What are Slack integrations?
Slack integrations essentially are variants of a tool or product that are directly accessible via Slack. This allows you to use your favorite tool without leaving Slack. There’s no need to close tabs or switch between applications.
The integrations are what make Slack such an innovative and powerful tool. Not only is it an instant messaging and collaboration system, but it also enables you to capsulize all your notifications.
From sales to marketing, social media, and much more, Slack will gather all these into one searchable spot where your entire team can discuss and take action on each.
How to use Slack integrations
Some apps were built by Slack and others are built by third-party developers. You can even build your own apps using the Slack API. This is a great opportunity for teams that need custom workflows they can't get through existing tools.
Here are some of the things that Slack integrations will automate and take care of:
Explore apps
To implement a new slack integration head over to the slack app directory, where you'll find over more than 2000 apps waiting for you. If you want to see whether your team is already using some, click on Apps in the left-hand sidebar in Slack.
Stroll through Slack’s APIs
To get accustomed with the basics of Slack app platform head to their Slack API site and with your slack account take a peek a one of the Slack communities to connect with other people.
Share links
After pasting a link into a Slack channel, apps like Zendesk parse out key information into a preview so you're able to gather context before deciding to open a new browser tab.
Add files
Slack integrates with all the big cloud-based file management tools, including Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, and Dropbox.
Once again, Slack saves you the nuisance of opening another tab to find a file link. Instead, you can search for your documents and share them directly from within Slack.
Create customised workflows
Anyone on a team with Slack subscriptions can create customized workflows in minutes to streamline team coordination or standardize processes such as onboarding using the Workflow Builder.
It's also pretty simple to create workflows from scratch or use templates in order to:
- Welcome team members to a channel with automated onboarding messages
- Quickly field requests with customized forms
- Streamline regular progress updates such as status reports and more.