5 Excel tasks you can automate with Zoho RPA

Introduction

For many teams, Excel remains a staple of daily operations, tracking inventory, managing reports, organizing employee data, and more.

The real challenge isn't using Excel itself, but the repetitive work that comes with it: updating records, uploading files, and filling out forms. It takes time, increases the chance of errors, and pulls focus from higher-value work.

But Zoho RPA can handle these repetitive Excel tasks behind the scenes, helping teams save time and stay focused. Here are five practical ways it's being used across teams.

Real-world ways to automate Excel with Zoho RPA

Zoho RPA goes beyond just automating Excel—it manages the entire flow of information between Excel and other business applications. Here are some real-world use cases:

Product image upload from Excel

Problem statement

An inventory coordinator receives an Excel sheet with product details like name, code, image file name, and image path. For about 150 products, they need to find each image from a local folder and upload it to the right product in Zoho Inventory using the code. Doing this manually takes hours and can easily lead to mistakes.

How Zoho RPA helps

• The bot starts working when a new Excel sheet with product-to-image mappings is added to a folder.
• It reads each row to extract the product code and the related image file name.
• It searches the local drive for matching image files.
• Then it logs in to Zoho Inventory and uploads the correct image for each product.
• It also logs the upload status for easy tracking and verification.

Real impact: This saves time and prevents mismatches, ensuring that product images are uploaded quickly and correctly.

Product return claims to e-commerce portals

Problem statement

An operations team that manages returns for multiple marketplaces typically works with a file named Returns_JulyWeek4.xlsx. For each row, they need to log in to their e-commerce platform, fill out the return claim, and upload product images. This process is tedious, especially when time is of the essence.

How Zoho RPA helps

• The bot activates when a new Excel sheet with return data is added to the folder.
• It reads each item’s name, reason for return, and image file location.
• It logs in to the relevant e-commerce platform.
• Then it fills out the return form and uploads the necessary images for each item.

Real impact: This streamlines return filing across platforms, reduces delays, and improves accuracy in processing claims.

Candidate image upload to HR portal

Problem statement

Every month, the HR team prepares a file called NewHires_July.xlsx, containing details of around 100 newly joined employees, including their names and profile image file paths. The team manually logs in to the internal HR portal, searches for each employee’s record, and uploads their photo. This is repetitive, time-consuming, and causes problems during onboarding season.

How Zoho RPA helps

• The bot runs on a schedule, like the first of every month.
• It reads each row from the Excel sheet containing employee names and their image file paths.
• It finds the corresponding employee profile in the HR system like SAP or SuccessFactors.
• Then it uploads the image to the correct record.

Real impact: This makes the onboarding process smoother by reducing repetitive work and ensuring every employee profile is updated without delay.

Email campaign segmentation

Problem statement

The marketing team uses a sheet called Leads_Segmentation_Q3.xlsx. Every week, they need to segment leads into hot, warm, and cold categories based on scores and regions, and then push the lists to Zoho Campaigns. Doing it manually slows down campaign execution.

How Zoho RPA helps

• The bot detects when this lead segmentation file is created or updated.
• It reads each lead’s details from the Excel sheet, like score, location, and other fields.
• It classifies leads into hot, warm, and cold segments in separate sheets.
• Then it pushes the segmented Excel sheets to Zoho Campaigns automatically.

Real impact: This helps the marketing team move faster by keeping campaigns aligned with the latest lead data, without any manual sorting or uploads.

Insurance form filling via Excel

Problem statement

An agency receives a file named Client_Insurance_Forms.xlsx, listing dozens of clients and their insurance details. The operations executive has to manually copy each client’s info and submit it on an external portal. It's repetitive and prone to data entry errors.

How Zoho RPA helps

• The bot is scheduled to run every month.
• It opens the Excel sheet with all the client insurance information.
• It accesses the insurance portal and navigates to the web form.
• Then it fills in each field using the correct client data and submits the form.

Real impact: This speeds up form submissions and reduces the risk of manual entry errors, which is especially helpful when handling large volumes of client data.

Why use Zoho RPA for Excel automation?

If your team deals with this kind of repetitive work using Excel, automation can take that load off your hands. Zoho RPA handles those tasks in the background, freeing up time and reducing the risk of errors. Here's how it helps simplify Excel-based work:

Works like a human, but faster

It reads, writes, and interacts with Excel files just like a user would, only with more speed and zero fatigue.

Triggers based on real activity

You can kick off workflows when a file is added, a schedule hits, or data comes in from another system.

Moves data across tools automatically

Whether it's syncing with a CRM, sending emails, or filling out web forms, Zoho RPA connects Excel to the rest of your tech stack.

Prebuilt Excel actions, ready to go

All essential Excel operations come as predefined actions you can simply drag and drop into your workflow.

Grows with your operations

It’s easy to scale workflows across teams, use cases, and departments as your business evolves.

Automate Excel tasks in 3 simple steps

• Install the Zoho RPA Agent on your system to let bots access Excel files securely.
• Set a trigger to start the workflow, like a file upload, schedule, or external input.
• Build your workflow with prebuilt Excel tasks to read, update, or move data across apps.

Conclusion

With Zoho RPA, simple Excel tasks can evolve into smart workflows across systems, syncing data, filling in forms, connecting tools, and bridging the gap between manual work and full automation.

Ready to see it in action?

Get a demo