Looking to stop the madness of double data entry between Salesforce and your inbox? Or tired of missing out on those critical email conversations that never seem to make it into your CRM? This guide is for you. If you use Salesforce and want your team’s emails, calendars, and contacts to actually sync up without expensive consultants or a week’s worth of headaches, read on.
We’ll walk through connecting Salesforce with Ebsta, a tool built to bridge the gap between your CRM and your day-to-day communications. You’ll get plain-English steps, a few “watch out for this” notes, and some honest advice on what works (and what’s mostly marketing fluff).
Why integrate Salesforce with Ebsta?
Let’s get this out of the way: Salesforce is powerful, but it’s not exactly good at pulling in emails, calendar events, or contacts by itself. Manual logging wastes time and—let’s be honest—it doesn’t happen reliably. That’s where Ebsta comes in. It sits between your email (Gmail or Outlook) and Salesforce, automatically syncing conversations and meetings so your CRM stays up-to-date without nagging your team.
Who is this for?
- Sales teams who want actual email activity in Salesforce, not just what people remember to log.
- Managers who need visibility into deal progress without chasing reps for updates.
- Admins who want to reduce manual data entry and cut down on “shadow IT” hacks.
If you’re happy with your data gaps, skip this. If not, let’s get started.
Step 1: Check what you really need Ebsta to do
Before you jump in, be clear on your goals. Ebsta does a lot, but more isn’t always better. Ask yourself:
- Do you just want email sync, or also calendar and contact sync?
- Is it enough to log emails, or do you want email tracking and analytics?
- Does your team work mostly out of Gmail, Outlook, or both?
Pro tip: Don’t turn on every feature. Start small—sync just emails or just meetings first. It’s easier to add features than untangle a mess later.
Step 2: Prep your Salesforce and email environment
If you skip this, you’ll waste hours backtracking. Here’s what you need in place first:
- Salesforce access: You need to be a Salesforce admin (or have someone handy who is).
- User licenses: Make sure you have enough Salesforce and Ebsta licenses for everyone who’ll use the integration.
- Supported email: Ebsta works with Gmail and Outlook (Office 365). If your company still uses Lotus Notes, sorry—you’re out of luck.
- Browser: Ebsta’s main features run through a Chrome extension. Firefox or Safari fans, you’ll need to switch.
Watch out: Mixed environments (some users on Gmail, some on Outlook) can get tricky. Ebsta handles both, but setup takes more care.
Step 3: Install the Ebsta extension
- Get the extension:
Go to the Chrome Web Store and search for “Ebsta for Salesforce.” Click “Add to Chrome.” -
Direct link: Chrome Web Store - Ebsta for Salesforce
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Sign up or log in:
After installing, click the Ebsta icon in your browser. Sign in with your work email. You’ll be prompted to connect Salesforce—say yes. -
Connect Salesforce:
You’ll see a Salesforce login screen (standard OAuth flow). Log in with admin credentials if you’re setting up for the team, or your own if just testing.
Heads up: If you use Single Sign-On (SSO), make sure your Salesforce SSO is configured to allow third-party apps. Otherwise, Ebsta can’t connect.
Step 4: Connect your email account
- Choose your email provider:
Ebsta will prompt you to connect Gmail or Outlook. Pick yours and sign in. -
If you hit “permissions” warnings, check with IT—your admin may need to whitelist Ebsta.
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Grant permissions:
Ebsta needs access to read and send emails, and to your calendar if you’re syncing that. This can feel invasive, but it’s standard for sync tools. -
Test the connection:
Once connected, Ebsta should show your inbox inside the extension. If you see errors, double-check that your email account allows third-party access.
Pro tip: If you’re just piloting, connect your own account first before rolling out to the whole team.
Step 5: Set up sync rules (and don’t overdo it)
Here’s where most people mess up: turning on every sync feature at once. Resist the urge.
- Start with email sync:
In the Ebsta dashboard, go to “Sync Settings.” Enable email sync first. - Choose whether to sync all emails or just those to/from Salesforce contacts.
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Decide if you want just inbound, just outbound, or both.
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Add calendar sync if needed:
Only do this if your team books meetings through their Google or Outlook calendars and you want those meetings in Salesforce. -
Enable calendar sync and specify which calendars to sync.
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Contact sync:
This is handy but can get messy. Only sync contacts if you’re sure your CRM data is clean. Otherwise, you’ll end up with duplicates. -
Field mapping:
Ebsta will try to match fields in Salesforce and your email/calendar. Double-check these. Bad mapping = bad data.
What to ignore:
Don’t bother with “email templates” or “email tracking” for phase one. They’re nice but not essential. Focus on getting reliable sync first.
Step 6: Test with a small group
Don’t roll this out to 100 people at once. Grab a few test users (ideally, folks who actually use Salesforce and email every day) and walk through:
- Sending and receiving emails—do they show up in Salesforce?
- Creating and updating calendar events—are they syncing?
- Are any duplicates or weird data showing up? (This happens more than vendors admit.)
Pro tip: Have your testers use the system for a week and collect feedback. Small annoyances multiply at scale.
Step 7: Roll out to the team
If your pilot group is happy, you’re ready to expand.
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Communicate clearly:
Let users know what will change (“You’ll see Salesforce data in your inbox,” “Emails will log automatically,” etc.). People hate surprises. -
Provide a cheat sheet:
Ebsta’s UI isn’t rocket science, but a one-pager with “How to log an email,” “How to check if an email synced,” and “Who to contact if something breaks” goes a long way. -
Monitor sync logs:
In Ebsta’s dashboard, check for sync errors or failed logins. Fix issues before they snowball.
Step 8: Tweak settings and iterate
No integration is “set and forget.” Spend 30 minutes once a week for the first month:
- Check for duplicate records in Salesforce.
- Ask users if emails and meetings are syncing as expected.
- Adjust sync rules if you’re getting noise (e.g., personal calendar events showing up in Salesforce).
Watch out:
Over time, you may want to enable more features (like email tracking, advanced analytics, or even automation). Just don’t do it all at once.
Honest takes: What works, what doesn’t
What works well: - Email and meeting sync are reliable for most setups. - Visibility in the inbox (seeing Salesforce data while emailing) is genuinely useful. - Setup time is reasonable—an hour or two if you stay focused.
What doesn’t: - Contact sync can get messy if your data is already a mess. Clean it up first. - Reporting and analytics are basic unless you pay for premium tiers. - Non-Chrome browsers aren’t fully supported; don’t try to force it.
Don’t bother with: - Over-customizing out of the gate. Most teams need 80% of the features, not every bell and whistle. - Expecting this to “fix” bad data in Salesforce. It’ll just sync the mess faster.
Summary: Keep it simple and build up
Integrating Salesforce with Ebsta isn’t rocket science, but you’ll get the best results by starting small, testing carefully, and adding features over time. Focus on syncing what matters most—usually emails and meetings—before you try to automate the world. And don’t trust any tool to fix your data problems for you. Clean inputs = clean outputs.
Set it up, watch it work, and when you’re ready, layer on the extras. Don’t let “seamless integration” become an endless project. Get the basics right, then move on—your team (and your sanity) will thank you.