Edit and Search External MailChimp Objects in Salesforce Connect

CData Connect Cloud, enables you to access MailChimp data from cloud-based applications like the Salesforce console and mobile applications like the Salesforce Mobile App. In this article, you will use CData Connect Cloud and Salesforce Connect to access external MailChimp objects alongside standard Salesforce objects.

Configuring Connect Cloud

To work with live MailChimp data in Salesforce Connect, we need to connect to MailChimp from Connect Cloud, provide user access to the connection, and create OData endpoints for the MailChimp data.

(Optional) Add a New Connect Cloud User

As needed, create Users to connect to MailChimp through Connect Cloud.

1. Navigate to the Users page and click Invite Users
2. Enter the new user's email address and click Send to invite the user
3. You can review and edit users from the Users page

Add a Personal Access Token

If you are connecting from a service, application, platform, or framework that does not support OAuth authentication, you can create a Personal Access Token (PAT) to use for authentication. Best practices would dictate that you create a separate PAT for each service, to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on your username at the top right of the Connect Cloud app and click User Profile.
2. On the User Profile page, scroll down to the Personal Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give your PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

Connect to MailChimp from Connect Cloud

CData Connect Cloud uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources.

1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Connections and click Add Connection
2. Select "MailChimp" from the Add Connection panel
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to MailChimp.

   You can set the APIKey to the key you generate in your account settings, or, instead of providing your APIKey, you can use the OAuth standard to authenticate the application. OAuth can be used to enable other users to access their own data. To authenticate using OAuth, you will need to obtain the OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL by registering an app with MailChimp.

   See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for a guide to using OAuth.

4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add MailChimp Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add MailChimp OData Endpoints in Connect Cloud

After connecting to MailChimp, create OData Endpoints for the desired table(s).

1. Navigate to the OData page and click Add to create new OData endpoints
2. Select the MailChimp connection (e.g. MailChimp1) and click Next
3. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Confirm

With the connection and OData endpoints configured, you are ready to connect to MailChimp data from Salesforce Connect.

Connect to MailChimp Data as an External Data Sources

Follow the steps below to connect to the feed produced by Connect Cloud.

1. Log into Salesforce and click Setup -> Integrations -> External Data Sources.
2. Click Now External Data Sources.
3. Enter values for the following properties:
   • External Data Sources: Enter a label to be used in list views and reports.
   • Name: Enter a unique identifier.
   • Type: Select the option "Salesforce Connect: OData 4.0".
   • URL: Enter the URL to the OData endpoint of Connect Cloud: https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/service
4. Select the Writable External Objects option.
5. Select JSON in the Format menu.
6. In the Authentication section, set the following properties:
   • Identity Type: If all members of your organization will use the same credentials to access Connect Cloud, select "Named Principal". If the members of your organization will connect with their own credentials, select "Per User".
   • Authentication Protocol: Select Password Authentication to use basic authentication.
   • Certificate: Enter or browse to the certificate to be used to encrypt and authenticate communications from Salesforce to your server.
   • Username: Enter a CData Connect Cloud username (e.g. user@mydomain.com.
   • Password: Enter the user's PAT.

Synchronize MailChimp Objects

After you have created the external data source, follow the steps below to create MailChimp external objects that reflect any changes in the data source. You will synchronize the definitions for the MailChimp external objects with the definitions for MailChimp tables.

1. Click the link for the external data source you created.
2. Click Validate and Scan.
3. Select the MailChimp tables you want to work with as external objects.

Access MailChimp Data as Salesforce Objects

After adding MailChimp data as an external data source and syncing MailChimp tables as external objects, you can use the external MailChimp objects just as you would standard Salesforce objects.

• Create a new tab with a filter list view:

• Create reports of external objects:

• Create, update, and delete MailChimp objects from the Salesforce dashboard:

Simplified Access to MailChimp Data from Cloud Applications

At this point, you have a direct, cloud-to-cloud connection to live MailChimp data from Salesforce. For more information on gaining simplified access to data from more than 100 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources in cloud applications like Salesforce, refer to our Connect Cloud page.