Email to Salesforce - What Is The Recommended Approach?

How Should I Connect Emails to Salesforce?

Accelify recommends using a manual, user-controlled logging process rather than enabling automatic email syncing.

Why This Matters

Most users receive a high volume of internal or non-customer-facing emails. Enabling full auto-sync can lead to:

• Excessive noise in the activity timeline

• Reduced data quality across the CRM

• Inaccurate or unhelpful reporting

Unfiltered syncing also makes it harder to identify which interactions are truly meaningful in the sales or service process.

What Are the Options for Email Integration with Salesforce?

This guide compares the main options available for integrating Outlook and Gmail with Salesforce, along with Accelify’s position on each.

Option 1: Einstein Activity Capture

• Supported Platforms: Outlook, Gmail

• Type: Fully automated

• Functionality:

  • Automatically syncs emails and calendar events

  • Emails appear in a read-only feed (not stored as Tasks or Events)

  • Not stored in Salesforce data tables — not reportable or queryable

  • No filtering or control — all matched emails sync

• Limitations:

  • No manual logging control

  • No ability to delete or customise feed items

  • Cannot report on or build automation around logged emails

  • Compliance concerns with uncontrolled data capture

• Cost: Free (Basic), $50/user/month (Advanced)

• Recommendation: Not recommended

Option 2: Outlook Integration

• Supported Platforms: Outlook only

• Type: Fully manual

• Functionality:

  • Users log emails from the Outlook sidebar into Salesforce

  • Logged emails appear as Activities (Tasks/Events) and are reportable

  • Supports related record search, creation, and email templates

• Considerations:

  • Manual effort required

  • Relies on user adoption and training

  • No calendar sync

• Cost: Free

• Recommendation: Recommended for Outlook users

Option 3: Gmail Integration

• Supported Platforms: Gmail (via Chrome)

• Type: Fully manual

• Functionality:

  • Gmail users log emails to Salesforce via a Chrome extension

  • Supports record creation, email templates, and manual logging to Leads, Contacts, Opportunities

• Considerations:

  • Requires Chrome and extension

  • No auto-sync unless Einstein is used

  • Requires training and adoption

• Cost: Free

• Recommendation: Recommended for Gmail users

Option 4: Cirrus Insight

• Supported Platforms: Gmail and Outlook

• Type: Manual or semi-automated

• Functionality:

  • Unified sidebar across Gmail and Outlook

  • Manual email logging, contact creation, calendar sync, and email templates

  • Optional tracking and advanced workflow support

• Considerations:

  • Paid product

  • Sidebar may slow down with large data volumes

  • Still depends on user behaviour

• Cost: $14–$21 USD per user per month

• Recommendation: Best paid option

Accelify’s Position