Expanding the Scope of CRM Integrations

At Advension we are experts in CRM and integrations. Since starting the company (and even before) we have scoped, built and maintained hundreds of integrations. While every project is different, the core of most of them is similar: integrating data.

When businesses reach a certain level, they start integrating their CRM with other platforms. The immediate thought when starting an integration project is almost always data. Consolidating customer data from various sources is genuinely crucial.

However, focusing only on data overlooks the true potential. The real power of a CRM is being a multifunctional platform that includes not only data but process automation.

What is process automation

In a perfect world the CRM sits in the middle of the business and takes care of all processes. The world is rarely perfect, and multiple platforms are often needed. we support this: the right tool for the right job.

To make multiple systems work together, data integration matters. But whether you want to issue a refund from the webshop, start a marketing campaign, or modify data in an old mainframe, starting a process in another system can be a better route than a complicated data integration. Salesforce is strong in all types of integration and offers several ways to do this.

RPA and robots

Many of our banking and insurance clients still run mainframe systems that are hard to integrate, often on-premise, with no APIs exposed internally or externally. Robotic process automation is frequently used to interact with them.

Salesforce added Einstein Automate to make this easier. MuleSoft RPA helps automate repetitive tasks, and Digital Process Automation lets you create workflows with minimal code. These keep data accurate and let employees focus on work that needs a human.

API

Salesforce is an API-first platform, which makes it convenient to use standard connectors or build on top of them. You can build custom API modules that are reusable from Flows, Apex or Lightning Web Components, good for building triggers reused across business areas.

Standard connectors

Don’t reinvent the wheel. Salesforce has a number of standard connectors, and there are more on AppExchange or in middleware. Always check these before building your own.

Remember the callback

You have made a process integration triggering functionality in another application, but did it execute successfully? You don’t want to go and check that system for status; the whole point was not consulting multiple platforms. Always add a callback when integrating processes, so you know everything went as expected, or can take action when it didn’t.