So, you want to get Solidroad talking to your current CRM without losing your mind—or your sales data. Maybe your team’s tired of switching tabs and copy-pasting notes, or you want to actually use the customer insights you’ve been collecting for years. This guide is for folks who don’t have an army of IT consultants, but still need things to work. I’ll walk you through the actual steps, flag the stuff that’s trickier than it looks, and try to save you a few headaches along the way.
Why integrate Solidroad with your CRM?
First, let’s be clear: you don’t need to connect every tool in your stack just because you can. But if Solidroad is where your sales pipeline lives, and your CRM is the system of record for customers, then connecting the two can:
- Cut out double entry (less grunt work, fewer mistakes)
- Keep your sales and account management teams on the same page
- Make reporting more useful (not just more complicated)
If you’re not seeing a clear business reason, hold off until you do. Integration is only worth it when it solves a real problem.
Step 1: Get your bearings—what’s possible, what’s not
Before you touch anything, get clear on what each system can actually do. Solidroad offers an API and some native integrations, but things aren’t always plug-and-play. Here’s what you should check:
- What CRM are you using? Salesforce, HubSpot, Pipedrive, or something more obscure? This matters for available connectors.
- Does Solidroad have a native integration with your CRM? Native beats custom, but “native” sometimes just means “basic.”
- What data do you want to sync? Deals, contacts, notes, custom fields? Not everything is always supported.
- How often do you need the data to sync? Real-time is nice, but daily may be good enough.
Pro tip: Make a quick list of your “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves.” Don’t get sucked into integrating every field “just in case.”
Step 2: Map your data—don’t skip this
This is where most people mess up. You need to figure out which data lives where, and how it’ll match up between Solidroad and your CRM. If you skip this, you’ll end up with duplicates, missing info, or (worse) data that looks right but isn’t.
- List your key objects: Deals? Contacts? Activities?
- Decide on direction: Should changes in Solidroad update the CRM, the other way around, or both?
- Check for custom fields: If you’ve heavily customized your CRM, expect to do more work.
- Watch for naming differences: “Deal” in Solidroad might be “Opportunity” in Salesforce, etc.
Honest take: You’ll never get a perfect 1:1 mapping. That’s normal. Focus on what your team actually needs to see and use.
Step 3: Pick your integration method
There are usually three ways to connect tools like Solidroad and your CRM:
1. Native (built-in) integrations
- Pros: Easiest to set up, usually supported by both vendors.
- Cons: Limited customization; often only syncs basic objects.
- Solidroad supports: Some big-name CRMs, but check if your version is covered.
Who should use this: If you just need basic deal/contact syncing and don’t care about deep customization, start here.
2. Third-party connectors (Zapier, Make, Tray.io)
- Pros: Flexible, no code required, handles weird “if X then Y” logic.
- Cons: Monthly fees, can get messy as you add more “Zaps” or flows, can be unreliable for big data volumes.
- Solidroad supports: Zapier and a few others.
Who should use this: If you want to automate stuff like “when a deal moves to Closed in Solidroad, update CRM,” but don’t want to code.
3. Custom API integration
- Pros: Total control, handles custom fields, can be made bulletproof.
- Cons: Needs a developer, takes longer, you have to maintain it.
- Solidroad API: Decent docs, but you’ll need someone comfortable with REST APIs.
Who should use this: If you have weird rules, lots of custom fields, or security/compliance needs, this is your path.
Pro tip: Start with the simplest method that meets your real needs. You can always get fancier later.
Step 4: Set up the integration
How you do this depends on the method you chose. Here’s a breakdown for the three main approaches:
Option 1: Native integration
- Find the integration settings in Solidroad (or your CRM—sometimes it’s both).
- Authenticate: You’ll usually need an admin login for both systems.
- Pick what to sync: Most tools let you choose which objects to connect.
- Set sync direction: One-way or two-way? Think carefully—two-way sounds nice, but doubles the risk of conflicts.
- Test with a small data set: Don’t sync your whole database right away.
- Review the logs: Look for errors, duplicates, or missing info.
What works: This is usually quick and gets the basics done.
What doesn’t: If you have a lot of custom fields or workflows, you’ll hit limits fast. Also, most native integrations only support the most common CRMs.
Option 2: Zapier or similar
- Create accounts on both Solidroad and your CRM (if you don’t already have admin access).
- Set up a new Zap/automation: Choose the trigger (e.g., “New deal in Solidroad”) and the action (e.g., “Create deal in CRM”).
- Map your fields: Don’t just use the defaults—double-check every field.
- Test the workflow: Run it with test data. See what comes through and what doesn’t.
- Set up error notifications: Zapier can email you if something fails—turn this on.
- Document what you’ve built: Seriously, you’ll forget what each Zap does in a month.
What works: Great for quick wins and automating simple stuff.
What doesn’t: Not great for high volume, or when you need to sync lots of related data (like notes attached to deals). Things can break if field names change.
Option 3: Custom API integration
- Read the docs: Both Solidroad and your CRM should have REST API docs. Don’t skip this step.
- Get API credentials: Usually an API key or OAuth token.
- Write a script or small app: Start small—sync just one object (like deals) before you try to do contacts, notes, etc.
- Handle errors and throttling: APIs fail more than you think. Build in retries and logging.
- Schedule the sync: Decide if you want real-time (via webhooks) or batch (every hour/day).
- Monitor and maintain: Assign someone to own this process—otherwise it’ll break and no one will notice.
What works: You control everything. You can handle any weird edge case.
What doesn’t: This is overkill for most small teams, and you’ll need to update the code as APIs change.
Pro tip: No matter which method you use, always start with a sandbox or a test environment if you can. Syncing bad data into production is a pain to fix.
Step 5: Test (and don’t just trust the green checkmark)
Testing isn’t glamorous, but it’s where most bad integrations get caught—or missed. Here’s what to do:
- Run through real-life scenarios: Create a deal in Solidroad. Does it show up in your CRM? Update a contact in the CRM. Does it update in Solidroad?
- Check for duplicates: Syncs often create duplicate contacts or deals if matching rules aren’t set up right.
- Look at edge cases: What happens if a required field is missing? If someone deletes a contact?
- Get input from users: Have a few team members try their normal workflows and see what breaks.
Honest take: Automated testing tools are nice, but nothing beats a human clicking through and checking the data.
Step 6: Roll it out—slowly
Don’t flip the switch for everyone on day one. Go slow:
- Start with a small group: Power users or a single team.
- Train them: Even if it’s just a quick Loom video or a Slack message.
- Collect feedback: You’ll catch weird edge cases this way.
- Document the process: So future you (or a new hire) knows how things work.
Pro tip: Keep an “integration log” for the first month. Note any weird bugs, fixes, or user complaints.
Step 7: Monitor, tweak, and iterate
No integration is ever “done.” APIs change, business processes change, someone adds a custom field without telling you. Here’s how to keep things running:
- Set up alerts on failures.
- Review integration logs weekly.
- Schedule a quarterly checkup: Make sure it’s still doing what you need.
- Be ready to turn it off and fix things—don’t be afraid to pause the sync if data starts looking weird.
The stuff you can ignore (for now)
- Fancy dashboards showing “integration health”—just check the actual data.
- Integrating every last field “just in case.”
- Over-automating—sometimes a manual sync is simpler.
Integrating Solidroad with your CRM doesn’t have to be a months-long project. Start simple, sync only what you need, and don’t be afraid to keep things manual until you’re sure the value is there. Most importantly: expect some bumps, but don’t let perfect be the enemy of “good enough.” Iterate as you learn what actually helps your team work better.