Overview
After setting up your Source integration to Marketo, it is important to test to ensure everything is working properly and leads are flowing into Marketo as expected. Within the Demand Acceleration Platform, you can send a test lead to Marketo and view the request and response data received. We record that post out data for all leads sent from the DAP and encourage you to stay in tune with your lead post outs once your Sources are live.
This article will guide you through the testing process and lead management best practices. We strongly encourage you to work with the Marketo admin on your team to assist with testing and troubleshooting of this third-party system.
Please Note: Setting up your Integrations tab can, and should, be done first on the Campaign level to act as a 'template' or 'stamp' when creating Sources so only small edits are needed to adjust Source specifics. The integration set up process is the same on either the Campaign or Source level so, for the purpose of this guide, we'll be referring to Source level integrations.
This article includes these sections:
Before You Begin
- Connect your Marketo Instance to your Demand Acceleration Platform
- Complete the set-up of your Source Integration to Marketo
- Determine how your leads will be routing to Marketo and confirm all set-up has been completed within Marketo and the Integrate Demand Acceleration Platform
Sending a Test Lead to Marketo
It is crucial to test your integration prior to launching each Integrate Source. This allows you to proactively resolve any snags to ensure leads will flow and route properly from the Demand Acceleration Platform into your Marketo. When testing, try to use sample data that closely resembles the way real lead data will look and route through all platforms.
When should I test my integration?
You can send a test at any time, however we recommend testing after completing your Integration set up but before launching each and every Source to allow live lead flow.
If you're building a new Campaign, we strongly recommend setting up and testing your Campaign level integration first before creating any of the Sources within. This will ensure you only need to make minimal Source changes specific to the routing needs of your Sources before testing and launching each of those.
What will I need to send a test lead?
- Finalized Integrate Source – Preferably in Draft stage, with a completed set-up including an Integrations tab with all field mapping and any customization finished
- Sample lead data – This can be entirely made up, but we recommend replicating how a real lead will flow through as closely as possible. Test data only processes through your outbound integration so you can use fake data without worrying about meeting the inbound validation rules set up to reject invalid leads uploaded into the Source (i.e. Fields tab). Do still be mindful of any inbound validation rules within your Marketo.
- Access to Marketo / Collaboration with Marketo admin – Once the test lead has been sent, you’ll need to find that lead within Marketo to confirm it was received, fully filled out, and routed properly. If you do not have access to Marketo, please reach to your Marketo admin to let them know you’ll be sending test leads and establish a process for working together going forward.
How to Send a Test
Once you are ready, navigate to the Integrations tab within your Source and open your Marketo integration. Click Test Integration in the top right corner to open the testing sandbox modal.
The Test Integration modal will appear as shown in the example below with two columns representing your fields and test data.
- Field column – Read only display of your Source’s Fields tab, one line for each field labeled with the Integrate Field Name (ex: FName, not First Name which is the Field Question)
- Test Value column – Editable display of sample data to use when testing, will be pre-populated with dummy data or previous test data used (if tested previously)
- If running multiple tests, be sure to change your sample email to create a new test lead instead of updating a previous one (ex: test1a@integrate.com and then test1b@integrate.com)
- If a picklist is being used on a field, try to select a sample value that is one of your Allowed values for this Source. All values are able to be selected for testing purposes, but this does not impact validations for lead uploads.
Populate each field of the Test Value column with your sample data replicating a real lead as closely as possible. See our section on ‘Sample lead data’ above for more details and our recommendations.
When ready, click Run Test to send that data to your Marketo instance.
Please Note: Once open, the testing modal will close if you click outside elsewhere on the page. Test lead data is only accessible inside the open modal.
Confirming a Successful Test Lead
Once sent, the modal will display your Sandbox Test Results containing all the details on the data sent to (Request) and received by (Response) Marketo.
It is crucial to confirm that each test lead is successfully received, properly routed, and fully filled out within Marketo. We strongly encourage you to work with the Marketo admin (if that isn’t you) to confirm all test leads within Marketo and determine a process that works for your team.
Below we’ll review the key indicators of a successful test lead that can be viewed within the Integrate platform. Also check out our article on interpreting Marketo post outs for more details and tips for troubleshooting common Marketo errors.
The Request
Post-out data displayed exactly as Integrate sent to Marketo
If you’re routing using Marketo Add to Program, that routing data will be shown first. You’ll see programName and then the exact name of the Marketo program. Optional fields source, reason, and programStatus will follow with the values for those if added or blank if left to populate with the default values.
Routing to Marketo Static Lists? Test lead requests and Marketo responses will look a bit different because this integration configuration must make 2 API calls to Marketo per lead (one to create/update the lead, one to move it to the list). Please see our article on routing using Marketo static lists for more details.
The next section labeled input will display the test lead’s data with one line for each mapped Marketo field on your Integration. The values will follow the pattern “MarketoFieldName”: “YourLeadValueHere”
Review this section in detail to confirm all fields you intended to include have values populated and that any list value mappers applied to your Integration are working properly.
Please Note: The green check mark at the top of the modal indicates that Integrate successfully sent the test lead (like throwing a ball) but does not confirm its successful receipt on behalf of Marketo (like catching the ball).
The Response
Received data displayed exactly as Marketo replied
This may look different depending on the success or failure of the test lead. The main elements of a successful response are…
- Status code ‘200’ – This is Marketo’s code for success! (Here is Marketo’s full list of error codes)
- Status ‘created’ or ‘updated’ – This indicates if the lead was in fact created (new) or updated (existing)
- Returned with a Marketo lead ID – This indicates the lead was created/located within Marketo and thus returns the corresponding lead ID
Seeing these successful elements here is great, but the real confirmation of a successful test lead is reviewing within Marketo. We recommend working with your Marketo admin (if that isn’t you) to ensure each test lead is successfully received, properly routed, and fully filled out.
What if I see an error or a potentially unsuccessful lead?
Although the data may have been sent successfully, there may be an issue with it being received in Marketo. A code of anything other than ‘200’ indicates an unsuccessful test and will need adjustment, action, and/or further investigation before sending a new test.
To give you an indication as to what about the test lead may have been incorrect, pay attention to the “code” and “message” sections. The code is particularly important as it highlights the specific Marketo error code that is being sent back to the platform. See our article on interpreting Marketo post outs for more details and resolutions for the most common Marketo errors.
For example, in the below response, the code ‘1003’ and message displayed indicates that the Marketo program name was not found because the value ‘PLACEHOLDER’ was left in the 'programName' field within the Integration. To resolve, you would add the proper Marketo program name into your Integration and send a new test lead!
Lead Management Best Practices
Once your Source is live and leads are flowing through your outbound integration to Marketo, we recommend determining a regular cadence to monitor your post outs. Most customers find that a weekly check-in works well but you should determine what works best for your team depending on your volume and system needs.
There are a few ways you can do this using data and reporting from the Integrate Demand Acceleration Platform. Continue on to our Interpreting Marketo Post Outs & Common Errors article for full details and instructions.
Here is a quick outline of those post out check methods…
a) Compare Source Accepted lead totals with Marketo – Best option for quick confirm if Sources routing leads into a Marketo program or static list where totals can be easily compared
b) Confirm all leads in ‘Delivery Successful’ status within Source Integration tab – Best option for quick confirm of lower volume Campaigns with few Sources (running for less than 90 days, not using static lists)
c) Review logs from Post Out Log Report – Best option for accuracy and full details on Marketo responses and potential errors.
For details and instructions on these Marketo post out check methods and more, continue on with these help center articles.
- Interpreting Marketo Post Outs & Common Errors
- Post Out Lead Management