Salesforce and Mulesoft Integration: Leveraging Webhooks for Real-Time Data Sync
What are Webhooks?
A Webhook is a method used for real-time communication between different applications. When an event occurs in one application, it automatically sends data to another application via an HTTP request, usually it is done through a POST request.
Why use Webhooks as an alternative to Mulesoft connectors?
Using webhooks as an alternative to native connectors in MuleSoft can be beneficial in several scenarios. Here are some key reasons why webhooks might be preferred over native connectors:
- Realtime data processing: Webhooks instantly push data when an event occurs, ensuring immediate updates without polling.
- Reduced system load: Webhooks push data only when an event occurs, eliminating unnecessary API requests and reducing the overall load on your systems.
- System Optimization: Webhooks optimize resource usage by triggering events only when needed, allowing you to allocate processing power and network bandwidth efficiently.
- Cross platform compatibility: Webhooks can work with any system that supports HTTP endpoints, regardless of technology.
- Needs less Development and Maintenance support: Webhooks require minimal setup with just an endpoint to receive events.
How to integrate Salesforce to Mulesoft using Webhooks?
To integrate Salesforce with MuleSoft using webhooks, you can leverage Salesforce Outbound Messages, Platform Events, or Apex HTTP Callouts to send real-time data to MuleSoft when specific events occur in Salesforce.
In this approach, we are utilizing Salesforce Outbound Messages by following these steps:
- Create a new Mulesoft Project depicting an API to read the data when triggered.
- Deploy the project into the cloud. And copy the public endpoint URL.
- Now, in Salesforce, go to Setup> Outbound Messages and create a new Outbound Message for a specific record type.
- In the outbound message, paste the Public endpoint URL followed by the endpoint and select all the fields that you want to get from Salesforce.
- Once the outbound message is saved, create a new Flow of type Record triggered flow.
- In start shape, select the same record type for which the outbound message is created and select the triggering point of the flow. Ex: When a new order is created, trigger the flow.
- In the next step, add a new Acton and select the outbound message that you have created previously in Salesforce.
- Once everything is set, Save the flow and activate the flow.
- Now, whenever a new Order is created, the flow gets triggered, and sends all the selected fields data to the Mulesoft App.
- You can now get the order data from Salesforce to Mulesoft, by using Webhooks. Feel free to try out for other record types from Salesforce.
Integrating Salesforce with MuleSoft using webhooks is a powerful, efficient way to achieve real-time data synchronization without the overhead of traditional connectors. By leveraging Salesforce Outbound Messages and MuleSoft’s flexible API capabilities, you can streamline communication between platforms, reduce system load, and improve responsiveness. Whether you’re syncing orders, customers, or other key data, this webhook-based approach is scalable, lightweight, and easy to maintain. Start with a simple use case and expand as your integration needs grow—webhooks make it that seamless.
