Related terms

• Email marketing
• CRM
• SMS marketing

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Email marketing platform with everything you need to design, send campaigns, and perform upmost efficient tracking

API (Application Programming Interface)

An API (Application Programming Interface) is a set of functions that enables programs to connect and interact with each other, even if they are not written in the same programming language. Through these common protocols, it is possible to synchronize data, such as connecting a CRM with an email or SMS delivery management system.

What is the purpose of an API?

APIs are provided by program creators to allow others to use them and develop related products. By providing this access, they can reach a broader user base by opening up their software to new functionalities.

There are several types of APIs based on the type of connection they establish to offer their services. In a SOAP API (Simple Object Access Protocol), data is exchanged in XML format, while in a REST (Representational State Transfer) API, data can be in JSON format or plain text (this is the type of API Acrelia uses). Another type is library-based APIs, like Google Maps.

Any of these APIs can be public, private, or protected, so that only authorized users (API key holders) can use them.

Examples of APIs

Although it may sound like something technical that is unrelated to people who have no programming knowledge, you have probably used an API without realizing it. A common example is in social media: when you use your Facebook login to leave a comment on a news article on a digital media platform, you are using their API.

After social media, APIs related to payments and purchases are also very popular. For example, PayPal allows anyone to link their account to receive money, and with Amazon's API, it is possible to create a search engine and product listings on a website.

Why use an email and/or SMS marketing API?

The main advantage is the ability to apply all the functionalities of a mass email delivery platform to the tool you are already using, such as a CRM or CMS. By integrating both APIs, you eliminate duplicate databases, as you use a single, perfectly synchronized database to ensure there are no errors.

This allows you to automatically send transactional emails or transactional SMS messages from an online store, such as registration or payment confirmation, or package tracking notifications. It's also easy to manage commercial proposals to make customer relationships smoother, such as automating personalized follow-up.