• Instructions: how to combine telephony and CRM. Virtual PBX Virtual crm

    Integration of the free Zadarma PBX with ZOHO CRM works without additional modules and intermediaries, ensuring maximum quality and reliability of communication.

    Complete integration of Zadarma-ZOHO CRM free.

    Integration features:
    • Call customers from ZOHO CRM in one click.
    • Pop-up customer card for incoming and outgoing calls.
    • Integration of call statistics and call recordings. Ability to listen to recordings of conversations directly from ZOHO CRM.
    • Calls from clients are automatically directed to the responsible manager, and if he is busy, they are redirected to the first available manager.
    Advantages of Zadarma PBX:
    • completely free.
    • takes no more than 5-10 minutes.
    • Additional functions such as or and integration of PBX with popular instant messengers are also free.
    • Connecting an unlimited number of external numbers from 80 countries (including toll free numbers).
    Connect your PBX for free
    Installation instructions

    1. To integrate Zadarma virtual PBX and ZOHO CRM, the following conditions must be met:

    • Your ZOHO CRM account type must be Standard, Professional, Enterprise, Ultimate, or Trial version. Integration is not available in the Free account.
    • You must have created and configured. A minimum set of settings: internal numbers have been created, from 1 to 50 (each employee has an internal number), if necessary, call recording has been enabled in the internal number settings (Recording conversations to the cloud), and a default scenario for incoming calls “without pressing” has been created in the section My PBX - Incoming calls and voice menu.
    • Virtual PBX internal numbers must have equipment configured for making and receiving calls, such as a softphone or IP phone, or call forwarding to another number must be enabled (Paid service).

    2. In your Zadarma personal account, go to the “Settings - API and Integrations” section and select ZOHO CRM and click the “Enable Integration” button.

    On the next page, log in to your ZOHO CRM account.

    Confirm access to your ZOHO CRM account by clicking the "Accept" button.

    You will see a message "Integration with ZOHO CRM was successful."

    On the integration settings page, you need to assign internal virtual PBX numbers to ZOHO CRM users, then click the "Save" button

    Integration of virtual PBX Zadarma and ZOHO CRM installed and configured

    3. To make an outgoing call from ZOHO CRM, simply click on the button with a phone image next to the phone number.

    When there is an incoming or outgoing call, you will see a notification in the lower right corner of the page. If the phone number was previously saved in ZOHO CRM, in the pop-up notification you will see the data of this contact or counterparty, but if the number has not yet been saved, next to the number there will be a button to add a Contact or Preliminary contact

    During a call, a pop-up notification displays the name of the contact you are calling or who is calling you, the person responsible for this contact, the duration of the conversation in real time, and there is also a field available for entering a description of the call; without interrupting the conversation, you can add a description.

    After the call ends, the notification displays the total duration and options for subsequent work with the call: Create a delayed call, create an event, or create a task.

    1. Call - creating a delayed call. For example, you called your client, but it is not convenient for him to talk at the moment, he will be able to give you time in 3.5 hours, in the pop-up notification you click “Call”, then specify the subject of the call, date and time and click “done”. At the specified time, in the ZOHO CRM interface you will see a pop-up notification that it is time to contact the client; to make a call, you will just need to click the “Call” button in the notification.

    2. Event - create an event based on the call, add participants and select a trigger time.

    3. Task - based on the call, you can quickly and conveniently create a task in ZOHO CRM.

    This time we will not brag too much about the achievements in the field of integration of virtual PBX, Internet telephony and mobile communications, since we have been writing about this for more than six months. We will try to describe not what has been done (although that too), but what we would like to do in the foreseeable future and what, from our point of view, may be of interest to respected readers. The AltegroCloud virtual PBX honestly performs its tasks and ensures close friendship between mobile phones, people and the cloud PBX: it records mobile calls, shows statistics on the use of corporate cellular communications in real time, and even knows how to find employees on the map using geotags.

    A lot of effort was spent on integration with a couple of popular CRM systems and they (these same integrations) gave a clear understanding that our SIM cards + virtual PBX + CRM are a convergent product that allows you to build interesting communication schemes, the complexity of which is limited only by the imagination of the developers and possibly specific IP. As a result, a truly interesting product was formed, which we, not being de facto and de jure a “dog in the manger,” would like to further develop in close partnership with all interested parties.

    In general terms, the friendship scheme between AltegroCloud and, for example, CRM looks like this:


    Mobile employees using our SIM cards are connected to our cloud PBX, all calls from/to mobile phones go first to the PBX and only then to the public telephone network, i.e., in fact, corporate cellular phones, from the point of view of the logic of the telephone network, are mobile SIP phones that do not use the Internet for calls, but use a regular GSM network. Hence the recording of conversations and online call statistics and voice menus and a single company number for all incoming calls, including incoming calls to mobile phones. Comfortable, beautiful and innovative.

    We add CRM to this telephone-mobile beauty and add customer cards, transactions and analytics for sales with mobile communications. As a result, we get what is called “something with something” - a useful tool for managing sales and collecting statistics on the company’s telephone life in one place - in the CRM system. Using the example of one, well, very popular CRM, we will show what beauty looks like through the eyes of the client.

    As of now, there are three magic buttons in your AltegroCloud personal account

    Pressing each of them in three minutes connects the company’s mobile communications and CRM system, and the connection is easy and relaxed.

    Something like this

    Svetlana, Ekaterina and Olga in the screenshot above are girls with mobile phones who work “in the fields”, i.e. their mobile phones are included in CRM as internal phones, and the kind guy “admin” is the most important boss who is concerned that Svetlana , Ekaterina and Olga worked as efficiently as possible, and did not chat on cell phones about their personal matters.

    We add intrigue to the scheme and fine-tune what we want from the integration of cellular communications and CRM in the PBX settings section

    If our girls run into the office only to sign a vacation application, and write all the reports at home after work and send them by email (for example, our girls are realtors), then some of the options can be disabled: pop-up cards when calling, click-to-call by client number, etc. and leave only statistics collection.

    If the girls work from the office, but the main device for calls is a mobile phone, then we turn on everything at once and see an incoming call to a mobile phone directly in CRM, just like an incoming call to an internal work phone (a person with the rare name Petr Petrov calls us) .

    Svetlana answers calls on her mobile, and the call is displayed in CRM and the call can be seen as a pop-up call card, and after the conversation is completed, a lead is automatically created in CRM, which is already a key entity in any business process of the sales department and this lead can be controlled.

    And if the kind manager “administrator” suddenly wants to check how kindly manager Ekaterina communicated on her mobile phone, while nervously smoking in the smoking room, with regular client Sergei Sergeevich, then no problem - go to the transaction card and listen to the recording.

    The transaction card stores the entire history of communication with the client both from the office phone and from the mobile phone, which leaves Ekaterina no chance to be rude to Sergei Sergeevich.

    If, after a smoking session, Ekaterina returns to her work computer and wants to call another client - Oleg Vikentievich - from her mobile phone, then she can do this with a slight movement of a well-groomed hand, simply by clicking on the phone number in the card, while the PBX initiates the call from Ekaterina’s mobile phone, and not from her work phone number. Sometimes this is simply necessary, because with a mobile phone you can again run away to the smoking room and there, in silence, solve all the necessary issues without unnecessary ears and embarrassment.

    The screenshot shows that AltegroCloud calls first the mobile phone, and then the client’s number. Ekaterina is not at work, but we see who, when and how many times she called and we can listen to the recording of the conversation.

    The story shown above is just an example of a single integration, there is nothing stunning or different from what we talked about before. Another thing is important here: our SIM cards, our virtual PBX and additional tools that were created over the six months of the service’s existence can be integrated with almost any other CRM or help desk and not just integrated using our ready-made API, but integrated as needed just for you, by adding a reasonable number of additional options and features, we are ready to do integrations manually.

    Who might be interested in this? Yes, to almost everyone: both clients who use their own, homemade (or simply “different”) CRM and developers of the same, “other,” or outlandish CRMs. In a word, we will be happy to listen to proposals for integrating our mobile platform with any other platform that is ready to be friends with telephony. Asterisk, Freeswitch, ShugaSRM and all other open-source and neo-open-source platforms, we are waiting for you, come to us, ask questions, let's discuss, let's jointly bring the sweet, kind, eternal into the world - new interesting telephone-mobile integrations, let's digitize the under-digitized and integrate the underintegrated. We are waiting for comments or direct questions and at the same time we continue, step by step, to describe how and in what direction our project is developing.

    Connecting a cloud PBX using the example of the Zadarma service

    Virtual automatic telephone exchanges (PBX) do not involve the work of an operator, do not require the purchase of special equipment, and their setup takes no more than one working day. You can provide your office with telephone communication using dozens of services. For the client, the difference will only be in the number of functions, ease of use and tariff schedule.

    The site contains instructions for entrepreneurs on how to set up a “cloud” PBX and combine it with a CRM system.

    The material was prepared with the support of the service.

    Virtual PBXs “telephonize” businesses (even those distributed in different cities or countries), create a structure for a call center almost free of charge and allow you to integrate your client base. Virtual PBX services are created in such a way as not to use programmers - all settings, for example, with a CRM system, are performed without programming skills.

    According to representatives of the Zadarma service, connecting to their virtual PBX takes no more than five minutes. It will take another five minutes to integrate with Bitrix24, AmoCRM or other CRMs.

    1. Registration and tariffs

    Zadarma has a standard registration process - the client needs to enter a name, email address and password. You do not need to send any documents until you purchase the number.

    After registration, the client selects a tariff. The service provides 30 test minutes or 20 rubles depending on the tariff.

    • The “Standard” tariff is suitable for starting any company. It has no subscription fee or minimum payments, provides per-second billing and 100 free minutes per month after replenishment. Discounts are possible for large clients.
    • The Economy tariff is for those who make few calls, but the conversation lasts several minutes. Calls are charged per minute, but the cost of calls is even lower than in the “Standard” tariff.
    • The corporate tariff is the largest package: 5000 minutes, 20 lines and per-second billing. Cost 3200 rubles per month. The tariff can be scaled by two, five or ten times for medium and large businesses.
    • There are also Free and Unlimited plans, but these are single-user and only provide one calling line: generally not suitable for business.

    You can top up your account either from a bank card or using payment services: Yandex.Money, QIWI, WebMoney and others. A corporate connection is available for businesses, you can make payments by bank transfer and receive a full set of documents for accounting.

    2. Select a number

    After connecting and choosing a tariff, the user needs to decide on a number. For example, if some of the entrepreneur’s clients are located in another country, it makes sense to register two numbers - one Russian, and the second in the country with the client base


    The process of connecting a foreign number does not differ from the standard one

    3. Final setup and integration with the client base

    Zadarma has a setup wizard that guides the client through the main stages: creating internal numbers, connecting an external line, setting up a voice menu and integrating with CRM.

    Creating internal numbers

    At the first stage, the client indicates the number of numbers he needs. Most often, the number of rooms equals the number of employees. For example, if there are ten people in a company’s call center, then the same number of numbers will be needed. Sometimes there are situations when more numbers are needed. For example, if one person is responsible for several areas of activity - sales and technical support. Zadarma supports up to 50 active numbers and their number can always be increased in your personal account.

    External Line Connection

    The outside line is the number that customers will call. By default, this is the connected phone number (or numbers). However, if the company still has an old number that customers can still call, it can also be connected to the PBX.

    Voice menu

    By setting up the voice menu, you can enter text that will be read by the robot. Voice menu items are also created here. When creating, it is worth considering some features. For example, do not put more than five menu items and start with priority areas. If customers most often call the sales department, then their item in the voice menu should come first.


    Connecting the PBX to the client database

    The Zadarma service gives clients the opportunity to connect their PBX to five CRM systems for free: Bitrix24, AmoCRM, PlanFix, RetailCRM and U-ON.Travel. This integration allows you to call clients from cards in the CRM system, see the client’s photo when calling, record conversations in CRM and analyze statistics. Integrations with other popular CRM systems will appear soon.


    There are several advantages of such integration. Firstly, the company's management can receive all the information about the client and his interaction with the company in one place. Secondly, the company does not lose a single call - all missed calls or unresolved problems are noted in the CRM.

    4. Additional features

    Organizing the call process and integrating telephony with CRM are the main functions of the PBX. But there are others that are used less frequently, but are useful in special cases. For example, in Zadarma you can create conferences among employees. You can also connect to them remotely by dialing your office phone from your mobile phone.

    To increase conversion, you can install a callback widget on your website. You need to choose a design and get a code for the site: the service is free, but you only have to pay directly for the calls themselves at the chosen tariff.

    After integrating the PBX with the client base, you can connect call recording. Then all calls with the client will be stored in his card.

    If a business’s call center does not operate 24 hours a day, there is a “Opening Hours” function in your Zadarma personal account. Activating it transfers all calls outside of business hours to an answering machine. For the same case, forwarding is needed - if the employee is not in the office, calls received on his work phone will be forwarded to his mobile phone.

    CRM systems are a software tool without which it is difficult to imagine the functioning of a modern business. Their development does not stand still, and their capabilities are constantly expanding due to the emergence of new options. One of them is integration with a virtual PBX, which allows you to automatically manage calls, save history, and also provides a lot of other benefits that optimize interactions with customers.

    PBX in CRM: features, advantages

    Why is telephony and CRM integration so popular? Firstly, it makes communication with customers more convenient. Secondly, it optimizes management and control in the company. Incoming calls are recorded automatically, and you can listen to the recording at any time. This allows you to improve control over employees and increase their efficiency.

    Main advantages:

    1. Possibility of automatic call distribution. Thus, the client’s call is automatically routed to the responsible operator, thereby saving time. In this case, the manager receives a notification about who is calling him (client data is displayed on the monitor).
    2. Simplifying outgoing calls. No dialing required. The saved telephone numbers of counterparties and customers are dialed automatically from the card.
    3. Saving call history. Possibility of control and statistics.

    For example, virtual PBX Mango Office, implemented in CRM, works as follows:

    • automatic call recognition;
    • number identification (it is displayed on the computer screen along with information about the caller).

    After reviewing the data, the employee receives important information before communicating with the client, which will allow him to quickly solve the problem and provide the necessary advice.

    To implement telephony, it is enough to install a special software module.

    Virtual PBX in practice of popular CRM

    The next update of Optima CRM provided users with the opportunity to use virtual telephony. Outgoing calls are made directly from the client's card, incoming calls are directed to the desired manager. If the call is from an unknown number, the program will offer to create a card. This CRM system allows you to listen to calls, download them at any time, and create reports.

    Applied retailCRM also allows you to integrate telephony with the database. Mango Office and Neocomms services are used, which connect in a matter of seconds. If the personal manager of the calling client is busy or absent, the call is redirected to a free operator. Information appears on the screen with the client’s last and first name, the history of interaction with him, and the purpose of the call.

    WireCRM is now complemented by Telfin telephony, which is easily installed and synchronized with mobile devices.

    OnlinePBX: integration with CRM

    OnlinePBX is a virtual PBX that can be connected in just a day using remote support. Its advantages:

    • voice menu;
    • grouping contacts;
    • correct distribution of calls in case of a queue;
    • voice greeting;
    • detailed statistics;
    • recording conversations;
    • possibility of connecting several operators.
    Read more: