If you have used an app integration tool like Zapier, you already know the power of connecting third party applications together. Popular apps usually provide connection points for other software to connect to them and use the data and functionality the app provides. These connection points are called APIs, or Application Programmer Interfaces.

App providers want you to be able to connect to them so that you can use and extend their functionality. It can be argued, for example, that Facebook exploded in growth when they opened up their systems for app developers to use Facebook in new and creative ways, while Facebook maintained their core objectives of connecting friends together. Because of this, APIs are generally public, free to use, with no hacking required.

By integrating third party apps into your own software, you are likewise able to use the functionality of those apps in new and inventive ways.

Workflow integration

If you already use third party apps in your business, then replacing them completely with your own software may not be necessary. However, you can extend these apps through integration to create cleaner, automated connections with your own workflow.

For example, at Intellis, we love and use Basecamp for collaborating with our customers. It offers a wide range of tools such as tasks, posts and comments, so there is little value in re- creating such features within our own platform.

However, we do need additional features that Basecamp does not offer, such as moving tasks through our development process, tracking test results, and charging for work.

For this, we have integrated Basecamp tightly with our own platform so we gain the benefits of both a full featured customer collaboration tool with our own custom toolkit, with seamless, streamlined and automated connections between the two.

We have done the same with Slack, Trello and even Google Calendar (see our appointment booking option below).

You are able to achieve the same with software you use, such as email, document editors, social networks, phone systems, SMS and government bodies.

Think of software you use, and then think of the pain points you have using that software — usually putting in or taking out information. For example, filling out invoices, exporting and importing email addresses, copying customer information and completing documents. All this and more can be automated through custom integration so that you don't have to do it. More so, it can be done in the exact way that you want it to happen.

Create new ideas

Many ground-breaking apps can be created simply by extending, connecting and leveraging existing applications.

Airbnb can attribute much of its growth to automatically posting its listings to Craigslist. Spotify did the same by posting what its users were listening to on Facebook. There are a number of successful Gmail plugins that exist only because they extend Gmail's functionality.

Many ideas are born out of "what-if" moments, and through our expertise in custom integrations, we turn those "what-if's” into "can-do's".