How to integrate Motidash with Salesforce for seamless data syncing

If you use Salesforce and you’re tired of manually updating dashboards or wrangling CSVs, you’re not alone. This guide is for anyone who needs Motidash and Salesforce to play nicely—whether you’re in ops, sales, or just the poor soul stuck gluing data together. You’ll get the practical steps (plus some hard-won advice) for syncing data between Motidash and Salesforce, without getting lost in the weeds or falling for shiny-but-useless features.

Why bother integrating Motidash and Salesforce?

Quick reality check: Motidash is great at visualizing and tracking KPIs, but it’s not a CRM. Meanwhile, Salesforce is a CRM powerhouse, but its reporting can feel like death by a thousand clicks. Integrating the two means:

  • No more copy-pasting or exporting/importing data.
  • Real-time or scheduled KPI updates in Motidash, straight from Salesforce.
  • Less human error, more time actually using your data.

But—this only works if the sync is set up right. Bad integrations break trust and make things worse. Let’s set it up the right way.

Step 1: Decide What You Actually Need to Sync

Before you touch any settings, get clear on what data you really need in Motidash. Don’t try to sync everything “just in case”—it’ll slow things down and create noise.

Ask yourself: - Which Salesforce objects matter? (Leads, Opportunities, Accounts, custom objects?) - What fields do you actually use in your Motidash dashboards? - How often do you need the data updated—real-time, every hour, daily?

Pro tip: Document this. A Google Doc or even a sticky note is fine. You’ll thank yourself when troubleshooting.

Step 2: Prep Salesforce for Integration

Motidash can only sync what it’s allowed to see. Here’s how to prep Salesforce:

  1. Create an Integration User (optional, but safer):
  2. Don’t use your own admin account. Create a new user (e.g., “Motidash Integration”) with just the permissions Motidash needs.

  3. This keeps audit trails clear and makes it easy to turn off access if needed.

  4. Set Permissions:

  5. Give this user access to the objects/fields you listed earlier.

  6. Double-check field-level security—Salesforce hides things by default you might assume are visible.

  7. Get API Access:

  8. Your Salesforce edition needs API access (Enterprise, Unlimited, or Professional with add-on). If you’re on the lowest tier, you might be out of luck.

Things to ignore: Don’t bother setting up custom triggers, flows, or Apex code for now. Motidash doesn’t need it for basic syncing.

Step 3: Connect Motidash to Salesforce

Now you’re ready to actually hook things up. The specifics can change if Motidash updates its UI, but the general process holds.

  1. Log in to Motidash.
  2. Go to Integrations (usually in Settings).
  3. Find Salesforce and click “Connect.”
  4. You’ll be prompted to log into Salesforce. Use the integration user you set up.

  5. Approve the requested permissions. Motidash should only ask for read (and maybe write) access, depending on your setup.

  6. Test the Connection.

  7. Motidash should confirm the connection. If not, check that API access is enabled and your user has the right permissions.

Heads up: If you’re using Salesforce Sandbox, make sure you’re connecting to the right environment. Don’t set up everything in production until you’ve tested.

Step 4: Choose What to Sync (and How Often)

Here’s where you pick which Salesforce data lands in Motidash.

  1. Select Objects and Fields:
  2. Motidash will usually show a list of standard and custom objects. Pick only what you need.

  3. Map Salesforce fields to Motidash fields. Don’t just grab every field—be intentional.

  4. Set Sync Frequency:

  5. Motidash can do real-time sync, scheduled sync (hourly, daily), or manual.

  6. Real-time is tempting, but only use it if you truly need up-to-the-minute data. Otherwise, scheduled sync is easier on both systems.

  7. Handle Data Conflicts:

  8. Decide what happens if data changes in both places. Usually, Motidash is “read-only” from Salesforce, but double-check if you have two-way sync enabled.

What to watch out for: - Field mismatches: If fields don’t match up cleanly (e.g., Salesforce picklists vs. Motidash text fields), data could come in garbled. - Custom objects: These can be tricky. Test with a small batch first.

Step 5: Set Up Dashboards and Automations in Motidash

Now the data’s flowing, but you need to make it useful.

  1. Build or update your Motidash dashboards to use the synced fields.
  2. Set up alerts or automations if Motidash supports them (e.g., send a Slack alert when a big deal closes in Salesforce).
  3. Test your dashboards using real Salesforce data. Check for missing or weird values.

Pro tip: Don't try to recreate every Salesforce report in Motidash. Focus on what Motidash does well—clear, quick views of your key numbers.

Step 6: Monitor, Troubleshoot, and Iterate

Integrations break. APIs change. Don’t “set and forget” this.

  • Set up error notifications in Motidash, if available.
  • Check sync logs weekly for failures or skipped records.
  • Adjust field mappings if your Salesforce schema changes.

Common gotchas: - API limits: Salesforce will throttle you if you sync too often or too much data at once. - Deleted records: If you delete records in Salesforce, make sure Motidash knows what to do (hide, delete, or keep archived). - User permissions: If someone changes field-level permissions in Salesforce, Motidash might lose access.

Honest Takes: What Works, What Doesn’t

What works

  • Simple, focused syncing. Just syncing what you need keeps things fast and reliable.
  • Integration user. Makes tracking and troubleshooting way easier.
  • Scheduled syncs. Unless you truly need real-time, scheduled is less brittle.

What doesn’t

  • Syncing everything “just in case.” Leads to clutter and confusion.
  • Ignoring permissions. One wrong permission setting and your dashboards go blank.
  • Assuming two-way sync is a magic bullet. In reality, it’s easy to get into a mess with conflicting updates.

Keep It Simple and Iterate

Integrating Motidash with Salesforce doesn’t have to be a big project. The trick is to start small, sync only what matters, and keep an eye on things as you go. Don’t waste time chasing every shiny feature—get the basics solid, then build from there.

Got it working? Good. Now ignore it until something breaks—then come back here and fix it fast.