Integration means combining two different systems, portals, applications, etc with each other in order to make them as one application. Integration is very widely implemented nowadays because it unlocks many functionalities and gives us the full power of our data. There are lots of other features that integration provides us with. It all depends upon the application which we want to integrate with each other.
For instance, you have an eCommerce business and you are using two platforms for managing all your data like inventory, customer, orders, etc. Now, you need to manually save or update each of your data in both the systems. But imagine how amazing it would be if you get a bridge-like connection where you only work on one platform and whatever action you are performing on it gets synchronized on the other too. This will save you a lot of time. This is what integration is. Integration is that bridge that can help you achieve your goal.
We all are already well-aware of what Salesforce is and what are its features. Salesforce also comes with integration. We can integrate our Salesforce org with any other Salesforce org and also with many different platforms like Mulesoft, Shopify, Google, and many more. Salesforce Integration gives us the power to control data, functionalities, and many other features.
That said, it is also true that we make some mistakes while integrating two applications/platforms.
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Below are some of the most common mistakes that we face while performing Salesforce integration:
Starting without a clear scope
This is very important to an organization and its partners that one must have a clear scope and understanding of the project in which they are going to implement integration. To avoid mishaps, pre-planning and defining the goals of integration is needed. By doing this, we can pre-analyze our goals and decisions.
Having a master system
Before proceeding further, this must be decided which system will be the master system to store/record all data so that if any other system’s data get mismatched then the master system will be there for correction. If we leave this decision for later, there will be many problems related to that data that will crop up in an unprecedented manner. In order to avoid this, we must define a master system for our project.
Mapping the wrong data
As we are combining/integrating two systems, the data mapping in both of them must be in the correct order so as to avoid data mismatching. If the data in two systems is wrongly mapped then the whole project can collapse. To avoid this, every field must be mapped properly with the fields of other systems. By doing this, we can avoid the additional efforts of the team.
Exceeding API limits
As we know Salesforce is multi-tenant and everyone shares the same platform, Salesforce experts have defined a limit of 1,00,000 API calls/day to make sure that the service levels and quality of the system remain constant.
We can lower down the frequency of our application and if there is any requirement for a high API, we can purchase some additional API calls to fulfill our requirement.
Entering bad data
To enter bad data is not a good option for the integration as this affects the whole functionality of the project. Hence, it is always suggested that before moving with the integration, one must remove/clean bad or obsolete data from the systems that are to be integrated. Doing this early also helps in setting up the data validation rules.
Implementing system architecture correctly
The Force.com platform comes with many in-build functionalities that provide us with many features where we do not need to write any code to perform any action. We can use point and click tools to process our tasks. If our system architecture is proper, then we can avoid hiking up the time and cost of the project.
We can implement a proper functioning system architecture by:
- Making a prototype before proceeding for development.
- Skipping coding for the part where we can use the configuration of the Force.com platform.
- Using the correct programming language like Apex to create a robust system architecture.
Lacking data management strategy
There must be a data management strategy to avoid any problem. Data management must be defined in such a way that there should not be any type of conflict occurrence in fields, mapping of data, etc.
Omitting QA and UAT
Most people think that testing is not mandatory in case of integration and this results in the failure of their projects badly. QA is an important phase in the project development and implementation. QA does the deep and thorough testing and checks out any possible issues, whereas, in UAT, business users verify that correct data is rolling in and out in their project.
In order to move forward with our integration, we must consider the following three phases:
- 1. Pre-planning of the whole project where the whole team can analyze what the project is all about and how things are going to be executed. Documentation also comes under pre-planning.
- 2. Decision making is a key aspect of any process. Information gathered during pre-planning must be discussed further in order to make fruitful decisions for the project.
- 3. Execution is the part where all things come into action. This includes each task like development, implementation, testing, etc. This must be done in the proper way as decided in the pre-planning and decision-making phase.
Organizations that follow the above-mentioned points and dodge all the possible mistakes are more likely to boost their chances of success in any part of the SDLC. If you are looking for an expert Salesforce consultant, you can contact us here!
Pratyush Kumar
