How to connect Salesforce to ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign plans
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Enterprise


The
ActiveCampaign Salesforce integration provides a two-way sync between your ActiveCampaign account and your Salesforce account.

This integration lets you:

  • Add Salesforce leads and contacts into ActiveCampaign
  • Add ActiveCampaign contacts into Salesforce as contacts and leads
  • Sync updates between the two platforms when a contact or lead record changes in either platform
  • Sync Salesforce Opportunities to ActiveCampaign
  • Create a bi-directional sync between your ActiveCampaign account fields and Salesforce account object fields
  • Send a campaign created in ActiveCampaign to a lead or contact from their Salesforce record
  • Enter the lead or contact into an automation created in ActiveCampaign from their Salesforce record

This article will show you how to install and set up the integration.

Take note

  • You need a Salesforce account with Lightning Experience enabled to use this integration. This will not work with Salesforce Classic
  • You will configure and manage this integration through your Salesforce account
  • Your Salesforce administrator will need to complete the integration setup. They will also need to add the ActiveCampaign components to the Lead and Contact page layouts in Salesforce
  • You can connect your Salesforce account to only one ActiveCampaign account
  • Leads and contacts in Salesforce need to have an email address to sync to ActiveCampaign
  • This integration does not support Salesforce Person Accounts
  • To uninstall the ActiveCampaign Salesforce integration, see this Salesforce help article on uninstalling a package. Once the package is uninstalled, data will no longer sync between Salesforce and ActiveCampaign. In addition, you will not be able to use any of the ActiveCampaign components in your Salesforce account. Previously synced data will not be deleted
  • You must manually update your integration when new versions of the Salesforce integration are available. This gives you more control over updates and helps you avoid unexpected disruptions. Learn how to update your managed package

Set up your custom domain for Salesforce Lightning

To install the ActiveCampaign for Salesforce app, you must set up a custom domain for Salesforce Lightning. If you already have a domain enabled, you can skip this step.

  1. From your Salesforce account, click the gear icon. Then click "Setup."
  2. Click "Company Settings" then "My Domain."
  3. Type the domain into the field provided and click the "Check Availability" button.
  4. After the domain has been registered, refresh the page. You'll want to wait about five minutes before refreshing the page.
  5. Click the "Log in" button to log back into your Salesforce account using the new custom domain you registered.
  6. Click the "Deploy to users" button.

Install the ActiveCampaign Salesforce app

In this section, we'll show you how to install the ActiveCampaign Salesforce app in your Salesforce account.

  1. From your Salesforce account, click the dots on the top left of your account, then click the "Visit AppExchange" button.
  2. Search for ActiveCampaign, then click the ActiveCampaign app.
    ActiveCampaign_app_in_Salesforce.png
  3. Click the "Get it now" button.
  4. A "Log in to AppExchange" modal will appear. Click the "Open Login Screen" button.
  5. An "Allow Access?" modal will open. Click the "Allow" button to allow Salesforce to access your ActiveCampaign account.
  6. Click the "Install Here" button in the "Install in This Org" box.
  7. Click the "Terms and conditions" box and then the "Confirm and Install" button.
  8. Click the "Install for Admins Only" option, then click the "Install" button. Note that admins will be able to assign permissions to Salesforce users.
  9. An "Approve Third-Party Access" modal window will appear. Click the box for "Yes, grant access to these third-party websites" then click the "Continue" button.

The application will begin to install in your Salesforce account. When the application is installed, it will be listed in your Salesforce App Launcher, where you can begin configuring it.

Assign permission sets to Salesforce users

There are two permission sets for Salesforce users:

  • ActiveCampaign Package Manager Permission set
    Available with version 1.38. This is for user(s) who will configure and maintain the integration. 
  • ActiveCampaign Standard User Permission set
    This is for user(s) who will interact with ActiveCampaign components and view activities.
Assign the ActiveCampaign Package Manager Permission set

To correctly install the ActiveCampaign Managed Care Package in your Salesforce account:

  • The ActiveCampaign Package Manager permission set must be applied to user(s) who will configure and maintain the application
  • The user must have a System Administrator profile. This will ensure the proper access to the Salesforce organization settings

Assign the ActiveCampaign Package Manager Permission set

  1. In your Salesforce account, click the gear icon, then click "Setup."
    salesforce_setup.png
  2. Click "Users" in the left menu. The Users menu will expand.
  3. Click "Permission Sets."
  4. The Permission Sets page will load. Click "ActiveCampaign Package Manager."
  5. The "ActiveCampaign Package Manager" permission set will open. Click the "Manage Assignments" button.
  6. Click the "Add Assignments" button.
  7. Check the box next to the user(s) to which you would like to assign the permission set.
  8. Click the "Assign" button.
Assign the ActiveCampaign Standard User Permission set

Once the ActiveCampaign for Salesforce app is installed, you can give specific users in your Salesforce account permission to interact with ActiveCampaign components and view ActiveCampaign activities.

This permission set should be applied to all users updating Salesforce records for synced contacts and leads. Once this permission is set:

  • The ActiveCampaign Salesforce integration will track changes made to synced contact and lead records
  • Updated contact and lead records will have a "Waiting for next sync" status in Salesforce. This will allow the integration to sync updates to ActiveCampaign

Assign the ActiveCampaign Standard User Permission set

  1. In your Salesforce account, click the gear icon, then click "Setup."
    salesforce_setup__2_.png
  2. Click "Users" in the left menu. The Users menu will expand.
  3. Click "Permission Sets."
  4. The Permissions Sets page will open. Click "ActiveCampaign Standard User."
  5. The "ActiveCampaign Standard User" permission set will open. Click the "Manage Assignments" button.
  6. Click the "Add Assignments" button.
  7. Check the box next to the user(s) to which you would like to assign the permission set.

  8. Click the "Assign" button.

Setup Step 1: System Connections

After installing the ActiveCampaign application in your Salesforce account, you can set up the connection between the two platforms. Doing so will permit both accounts to send data to each other.

In this step, you will access the ActiveCampaign Setup Assistant, add your ActiveCampaign API key to Salesforce, and authorize the ActiveCampaign account to access your Salesforce account.

This setup is done through your Salesforce account and should take a few moments to complete.

Access the "ActiveCampaign Setup Assistant"
  1. Click the dots in the top left corner from your Salesforce account to open the App Launcher.
  2. Click the "ActiveCampaign Setup Assistant" app. The Setup page will load.
  3. Click the "Get Started" button.
Add your ActiveCampaign API key to Salesforce
  1. On the System Connections page under API access, type your ActiveCampaign account name in the Account Name field provided. Your ActiveCampaign account name is part of your account login URL.
  2. Provide your ActiveCampaign API key.
  3. Click the "Authorize" button to authorize API access.

    If authorization is successful, you'll see a green bar that says "Connected." If it is unsuccessful, you will see a red bar displaying an error message. If you receive an error message, double-check that your account name and API key are accurate and click the "Authorize" button again.

  4. Click the "Next" button to go to the "Authorize ActiveCampaign to Salesforce" screen.
Authorize ActiveCampaign to Salesforce
  1. On the "Authorize ActiveCampaign to Salesforce" screen, you'll see a black bar that says "Not Connected." This screen will look similar to the API access screen. Click the "Authorize" button.
  2. A Salesforce sign-in modal will appear. Type your Salesforce account username and password into the fields provided.
  3. Click the "Log In" button and complete the Salesforce login form.
  4. Next, you'll be asked to give ActiveCampaign access to your Salesforce account. To allow access, click the "Allow" button.

    If authorization is successful, you'll see a green bar that says "Connected." If it is unsuccessful, you will see a red bar displaying an error message. If you receive an error message, try reconnecting again.

  5. Click the "Finish" button.

You will be redirected to the main Setup page and "System Connections" will have a green checkmark.

Setup Step 2: Dynamic field mapping

With the Dynamic Field mapping step, you can map contact fields from ActiveCampaign to contact and lead fields in Salesforce.

If you have an Enterprise account, you can set up a bi-directional sync between your ActiveCampaign account fields and Salesforce account object fields.

  • For Contact and Lead Field Mapping: You choose how data will sync between Salesforce and ActiveCampaign for each field. This is not available for Account field mapping.
    • For ActiveCampaign to Salesforce:
      • Always allow ActiveCampaign to update Salesforce
      • Only update if empty Salesforce
      • Never allow ActiveCampaign to update
    • For Salesforce to ActiveCampaign:
      • Always allow Salesforce to update
      • Only update if empty in ActiveCampaign
      • Never allow Salesforce to update
  • Standard Lead and Standard Contact field mapping will already be configured for you. However, you can choose to override the default mapping and use your own
  • It is not possible to map deal fields from ActiveCampaign to any fields in Salesforce
  • Decimals, commas, and currency symbols are supported if you map to an ActiveCampaign text input field. Learn about supported field mapping combinations

To access Dynamic Field Mapping, click the "Continue" button on the ActiveCampaign setup page.

Map standard lead fields

Standard lead field mapping is configured for you for most fields. The mapped ActiveCampaign fields include:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Email
  • Phone
  • Account

If you want to modify the default mappings, use the dropdowns under "Salesforce Field" to select the fields you wish to map to.

Next, select your preferred sync options under "ActiveCampaign to Salesforce" and "Salesforce to ActiveCampaign."

Click the "Next" button to proceed to Custom Lead Field mapping or any field mapping option at the top of the page to jump to that section. 

Map custom leads fields

Map ActiveCampaign custom contact fields to Salesforce custom lead fields. Custom fields are fields that you create to capture and store extra information about your contacts and leads.

If you wish to skip this step, click the "Next" button to proceed to the next mapping option, or click any field mapping option at the top of the page to jump to that section.

Map an ActiveCampaign custom contact field to a Salesforce custom lead field:

  1. Click the "Add Mapping" button. A row will appear with two dropdown fields. The left dropdown contains all ActiveCampaign custom contact fields, and the right dropdown contains all Salesforce lead fields.
  2. Click the "Select ActiveCampaign Field" dropdown and click the custom field you wish to map. All custom contact fields you created in ActiveCampaign are listed in this dropdown.
  3. Click the dropdown under "Salesforce Field" and select the Salesforce field you wish to map the ActiveCampaign custom field to. Complete steps 1-3 above to map additional custom fields from ActiveCampaign.
  4. Select your preferred sync options under "ActiveCampaign to Salesforce" and "Salesforce to ActiveCampaign."
  5. Complete steps 1-4 above to map additional custom fields from ActiveCampaign. 
  6. Once you've finished mapping custom fields, click the "Next" button.
Map standard contact fields

Standard contact field mapping is configured for you. The mapped ActiveCampaign fields include:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Email
  • Phone

Next, select your preferred sync options under "ActiveCampaign to Salesforce" and "Salesforce to ActiveCampaign."

Click the "Next" button to proceed to Custom Contact Field mapping or any field mapping option at the top of the page to jump to that section. 

Map custom contact fields

Map ActiveCampaign custom contact fields to Salesforce custom contact fields. You create Custom fields to capture and store extra information about your contacts and leads.

If you wish to skip this step, click the "Next" button to proceed to the next mapping option, or click any field mapping option at the top of the page to jump to that section.

Map an ActiveCampaign custom contact field to a Salesforce custom contact field:

  1. Click the "Add Mapping" button. A row will appear with two dropdown fields. The left dropdown contains all ActiveCampaign custom contact fields, and the right dropdown contains all Salesforce lead fields.
  2. Click the "Select ActiveCampaign Field" dropdown and click the custom field you wish to map. Note that all custom contact fields you've created in ActiveCampaign will be listed in this dropdown.
  3. Click the dropdown under "Salesforce Field" and select the Salesforce field you wish to map the ActiveCampaign custom field to. 
  4. Select your preferred sync options under "ActiveCampaign to Salesforce" and "Salesforce to ActiveCampaign."
  5. Complete steps 1-4 above to map additional custom fields from ActiveCampaign.
  6. Once you've finished mapping custom fields, click the "Next" button.
Enterprise plans: Map Account fields

If you have an Enterprise ActiveCampaign account, you can set up a bi-directional sync between your ActiveCampaign account fields and Salesforce account object fields.

  1. Click the "Salesforce Account Field Mapping" toggle to set it to the "On" position.
  2. The ActiveCampaign Account field is mapped to the Salesforce Account Name field for you. To map additional account fields, click the "Add Mapping" button.
  3. Click the "Select ActiveCampaign Field" dropdown and click the field you wish to map. Note that all Account fields you've created in ActiveCampaign will be listed in this dropdown.
  4. Click the dropdown under "Salesforce Field" and select the Salesforce field to which you wish to map the ActiveCampaign field. Complete steps 2-4 above to map all desired Account fields from ActiveCampaign.
  5. Once you've finished mapping fields, click the "Next" button.
Starter plans: Map an ActiveCampaign field to the Salesforce Account Name field

If you are on a Starter ActiveCampaign plan, you can set up a bi-directional sync between any custom field in your ActiveCampaign account and the Salesforce Account Name field.

You can only map one field from ActiveCampaign to the Account Name field in Salesforce. Additional mapping is not available on the Starter plan.

  1. Click the "Salesforce Account Field Mapping" toggle to set it to the "On" position.
  2. Click the "Select ActiveCampaign Field" dropdown and click the field you wish to map.
  3. Click the dropdown under "Salesforce Field" and select the Salesforce field to which you wish to map the ActiveCampaign field.
  4. Once you've finished mapping fields, click the "Next" button.
Map Salesforce opportunities

Sync the Salesforce Opportunity object and object fields to your ActiveCampaign account. To do so, click the toggle to set it to the "On" position.

For this iteration of the Salesforce Integration, we will have the following fields mapped for you:

  • Name
  • Amount
  • Stage
  • Close Date

These mappings cannot be reconfigured.

To learn more about syncing Salesforce opportunities, requirements, and additional automation triggers, visit How Salesforce Opportunities work with ActiveCampaign.

To move to the next step of the Setup, click the "Finish" button.

You will be redirected to the Setup page, and "Dynamic Field Mapping" will have a green checkmark.

Setup Step 3: Configure outbound sync settings

In this step, you determine which Salesforce leads and contacts will sync to ActiveCampaign and how often the sync will run. This includes:

  • Sync leads and contacts to ActiveCampaign. This will create a new contact record in ActiveCampaign
  • Sync updates to contact and lead records. This will push an update to contact records in ActiveCampaign when updates are made to records in Salesforce for synced contacts and leads

To access Outbound Sync Settings, click the "Continue" button on the ActiveCampaign setup page.

  Read the "How syncing works with the ActiveCampaign Salesforce integration" article to learn how syncing works.

  Note: For Enterprise plans, we'll sync Account object data if the contact being synced is associated with an Account. No additional configuration is needed.

Lead sync selection

Select which leads should sync to ActiveCampaign by clicking any of the following options:

  • Not using Leads
    Select this option if you are not syncing leads from Salesforce into ActiveCampaign.
  • All Leads created from this point forward
    This will sync all leads created in Salesforce after this setting is saved.
  • Leads marked via Process Builder or other custom method
    This will sync all leads whose “ActiveCampaign Sync Status” field value is “Waiting For Next Sync.”
  • Only leads that match certain criteria 
    This will sync all leads that match the rules you set when selecting this option. Note that you can use more than one condition here. If using more than one condition, a lead must meet ALL conditions set in this step to sync to ActiveCampaign.

When finished, click the "Next" button

Contact sync selection

Select which contacts should sync to ActiveCampaign by clicking any of the following options:

  • Not using Contacts
    Select this option if you are not syncing contacts from Salesforce into ActiveCampaign.
  • All Contacts created from this point forward
    This will sync all contacts created in Salesforce after this setting is saved.
  • Contacts marked via Process Builder or other custom method
    This will sync all contacts whose “ActiveCampaign Sync Status” field value is “Waiting For Next Sync.”
  • Only Contacts that match certain criteria
    This will sync all contacts that match the rules you set when selecting this option. Note that you can use more than one condition here. If using more than one condition, a contact must meet ALL conditions set in this step to sync to ActiveCampaign.

When finished, click the "Next" button.

Job schedule

On the Job Schedule page, you determine how often data will sync from Salesforce to ActiveCampaign. This sync setting will apply to:

  • Leads and contacts syncing for the first time to ActiveCampaign from Salesforce
  • Updating previously synced contacts in ActiveCampaign with information from Salesforce

Configure the sync frequency:

  1. Click the dropdown labeled "Job Frequency" on the left.
  2. Click one of the following options: Every hour, Every 2 hours, Every 3 hours, Every 4 hours, Every 6 hours, Every 8 hours, Every 12 hours, Once Daily.
  3. If "Once Daily" is selected, select when the sync should start each day. To do so, click the "Job Start Time" dropdown on the right and click the time you wish to perform data syncs. All other Job Frequency options will start as soon as possible after the setup is complete. 
  4. When finished, click the "Schedule" button and the "Finish" button

To change the Job Frequency you set, click the "Remove Job" button and make the desired changes. Then click the "Schedule" button.

"Other Scheduled Jobs" shows scheduled jobs in your organization. These are not associated with ActiveCampaign. 

Setup Step 4: Enable the ActiveCampaign CX Automation component

If you wish to use the ActiveCampaign CX (Customer Experience) Automation component, you'll need to enable it from the ActiveCampaign Setup page in your Salesforce account. The ActiveCampaign CX Automation component requires Salesforce Lightning.

The ActiveCampaign CX Automation component lets you do the following right from a contact or lead record in Salesforce:

  • Send a campaign created in ActiveCampaign to a lead or contact
  • Enter the lead or contact into an automation you created in ActiveCampaign

To set this component up, click the "Continue" button on the ActiveCampaign setup page. Then click the "Finish" button.

For more information about components, visit How to add ActiveCampaign components and fields to Salesforce

View the Salesforce integration in ActiveCampaign

Once the Salesforce integration is set up, we'll display the connection in your ActiveCampaign account. As a reminder, this integration can only be set up and managed from your Salesforce account.

To see the connected integration:

  1. Click the gear icon or "Settings" in your ActiveCampaign account.
  2. Click "Integrations" on the left menu.

The Salesforce integration will be listed.

Integration next steps

Review the following resources for next steps and additional information about this integration.

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