Pardot API Essential Guide

What type of API does Pardot provide?

Salesforce offers several API types, including REST, SOAP, Bulk, and GraphQL APIs.

The most commonly used Salesforce APIs are:

• REST API
• SOAP API
• Bulk API
• Pub/Sub API

REST API is described as a simple and powerful web service based on RESTful principles. It supports both XML and JSON data formats.

SOAP API is a robust web service that uses a Web Services Description Language (WSDL) file and supports XML only.

Does the Pardot API have webhooks?

Webhooks in Pardot

1. The official Pardot API does not have traditional webhooks as a core feature.

2. However, Pardot introduced a feature called "External Actions" in 2022, which provides similar functionality to webhooks.

External Actions

External Actions allow Pardot to trigger actions in third-party systems. This is the closest equivalent to webhooks in Pardot.

Key points about External Actions:

• They were introduced in the Salesforce Winter '22 release.
• They provide a way to leverage prospect data and trigger actions outside of Pardot.
• External Actions are similar to webhooks in functionality, allowing Pardot to communicate with external systems.

External Activities

Along with External Actions, Pardot also introduced "External Activities".

Key points about External Activities:

• They allow users to leverage prospect data in new ways.
• External Activities provide a method to record actions that occur outside of Pardot within the Pardot system.

Events You Can Subscribe To

While the search results don't provide a comprehensive list of events you can subscribe to with External Actions, they suggest that you can:

• Trigger actions based on prospect data changes.
• Integrate with third-party systems.
• Record external activities within Pardot.

Implementation

• External Actions and Activities can be implemented natively in Salesforce.
• There are also options to implement these features using tools like Zapier.

Best Practices

1. When implementing External Actions or Activities, consider the security implications and use appropriate authentication methods.
2. Familiarize yourself with the Pardot API and Salesforce SSO (Single Sign-On) requirements, as these are crucial for integrations.
3. Stay updated on Pardot's release notes, as new features and improvements to these systems are regularly introduced.

In conclusion, while Pardot doesn't offer traditional webhooks, the External Actions and External Activities features provide similar functionality, allowing for integration with external systems and recording of external events within Pardot.

Rate Limits and other limitations

Based on the search results provided, I do not have specific information about the API rate limits for the Pardot API. The search results do not contain details about Pardot API rate limits. Instead, they mostly discuss Salesforce API limits and usage more broadly.

However, I can provide some general information about API rate limits and how to check usage in Salesforce/Pardot:

Key Points to Consider:

1. API limits are typically imposed to ensure fair usage and system stability.

2. Limits may apply on a daily or monthly basis.

3. Different editions of Salesforce have different API call limits.

4. Exceeding API limits can result in temporary suspension of API access.

Checking API Usage:

To check your API usage in Pardot:

1. Navigate to Pardot Account Settings
2. Click on the "Usage and Limits" tab
3. Look for "API requests" at the top of the page
4. Click on "Daily API requests" to see detailed usage

Best Practices:

1. Monitor your API usage regularly to avoid hitting limits unexpectedly.

2. Optimize your API calls to reduce unnecessary requests.

3. Consider upgrading your Salesforce edition or purchasing additional API calls if you consistently approach limits.

4. Review any integrations or third-party tools that may be consuming API calls.

While I don't have specific Pardot API rate limit numbers, these general principles and methods for checking usage should help you manage your API consumption. If you need exact limit numbers, I recommend contacting Salesforce support or checking the official Pardot API documentation for the most up-to-date information.

Latest API Version

Based on the search results provided, here are the key points regarding the most recent version of the Pardot API:

1. The most recent version of the Pardot API that is fully supported by Zapier is version 4 (v4) [5].

2. Zapier previously had an option to select Pardot API version 5 (v5) when authenticating, but this caused issues and has been removed [5].

3. Zapier recommends using v4 of the Pardot API for most users, unless you have an older Salesforce account where AMPSEA has not been enabled, in which case v3 can be used [5].

4. There is currently no feature request open for supporting API Version 5 in Zapier [5].

5. The latest Pardot package version mentioned in the search results is v4.98, released on July 2, 2024 [3]. However, this refers to the Pardot AppExchange package, not the API version.

6. Salesforce's documentation may reference v5 of the Pardot API, but Zapier's integration does not currently support this version [5].

Key points to consider:

• When using Zapier with Pardot, you should select API version 4 (or version 3 for older Salesforce accounts) when connecting your Pardot account [5].
• If you were previously trying to use v5 with Zapier, you'll need to reconnect your Pardot account and select v4 (or v3) to avoid errors [5].
• The Pardot API version supported by Zapier (v4) is different from the Pardot AppExchange package version (currently v4.98) [3][5].

Best practices:

• Regularly check for updates to the Pardot AppExchange package, as these may include bug fixes and enhancements [3].
• If you need support for Pardot API v5 in Zapier, consider contacting Zapier's support team to request this feature [5].
• Keep in mind that the API version and the AppExchange package version are separate, and updates to one may not necessarily correspond to updates in the other.

How to get a Pardot developer account and API Keys?

To get a developer account for Pardot to create an API integration, you'll need to follow these steps:

1. Create a Salesforce Developer Account

If you don't already have one, you'll need to create a Salesforce Developer Account. This is because Pardot (now called Marketing Cloud Account Engagement) is part of the Salesforce ecosystem.

2. Set Up a Connected App

1. Log in to your Salesforce Developer Account.
2. Go to Setup > App Manager.
3. Click "New Connected App".
4. Fill in the required information:
   • Connected App Name
   • API Name
   • Contact Email
   • Enable OAuth Settings (check this box)
   • Callback URL (use https://login.salesforce.com/services/oauth2/success)
   • Selected OAuth Scopes (include "Manage Pardot services")

3. Get Your API Credentials

After creating the Connected App, you'll receive:

• Consumer Key
• Consumer Secret

These are essential for API authentication.

4. Get Your Business Unit ID

1. In Salesforce Setup, search for "Pardot" and select "Pardot Account Setup".
2. Copy the Business Unit ID for the Account Engagement instance you want to use.

5. Create a Salesforce User for API Integration

Create a Salesforce user with SSO enabled for Account Engagement. This user will be used for API authentication.

6. Choose an OAuth Flow

For most integrations, the Web Server OAuth flow is recommended. This is ideal when you don't want to store the end user's credentials in your system.

What can you do with the Pardot API?

Here's a list of data models you can interact with using the Pardot API, along with what is possible for each:

Prospects

• Read, create, update, and delete prospect records
• Assign prospects to users or groups
• Upsert prospects (create if not exists, update if exists)
• Query prospects based on criteria
• Update prospect custom fields

Campaigns

• Create, read, update, and delete campaigns
• Add prospects to campaigns
• Remove prospects from campaigns
• Query campaign performance metrics

Lists

• Create, read, update, and delete lists
• Add and remove prospects from lists
• Query list membership

Emails

• Create, read, update, and delete email templates
• Send one-off emails to prospects
• Query email performance metrics

Forms

• Create, read, update, and delete forms
• Query form submissions

Landing Pages

• Create, read, update, and delete landing pages
• Query landing page performance metrics

Opportunities

• Read opportunity data synced from Salesforce
• Create and update opportunities in Pardot

Visitor Activities

• Read visitor activity data (page views, form submissions, etc.)
• Query visitor activities by prospect

Custom Objects

• Create, read, update, and delete custom object records (Advanced/Premium editions)
• Query custom object data

Users

• Read user information
• Assign prospects to users

Tags

• Create, read, update, and delete tags
• Add and remove tags from prospects

Files

• Upload, read, update, and delete files/content

Imports

• Create and manage prospect imports

Exports

• Create and manage data exports

The specific actions available (read, create, update, delete) vary by object type. The API provides extensive querying capabilities across most objects. Advanced features like custom objects require higher tier Pardot editions.