Today’s world is digital and we are surrounded by applications from every side. If not many, there’s one essential application helping us in our day-to-day tasks. These applications deal with a range of data and speak their own languages. Often, these applications would need to communicate with each other to solve a problem. But with different languages, it is nearly impossible. That’s where API Integration comes in. 

So the API acts as a bridge between these applications, translating different languages to ensure smooth communication. API integration is a process of integrating such APIs within your applications so that different applications can exchange data seamlessly. 

Your company might want to build either internal or customer-facing API integrations, you will often need to align custom objects and fields to implement custom API integration.  

What is an API? 

An API is a set of functions that allow developers to connect two applications. Let’s simplify this information a bit. API is the point of contact between an application and its end users. It is the point where two apps can communicate and exchange data with each other. 

Understanding Custom API Integration 

With custom API integration– applications, third-party services, and backend services can communicate with each other seamlessly. It can be used for data exchange with cloud software, user registration, payment processing, and many others to elevate the user experience. 

How Does a Custom API Integration Work? 

The custom API integration process is quite complex. It gets trickier, depending on the services you would like to embed or the function you would like it to perform. To make a connection between two applications, a special identifier is used to transfer the requests and data. This is your API key to integrate both systems in order to allow seamless communication. The owner of an API provides the application with an ID, consisting of special characters. Entering the API key completes the authentication and configuration process for both systems.

Types of APIs

Public APIs– Public APIs, often referred to as “open APIs”, are interfaces available for developers around the world. You can find these APIs everywhere on the internet in many code libraries to integrate into your websites and applications. For example, Google offers its services as open APIs, where developers just have to sign in using the API key and they are all set to go! However, with so many developers using public APIs, they often lack adequate security measures. So if you choose to use a public API, use it cautiously. Recheck on the security checklist and that way you can minimize the risks associated with using them for your next in-house project. 

Partner APIs– Partner APIs are a type of shared interface available only to a fixed number of businesses. This particular API gives greater control of the functions. Partner APIs are much more secure as compared to public APIs since they have a restricted availability. 

Private API– A Private API is also known as internal API, which is designed for a specific organization. This type of API is not allowed to be used by external developers and third-party applications. They can only be developed and used by a single company, enterprise, or even within a single department to share information between different applications. 

Composite API- A composite API combines multiple APIs into one to provide a single interface for developers to access data and services. This means that developers don’t need to interact with multiple APIs separately, instead, they can combine all of them into one composite API that can pull information from them all at once. Composite API is especially for those businesses who need to integrate information from different systems into their own applications so there is no need to create custom integrations for each individual system.

API Integration Examples 

Have a look at these API integration use cases across different applications- 

1. The notification message is sent to a Slack channel automatically when an employee event occurs– Throughout your employee’s journey, they will probably achieve various milestones or achievements that are worth bringing attention to like someone getting a promotion, or reaching a work anniversary, etc. To encourage your team members for their efforts, you can integrate an API with a communication platform like Slack, and build a workflow where once a particular object gets updated within the employee’s profile, a customized message is sent directly to their Slack channel. 
2. Add signed documents to your file storage application– Whether it is a contract with a client or an offer letter– you would want to store the document securely and in a safe location. To do that effortlessly, you can integrate your e-signature application with your file storage platform. From there, you can implement a workflow where the system adds a signed document to a fixed folder in your file storage platform every time someone signs it.
3. Social media integration– Social media integrations are the most common in modern applications. A large number of internet users are on social media and want to integrate it with other apps they use. Like Facebook and Google login, you might have noticed in some apps that when you go to the signup page, there is an option to register yourself using social media accounts like Google or Facebook. You don’t need to enter every personal detail into the application. You just need to verify yourself to log in. The “share” button is another example of social media integration which allows users to share content from an application to their other social media accounts. Whenever a user clicks on the share button, the app’s API activates to authenticate and authorize the user.
4. Location tracking– In this example, the location of a particular user can be shared from one application to another using API integration. Like ride-sharing apps, they use the location of both the driver and the customer to display the distance between them. Apps like Uber also use map integration to find a convenient and best route from the source to the destination. WhatsApp also gives users the option to share their location. When a user shares their location, the app fetches the coordinates from the map and shares it with the other user. The app on the receiver’s end uses the same coordinates to display the sender’s location on the map. 

Benefits of API Integration 

1. It offers high performance. It transfers information in milliseconds, enabling employees to access data instantly. Changes to your application’s UI do not affect API integrations, making them suitable for the long run.
2. With API integrations, employees can eliminate the extra step needed to switch between apps for the data they need. This saves a significant amount of time which they can reallocate to other important tasks. 
3. No individual is born with immunity to mistakes. They will inevitably make errors if they take on the task of updating applications themselves. For example, if someone asks an employee to update the “achievements” and “birthdays” of everyone working in a company, he is likely to make a mistake. So API integration minimizes the chances of any manual errors, facilitating a smoother workflow in companies.
4. If your business is B2B, you might want to partner with other businesses or 3rd party software integration to sell your product. API integrations can help to strengthen your partnership. For example, you can create a custom API to share new clients and provide sales data. Your business partners can then utilize this API and integrate it within their own systems to allow them to quickly become aware of the newly acquired clients. 

In Summary

As the world of technology keeps evolving, companies have no choice but to adapt custom API development. This is crucial for any modern application, be it a mobile app or a website. APIs are a great way to simplify your workflow, save some time for your employees, add new services, or expand your application. No application seems complete without custom API integration services. A social media app or an e-commerce app needs integration to facilitate the exchange of data between applications. With public APIs, you can find the perfect one for your business, among many options. Or even if you want to keep it highly secured, you can create your private API. 

Want to know how we can build integrations for your company safely and effectively? Contact us to learn more about our strategies and approach to building custom APIs.