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Managing Integrations in SAP Marketing Cloud

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to describe the integration methods for SAP Marketing Cloud

Integration Overview

One of the key capabilities of SAP Marketing Cloud is integration. Its various integration options and approaches simplify the process.

The integrations are based on released APIs using Web Service technology such as OData or SOAP, and not on RFC, SLT, or direct database connections. SAP Cloud Integration is the preferred middleware technology and the way to go for most integrations.

It connects cloud applications with other SAP and non-SAP cloud and on-premises applications. The configuration for integrations is done using the Communication Systems, Communication Users, and Communication Arrangements applications.

SAP Cloud Integration supported applications.

The SAP API Business Hub is the web-based application you can use to search, explore, and test SAP and partner APIs you can leverage to build extensions or process integrations more easily using SAP Cloud Integration. The SAP API Business Hub simplifies the development process and reduces effort for application and integration developers.

To discover which APIs are available for SAP Marketing Cloud, visit the SAP API Business Hub at api.sap.com, and search for SAP Marketing Cloud. You can explore a package and see the detailed documentation, references, and even try it out to test and validate.

For more information on integration, check out the Integration Guide documentation on the SAP Help Portal, under the Implement tab.

Integration options for SAP Cloud services, SAP Marketing Cloud, and On Premise.

Integration Architecture

When configuring your integration data sources, there are several best practices for system architecture to consider.

Best Practice #1: Overview Picture of your System Landscape

Draw an overview of your system landscape to best answer:

Which systems are entailed?
What type of data is exchanged (e.g. master data/interaction contacts, transaction data/interactions)?
Are there relations or dependencies between the systems (e.g. commerce web shop, ticketing system)?
What are the aspects of source systems (e.g. outbound interface, periodicity, error handling)?
Would a middleware layer make sense (e.g. SAP BTP/CPI)?
What are the inbound processes in SAP Marketing (e.g. automated via OData, manual via CSV file upload)?

Best Practice #2: Origins & Matching Strategy

Define origins and determine your matching strategy as follows:

Define one origin per data source (i.e. per system and per leading database table)
Identify common IDs cross-system and define a matching strategy for building the best record

Best Practice #3: Interaction Types

Define the interaction types as follows:

Use the same interaction types for the same event/business document
Use standard interaction types if possible
Fill Source Object Type and Source Object ID for business documents type and ID of source system

Best Practice #4: APIs

Decide which APIs should be used and when, considering the following:

Do not mix master data and transactional data in one package for a given API
Try to make sure that first interaction contacts will be created before sending their interactions

Best Practice System Landscape

This is an example of how the best practices can be implemented for a system landscape:

Integration Technologies

Four integration technologies are available in SAP Marketing Cloud: SOAP, REST, OData, and CSV.

SOAP is a protocol specification for exchanging structured information in the implementation of web services in computer networks. The message format is based on XML. Message transfer is based on other web protocols, usually HTTP(S).

REST (Representational State Transfer) is an architecture style for creating scalable web services. REST services are usually based on HTTP(S). They use HTTP URIs for resource identification and HTTP methods for service operations. It is used widely as an alternative to SOAP, as REST services usually provide better performance, scalability and simpler interfaces.

OData provides a protocol for queryable and interoperable RESTful APIs. It provides an entity-based data model and a query language. Create, read, update and delete methods expressed using HTTP methods. All OData services use HTTPS protocol to ensure data security. The standard port for HTTPS is 443.

CSV (comma-separated values or character-separated values) files store tabular data (numbers and text) in plain-text form. CSV files are widely used as import or export format and can be down- and uploaded to many systems.

Working with SAP Marketing Cloud APIs

Are you trying to pull or push information for individual marketing entities, such as campaigns, target groups, or contacts? There’s a wide range of available public APIs that enable integration with SAP Marketing Cloud. Refer to the table referenced below to quickly find the information that will help you get started, no matter what your level of knowledge.

SAP Marketing Cloud offers a wide range of services. But which one is right for your purposes?

Take a few minutes to browse this table according to the entity type you want to import.
Go to this link to get started with SAP Marketing Cloud APIs. Each business scenario contains its own APIs and payload examples.

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