM connector (via Composio). Its tools act on the connected org's CRM. Apply this guidance whenever you touch Zoho.

Everything is module + API name

• Zoho CRM is organized into modules: standard ones use PascalCase API names — Leads, Contacts, Accounts, Deals, Tasks, Events, Calls, Products, Quotes, Invoices, Campaigns, Cases, Notes. Do not use Activities — substitute Tasks, Events, or Calls. Custom modules use their own exact API name.
• Almost every tool takes module_api_name. When unsure which module or what a field is called, discover first: list modules to get valid API names, then fetch a module's field metadata to learn the exact field API names (not display labels) and types before you read, filter, or write.
• Fields are referenced by API name (Last_Name, Email, Stage, Deal_Name), which often differs from the UI label. A wrong field name errors or silently drops.

Find the target first

• To act on a specific record you need its record id. Resolve a human reference ("the Acme deal") to an id by searching the right module before updating.
• Search criteria syntax is (Field:operator:value), combined with and/or: ((Stage:equals:Negotiation)and(Amount:greater_than:10000)). Max ~10 criteria.
  • Supported operators: equals, not_equal, starts_with, in, between, greater_than, greater_equal, less_than, less_equal.
  • contains is not supported and errors. For text fields, equals already behaves like a substring/contains match (Company:equals:ABC also matches "ABC Inc"), so use equals for partial text instead of inventing contains.
  • Datetimes need a timezone offset: 2026-01-01T00:00:00+00:00.
• Use get records to list a module's records when you don't have criteria, and get related records to walk a relationship (a Contact's Deals, an Account's Contacts) rather than searching and joining yourself.

Creating and updating

• Create requires the target module plus its mandatory fields — e.g. Leads and Contacts require Last_Name; Deals require Deal_Name and Stage. Check module fields if a create is rejected for a missing required field.
• Update is partial: send the record id plus only the fields you're changing; unspecified fields are left untouched. Don't refetch-and-resend the whole record.
• New records default to the authenticated user as owner unless you set one.

Converting leads

• Lead conversion turns a Lead into a Contact (and Account, optionally a Deal). It is one-directional and effectively irreversible — the Lead is consumed. Confirm intent and the deal details before converting; don't convert speculatively.

Care

• Writes hit a live, shared CRM that the sales team sees immediately. Confirm the target record (by id) before updating, and confirm scope before any bulk write — some create/update tools accept many records at once and report partial success, so check the per-record result, not just an overall OK.
• This connector exposes no delete tool, but updates and lead conversion still change real pipeline data — treat them as consequential, not throwaway.
• Large modules: paginate (≤200 per page; use the page token for deep paging) and summarize rather than pulling everything. equals-as-contains can over-match on text — verify you hit the intended record before acting on it.