Slack Integrations

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.

What are the benefits of using Slack integrations?

Slack workspace will streamline your tools and workflows, so everything's in one spot, and that relieves you from jumping from app to app. When all your information is quickly accessible, you can stop juggling tabs and stay focused on more meaningful work.

Read on, to find out about some of the benefits and how Slack apps will support team collaboration.

1. You can bring information from your tools directly into Slack

Your tools harbor essential information in separate places – information that you need to get work done. Communicating information in Slack moves all that valuable context out of browser tabs and into channels, where your entire team can see it and act on it.

That can be things like sharing links, docs or adding files directly within Slack.

2. Line real-time alerts into Slack

Responsiveness is vital, especially when you're dealing with time-sensitive matters.
Slack advantage is that it brings the right people together, at the right time, in the right place to quickly move forward with a course of action.

For example, with the Salesforce app you can set up customised slack notifications or alerts. When sales opportunities are updated, the Salesforce app will automatically notify a channel so teams can directly work with them.

A lot of the integrations will also help you turn direct messages into actions, but more on this later.

3. Take action with necessary tools from within Slack

Use built-in shortcuts

Apps make it quick and simple to take care of pesky, low-effort tasks, without leaving Slack.

Click the lightning bolt button next to the message field to access shortcuts that will kick off tasks and workflows, right from Slack.

Shortcuts will allow you to:

• Create an event with Google Calendar or Outlook Calendar
• Start polls or surveys with Polly or Simple Poll
• Create new tasks with monday.com

Start a call

Slack also has a built-in calling feature, so it’s easy to start a video or voice call right from Slack.

You can even launch calls using leading video conferencing apps such as Microsoft Teams or Zoom.

4. Automate processes in Slack

Every project requires coordination and teamwork.

Many of those tasks can take away precious time from more valuable work. The ability to create customized workflows simplifies processes and enhances team collaboration.

5. Link workflows from different systems

To solve complex problems for your company, you can always access Slack’s APIs.

Customized apps are especially effective for streamlining internal and external systems to create a single experience powered by a Slack integration.

As you can see Slack provides a lot of benefits, which is why we at flair, also have our own Slack integration! This allows you to request absences or approve them, without having to leave Slack!

What are the best Slack integrations?

1. HubSpot

According to many sources, HubSpot is the most used marketing CRM in the market. HubSpot is an American software for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service, that helps accelerate company growth.

When connected to Slack, HubSpot can:

• Create a new task and associate it with a contact or company — directly within Slack
• Form a task in HubSpot from important new messages in Slack
• Receive CRM notifications in Slack to save time without switching apps

2. Trello

Trello provides teams with boards, templates, lists, and cards to improve project management and team communication.

When connected to Slack, Trello can:

• Send messages as a slack user
• Add, remove, or complete reminders for a user
• Search your workspace content
• Add actions to messages (and view related content)

3. Jira

Commonly used by agile product teams, Jira Cloud is a software development tool.

Its four key use topics are plan, track, release, and report.

Tracking issues and projects often incur switching between several applications and tabs, so integrating Jira with Slack is a great first step, especially for development teams.

When connected to Slack, Jira Cloud can:

• Form new Slack channels linked to your Jira issues without having to leave Jira
• Automatically share comments in Slack
• View real-time Slack messages inside a Jira issue

4. Asana

Asana is a management platform designed to help teams organize, track, and manage their work.

In project management, Asana can be used to track progress, identify blockers and plan sprints. Simple to-do task lists, visualizing projects on Kanban boards, and planning workflow, can all be used to streamline processes.

When connected to Slack, Asana can:

• Receive instant notifications in Slack when changes are made to tasks in Asana
• Link specific Asana projects to a specific channel in Slack
• Turn Slack messages into tasks in Asana

5. Salesforce

A majority of the Fortune 500 companies use Salesforce, and Slack is also operated by many of them.

This is why the integration of these two powerful tools is critical.

• View and communicate essential information about your accounts precisely where you’re already working with your team
• Search Salesforce from Slack by typing /salesforce [search term]
• Messages can be shared between Salesforce Chatter and your Slack channels

Check out our own flair integration with Slack!

Conclusion

Essentially, Slack is a powerful tool, and its flexibility allows each company to access, implement and create Slack integrations specifically tailored to your organizational needs.

Try them out and you'll see how much your team will profit from them!