ActiveCampaign
App Studio

ActiveCampaign
App Studio

ActiveCampaign
App Studio

ActiveCampaign
App Studio

A self-service suite for building, testing and publishing apps and integrations on ActiveCampaign

A self-service suite for building, testing and publishing apps and integrations on ActiveCampaign

A self-service suite for building, testing and publishing apps and integrations on ActiveCampaign

  • 01 Problem & Goal ————

  • 03 Solution ————

  • 04 Outcome 🌟 ————

  • 05 Reflection & Future Plans ————

Problem & Goal

ActiveCampaign can't feasibly develop every app its users needed. To address this, the team prioritized creating a developer toolkit that enabled third-party developers to build, test, and release apps independently. This would exponentially grow the ecosystem while delivering massive value to marketers.

Objective: Build a self-service developer toolkit that will provide tools for building, testing, and publishing apps and integrations. These tools should allow developers to build and release apps with minimal support from ActiveCampaign.

Research

Research

• User Research: Conducted interviews with marketers and developers who expressed interest in building apps. This group provided insights into required tools and workflows across a range of technical expertise.

• User Journey Mapping: Mapped the end-to-end developer journey, identifying essential tools for building, testing, and releasing apps.

• Prototyping: Designed a lightweight prototype of the App Studio, tested iteratively with developers to refine usability and ensure comprehensive functionality.

Passkeys are a phishing-resistant, drop-in replacement for passwords. They rely on biometric verifications like FaceID or TouchID and can be used across different devices, platforms, and ecosystems.

Using a passkey is a bit like using a password manager, since a user’s credentials are stored in the cloud and easily accessible from any connected device, just like other cloud-synced features like a user’s photos, contacts, emails, and documents.

“Building tools for our users on AC is a win-win situation for us and enhances our brand's value, but the current process is sluggish and there's a lot of back and forth with support.” ~ Interviewee

Solution

App Studio provides developers direct access to the robust set of tools used internally by ActiveCampaign engineers to develop integrations.

Making these tools accessible and usable by third-party devs will streamline the app creation process and minimize the necessity of support.

Custom objects build on the default ActiveCampaign objects (contacts, deals, and accounts) and allow users to customize their data management to match the way they work.

App Configuration File

Central to app creation, the JSON configuration file defines API endpoints, workflows, and UI components. Configurations manage:

• UI Elements: Connection, setup, and data mapping

• AC API Access: Seamless integration with ActiveCampaign’s APIs

• Webhook Management: Integration with third-party services

App Configuration File

Central to app creation, the JSON configuration file defines API endpoints, workflows, and UI components. Configurations manage:

• UI Elements: Connection, setup, and data mapping

• AC API Access: Seamless integration with ActiveCampaign’s APIs

• Webhook Management: Integration with third-party services

App Configuration File

Central to app creation, the JSON configuration file defines API endpoints, workflows, and UI components. Configurations manage:

• UI Elements: Connection, setup, and data mapping

• AC API Access: Seamless integration with ActiveCampaign’s APIs

• Webhook Management: Integration with third-party services

App Configuration File

Central to app creation, the JSON configuration file defines API endpoints, workflows, and UI components. Configurations manage:

• UI Elements: Connection, setup, and data mapping

• AC API Access: Seamless integration with ActiveCampaign’s APIs

• Webhook Management: Integration with third-party services

Validation with Valerie

'Valerie' provides immediate feedback to developers on the state of their config file.

• Real-Time Feedback: Valerie, the validation tool, checks configurations for errors and ensures functionality.

• Future CLI Support: Plans for a command-line version to integrate directly into developers’ workflows.

Validation with Valerie

'Valerie' provides immediate feedback to developers on the state of their config file.

• Real-Time Feedback: Valerie, the validation tool, checks configurations for errors and ensures functionality.

• Future CLI Support: Plans for a command-line version to integrate directly into developers’ workflows.

Validation with Valerie

'Valerie' provides immediate feedback to developers on the state of their config file.

• Real-Time Feedback: Valerie, the validation tool, checks configurations for errors and ensures functionality.

• Future CLI Support: Plans for a command-line version to integrate directly into developers’ workflows.

Validation with Valerie

'Valerie' provides immediate feedback to developers on the state of their config file.

• Real-Time Feedback: Valerie, the validation tool, checks configurations for errors and ensures functionality.

• Future CLI Support: Plans for a command-line version to integrate directly into developers’ workflows.

Publishing and Version Management

Developers can submit their app for review directly in the App Studio

• Version management: devs can easily see the status of versions, clone versions, write release notes and even rollback versions if necessary

• Direct publishing: prior validation dramatically speeds up review of releases

Publishing and Version Management

Developers can submit their app for review directly in the App Studio

• Version management: devs can easily see the status of versions, clone versions, write release notes and even rollback versions if necessary

• Direct publishing: prior validation dramatically speeds up review of releases

Publishing and Version Management

Developers can submit their app for review directly in the App Studio

• Version management: devs can easily see the status of versions, clone versions, write release notes and even rollback versions if necessary

• Direct publishing: prior validation dramatically speeds up review of releases

Publishing and Version Management

Developers can submit their app for review directly in the App Studio

• Version management: devs can easily see the status of versions, clone versions, write release notes and even rollback versions if necessary

• Direct publishing: prior validation dramatically speeds up review of releases

Error Logging

Robust error logging tools give developers insight into problems.

This is especially useful when diagnosing data translation of API connectivity issues.

Outcomes

The results of the initial release of App Studio resolved or severely reduced several major issues faced by developers and the internal dev ops team:

0

Erroneous or incomplete app submissions

0

Erroneous or incomplete app submissions

0

Erroneous or incomplete app submissions

0

Erroneous or incomplete app submissions

50%

Reduction in lag to release and review length

50%

Reduction in lag to release and review length

50%

Reduction in lag to release and review length

50%

Reduction in lag to release and review length

3x

Increase in monthly apps approved

3x

Increase in monthly apps approved

3x

Increase in monthly apps approved

3x

Increase in monthly apps approved

person speaking
person speaking

“One of the best developer portals we’ve used. It’s great to have access to auth, webhooks, and workflows all in one place.” ~ Darryl Y, Developer

Reflection and Future Plans

Reflection and Future Plans

The App Studio roadmap continues to grow and evolve to better address the issues faced by developers and dev ops. The App Ecosystem team has a lot of exciting plans for continued iteration and development.

Some of these include:

• No-Code App Builder: For marketers/non-devs to create apps using the Action Framework.

• CLI-Based App Studio: A UI-less experience for developers working in their own environments.

• App Templates: Prebuilt frameworks for faster app development.

• Universal App Experience: Enhancing app functionality beyond automations.

• Custom Objects Integration: Providing apps with more flexibility and power.

By continuing to evolve App Studio, ActiveCampaign is set to further cement its leadership in CXA by fostering innovation and scalability within its ecosystem.

Additional Information