Looking to make your lead nurturing less robotic and more memorable? If you’re tired of boring email drips and want to send prospects something they might actually care about, combining Salesforce with Sendoso could be the missing piece. This guide is for hands-on marketers, sales ops folks, or small teams who want to connect the dots—without spending a month on setup or dealing with endless admin headaches.
You’ll get a step-by-step walkthrough, real-world advice, and some hard truths about what to expect. No fluff, no “seamless synergy,” just what works (and what doesn’t).
Why Connect Salesforce and Sendoso?
Let’s get real: most nurture campaigns fizzle out. Automated emails are easy to ignore. But a well-timed coffee gift card or a quirky mailer? That gets noticed.
Integrating Salesforce with Sendoso lets you:
- Trigger direct mail or e-gifts when leads hit certain stages.
- Track activity right inside Salesforce—no more guessing who got what.
- Automate follow-ups, so you don’t drop the ball.
- Give your sales team something to talk about besides just “circling back.”
But—before you go wild with gifting, remember: this works best when it’s targeted, personal, and not overused. The integration won’t fix bad messaging or a messy Salesforce instance.
Step 1: Get the Basics in Place
Before you can connect anything, you’ll need:
- A Salesforce account with admin access (Enterprise, Unlimited, or Professional with API access).
- A Sendoso account with admin privileges.
- A rough idea of your nurture workflow. Who gets gifts? When? Why?
Pro tip: If your Salesforce data is a dumpster fire—duplicate leads, missing contacts, etc.—clean that up first. Sendoso can’t fix what’s already broken.
Step 2: Install the Sendoso Salesforce App
Sendoso provides a managed package for Salesforce. Here’s how to install it:
- Get the installation link from Sendoso support or your CSM. (It’s not always public—yes, that’s annoying.)
- In Salesforce, go to Setup > Install a Package and paste the link.
- Choose Install for Admins Only (recommended for first-time setup).
- Approve required permissions. (Sendoso needs access to leads, contacts, and campaign objects.)
What works: The package is straightforward and doesn’t add bloat.
What’s clunky: Updates can break stuff—always test in a sandbox first.
Step 3: Connect Your Sendoso Account
Once the package is in, you’ll need to hook up your Salesforce and Sendoso accounts:
- In Salesforce, find the new Sendoso App tab.
- Click Connect Sendoso Account. You’ll be prompted to log in with your Sendoso admin credentials.
- Authorize the connection.
If your org uses SSO or extra-tight security, you might need help from IT. Don’t fight it—just loop them in early.
Step 4: Map Your Salesforce Fields
By default, Sendoso pulls from standard fields (name, email, company, etc.). But if you use custom fields—like “Favorite Snack” or “Swag Size”—you’ll need to map those:
- Go to the Sendoso Settings tab in Salesforce.
- Use the field mapping tool to link Salesforce fields to Sendoso recipient info.
- Test with a dummy record before you send anything real.
Ignore: Overcomplicating mappings. Start with the basics—you can always tweak later.
Step 5: Set Up Triggers for Sending
This is where the magic happens. You can trigger a Sendoso send from:
- A Salesforce Process Builder flow
- A Salesforce Flow (the new way)
- Manually, from the Sendoso widget on a Lead/Contact record
Example: Automated Send When Lead Status Changes
Let’s say you want to send a coffee gift card when a lead moves to “Qualified.” Here’s a quick setup using Salesforce Flow:
- In Salesforce, go to Setup > Flow.
- Create a new Record-Triggered Flow for the Lead object.
- Set the trigger: When Lead Status changes to “Qualified.”
- Add an Action: Choose “Sendoso: Send eGift” (should appear after package install).
- Map required fields: recipient name, email, and gift template.
Test it with a sample lead. If it works, you’re golden.
What works: Flows are powerful and flexible.
What doesn’t: Debugging failed sends is a pain—the error messages aren’t great.
Step 6: Build and Use Sendoso Campaigns
In Sendoso, you’ll organize your gifts into “campaigns”—think of these as pre-set packages or eGifts you want to use.
- Create a new campaign in Sendoso (e.g., “Welcome Coffee Gift”).
- Choose your delivery option (eGift, physical mailer, etc.).
- Set budget limits, approval rules, and any restrictions.
- Copy the campaign ID—you’ll need this when setting up triggers in Salesforce.
Pro tip: Start small. Don’t build ten campaigns before you’ve seen what works.
Step 7: Test Everything (Seriously)
Nothing will kill your credibility faster than sending a $50 Amazon card to the wrong person. Before rolling out, always:
- Use a test lead/contact with your own email.
- Trigger a send and make sure it shows up in Salesforce and Sendoso dashboards.
- Check field mappings—does the message look right? Is the right gift delivered?
- Review logs for errors.
What to ignore: Don’t bother testing with real prospects until your own team has run through the process a few times.
Step 8: Roll Out to Your Team
Once you’ve ironed out the kinks, it’s time to hand things over:
- Train your sales or marketing team on how to use the Sendoso widget in Salesforce.
- Set clear rules: Who gets gifts? How often? Who approves sends?
- Keep an eye on usage—these costs can add up fast if nobody’s watching.
Pro tip: Put one person in charge of Sendoso sends, at least at first. It’ll save you headaches.
Step 9: Track Results and Adjust
Don’t assume that sending swag = closed deals. Use Salesforce reports to track:
- Who received gifts?
- Did they respond or move to the next stage?
- Are certain reps overusing (or underusing) Sendoso?
Experiment. If something’s not working—change it. The integration makes it easy to iterate, but it won’t magically fix a broken sales process.
What Works, What Doesn’t, What to Ignore
Works well: - Automating small, thoughtful touches at key moments. - Making your team look organized and on top of things. - Simple eGifts and mailers with tight targeting.
Doesn’t work: - Blanket sending to everyone in your database (waste of money, feels spammy). - Overly complicated field mappings or approval hierarchies. - Hoping this tool “fixes” bad lead data or lazy follow-up.
Ignore: - Fancy “engagement scoring” unless you have the basics nailed. - Building dozens of campaigns before nailing one or two. - Overhyped claims about ROI—track your own numbers.
Keep It Simple and Iterate
Getting Salesforce and Sendoso working together isn’t rocket science, but it does take some thought. Start small, test with your own team, and focus on making your outreach feel human—not automated. The fancy stuff comes later.
Remember, the goal isn’t to send more stuff—it’s to connect with the right people at the right time. Don’t let the integration become another over-engineered process. Keep it simple, watch what works, and tweak as you go.