10 Indications That You Should Invest in Automation Via APIs
Tags: api, automation, softwar, javascript
Published: 2022-02-04 10:01:29

Over the past decade, APIs have become essential for modern businesses and application development teams.

They empower developers to easily add new features to their apps by facilitating connectivity with varied sources like databases, devices, or even other APIs.

APIs also help companies streamline their business process through automation and deliver better customer experiences. But should you invest in APIs?

Can they really benefit your business and development team? Is an [IP Address API](https://ipstack.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) a must-have for your business?

In this post, you will find 10 signs you should invest in automation through APIs. Now, let’s dive in.

# What is an API?

API stands for Application Programming Interface (API). It refers to a set of functions that enable your applications to access data and interact with external software components.

By using a documented interface, APIs allow your app to communicate with third-party functions and tools. They simplify the integration of new application components into existing architectures.

This means you don’t have to start from scratch to add new features to your apps. As a result, you can save resources, time, and money.

# Why should you invest in automation through APIs?

## 1  - Are you frustrated with your automation projects being unsuccessful?

Companies around the world are facing big issues as a result of economic disruptions caused by COVID-19. In order to remain competitive, IT teams are focusing more on automating their business process to address the new challenges.

According to a [McKinsey Automation Survey](https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Business%20Functions/McKinsey%20Digital/Our%20Insights/Driving%20impact%20at%20scale%20from%20automation%20and%20AI/Driving-impact-at-scale-from-automation-and-AI.pdf%20page%2070), however, only 45% of automation projects are successful.

What are the reasons behind this high failure rate? Simply put, these new automation initiatives are not meeting business expectations. This is because, in general, their strategies are outdated — they rely on point solutions, like native job schedulers, custom scripts, and in-house applications.

They make the automation environment very complex. In addition, they significantly hamper the adoption and integration efforts of IT teams.

In order to address this issue, your IT team should focus on automating using REST APIs. This is because you can treat each API as a discrete component that represents a specific part of your business process.

This approach gives you controlled access. It clearly defines the scope of functionality and data you are working with.

REST APIs are also very easy to integrate into your application. Simply put, working with APIs gives your automation projects a higher chance of success.

## 2 - Do you need to boost your team’s productivity?

API integration automates connectivity between applications and data sources. This significantly boosts your development team’s productivity. With API automation, your developers won’t have to spend long hours developing methods to display external data sources in your applications.

In terms of ease of use and integration, API suites like [apilayer](https://apilayer.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) come with robust documentation and numerous examples.

By following clear use cases, your team can automate the connectivity between applications and data sources in minutes. The process is also very simple. There is no complexity. The time savings alone will make your team more productive.

## 3  -  Are you struggling to reach real customers?

Nothing is more important for your business than reaching real customers. If your emails go to the wrong contacts, then your marketing campaigns will fail miserably.

Equally importantly, sending emails to non-existent email addresses can raise your spam score. This will increase the chance of your emails ending up unread in spam folders.

That’s why you need a solution that will help you to verify email addresses automatically. By automatically validating emails you will eliminate fake IDs and your emails will reach only your real customers.

With an email validation API like [mailboxlayer](https://mailboxlayer.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs), you can verify email addresses before they taint your marketing database. Mailboxlayer checks for syntax errors and typos to eliminate fake IDs.

## 4  -  Do you find it difficult to get accurate stock market data?

Accurate stock market data is crucial for making effective investment decisions. Without the right information, you cannot make accurate predictions. Market data also varies with time.

Because of this, you need a solution that provides real-time information from reliable sources.

By using an API like [marketstack](https://marketstack.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) you can get down-to-the-minute, real-time stock data. It gathers accurate data from reliable sources for over 70 global stock exchanges, including Nasdaq and the NYSE.

Marketstack information updates automatically in real-time. You don’t have to do anything manually. Also, you can also integrate the API to stream information to apps and other platforms in minutes.

## 5  -  Do you want to personalize your user experience with geolocation?

As a business owner, you need to gather information about your website visitors, including their geolocation, language, or currency.

It is key information that lets you adjust your content according to your user’s location and preferences. This lets you more accurately target potential customers.

Obviously, you can’t target all your site visitors manually. You need an automated system. [ipstack](https://ipstack.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs), a geolocation API automatically locates and identifies your site visitors by IP address.

Based on that information, you can customize your user experience accordingly. You can also optimize ad targeting to boost sales.

## 6  - Do you want to eliminate low-quality leads?

Quality leads are essential for your business. If you can turn them into loyal customers, your company will see rapid growth. Low-quality leads, on the other hand, add zero value to your business. You need an efficient way to eliminate them from your database.

Verifying email addresses is very common, but by validating phone numbers, you add an extra verification layer. Using the [numverify](https://numverify.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs).

API you can effortlessly add phone number validation to your web application. It is very easy to integrate and eliminate low-quality leads altogether.

## 7  -  Are you struggling to track your product’s SERP data?

Getting your product to the top of SERP is not an easy task. You need to efficiently monitor your competitors and their strategies. SERP rankings, however, fluctuate constantly.

As a result, search keywords become more or less relevant over time. Staying on top of the changes can be very challenging.

To make things easier, you should start using a ready-made Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution like [serpstack](https://serpstack.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) API. serpstack, you can directly track SERP data in your own applications or websites. Effortlessly tracking SERP data is essential for successful marketing campaigns.

## 8 - Do you want to reach a larger audience with automatic language detection?

Nowadays, businesses are emphasizing language auto-detection technology. Communication in your user’s own language can accelerate business processes, reduce cost, and enhance your customer engagement by providing translation engines with the source language they need.

By automatically translating everything on your site you can reach a larger audience of non-native English speakers.

An API-like [languagelayer](https://languagelayer.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) quickly automates language detection in any programming language. Its detection algorithm improves continuously with each detection performed.

It can also rapidly process over 170 different languages. As a result, you localize to reach customers across various multiple regions.

## 9  - Want to efficiently validate VAT numbers?

A VAT number is a code that verifies the legitimacy of a company that you are dealing with. If you are a supplier, you need to put the VAT number of your clients on your invoice to prevent tax fraud.

However, VAT validation can be confusing and time-consuming to deal with. You need efficient technology to get the job done quickly.

VAT validation APIs like [vatlayer](https://vatlayer.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) help you instantly validate VAT numbers. They also perform VAT compliant price calculations and obtain EU VAT rates by country code.

VAT validation APIs are also very fast and highly secure. Consider using one to streamline your VAT number validation process.

## 10 -  Are you looking for ways to turn web pages into actionable data?

Web scraping is very important for collecting and analyzing data from the websites of your competitors.

However, many websites use defensive algorithms to prevent web scrapers. They limit the number of requests an IP may send. You need technology to counteract the protections.

By using a scraping API like [scrapestack](https://scrapestack.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs) you can scrape sites without having to worry about technical issues like proxies, IP blocks, and CAPTCHA solving.

You just need to provide a URL and Scrapestack will scrape it in a few milliseconds.

# Should I really invest in automation through APIs?

Yes, you should definitely consider investing in automation through APIs. APIs provide you with a wealth of benefits.

They allow you to automate and streamline your business process. Using APIs, you can significantly enhance the productivity of your team.

**[apilayer is a suite of productivity-boosting APIs. It helps you to automate complex processes conveniently. Try it now for free.](https://apilayer.com/?utm_source=Devto&utm_medium=Leads%20Acquisition&utm_content=post_jan2022&utm_campaign=InvestinAutomationThroughAPIs)**

By Ehsanul Haque Kanan. Originally posted on the blog: https://blog.apilayer.com/10-signs-you-should-invest-in-automation-through-apis.

Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@johnschno?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">John Schnobrich</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/automation?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a>