Zoho CRM Automation Agent Skill

Zoho CRM Automation via Rube MCP

Automate Zoho CRM operations through Composio's Zoho toolkit via Rube MCP.

Toolkit docs: composio.dev/toolkits/zoho

Prerequisites

• Rube MCP must be connected (RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS available)
• Active Zoho CRM connection via RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS with toolkit zoho
• Always call RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS first to get current tool schemas

Setup

Get Rube MCP: Add https://rube.app/mcp as an MCP server in your client configuration. No API keys needed — just add the endpoint and it works.

• Verify Rube MCP is available by confirming RUBE_SEARCH_TOOLS responds
• Call RUBE_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS with toolkit zoho
• If connection is not ACTIVE, follow the returned auth link to complete Zoho OAuth
• Confirm connection status shows ACTIVE before running any workflows

Core Workflows

1. Search and Retrieve Records

When to use: User wants to find specific CRM records by criteria

Tool sequence:

• ZOHO_LIST_MODULES - List available CRM modules [Prerequisite]
• ZOHO_GET_MODULE_FIELDS - Get field definitions for a module [Optional]
• ZOHO_SEARCH_ZOHO_RECORDS - Search records by criteria [Required]
• ZOHO_GET_ZOHO_RECORDS - Get records from a module [Alternative]

Key parameters:

• module: Module name (e.g., 'Leads', 'Contacts', 'Deals', 'Accounts')
• criteria: Search criteria string (e.g., 'Email:equals:[email protected]')
• fields: Comma-separated list of fields to return
• per_page: Number of records per page
• page: Page number for pagination

Pitfalls:

• Module names are case-sensitive (e.g., 'Leads' not 'leads')
• Search criteria uses specific syntax: 'Field:operator:value'
• Supported operators: equals, starts_with, contains, not_equal, greater_than, less_than
• Complex criteria use parentheses and AND/OR: '(Email:equals:[email protected])AND(Last_Name:equals:Doe)'
• GET_ZOHO_RECORDS returns all records with optional filtering; SEARCH is for targeted lookups

2. Create Records

When to use: User wants to add new leads, contacts, deals, or other CRM records

Tool sequence:

• ZOHO_GET_MODULE_FIELDS - Get required fields for the module [Prerequisite]
• ZOHO_CREATE_ZOHO_RECORD - Create a new record [Required]

Key parameters:

• module: Target module name (e.g., 'Leads', 'Contacts')
• data: Record data object with field-value pairs
• Required fields vary by module (e.g., Last_Name for Contacts)

Pitfalls:

• Each module has mandatory fields; use GET_MODULE_FIELDS to identify them
• Field names use underscores (e.g., 'Last_Name', 'Email', 'Phone')
• Lookup fields require the related record ID, not the name
• Date fields must use 'yyyy-MM-dd' format
• Creating duplicates is allowed unless duplicate check rules are configured

3. Update Records

When to use: User wants to modify existing CRM records

Tool sequence:

• ZOHO_SEARCH_ZOHO_RECORDS - Find the record to update [Prerequisite]
• ZOHO_UPDATE_ZOHO_RECORD - Update the record [Required]

Key parameters:

• module: Module name
• record_id: ID of the record to update
• data: Object with fields to update (only changed fields needed)

Pitfalls:

• record_id must be the Zoho record ID (numeric string)
• Only provide fields that need to change; other fields are preserved
• Read-only and system fields cannot be updated
• Lookup field updates require the related record ID

4. Convert Leads

When to use: User wants to convert a lead into a contact, account, and/or deal

Tool sequence:

• ZOHO_SEARCH_ZOHO_RECORDS - Find the lead to convert [Prerequisite]
• ZOHO_CONVERT_ZOHO_LEAD - Convert the lead [Required]

Key parameters:

• lead_id: ID of the lead to convert
• deal: Deal details if creating a deal during conversion
• account: Account details for the conversion
• contact: Contact details for the conversion

Pitfalls:

• Lead conversion is irreversible; the lead record is removed from the Leads module
• Conversion can create up to three records: Contact, Account, and Deal
• Existing account matching may occur based on company name
• Custom field mappings between Lead and Contact/Account/Deal modules affect the outcome

5. Manage Tags and Related Records

When to use: User wants to tag records or manage relationships between records

Tool sequence:

• ZOHO_CREATE_ZOHO_TAG - Create a new tag [Optional]
• ZOHO_UPDATE_RELATED_RECORDS - Update related/linked records [Optional]

Key parameters:

• module: Module for the tag
• tag_name: Name of the tag
• record_id: Parent record ID (for related records)
• related_module: Module of the related record
• data: Related record data to update

Pitfalls:

• Tags are module-specific; a tag created for Leads is not available in Contacts
• Related records require both the parent record ID and the related module
• Tag names must be unique within a module
• Bulk tag operations may hit rate limits

Common Patterns

Module and Field Discovery

1. Call ZOHO_LIST_MODULES to get all available modules
2. Call ZOHO_GET_MODULE_FIELDS with module name
3. Identify required fields, field types, and picklist values
4. Use field API names (not display labels) in data objects

Search Criteria Syntax

Simple search:

criteria: '(Email:equals:[email protected])'

Combined criteria:

criteria: '((Last_Name:equals:Doe)AND(Email:contains:example.com))'

Supported operators:

• equals, not_equal
• starts_with, contains
• greater_than, less_than, greater_equal, less_equal
• between (for dates/numbers)

Pagination

• Set per_page (max 200) and page starting at 1
• Check response info.more_records flag
• Increment page until more_records is false
• Total count available in response info

Known Pitfalls

Field Names:

• Use API names, not display labels (e.g., 'Last_Name' not 'Last Name')
• Custom fields have API names like 'Custom_Field1' or user-defined names
• Picklist values must match exactly (case-sensitive)

Rate Limits:

• API call limits depend on your Zoho CRM plan
• Free plan: 5000 API calls/day; Enterprise: 25000+/day
• Implement delays between bulk operations
• Monitor 429 responses and respect rate limit headers

Data Formats:

• Dates: 'yyyy-MM-dd' format
• DateTime: 'yyyy-MM-ddTHH:mm:ss+HH:mm' format
• Currency: Numeric values without formatting
• Phone: String values (no specific format enforced)

Module Access:

• Access depends on user role and profile permissions
• Some modules may be hidden or restricted in your CRM setup
• Custom modules have custom API names

Quick Reference

| Task | Tool Slug | Key Params |

|------|-----------|------------|

| List modules | ZOHO_LIST_MODULES | (none) |

| Get module fields | ZOHO_GET_MODULE_FIELDS | module |

| Search records | ZOHO_SEARCH_ZOHO_RECORDS | module, criteria |

| Get records | ZOHO_GET_ZOHO_RECORDS | module, fields, per_page, page |

| Create record | ZOHO_CREATE_ZOHO_RECORD | module, data |

| Update record | ZOHO_UPDATE_ZOHO_RECORD | module, record_id, data |

| Convert lead | ZOHO_CONVERT_ZOHO_LEAD | lead_id, deal, account, contact |

| Create tag | ZOHO_CREATE_ZOHO_TAG | module, tag_name |

| Update related records | ZOHO_UPDATE_RELATED_RECORDS | module, record_id, related_module, data |

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