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Pardot

Updated

Connect Pardot (Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement) to Avid through your Salesforce account. Once connected, Avid reads your Pardot email engagement data into Insights, and you can push Avid audience segments to Pardot as prospects using Pathways (Avid's audience-sync feature).

Use this article when

  • You are connecting Pardot to Avid for the first time.
  • You need to reconnect an expired or broken Pardot connection.
  • You see OAUTH_APP_ACCESS_DENIED during the Salesforce sign-in step.
  • You want to push an Avid audience segment to Pardot as a prospect list.

Applies to

Requirement Details
Salesforce environment Production Salesforce only. Sandbox connections are not supported.
Salesforce user A Salesforce user with the Salesforce Integration license and the Minimum Access - API Only Integrations profile, with read access to Pardot objects (Prospects, Lists, Campaigns, Email activity) and a Pardot role assigned (for example, Marketing or Sales Manager). A dedicated integration user is recommended. If you also connect Salesforce CRM to Avid, you can reuse the same user.
Avid access Access to Settings > Connections to set up the connection. Pushing audiences to Pardot also requires Pathways. If you do not see Pathways in the sidebar, contact your Account Manager or submit a support ticket.
Time estimate 10 to 20 minutes to authenticate. First reporting data can take up to 24 hours to appear in Avid.

Permission matrix

Four roles must be in place before you connect. Most connection failures trace to a missing step in Salesforce, so review this table first.

Role (Salesforce / Pardot) Required permission What it enables in Avid Where to verify
Salesforce admin Install and configure the Avid AI Connected App, and set OAuth Policies > Permitted Users Lets the connecting user authorize Avid and prevents OAUTH_APP_ACCESS_DENIED Salesforce Setup > Manage Connected Apps > Avid AI > Edit Policies
Salesforce user with the Salesforce Integration license, the Minimum Access - API Only Integrations profile, and a Pardot role (dedicated integration user recommended) Authorize the Avid AI Connected App through Salesforce sign-in Establishes the connection used for both reporting and Pathways push Salesforce Setup > Connected Apps OAuth Usage (Avid AI appears with the user after authorization)
Pardot user with list and folder access Create and manage prospects and lists in Pardot Lets Avid create the AVID - {segment name} list and import prospects during a Pathway push Pardot user permissions and folder access settings
Access to the target Pardot Business Unit Business Unit access in Salesforce Selects which Pardot Business Unit Avid syncs Salesforce Setup > Platform Tools > Account Engagement > Business Unit

Salesforce retired standalone Pardot-only users. Pardot access is now granted by assigning a Pardot role to an existing Salesforce user, so most of this setup overlaps with the Salesforce integration user setup. The extra steps are assigning the Pardot role and completing the standard Pardot business-user configuration the first time you connect.

Connect Pardot to Avid

Before you start: confirm your Salesforce admin has installed the Avid AI Connected App and set Permitted Users (Steps 2 and 3 below). Skipping this causes OAUTH_APP_ACCESS_DENIED, even for admins.

  1. In Avid, go to Settings, then open Connections. Find the Pardot (Account Engagement) tile (it shows Reporting and Audiences badges) and click Connect or Authenticate.

    A Salesforce login window opens. Sign in with the Salesforce user you want to use for this connection.

    If you immediately see OAUTH_APP_ACCESS_DENIED, close the tab and complete Steps 2 and 3 before trying again.

  2. In Salesforce, go to Setup > Connected Apps OAuth Usage. Find Avid AI in the list. If it shows an install option, click it to install the app, then confirm Avid AI appears in the list.

    If Avid AI is already listed with no install option, go to Step 3.

  3. In Salesforce, go to Setup > Manage Connected Apps. Click the name Avid AI (not the Edit link), then click Edit Policies.

    Under Permitted Users, choose one option, then click Save:

    • All users may self-authorize is the simplest option. Any Salesforce user can authorize Avid.
    • Admin approved users are pre-authorized is more secure. Add the connecting user's Profile or Permission Set to the approved list.
  4. Back in Avid, go to Settings > Connections, find the Pardot tile, and click Connect or Authenticate again. Sign in to Salesforce if prompted, review the permission request, and click Allow or Approve.
  5. Select your Pardot Business Unit when prompted:
    • One Business Unit detected: Avid selects it automatically.
    • Multiple Business Units detected: choose one from the Pardot Business ID dropdown.
    • None detected: enter your Pardot Business ID in the field. The ID is 18 characters long and starts with 0Uv. Find it in Salesforce at Setup > Pardot > Pardot Account Setup.

Expected result: the Pardot connection shows as connected and is named Pardot: {your business unit name}. Avid displays "You've successfully connected your Pardot instance to Avid. The data will begin syncing momentarily." First reporting data can take up to 24 hours to appear.

What the connection enables

Your Pardot connection opens two capabilities in Avid.

1. Reporting in Avid Insights

Avid syncs your Pardot lists, list memberships, campaigns, prospects, users, and prospect accounts into Avid Insights. Use these email engagement metrics in reports, and as a data source when you build Pathways audiences and playbooks.

Allow up to 24 hours for the first sync to finish.

2. Push audiences to Pardot (Pathways)

Send an Avid audience segment to Pardot as Prospect records (an upsert or update), and optionally add them to a Pardot list.

  1. Go to Pathways and add a new Pathway.
  2. Select your audience segment and choose Pardot as the destination.
  3. On the column mapping screen, map exactly one primary identifier, either Match email, Match prospect id, or Match Salesforce id. Then map any other prospect fields you need.
  4. Avid resolves or creates a Pardot list named AVID - {segment name} and adds the audience to it. The Add to list column is filled automatically when you leave it unmapped. Map Remove from list if you want to remove members from that list.
  5. Avid uploads the audience to Pardot, runs a prospect import, and tracks progress. When the import finishes, you can download the success and error files from the Pathway.

Batch limits: each upload batch is at most 10 MB, and an import allows at most 10 batches. If your audience is larger, split it into smaller segments or reduce the number of mapped columns.

Field mapping reference: Pardot prospect fields

Map source columns from your audience to these Pardot prospect fields on the column mapping screen. You must map exactly one primary identifier column.

Column type Avid mapping label Field name Notes
Primary identifier (required, pick one) Match email matchEmail Recommended. Matches on prospect email address.
Primary identifier (required, pick one) Match prospect id matchId Matches on the Pardot prospect ID.
Primary identifier (required, pick one) Match Salesforce id matchSalesforceId Matches on the Salesforce record ID.
Standard prospect field Email email
Standard prospect field First name firstName
Standard prospect field Last name lastName
Standard prospect field Company company
Standard prospect field Job title jobTitle
Standard prospect field Phone phone
Standard prospect field Address line 1 addressOne
Standard prospect field Address line 2 addressTwo
Standard prospect field City city
Standard prospect field State state
Standard prospect field Zip zip
Standard prospect field Country country
List helper Add to list addToList Auto-filled with the AVID - {segment name} list when not mapped.
List helper Remove from list removeFromList Map this when you want to remove members from a list.

Test and verify

Checkpoint What to look for
After connecting The Pardot connection on Settings > Connections shows as connected and is named Pardot: {business unit name}.
After the first reporting sync (allow up to 24 hours) Pardot email metrics, such as lists, campaigns, and prospects, appear in Avid Insights.
After a Pathway push A list named AVID - {segment name} appears in Pardot. The Pathway in Avid shows a completed status with record counts, and the success and error files are available to download.

Troubleshooting

Connection errors

Error message Cause Fix
OAUTH_APP_ACCESS_DENIED Salesforce blocked the authorization because the Avid AI Connected App is not installed, or the user is not in the permitted list. Install the Avid AI Connected App in Setup > Connected Apps OAuth Usage and set Permitted Users in Setup > Manage Connected Apps > Avid AI > Edit Policies (Steps 2 and 3 above).
Something went wrong when connecting to Pardot. Please try again. The Salesforce sign-in did not complete. Retry from Settings > Connections. Clear your browser cache if the error persists.
The business unit has not been selected. The connection was saved without a Business Unit. Open the Pardot connection in Settings > Connections and select or enter your Pardot Business ID.
Your Pardot authentication has expired. Please go to Settings > Connections to re-connect your instance before creating this Pathway. The Salesforce authorization is no longer valid. The user's password changed, the user was removed, or the token was revoked. Reconnect from Settings > Connections.
The authenticated user does not have access to the create a list in Pardot. Please update their permissions in Pardot / Salesforceand try again. The Salesforce user who authorized the connection does not have list or folder permissions in Pardot. Grant list and folder access to that user in Pardot, then retry the Pathway push.

Pathway push errors

Error message Cause Fix
Pardot pathways use destination 'prospect' only. The Pathway mapping uses a destination other than Prospect. Re-create the column mapping and select Prospect as the destination object.
Pardot requires exactly one primary identifier mapped to matchEmail, matchId, or matchSalesforceId. Zero or more than one primary identifier is mapped. In the column mapping, mark exactly one of Match email, Match prospect id, or Match Salesforce id as the primary identifier.
Pardot import batch exceeds 10 MB. A single upload batch is larger than 10 MB. Split the audience into smaller segments, or reduce the number of mapped columns, then retry.
The Pathway stays on a working or in-progress status. The Pardot import is still processing on Pardot's side. Wait for Avid's next status check. The Pathway updates when Pardot reports a result.
The Pathway finishes with row-level errors. Some records failed Pardot's validation. Download the error file from the completed Pathway. It lists which rows failed and the reason Pardot reported.

Known limitations

  1. Avid does not send emails or deploy assets in Pardot. Build and send emails, engagement programs, and forms in Pardot. Avid handles audience syncing and reporting.
  2. Pathway push batch limits. Each upload batch is at most 10 MB, and an import allows at most 10 batches. Split larger audiences into smaller segments.
  3. One connection per Business Unit. A single Avid connection maps to one Pardot Business Unit. To sync a second Business Unit, create a second connection.
  4. No historical reporting backfill. Reporting syncs the standard streams from the time you connect. A deep historical backfill is not available.
  5. Production Salesforce only. Sandbox connections are not supported.

When to contact support

Contact Avid support if:

  • The connection keeps failing after you install the Avid AI Connected App, set Permitted Users, and retry.
  • A Pathway push fails with an error not listed above.
  • The Business Unit you expect does not appear in the dropdown.

Include the following when you reach out:

  • The exact error message. Copy the full text, including OAUTH_APP_ACCESS_DENIED if shown.
  • A screenshot of the Avid AI Connected App OAuth Policies page in Salesforce.
  • The name of the Pathway that failed, if one applies.
  • The Pardot Business Unit name or ID.
  • The email address of the Salesforce user who authorized the connection.

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