A key component of Merge is our Unified API. Unified APIs, like Plaid for banks, are not new ideas, but the design and implementation of what constitutes an effective unified API are still in their infancy.
A single guiding Unified API Platform principle guided the development of our Unified API: standardization facilitates speed. Our customers are B2B tool developers, and they don’t have the luxury of implementing integration roadmaps that take quarters to complete.
To address this, Merge has developed a Unified API that allows our customers to focus on building a better core product if they don’t have to worry about adding integrations.
Normalization, adaptability, and transparency are all important aspects of a successful unified API.
Normalization
In order to have a functional product, you’ll need a lot of integrations, which take a long time to build. Merge’s integration with a wide range of platforms isn’t only complicated; different APIs return data in a variety of ways.
In order to construct a B2B solution with several integrations, a decent unified API normalizes as much as possible. It will take care of the hard lifting of comprehending the various schemas, authentication, pagination, and any other peculiarities that a platform may possess.
Let’s take a look at a specific situation. It is possible to have a candidate apply for a job in almost all applicant tracking systems (ATS). Every applicant tracking system (ATS) has its own unique manner of organizing a candidate, even if you think of them as a single entity. There are some that include separate representations of a candidate’s application, while others merge the candidate and the application but keep the job ads separate.
There is no need to keep track of the various representations of ATS if you’re using Merge’s common models for ATS. As an alternative, you concentrate on a single schema, which is our understanding of the most critical information returned from an ATS.
However, normalization extends to more than just objects. With Merge’s normalized data, you can expect:
A single data model based on the 20+ integrations we study and analyze. Only one schema is required of you.
No OAuth, no crazy needed parameters that compel you to create special logic into your codebase, and no constant back and forth. Just one type of authentication and pagination. You don’t have to worry about a thing.
Only RESTful APIs are allowed. There is no SOAP or RPC. There are so many APIs out there that we’ve developed a layer of abstraction on top of them.
Developing a Single API
- Unified APIs are available from a number of services, however, the number of providers and APIs they support can be a little thin at times. As a result, you’ll need to contact the API’s supplier directly and ask for assistance.
- This can lead to delays and interruptions in your build process.
- When it comes to Unified APIs, how can you get all the data you need? Automation.
- This means that you can either request a pre-existing unified API or build out your automation to get the API you need nearly instantaneously with Pathfix Automation.
