API integration is the option for custom integration with Connectif It offers full control over the data sent but only allows you to synchronize Contacts, Products, Purchases and Vouchers. All other events must be integrated using one of the other options – HTML tags or JavaScript events.
To perform this type of integration, you will need an expert with programming knowledge, to obtain data from your ecommerce and make HTTP calls to a REST API.
Before you start: advantages and limitations of an API integration
Advantages:
- It does not depend on the client, as it is an HTTP call where you can control the response received to ensure that the event arrived and was processed correctly.
- It allows for mass imports, while other options are always updated one by one.
The possible limitations of an API integration are as follows:
- It requires an IT department able to make the necessary Connectif API calls.
- There is a maximum number of API calls per minute, so for mass operations we recommend using the import API, where a single call can synchronize multiple elements.
- It is not possible to integrate all events through the API – you’ll need to combine this with one of the other integration options.
Learn how the Connectif API works in this article.
How to integrate Connectif via API
1. Add Connectif JavaScript
Configure the Connectif JavaScript on the website to load on all pages and integrate via events.
2. Synchronize via API
Configure the synchronization of information about:
- Contacts: para to register the data of visitors to the ecommerce site.
- Products: to synchronize the catalog.
- Purchases: to describe purchases made by customers
- Vouchers: to synchronize voucher codes and their uses.
3. Synchronize all other events by another method
3.1. HTML tags rendered on the server or the client:
- "Current cart status" tag: to describe the contact’s shopping cart at a given moment.
- "Page tag": to assign a tag to a page.
- “Page Category" tag: to assign a product category to a page.
- "Contact has visited a product" tag: to report that the contact has visited a specific product while browsing the website.
The synchronization of the product catalog will be made via API, so you will need to disable automatic synchronization and verification. To send the "Contact has visited product" event, it is not necessary for the HTML to be rendered on the server.
- "Contact has searched for a product" tag: to identify a visit to a product as a direct result of a product search.
- “Contact has logged in” tag: to indicate that the contact has logged in.
- “Contact has registered” tag: to indicate a new registration.
- "Newsletter subscription" tag: to indicate that a contact has subscribed to the newsletter.
3.2. Events sent via JavaScript:
- Page visited notification: to report that the contact has visited a page while surfing the web.
- Product visited notification: to report that the contact has visited a specific product while browsing the website.
- Cart information notification: to describe the contact’s shopping cart at a given time.
- Notification of search performed: to indicate that a search has been performed and to identify the terms used.
- Login notification: to indicate that the contact is logged in.
- Registration notification: to indicate a new registration.
- Newsletter subscription notification: to indicate that a contact has subscribed to the newsletter.
5. Configuring Web Push notifications
To complete the integration you will also need to configure the Service Worker to receive Web Push subscriptions and send notifications to your contacts.
6. Validate the integration
Once you’ve implemented the sending of information to Connectif, the next step is to confirm that the integration has been carried out correctly.
Congratulations!
You’ve reached the end of the tutorial.
Do you have questions?
Don’t forget, our Connectif specialists are here to help you. To contact them, just open a Support ticket by clicking the blue “Help” button on your dashboard.
Keep learning!
To make the most of your Connectif account, we recommend reading these articles next:
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Onboarding, to learn all about our interface.
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Initial workflows, to implement your first strategies in your account.
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Integrations with external systems, to integrate your Facebook, website forms and webhooks.
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Events that use your Activity allowance, to understand your account consumption better.