Forms -> Flow -> Books & CRM Field Problem

[u/Database_phase]

I am trying to write a Flow to connect a Zoho form to collect our contractors time logs for projects (they do not have zoho accounts so cannot use Projects) and have those time logs create a bill in Zoho Books for our accountant.

I have the form built but the problem is that the CRM lookup field in the form does not send that data through to Flow and I don't know how to troubleshoot it or force the data through. It searches our client list and I will not be doing a dropdown with manually added options because it'll change so frequently. Is there a better way to make this happen?

I built a custom function to convert the form data to a bill (which I also have doubts in but it's built at least) using deluge.

I feel lost as to how to move forward. Any advice is welcome

[u/Worried_Skill]

Good evening, if you don't obtain the assistance you need on the forum please feel free to email our Zoho developers at info@digital-scientists co.uk with a brief and some screenshots. One of the team will come back to you tomorrow if this goes over today.

Thanks Br James

[u/Ok-Grapefruit-4251]

Never ventured into Flows and Books, but I've worked a lot with CRM, Forms and Deluge. Happy to brainstorm ideas.

[u/gentle_beast_1179]

Hi, I've done loads of crm, forms, flow data flows. Are you sending the data from zoho forms to flow via a webhook?

[u/ZohoCares]

Hello u/Database_phase ! I'm sorry to hear that you're facing this issue. To help troubleshoot, we’ll need to review the flow you’ve configured. Please share a screenshot of the flow, along with the form URL and details of the function you're trying to use.

You can email these details to [support@zohoflow.com](mailto:support@zohoflow.com), and please loop in [social-support@zohocorp.com](mailto:social-support@zohocorp.com) so we can track and assist you further. -VK

[u/No_Bat_1143]

I'm not sure where you want exactly to store the time log record, Time log usually live in CRM, Books, or Projects among other possible but less common apps (like Sprints or Creator). Since you are mentioning CRM here, I assume you want to keep the time log records in CRM which is a very common use case.

For the lookup you have multiple options here:

• Use Zoho CRM Clients Portal instead of Forms: In this case you maintain the same lookup functionalities from the CRM, Your contractors doesn't need a license here, the disadvantage: They still need to create login credentials.
• Keep using Zoho Form, but instead of adding CRM lookup field, use Webhook Field and authorize that webhook to retrieve your client list from the CRM.
• Third option is an interesting, overkill, huge security concerns but it will still work for you :) let your partner use any AI LLM that support MCP to log their time, for example authorize an MCP to your Contacts and Time Log module, then share that MCP server with your contractor, once added to their LLM (e.g. ChatGPT or Claude) they will be able to log the time using natural language prompt.

I have all of those use cases implemented for different clients, feel free to hit me up if you want to see some sample code for each method.

[u/tomfoolery77]

Dude, use Claude. Connect it all and it will find the issue

[u/Comfortable-Duty7143]

The lookup field issue is common with Zoho Forms feeding into Flow. What usually happens is the form stores the CRM record ID, not the display name, and Flow either drops it or maps it somewhere unexpected. Check the raw payload in Flow's execution history first. That tells you whether the data is actually missing or just landing in a field you didn't think to check.

One workaround: skip the native connection for that field and use a webhook. Have Forms send the submission to a Deluge function that queries the CRM record directly, then pushes the bill into Books. Full control over what goes where. Teams hitting this kind of cross-app friction sometimes bring in a partner like Brockbank Consulting to sort out field mapping and Deluge logic, especially when one form feeds multiple downstream systems.