Tyron_Pretorius

    Your duplicate list becoming ever more daunting? Stop the rot by learning how to build an “Automatic Marketo Merge” zap in Zapier that will merge duplicate leads as soon as they are created according to custom rules you specify.   Of course, the optimum approach to dealing with duplicates is to address the root causes that are causing duplicates to be created. The “Automatic Marketo Merge” zap is only intended to be a patch while you address the underlying issues creating duplicates.   If you are instead looking to deal with that daunting pile of duplicates in your instance and merge them all at once in bulk then take a look at the Marketo Merge Leads in Bulk using the API post to see how you can tackle this backlog using Python and the Marketo merge REST API endpoint.   All the Python code used in the “Code by Zapier” actions below can be found in the automatic_marketo_merge folder in Github.   Adding Duplicates to Static List   A workaround is need to be able to trigger a Zap when duplicates are created in Marketo. As shown in the “Lead Added to Duplicates List Trigger” section below the “New Lead” trigger event of the Marketo Zapier app is used along with the constraint that the newly created lead must be a member of the “Possible Duplicates” static list.   Therefore in Marketo, every time a duplicate lead is created a smart campaign is used to transfer this lead to the “Possible Duplicates” static list and thereby trigger the “Automatic Marketo Merge” Zap to run.   Marketo smart campaign trigger for newly created duplicates Marketo smart campaign flow to add to the "Possible Duplicates" list   Lead Added to Duplicates List Trigger   Once the “New Lead” trigger event has been selected in the Marketo Zapier app then add the “Possible Duplicates” static list to the “List” field.   New lead added to Marketo list trigger in Zapier   Get Access Token   The “Code by Zapier” action is used along with Python code (get_marketo_token.py) to make a request to the Marketo REST API authentication endpoint to retrieve the access token needed to make subsequent requests.   "Code by Zapier" action using Python code to retrieve the Marketo access token   Get Duplicate Leads   The “Lead Added to Duplicates List” trigger will only bring in one of the duplicate leads for a certain email address. This means that the leads endpoint of the Marketo REST API must be used to obtain all people in Marketo who share an email address (get_duplicate_leads.py).   The fields you want to compare between leads to choose winning values (Step 4: Select Winning Field Values) must be brought in in this request so make sure to modify the field_names string to include the fields you care about when merging e.g. leadSource , unsubscribed .   "Code by Zapier" action using Python to retrieve all leads in Marketo with the same email address   Select Winning Field Values   Once all duplicate leads sharing the same email address have been retrieved along with their field values for the fields you want to compare between them then the logic in the “Select Winning Field Values” Python code will decide which field values should win in the case of a difference (select_winning_values.py).   In general, if there are differences between field values Marketo’s inbuilt merging logic will choose the value of the winning lead provided that this value is not null. However, sometimes there are cases when you would like values on losing leads to be kept and this is where Python code can be used to specify your own custom rules to determine the field values that the merged lead should have.   Here are some examples of the logic implemented in this Python code:   The lead with an sfdcLeadID will be chosen as the winning lead over leads without an sfdcLeadID The earliest createdAt date will win A false value for the unsubscribed field will win over a true value (because you do not want to email this person if they have unsubscribed through one of the duplicates) leadSource field values of Advertising, Paid Search, and Organic will be prioritized over values such as Sales Generated and Referral.   N.B. If you want more examples of prioritization rules you can use to pick winning values for different fields take a look at the “Rules for Winning Field Values” section of the Marketo Merge Leads in Bulk using the API post.   You can modify the Python code in this step to prioritize values for each of the fields you care about when merging. Once the code has chosen winning field values these values are then stored and will be used in Step 6:Update Winning Lead to update these same fields on the winning lead to have these winning field values.   N.B. If you want to make sure that the Python logic has selected the correct winning lead id and winning field values before proceeding with the merge step then you can use the Zapier approval action to add a manual review before progressing.   Python code used to determine the winning values for each of the fields being compared on the duplicate leads   Merge   A request is made to the Marketo merge endpoint to merge the duplicate leads with the winning lead determined from Step 4: Select Winning Field Values being specified as the winning id (marketo_merge.py).   To handle the scenario where there might be more than 2 duplicate leads sharing the same email address a for loop is used to successively merge the winning lead with each of the losers in turn. This is necessary because when the mergeinCRM parameter is set to true in the request to the merge endpoint only 2 leads can be merged at once.   N.B. Zapier has a 10-second timeout limit on all actions. When merging leads with the Marketo merge endpoint it takes more than 10 seconds for the merge to complete and the successful response to be sent to Zapier. Therefore, this Marketo merge action will most likely be marked as failed by Zapier even though the merge was successful. This is a limitation of Zapier and unfortunately, there is nothing to be done here.   "Code by Zapier" action using Python code to merge leads using the Marketo REST API   Update Winning Lead   Once all the duplicates have been merged and the winning lead is left standing, this lead needs to have its fields updated with the winning values stored from Step 4: Select Winning Field Values. Ideally, we would check that the log returned from Step 5: Merge to see that the merge was successful before proceeding, however, as explained above, Zapier’s 10-second timeout on actions means that the merge step will most likely be marked as failed.   Therefore, Step 6:Update Winning Lead proceeds with the assumption that the merge was successful. If you want to ensure that the merge was successful before attempting an update then you can query the leads endpoint for each of the people involved in the merge to ensure that only the winning lead still exists.   A request is made to the leads endpoint to update the winning id designated from Step 4: Select Winning Field Values (update_winner.py). If the update is successful then the script and the zap both end.   However, sometimes Marketo’s inbuilt merging logic might have chosen a different winning id than that specified in Step 4: Select Winning Field Values. This can happen in the case that the one of the leads being merged is a contact in SFDC and the others are leads. Marketo’s inbuilt merging logic will always choose the contact to be the winner in this case.   If the Python logic used in Step 4: Select Winning Field Values selects an SFDC lead as the winner then Marketo will override this choice and the SFDC contact will be the actual winner. Therefore, when attempting to update the incorrectly labeled winning id from Step 4: Select Winning Field Values this lead will no longer exist and the keyword “skipped” will be in the update response.   This is why a while loop is used to cycle through the other ids that were part of the merge until the actual winner is found and updated.   You can avoid the need for this while loop and ensure that the winner selected in your Python logic always matches that of Marketo’s inbuilt logic. This can be done by modifying Step 3: Get Duplicate Leads to bring in the sfdcType field and then modifying the Python code in Step 4: Select Winning Field Values to ensure that an SFDC contact will always be selected as the winner if the other people to be merged are SFDC leads.   "Code by Zapier" action to update the winning lead with the winning field values   Next Up: Merge in Bulk with the API   Now that you have mastered how to use Zapier and the Marketo merge REST API endpoint to merge leads automatically upon creation, what do you do with that huge backlog of duplicates?   I have just the post for you! The Marketo Merge Leads in Bulk using the API post will show you how to use the exact same Marketo merge endpoint to merge leads in bulk using Python to make the request and to set custom rules for how you want to prioritize conflicting values for the same fields on different leads.   Also if you want to merge with more confidence take a look at the Zapier Approval Workflow Example with Slack Alerts post to see how to add a manual review step to this “automatic Marketo merge” zap to ensure that the correct winning lead id and field values have been selected before merging.   Originally posted on the TheWorkflowPro blog: Marketo Merge Automatically with Zapier . ... View more

  If you are doing any repetitive work within Marketo e.g. bulk merging leads, bulk creating programs etc then you should look into using the Marketo API within code scripts or an automation tool such as Zapier to automate these processes. This post will take you all the way from the Marketo API docs to making your first API requests in Postman to integrating these requests into Zapier actions or scripts in your favorite programming language.   What is an API? Anyone can Google the technical definition of an API and what it does so I won't go into that here. I will instead offer as layman a definition as possible.   Basically, an API is a collection of urls (called endpoints) to which you either retrieve information from (GET request) or post information to (POST request). You can learn how to make your first GET and POST requests in Postman below.   According to how the APIs are configured they will adhere to certain protocols and be defined as a certain type of API e.g. REST, SOAP. Although Marketo has a SOAP API, it is no longer under active development and their developers are focusing on the REST API moving forward.   Marketo also has a JavaScript API but this API is used for enabling features like lead tracking, form data capture, and personalization on your Marketo landing pages or website and cannot be used to interface with leads and assets. Consequently, I will focus on the Marketo REST API for the remainder of this post.   Marketo API Documentation For anyone looking to do any sort of automation in Marketo, the Marketo REST API documentation will become your bible, allowing you to retrieve information about leads and assets (landing pages, emails, programs) or modify them programmatically.   The Marketo REST API landing page has everything you need to get started by showing you how to set up an API user and get the "Client Id" and "Client Secret" needed for authentication.   Testing the Marketo API using Postman Before integrating any API call into a script or an automation tool like Zapier, I recommend testing the API call out first in the free API testing tool, Postman. This way you can test that you are making the API request correctly and you can see what the output response from this request will look like.   Create a Marketo Environment & Variables The first step in using Marketo API calls in Postman is to set up a Marketo environment and associated environment variables.   Marketo Environment & Variables in Postman   Click on the "Manage Environments" icon to the right of the eye icon Click "Add" in the pop-up window that appears Name the environment e.g. "Marketo" Create 4 variables to contain the base URL, Client Id, Client Secret, and Bearer Token The values for the base URL, Client Id, and Client Secret can be found from the authentication section in the Marketo API docs. The base URL should be the same as the "Endpoint" and "Identity" URLs but with the "/rest" or "/identity" removed from the end e.g. base_url = https://xxx-xxx-xxx.mktorest.com   Making Your First Marketo API GET Request The Marketo API request that you will use the most whether in Postman, scripts, or Zapier will always be the request to get an access token since this token is required to authenticate all other requests. Click on "New" in the top left-hand corner of the screen Select "Request" Name the request Select a collection to store the request or use the "Create Collection" option to create a new collection to store all your Marketo API requests. Paste {{base_url}}/identity/oauth/token?grant_type=client_credentials&client_id={{client_id}}&client_secret={{client_secret}} into the URL bar The request type dropdown is already set to "Get" The 3 variables we created earlier are brought in using curly brackets All 3 query parameters specified in the request URL automatically populate the "Params" tab beneath the URL bar Ensure that your Marketo environment is selected in the environment dropdown so that the request can access the 3 variables above Switch to the "Tests" tab Paste the code below into the "Tests" window This code will take the "access_token" value returned from Marketo and automatically store it in the "bearer_token" variable var jsonData = pm.response.json(); pm.environment.set("bearer_token", jsonData.access_token); Click "Save" Click "Send"   Marketo API GET request for authorization in Postman Bingo Bango! You have now made your first Marketo API request. What's more, thanks to the code we pasted in the "Tests" tab we now have the access token stored as a variable that we can use in all other request we make in Postman (see section below). This Marketo authorization token only has a lifetime of 3600 seconds so you will need to run this authorization request regularly to get valid tokens.   Making Your First Marketo API POST Request Click on "New" in the top left-hand corner of the screen Select "Request" Name the request Select your Marketo API Collection Paste {{base_url}}/rest/asset/v1/program/1234.json into the URL bar Replace "1234" with the program id of a program that you can use for testing A program id can be extracted from the URL displayed when clicking on a program e.g. https://engage-ab.marketo.com/?munchkinId=xxx-xxx-xxx#/classic/PG1234A1 Ensure that your Marketo environment is selected in the environment dropdown so that the request can access the base_url variable above Switch to the "Authorization" tab Set the "Type" to "Bearer Token" Paste "{{bearer_token}}" into the "Token" field This bearer_token variable will automatically be populated with the access token from the GET request we made above Switch to the "Body" tab Select the "x-www-form-urlencoded" radio button Set the "Key" to "description" and "Value" to "My First Marketo API POST Request" Click "Save" Click "Send" Marketo API POST request to update program description in Postman   Et Voila! Check the response in the Postman console to see how the description of the program was updated. The skeptics among us can check the description of the program in Marketo to see that it has indeed been updated!   Using the Marketo API in your Favorite Coding Language One of the best features of Postman for beginners is its ability to output the code for any request you create in any of 17 languages ranging from C to JavaScript to Python. Click the "Code" link just under the "Send" button Select your preferred language and library combination on the left-hand side Copy the code that appears in the window   Python generated code for the program update POST request   Now that you have the ability to create Marketo API requests in your programming language of choice you can now embed these requests in scripts to unlock more advanced interaction with leads and assets in Marketo. Alternatively, you can now use these generated code snippets within Zapier to make Marketo API requests.   As an aside, there is a Marketo REST API library for Python that will allow you to make requests very easily, however, if you intend to make Marketo API requests within Zapier then you will not be able to use this library. Zapier currently uses Python version 3.7 and it does not allow you to import custom libraries. Therefore, you will have to follow the steps above to get the code for the request and then follow the steps below to make the request from within Zapier.   Using the Marketo API in Zapier As you might have already guessed, Zapier is built entirely on APIs to offer integrations with many different software tools through an easy to use drag and drop builder. However, sometimes Zapier will not have an integration with a platform you require or they will not have certain functionality available for an integrated platform.   For example the only trigger available in Zapier for Marketo is the "New Lead" trigger and the only actions available are "Create or Update Lead", "Add Lead to List", and "Find Lead".   "New Lead" trigger for Marketo in Zapier   The 3 available Marketo actions in Zapier   This means if you want any of the other functionality offered through the Marketo REST API you will have to use the "Code by Zapier" app along with your own custom code in either Python (version 3.7) or Javascript (Node 10.x.x).   "Code by Zapier" action   N.B. Before importing any code into the "Code by Zapier" action I recommend testing the code in an online compiler e.g. OnlineGDB for Python, or in a platform such as Pycharm (for Python). Debugging errors within Zapier is not easy but if you use platforms such as these then you can leverage their tools for debugging and then copy and paste the code to Zapier once it is ready.   Adhering to Marketo REST API Limits Once you start incorporating Marketo REST API calls into your scripts or Zapier actions it is possible for calls to be made in rapid succession using loops or for calls to be made in parallel using multi-threading or having multiple scripts running at once. In these scenarios, it is important to be aware of the Marketo REST API limits so that your requests do not get stopped for exceeding these limits.   50k Daily API Quota If you are importing or exporting large amounts of data into or from Marketo, then it is advised to use the Bulk Import and Bulk Extract APIs, which are optimized for uploading or retrieving information and minimizing API Calls. If you are integrating Marketo with a business intelligence tool like Domo then you should ensure that this business intelligence tool is using the bulk extract API so it does not exhaust your daily API quota.   Rate Limit of 100 calls per 20 seconds When making API calls within any sort of loop it is important to use a scheduler e.g. the apscheduler in Python, to throttle the number of requests being made.   If you are not concerned with how quickly your script runs then simply implementing a 0.2sec delay at the end of your loop will ensure that you do not exceed 100 calls per 20 seconds.   Concurrency Limit of 10 calls Avoiding the concurrency limit comes down to scheduling and communication between the different scripts you have making requests to Marketo.   When performance is not a concern, then ensure that there is only one program making requests to Marketo at any point in time and that within this program the flow is linear so that the next API request will only commence once the previous API request has completed.   When performance is a concern and you need to have multiple programs running at once or multiple calls being made within a single program in parallel i.e. asynchronous programming, then these concurrent processes will need to communicate with one another and a scheduler library e.g. the apscheduler in Python should be used to ensure that no more than 10 calls are being made at once.   What can be automated with the Marketo API? Now that you know where to find the Marketo API library and how to use these API requests in scripts or Zapier the world is your oyster! Go forth and API!   If you want examples of processes that you can automate using the Marketo API take a look at these posts for inspiration: Bulk Merge Marketo Duplicates according to your own custom rules Streamline your email creation process using Google Sheets templates and Zapier Automate your UTM creation and tracking using Google Forms, Google Sheets, and Zapier To see the video tutorial for this post head on over to the TheWorkflowPro blog: Marketo API Quick-Start Guide. ... View more

Hi everyone,   Does anyone have an integration with a 3rd party SMS provider within Marketo that they can give me a quick demo of?   My company Telnyx is considering building an integration with Marketo to allow people to send SMS or do number lookups without having to use webhooks so I would like to do some benchmarking and see how other providers have these integrations set up and how people are using them, what can be better etc.   If you can give me a demo please send me a DM 🙂 ... View more

There should be a flow action to merge leads.   I realize there are complexities involved with potential field value discrepancies between the winning and losing lead(s) but if people have the confidence that the leads should be merged then this should be an option.   It would be nice if Marketo could build a graphic interface to automate merging, where rules can be set for conflicting field values, as opposed to having to pay for 3rd Party services.   Duplicates are such a big issue for a lot of people using Marketo and besides using a 3rd party or using Zapier or Python to do the merging people do not have a lot of options for automating merging or merging in bulk. ... View more

At the moment, it is not possible to do any actions in bulk in the Navigation tree   For example, it should be possible to select multiple assets and then do the following actions to them in bulk: moving, cloning, deleting ... View more

At the moment if you want to filter out people who have done an action more than X number of times you have to put in the original activity filter e.g. "Campaign was Requested", along with the corresponding inactivity filter "Not campaign was requested", which has a "Min number of times constraint".   This is very hacky and there should be an inbuilt filter constraint for maximum number of times ... View more

At the moment it is not possible to take the field values coming in with custom activities and map those to Marketo fields (similar to webhook response mapping) or transfer those to Marketo fields in another way.   The primary attribute value can be stored in a field using the {{trigger.name}} token.   It would be nice if all custom activity field values could be accessed using trigger tokens. ... View more