Yash Shah (00:03.586)
Thank you Harsh for being so excited.
Okay, I think we are live. Let's assume that we are.
We have a few visitors also. So perfect. So then we are good to go. Yes. Three, two, one, let's start. Hello and welcome to Momentum Office Hours. My name is Yash and I'm joined by my co-founders Harsh, Jay and Kaushik to discuss topic of the week, which is Mastering Integrations, APIs and IFTTT for SaaS firms. Our goal is to provide you with actionable insights and practical strategies that you can apply to your own products.
Throughout the session, we encourage you to engage with us, asking questions and sharing your thoughts. This is a fantastic opportunity to learn from each other and gain new insights that can help drive your SaaS initiatives forward. So let's get started. Jay, Harsh, Kaushik, how are we doing today? Yes, doing great today. Doing good? That's our work. shifted our office. So I lost a great background that used to be there.
Hopefully we'll get something similar to that very, very soon. And coming to the conversation that we want to have today, Mastering integrations, APIs, and IFTTT for SaaS firms. So let's start with the open-ended general question. What is IFTTT? What are APIs? Why do I, if I'm running a SaaS company, why do I need to master integrations? OK. Yeah.
Yash Shah (01:46.936)
So if we talk about the full form, then the meaning is if this, then that. So let's consider I have one SaaS product. And now I have a lot of features in this SaaS product. Now once we have a high user volume, so there must be some use cases where the user wants to
integrate or user wants to send data from one platform to their own product to different product. Right? So like we can take an example, like if I have a CRM, right? So you can say I want to send some lead data. I want to get some Facebook data to my lead, right? Or just like I want to send data from my platform to another platform, right? So in general, if we can consider, right?
only the one product right we have hundreds of features right versus the one product we have hundreds of features but they also have integration with third parties with other products right so this integrations is known as a IFTTT in this known as a IFTTT but this is the platform that help us to build the IFTTT right so such like
Let's take one good example. Okay. So like for my marketing, right? I am using the Facebook ads, right? And the CRM I am using set like the Salesforce HubSpot, right? Now there is a one use case such like the if the I will get some lead data, good lead data in my Facebook ads, right? Then I want to add this data in my CRM because
So this is a one integration that I want to implement right so in this we can say if if the lead is coming from Facebook right then what I want to add this data into my CRM so if this is one type of scenario that you can create using the if and this then you can build this integration this is known as a IFTTT right yeah so and if
Yash Shah (04:04.364)
I am able to create this if2td within my product, right? Then you can say I can, can, any of my users, right? They are using my product. They can integrate my product with a hundred of other products. We're this if then formula, right? And if, this, if any other platform, right? That help us.
to make this if this formula right so this is known as a IFTTT platform right so let's take one more example that like I tell you the scenario right the Facebook has to lead right so there are two ways we can do that okay first is the API okay at least API is what is the API API is an application program interface
The API is the known when you want to communicate between the two platforms, right? So like I want to share some data from my product to another product or if I want to share some data from other product, right? If the communicates, I want to do communication, then this can be done using the API, right? But now in our example, right? So like the Facebook has to the my CRM data, right? For that I have to use Facebook API.
first try to face the data, right? And then after add to data in my CRM, right? So I have to integrate a Facebook APIs first, right? Other use case, other cases where someone wants to face my data, right? That like the, can say if, my CRM, right? We have a list of leads, right? So I want to make a scenario where if the lead is convert to,
if the lead is convert to customer, But if this is a one condition, right? us, Win condition. Then I want to do some action with other platform. So like the, I am using the intercom for my sequences, right? If I want to run something on my actions, right? So at that time, what I have to do? I have to send data to intercom, right? So these are two use cases.
Yash Shah (06:20.43)
such like the one is the one when I want to fed the data from other platform or I want to send some data to the other platform in both where this can be done using the API, right? So we can say API is a technical thing, right? So like the, if I want to integrate data, then I have to write some code or the things, right? But if there are some non tech person, right? They want to integrate or they want to make this flow without writing code, which is a no code implementation, right?
So for that there is a upper stage which is known as the IFTTT platform. This platform help us to build this integration without writing the code. Yeah. So this is a, we can say one of formula or we can say the general definition of IFTTT platform. Yeah. to say that it's a
GIO interface where you are non-tech person with having a little amount of learning curve would be able to grasp and would be able to make multiple app stock through the IFTTT platform, right? Yes, right, right, right. Interesting. So could you share the case where it is needed? So let's say I'm a SaaS founder and I just built my product and launched it six months ago, right? Is there any specific case where I should be looking forward to making my app?
available for IFTTT platform like like say appear or make or anything as such. Okay. Yeah. So, so it's mostly depend on the what user are asking, right? So it's like the we can say your product is project management tool, right? And the way users can love the clients have their project management tool where they can
assign the task to their team member, those things, right? And in this it is possible if any use case is right where your app is integrate if user wants to integrate some data or some features to other application. That like you can say they want to send some message to Slack, right? Within this product if something is happened, right? At that time if they want to do something,
Yash Shah (08:41.14)
is outside of their product, right? If they are the use cases, they can find us, right? At that time, it will be good to go to the ISTD platform and then integrate and then integrate your product within this JPR or we can say the Mac so that your users can use this integration and send data or get data to different products.
Yeah. So if you select the so in whatever the IFPT pattern, right? ZAPR or MEC, right? So in this there are two things, most important things, right? The first is the trigger and the other is the action, right? So if I am looking for the use case, right? So like the how I know whether it is a good time to go to the pattern, right? So first I have to identify within this product, right? I have something
That is, can that I consider as a main trigger of the of this platform, right? We can say in my use case, I can say, right? If any user, any user send the mail to support, right? At that time, I want to create my create this support ticket in my platform, right? So this is one use case where if something happened, then I want to do some action in my platform, right? This is known as an action tab.
If you can find out particular actions, then you can create the action in your ISTD platform. Right. And other is a trigger. So like the, can say if something is happening in my platform, like the, can say I have integrated my set like the GitLab, right? If GitLab is integrated with Slack, right? So I can, I want to be, if I push something, right?
If I should this is trigger if I push something in my giddler then I these things happen on the slide. So these are the two important things trigger and action. If you are able to find this trigger actions in your particular feed use cases in within a product, then you can build according to use cases. Yeah. But I think harsh based on what you explained seem like a huge, you know, it's like a huge boost that it gives for a SaaS product right.
Yash Shah (11:00.462)
So could you give some example just to make it much more clear based on the to understand much more clear. Do you can you give some example of a product that used you know, I have to be like that kind of boost that it gave to that particular SaaS product. you have anything? Yeah, so we can say such like the method are you you talking about your product or something other products?
Yeah, so you can say this is a very common example, right? There is a lead generation form, right? In every website, we have lead generation form, right? Every we are getting the leads, right? So now just consider the website is a website or product, right? Whatever. This is you have deployed, you have built this website or product, right? But the CRM where you want to capture the lead, right? It can be also, it is different from your website, right? It's like you are using HubSpot or Salesforce.
Right. So now just consider you want to send lead data, which is the in website, right? And the use case is this is CRM where your upstream is working to convert the lead, right? So this is the one use case where you want you can send this lead data to your CRM product, right? So this is a one integration. So it's like the in website, there is a VIX web flow, right?
WordPress. There are some good platforms there help us to build the website. So you can integrate this WordPress or Webflow which can help us to get the lead data and the CRM right. This is a destination that you want to send the data. So you can integrate this with using the JPR or Mac to send the data from Webflow or Wix to your CRM like the HubSpot and the Salesforce. This is one use case. There are many use cases like the you can say
I tell you a Facebook and Google Ads, right? So there are the different platforms, Google Analytics, right? These are the platforms that help us to track the events, right? But now if there you are using any marketing tool or dashboard, right? Where do want to get this data? You want to show the data? This is one case is that you can integrate your analytics tool to your reporting tool, right? Yeah, so other tools such like the we can integrate mailbox, right?
Yash Shah (13:28.814)
such like the there is a support system that we have built right so if you get the mail right then you can send this data to your support system right so these are the normal use cases of
Correct. So let's say I'm a SaaS founder, I have a product that works sort of well, you know, within in and of itself. And if we want to integrate, or we want to implement or help our customers implement IFTTT using our own product, through our product or for our product, how do I go about it? And what do I like
do the same people who are working on the product, on the core product, are the same people who work on this. What are the, like if you, if there are three, four, five steps to all of this. So let's say, let's say I have a product that works well and then the end goal is for my customers to be able to get my product to integrate with anything and everything that exists out there. If those are the two states of existence.
from no integrations to 5,000 plus integrations. What are the intermittent steps? Who accomplishes those steps in a typical SaaS company? And if and when they get accomplished, what are the metrics to measure? Understood. Yeah. So let's divide into the three phases. So first, like the, I launched my SaaS product, right? And I have very few customers, right? And if my customer or my users, right, wants to
integrate my product to other products. Right. So first what we can do is we can create the public API. The first stage is always the public API. Right. Like the you can say the list of the product list of the APIs that our users are asking. So like the if they want to face some data, they want to add something in your product. Right. So what we can do, can build, you can create first the public APIs. Right. And you can there are players from the spotlight, right. They help us to create the whole API documentation for that.
Yash Shah (15:41.986)
So first, in the initial stages, you can create the public APIs and make it publicly available for your users. And you can also create a Google documentation, how to call APIs within the product, right? So first is creating the public API, right? After you can get some good traffic, right? And when the users are requesting the integrations, they are highly demanded. That's like, well, we can say the mostly
Most of your users are asking the same integration, right? So now it's time to move from public API to something that where the something where they are our users can integrate this very quickly without rewriting the code because in public API what is like they have to write something, write a code to call your API, right? But now if there's some integration,
that very high demandable you want to create some automation that can help right. So in that time you can go from public API to IFTTT right such like the Mac right where instead of your users mind our APIs public API within product you can build something on IFTTT or OPAI so that your user don't have to integrate.
Your user don't have to integrate a public APIs manually. You automatically build some automation or integration on all IFTT tools so that you can launch a public API tool and your users can directly use this API just by using the click and drag and drop. This is a second step where you can build integration on IFTT. Right. And now
So I other other benefits of IFTTT. Such like the once you make some good automation in your within the tool, right? Such like the JPR on Mac or Integra or Pebbly, right? Then it is open to hundreds of applications, right? So it is like you just have to make something only one time and then you
Yash Shah (18:02.313)
you open your API so you can open a product within the thousand of products because there are also so many other applications are available on the different side. Right. So in this way you can say from zero to one is the public API if you consider so we can say one to hundred. It's such like there's a different value when you launch your product to the IFU tool. Right. So this is a second thing.
Now third such like the we can say so what's the difference between the first and two right the first is public API which is not common right it's a common for everyone right now second is the IFTTT tool where you build something and then it is available to thousand of products it is still the common but now the third is the we can say we can say custom application or we can say the marketplace
Right? Where you particularly, we can say, particularly point to some other product, right? Where instead of going to common, right? we can, specialize, no, we're not in the case of common, but instead of, we can say the common use cases, Instead of common use cases, if you find some particular pinpoint, right? That your customer user wants.
And for that, if you create some custom application, which is a third, we can say in instead, which is a third stage. Let me give some examples. So it will get better for understanding. Such like the you are using the HubSpot for CRM. And there are so many, we can say you have done so many integrations, right? Such like the Google Analytics, Facebook, or we can say 12 or other things, right? But now
your if your customer wants something very uniquely and they are not available with using the Zapier or their use cases is so much complex so that you have to write your own logic instead of the integration right so for that you can build your custom application and then after you can put their put your application to your marketplace of your third party application like the yeah according to use case
Yash Shah (20:30.893)
So this is the third state in your pipeline where you can create some marketplace for your customer. Yeah. And the other thing is the matrix that you are asking. Right? So what matrix that we have to measure. Right? So firstly, the public key page, there is no matrix. No, still matrix is if the your customer wants to integrate
your API and their first stage is the public API and there is a we can say public API is a general things but now but if as I tell you if they can say the there is no particular count but if the number of requests are really highly if the the requests are very high for some integration store right then we have to go from the IFTTT right and if the you can say there are some special use cases or we can say the
Some features are very complex to build integration with IFTTT and that time you have to go to the custom application or can say the marketplace or yeah.
Yash Shah (21:44.511)
Interesting. So that explains a lot about when to have integrated integration possible and especially when to build a dedicated app for any third party app where we can utilize it for a competitive advantage or we can actually make it easy for our existing users to migrate from their existing platforms. that is interesting. there was another question that
came into my mind while you are explaining IFTTT. So obviously the using IFTTT one app will be able to talk with many other apps. That's for sure. Now, let's say if as founder who has launched product just around one or two years ago and you know, I am I am having some workflows which my users are going through and in these cases I want to set up some automation and workflow automation workflows as well as some automations available. They are as a
my feature request on my roadmap, would I be able to, till the time those features or those automations are available in my product itself, is there a way if I have some actions and triggers already set up from my app in itself, is there a way where those automation will be possible using these IFTTT platforms within an app itself?
Okay, so let me let me give you me give some better understanding right. So such like if if such like the automation that you want to build right. If this automation is within your product right such like the in your product if there are two features right and such like you want to implement such like the feature one is do something then you want to do something feature two right.
So if this whole cycle of integration is within the product, Then you don't have to build the IFTTT, right? But if the feature one of your product and feature two of other product, right? If the integration is required between them or if the automation is required between other products, then it will be good to if you go to the IFTTT, right? Yeah. So I think, yeah, I think it is a, it is a
Yash Shah (24:01.197)
answer that you are asking. Yeah. Yeah. Right. So I was just trying to find out a way where, you know, founders and all the salespeople who are selling their product, not having a workflow altogether right now. But if there is a way around, so if they could utilize this way of implementing the automation. I definitely got it. Yeah. Yeah. And other thing is that like we can say,
So before you said like the before going to the market, right? So, so as a stage we defined, right? The first is the public API, then is the IFTTT and then is the marketplace, right? But it is also the first stage before the public API, right? Where you build some product, right? Then you won't keep my you won't migrate. So then you said like the you have built one product, right? And there are so much competitor of that product.
right? So first is the how you migrate their user to your product, right? It's like the we can say there are two cell CRM product, right? The Salesforce and the HubSpot, right? So it's like you just have started the HubSpot first. Okay. Now, firstly, if you want to keep the user, they're using Salesforce, right? If they want to mic, if they're using the, if they want to use the HubSpot, right?
The first thing that you have to build is how they migrate their CRM wall the system from one application to another application, right? So at that time, it would be also great to build them an IFTTT platform that help us to migrate the user from one system to another system instead of going to the public API. So this is also one of the state that can help us to get the good customer.
Yeah. Right. So I have a question with respect to, mean, you have defined very well when does one need it. once I, as a person who is running a SaaS product, if once I know that I need it, like how do I divide it within my team and decide how do I plan it within my team structure, within my tech team, you know, how to work out building one. Okay. Yeah. So
Yash Shah (26:29.677)
If we consider the same stage, right, the public API activity and the marketplace, right? So if there is a on the initiative, when there is a you already have the tech team, right? They are building the API side, though it will not, you don't need to have some separate team that can help us to make it publicly, right? Because there is some documentation you already have, we can build API, right? So you don't have to need some separate team.
right on the for the public APIs. Now, when you go from one state to another, right, when you go to IFTTT, we can say initially how many IFTTT platforms are that you want to integrate, right? On the initial stage, there still you don't require to have the separate team, right? So, if there are only one platform, like the Mac, right, or JPEG, there still it will be
it will be great if I don't have a separate team, right? Because there are there because it is a one time process, right? Even if the new features are ready, you can also add the according can also add the APIs in your platform, right? But when you launch your when you are planning to launch your APIs to the multiple after the platforms, right? So like you can say more than five, six, right? At that time, you need some
separate technical team that only work on the integration because then after you can separate the two teams. The one is a tech team. There are only building the APIs, right? They don't have to think about the integration of anything. There is a then there is other team or we can say integration team, right? That work is only to integrate your product to the after the platforms because
We have a whole large list of IT platforms, right? And also you have to take care if there are something changes are happen on what in other product. According to the you also have to change your application. So for that you can say you have the small you need the small technical team for this. So what you're trying to say in correct me I'm wrong is that is that to start it off with a few use cases.
Yash Shah (28:53.069)
few APIs and like a couple of IFTTT platforms. Building that integration internally is fine, but over a period of time, you yourself will also build new features within the product. Other products that exist will also build new features within their own products. And certain guidelines might change for the IFTTT platforms as well. And you might want to publish apps on multiple such platforms also.
At that point of time, you're saying that you're better off as a SaaS founder to have a dedicated team that just works on APIs and integrations and making sure that all of these applications are up and running. Would that be a fair way to think about it? Yes, absolutely. Yeah. So because the now think is key in reaching a product, right? There is one technical team who just build the features, right?
Then it will be great if you have the separate team who just only focus on the integrations. If there are changes on API, right? Then how you can keep the versioning so that all if the if the any user have integrated it should work fine, right? All these cases they need to verify. So it will be great to separate the time, but you can so that it can be run on parallel. Understood. Awesome.
I think this brings us to the end of our conversation for today. It's been a good conversation around IFTTTs, APIs, all of those things from start to finish. And thank you, Harsh, for sharing the insights around APIs, IFTTT and building custom applications or market creates. When is it a good time? How to think about it? How will it grow? What are the steps?
and so on and so forth. so thank you for sharing thoughts on that. And thank you everyone who's been watching or listening to this conversation, whether it is on LinkedIn or YouTube, please follow, please subscribe. We do this every week where we take up a topic and the four of us have a conversation about it. If you have a topic in mind that you think we should talk about next, do make that known to us by commenting on this video wherever you are and we'll pick that up as well.
Yash Shah (31:17.498)
Our goal is for all of us in the SaaS community to grow. But thank you for joining in. And we will be seeing you again next time. Until next time, Bye. Bye-bye.
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