LIST OF TOP 25 SALESFORCE ACQUISITIONS

Publish date:

• 28th May, 2025

Salesforce and Its Bold Acquisition Strategy: Transforming CRM Beyond Boundaries

Salesforce leads the way in customer relationship management (CRM). Unlike other CRM platforms that focus on minor improvements, Salesforce makes bold moves through smart acquisitions. Over the years, the company has acquired dozens of businesses—each carefully chosen to strengthen its ecosystem and push the boundaries of what a CRM platform can deliver.

The philosophy driving these acquisitions is simple yet powerful: bring every complementary technology under one roof to create a more holistic experience for users. Instead of expanding for the sake of expansion, Salesforce’s approach has always been about adding real value by closing capability gaps and delivering unified solutions to customers.

Some of Salesforce’s most-talked-about deals include major players in the collaboration, analytics, and AI space. Salesforce’s acquisitions were carefully planned to better engage customers, provide essential insights, and boost business productivity. Each purchase shows Salesforce's goal of becoming more than just a CRM provider; they want to be a complete customer success platform.

And the results are there for everyone to see. The company has witnessed significant growth in its cloud-based services, proving that its strategy is not only reshaping the CRM market but also setting new standards in enterprise technology.

In the following sections, we will explore Salesforce’s Top 15 Acquisitions and understand how these strategic moves are helping organizations engage with customers smarter, faster, and with greater impact.

Currently, Salesforce has made about 65 acquisitions in software as a service (SaaS), enterprise technology, and other areas. This article discusses the most significant Salesforce acquisitions, from the oldest to the most recent.

List of the Largest Salesforce Acquisitions:

• Zoomin – $450M, Sep 24, 2024

• Own – $1.9B, Sep 5, 2024

• Tenyx – undisclosed, Sep 3, 2024

• PredictSpring – undisclosed, Aug 2, 2024

• Spiff – undisclosed, Feb 1, 2024

• Acumen Solutions – $570M, Dec 01, 2020

• Slack – $27.7B, Dec 1, 2020

• Vlocity – $1.33B, Feb 26, 2020

• ClickSoftware – $1.35B, Aug 7, 2019

• Tableau – $15.7B, Jun 10, 2019

• MapAnything – $225M, May 30, 2019

• Bonobo AI – $45M, May 15, 2019

• SendGrid – $2B, Feb 5, 2019

• Datorama – $800M, July 16, 2018

• MuleSoft – $6.5B, Mar 20, 2018

• Krux – $800M, Oct 3, 2016

• Quip – $750M, Aug 1, 2016

• Demandware – $2.8B, Jun 1, 2016

• PredictionIO – undisclosed, Feb 19, 2016

• SalesforceIQ – $390M, July 11, 2014

• ExactTarget – $2.5B, Jun 4, 2013

• Buddy Media – $649M, Jun 4, 2012

• Radian6 – $276M, May 2, 2011

• Heroku – $212M, Dec 8, 2010

Let’s dive deep into the list of Salesforce acquisitions.

• Acquisition date: Dec 1, 2020

• Price: $27.7B

Salesforce’s acquisition of Slack was a strategic move to strengthen its Customer 360 platform and reimagine the future of enterprise software. Beyond just adding a communication tool, this acquisition represents Salesforce’s vision of building a true digital headquarters—a space where teams, partners, and customers can stay connected and work together seamlessly, whether they are in the office or working remotely.

Slack’s collaboration features are now part of Salesforce, helping organizations work better together. This integration creates a unified platform that boosts productivity and teamwork, transforming internal communication and customer engagement in a digital-first world.

Seamless Collaboration Through Salesforce + Slack

Slack enhances real-time communication within Salesforce, transforming conversations into actionable workflows and facilitating collaboration across various Salesforce Clouds.

• Sales Cloud: Digital deal rooms and daily personalized briefs help sales teams stay on the same page.

• Service Cloud: Features like case swarming and expert finder make resolving customer issues faster.

• Marketing Cloud: Enhanced insights powered by Tableau and Datorama streamline campaign performance tracking.

With Slack positioned as the new interface for Salesforce Customer 360, users can interact, share updates, and access key customer data without leaving Slack. This creates a connected workplace where decisions are made faster, teams are more aligned, and customer experiences are elevated.

Business Impact and Results

Since the acquisition, Salesforce has rolled out multiple Slack-first innovations that are shaping how companies work. A key development—the Slack-First Customer 360—allows employees to view, discuss, and act on Salesforce insights directly from their communication channels. The result is a more agile business environment where collaboration fuels productivity and customer engagement.

• Acquisition date: Jun 10, 2019

• Price: $15.7

Why Salesforce Acquired Tableau

Salesforce’s acquisition of Tableau was a move to strengthen its position as a true leader in digital transformation. The intent went beyond adding a business intelligence tool—it was about giving organizations the ability to see and understand their data like never before. With Tableau’s intuitive dashboards and Salesforce’s Customer 360 vision, businesses are empowered to gain deeper insights, make smarter decisions, deliver connected customer experiences, and drive continuous innovation.

How Tableau Enhances the Salesforce Ecosystem

Tableau brings self-service analytics and powerful data visualization into Salesforce, creating a seamless blend of CRM and business intelligence. Here’s how it fits into the bigger picture:

• Customer 360 Integration: With Tableau built into Salesforce, users can visualize and analyze customer data directly inside familiar CRM workflows.

• Rebranded Einstein Analytics: Salesforce’s previous Einstein Analytics evolved into Tableau CRM (and now CRM Analytics), merging AI-driven insights with advanced visualizations.

• More brilliant Insights with AI: Features like Einstein Discovery leverage predictive analytics, helping organizations make informed, data-driven decisions.

• Product Innovation: New solutions such as Tableau Pulse bring AI-powered, real-time updates and simplified insights to a broader audience—making analytics more accessible for everyone.

• Seamless Experience: From simple reporting to advanced forecasting, Tableau’s visualization tools integrate deeply across Salesforce Clouds, enhancing day-to-day decision-making.

The Results So Far

Since joining forces, Tableau has continued to thrive as its product while powering Salesforce’s vision of analytics-first CRM. The rebranding of Einstein Analytics into CRM Analytics has made insights more accessible and engaging for a broader user base. Today, organizations can generate pre-built reports, explore real-time dashboards, and easily tap into predictive analytics—all within Salesforce.

• Acquisition date: Mar 20, 2018

• Price: $6.5B

Why Salesforce Chose MuleSoft

Salesforce’s acquisition of MuleSoft wasn’t just about expanding its portfolio—it was about solving one of the biggest challenges modern businesses face: integration. Companies today rely on dozens of applications, platforms, and tools, and integrating them can be complex. MuleSoft, with its powerful Anypoint Platform, gave Salesforce the capability to connect these systems seamlessly, delivering a single, unified view of data from anywhere.

Beyond just integration, MuleSoft’s expertise in API management added strategic depth to Salesforce’s offerings. It opened up new opportunities for Salesforce to expand its solutions, reach untapped industries, and provide customers with a more complete and connected ecosystem.

How Salesforce and MuleSoft Work Hand-in-Hand

With MuleSoft in the fold, Salesforce can now act as the central hub for enterprise data integration. The Anypoint Platform plays a crucial role here by:

• Creating application networks that connect apps, data, and devices across cloud and on-premises systems.

• Enabling businesses to access, manage, and share data across platforms securely.

• Giving users the ability to deliver more intelligent, connected customer experiences without worrying about silos.

It means organizations using Salesforce aren’t just getting a CRM—they’re getting a robust integration backbone that links their business processes end-to-end.

The Impact After the Acquisition

Since joining Salesforce, MuleSoft has continued to grow while retaining its independence. At the same time, it has woven itself deeply into Salesforce solutions. A standout innovation is MuleSoft Composer for Salesforce, which makes it easier for business teams to automate workflows and connect applications without heavy coding skills.

By aligning with Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, and other Salesforce offerings, MuleSoft has extended Salesforce’s ability to deliver more intelligent automation, faster integrations, and stronger customer engagement. This integration has not only improved customer satisfaction but also reinforced Salesforce’s reputation as a comprehensive business solution provider.

• Acquisition date: Jun 1, 2016

• Price: $2.8B

Why Salesforce Acquired Demandware

When Salesforce set its sights on the retail and consumer markets, the missing piece in its portfolio was a strong B2C commerce solution. That’s where Demandware came in. The acquisition allowed Salesforce to step firmly into the fast-growing e-commerce space, complementing its already strong position in the B2B software market.

The idea was simple but powerful: help businesses create personalized, connected, and easy shopping experiences for their customers. With Demandware’s knowledge in online sales, Salesforce could help retailers build strategies that work across all channels, offer tailored store experiences, and meet the changing needs of customers who shop online first.

From Demandware to Salesforce Commerce Cloud

Soon after the acquisition, Demandware was rebranded as Salesforce Commerce Cloud and became a critical part of the Customer Success Platform. This integration bridged CRM data with commerce functionality, allowing brands to:

• Combine rich customer insights with shopping behavior.

• Deliver personalized experiences across every touchpoint—online, mobile, and in-store.

• Manage orders, inventory, and customer interactions from one connected system.

By embedding eCommerce within the Salesforce ecosystem, businesses were able to break down silos and deliver a truly unified customer journey.

The Evolution and Impact

Since joining Salesforce, Commerce Cloud has gone on to power some of the world’s best-known brands in retail. Innovations like headless commerce, the Salesforce Reference Architecture (SFRA), intelligent order management, and AI-driven personalization have enabled retailers to create more flexible, customer-centric digital experiences.

Today, Salesforce Commerce Cloud stands as much more than an online storefront. It’s a comprehensive solution that enables brands to move quickly, scale globally, and deliver shopping experiences that feel personal and connected—no matter how or where customers choose to engage.

• Acquisition date: Jun 4, 2013

• Price: $2.5B

Why Salesforce Chose ExactTarget

After successfully transforming sales and customer service with Sales Cloud and Service Cloud, Salesforce turned its attention to marketing. The acquisition of ExactTarget was a strategic step to strengthen its marketing capabilities and build a dedicated platform for brands aiming to connect with customers on every channel—email, social, mobile, and web.

To expand in digital marketing, Salesforce launched the Marketing Cloud (SFMC), evolving from its ExactTarget acquisition. This step helped Salesforce become a leading name in marketing tech, offering CMOs the tools they need to reach customers with personalized, real-time experiences.

What makes this acquisition even more impactful is that Marketing Cloud today serves both B2B and B2C needs—from quick, transactional customer journeys to deeper account-based engagement strategies.

How ExactTarget Strengthened Salesforce Marketing

The integration of ExactTarget brought powerful marketing automation into Salesforce’s ecosystem and laid the foundation for a multichannel, AI-driven marketing hub. Key advancements include:

• 360° Marketing Capabilities: Salesforce combined the strength of ExactTarget’s campaign automation with social listening (Radian6), publishing tools (Buddy Media), and advertising solutions (Social.com), creating a complete multichannel engagement platform.

• Unified Customer View: Businesses gained the ability to break silos by linking sales, service, and marketing data—offering a customer-first approach at every stage in the lifecycle.

• AI-Powered Personalization: With Einstein AI infused into Marketing Cloud, companies could leverage data for more intelligent product recommendations, personalized content, and better search experiences aligned to individual behavior.

The Impact of Salesforce Marketing Cloud

Since then, Salesforce Marketing Cloud has continued to evolve to meet the demands of digital-first marketing. Its Growth Edition, powered by Salesforce Data Cloud, enables marketers to take advantage of AI-driven automation, real-time segmentation, and hyper-personalized campaigns to deliver more meaningful customer experiences.

This evolution has cemented Salesforce Marketing Cloud as one of the most powerful platforms in the industry—helping businesses of all sizes design targeted campaigns, optimize engagement, and build stronger customer relationships across every channel.

• Acquisition date: Aug 7, 2019

• Price: $1.35B

Why Salesforce Acquired ClickSoftware

Salesforce’s acquisition of ClickSoftware was a deliberate step to strengthen the Service Cloud and expand its field service management capabilities. With customer expectations rising around speed, personalization, and convenience, Salesforce wanted a solution that could seamlessly connect employees, contact centers, and field technicians.

ClickSoftware brought exactly that—advanced scheduling, real-time updates, and optimization technologies—making customer service smarter, faster, and more reliable. By weaving this into Salesforce’s existing Field Service Lightning, the goal was to deliver connected and intelligent customer journeys while helping businesses keep pace with modern service demands.

How ClickSoftware Fits into Salesforce

The integration of ClickSoftware into Salesforce resulted in powerful new capabilities across the platform, including:

• Field Service Lightning Upgrades: ClickSoftware helps teams in the office and in the field work together better. Their skills in scheduling and managing resources enable them to provide efficient service.

• Real-Time Visibility: Dispatchers can now monitor field movements and quickly reroute technicians if delays occur, reducing downtime and keeping customer commitments intact.

• IoT-Driven Efficiency: By blending ClickSoftware with IoT-powered features of Salesforce’s Field Service Lightning, businesses can predict issues, respond proactively, and enhance operational performance.

What Changed After the Acquisition

Since the integration, Field Service Lightning has evolved into a more complete and intelligent solution, leveraging ClickSoftware’s technology to offer smart scheduling, instant updates, and greater customer transparency. It has not only strengthened Salesforce’s competitiveness in the service industry but also enabled its clients to innovate and offer faster, more personalized customer support.

With this acquisition, Salesforce reinforced its commitment to delivering connected, next-gen service experiences—ensuring businesses can meet customer needs wherever they are, whenever they arise.

• Acquisition date: Feb 26, 2020

• Price: $1.33B

Why Salesforce Acquired Vlocity

Salesforce has always aimed to go beyond being just a general CRM provider. With growing demand for industry-specific solutions, the company recognized the need to tailor its offerings for sectors like healthcare, financial services, insurance, media, and utilities.

It is where Vlocity perfectly fits in. Built natively on the Salesforce platform, Vlocity came with pre-designed templates, workflows, and expertise designed for specific industries. By acquiring Vlocity, Salesforce advanced its long-term vision of building specialized industry clouds that deliver value right out of the box—helping organizations reduce time-to-market and adopt best practices without heavy customization.

From Vlocity to Salesforce Industries

When Salesforce acquired Vlocity, it rebranded the company as Salesforce Industries—a clear signal that the focus was now on industry-specific solutions. For Salesforce, the deal was more than just expanding its portfolio; it was about going deeper into the industries that rely on specialized, customized technology.

Key enhancements included:

• Industry Clouds at Scale: Rapid development of dedicated solutions like Energy & Utilities Cloud, Communications Cloud, Media Cloud, Manufacturing Cloud, Consumer Goods Cloud, Automotive Cloud, Sustainability Cloud, Nonprofit Cloud, and Public Sector Solutions.

• Ready-to-Use Customizations: Sector-specific functions—such as policy management in insurance or onboarding tools for telecom—available natively on the Lightning Platform, leading to quicker integration and faster deployment.

• Custom Data Models: Unique data frameworks aligned with industry workflows, helping organizations run more efficiently and effectively.

• Cross-Industry Innovation: With a dedicated business unit, Salesforce encouraged cross-pollination of ideas between industries—adopting best practices from one sector and applying them to another.

The Impact of Vlocity’s Integration

By integrating Vlocity’s expertise, Salesforce has accelerated the availability of vertical clouds that give businesses a head start in digital transformation. Organizations no longer need to start from scratch; instead, they can leverage industry-proven templates and data models while still customizing for their unique needs.

The acquisition solidified Salesforce’s ambition of becoming not just a CRM giant but a platform that drives innovation across industries, enabling companies to deliver tailored, customer-first experiences in every sector.

• Acquisition date: Oct 3, 2016

• Price: $800M

Why Salesforce Acquired Krux

When Salesforce acquired Krux, the goal was clear—strengthen the Marketing Cloud with advanced data management platform (DMP) capabilities. Marketing leaders were looking for more than just campaign automation; they needed powerful tools to manage customer data, unify audience insights, and personalize interactions on a much deeper level.

Krux gave Salesforce the ability to combine customer data with external interaction signals, helping brands understand their audiences better and deliver engagement strategies that feel more timely, relevant, and personal. This acquisition was all about turning raw data into smarter marketing decisions.

How Krux Transformed Marketing Cloud

After the acquisition, Krux was rebranded as Salesforce DMP and eventually evolved into the well-known Audience Studio, an integral part of Marketing Cloud. It brought marketers several essential capabilities:

• Richer Customer Profiles: Integrating data from multiple sources created unified customer views, offering brands deeper, actionable insights.

• Cross-Channel Engagement: Audience Studio helped coordinate journeys across web, social, mobile, and other platforms so customers enjoyed a consistent experience.

• More intelligent Targeting: Using look-alike modeling and segmentation, marketers could discover new audiences similar to their best customers and build more precise campaigns.

The Impact of Krux’s Integration

With Krux’s global reach and machine-learning-driven segmentation now inside Salesforce, marketers gained the ability to target audiences with greater accuracy while optimizing every touchpoint. The result has been more personalized experiences, improved campaign performance, and stronger customer relationships—all powered by data that works harder behind the scenes.

This move solidified Salesforce’s reputation as a platform that not only manages customer relationships but also leverages data to predict, personalize, and engage at scale.

• Acquisition date: Aug 1, 2016

• Price: $750M

Why Salesforce Acquired Quip

Salesforce’s decision to acquire Quip was part of its broader vision to modernize teamwork and collaboration within its ecosystem. Recognized as a “living document platform”, Quip combines documents, spreadsheets, task lists, and communication tools into one central hub.

The goal was to give teams a more interactive and productive way to work together—without constantly jumping between apps or tools.

How Quip Fits into Salesforce

After the acquisition, Quip brought several features that reshaped collaboration inside Salesforce:

• Bi-Directional Sync: Teams could pull Salesforce CRM data directly into Quip documents, making information instantly usable and actionable.

• Live Apps: Users gained the ability to embed checklists, calendars, and even videos into documents for real-time collaboration.

• Rebrand to Salesforce Anywhere: In 2021, Quip evolved into Salesforce Anywhere, highlighting its focus on enabling users to chat, share updates, and receive real-time alerts while working directly within Salesforce records.

The Impact of Quip Integration

By becoming a key piece of the Salesforce platform, Quip helped businesses streamline project management and teamwork. The tool grew rapidly, especially in remote and hybrid work environments, where real-time collaboration became essential.

From document sharing to cross-team communication, Quip contributed to Salesforce’s mission of building a connected digital workplace—one where productivity, collaboration, and CRM data blend into a single, fluid experience.

• Acquisition date: Jun 4, 2012

• Price: $649M

In 2012, Salesforce acquired Buddy Media for $689 million to enhance its social media management capabilities. Buddy Media is a social media marketing platform that helps businesses build and maintain customer relationships.

The Buddy Media Salesforce acquisition provides a variety of tools for creating, managing, and measuring marketing campaigns.

• Acquisition date: July 16, 2018

• Price: $800M

Why Salesforce Acquired Datorama

Salesforce’s acquisition of Datorama was all about strengthening its Marketing Cloud with advanced marketing intelligence and analytics. Marketers today manage vast amounts of data across multiple platforms, and Salesforce recognized the need for a unified tool to make sense of it all.

The addition of Datorama meant Salesforce could finally help brands bring marketing data into one place. It made it easier to understand customers, fine-tune campaigns, and turn raw numbers into strategies that drive engagement.

How Datorama Enhances Salesforce Marketing Cloud

Datorama’s integration unlocked powerful capabilities for marketers, including:

• AI-Powered Insights: Consolidates marketing data from various channels into a single dashboard, giving teams real-time, actionable intelligence.

• More innovative Collaboration: Works seamlessly with tools like Google Analytics 360 and Marketing Cloud Einstein, enabling marketers to analyze data holistically and optimize campaigns faster.

• Connected Reporting: Automates complex reporting, saving countless hours while improving the accuracy of marketing performance evaluation.

The Impact of Datorama

Now rebranded as Salesforce Marketing Cloud Intelligence, Datorama has become the analytical backbone of Marketing Cloud. It empowers brands to simplify reporting, compare performance across channels, and maximize ROI from their marketing spend.

With its machine learning-driven insights and powerful integrations, the acquisition has transformed how marketers measure success—making campaigns more data-driven, personalized, and impactful.

• Acquisition date: July 11, 2014

• Price: $390M

SalesforceIQ is a cloud-based CRM platform that Salesforce has acquired. This partnership makes it easier to manage customer relationships, enhances the CRM market, and facilitates the handling of prospects.

• Acquisition date: Dec 8, 2010

• Price: $212M

Why Salesforce Acquired Heroku

Salesforce’s acquisition of Heroku, one of the most popular Ruby-based platform-as-a-service (PaaS) providers, was aimed at strengthening its appeal among developers and independent software vendors. The idea was to offer an open, scalable platform where developers could build modern social and mobile applications, while still benefiting from Salesforce’s CRM environment.

This step positioned Salesforce as more than just a CRM company—it became a comprehensive cloud technology provider with strong capabilities for both enterprises and developers.

How Heroku Fits into Salesforce

One of the biggest reasons Salesforce wanted Heroku was the technology it brought along. It made building and scaling apps easier than before. For example:

• Ruby-Powered Apps: Ideal for creating real-time, collaborative applications tied directly to Salesforce data.

• Developer-Friendly Environment: Freed developers from hardware and software hassles, letting them focus purely on building.

• Multi-Tenant Architecture: Built on the same multi-tenant model as Salesforce’s core platform (Force.com), ensuring scalability and efficient resource use.

Together, these capabilities made Heroku a go-to platform for developers building apps that extend and complement Salesforce solutions.

The Impact of Heroku’s Integration

Since becoming part of Salesforce, Heroku has powered over 110,000 applications and continues to expand Salesforce’s developer community. Businesses benefit by being able to build customer-centric apps that sync directly with Salesforce CRM data, creating innovative digital experiences.

The acquisition also reinforced Salesforce’s vision of being a platform for innovation—not just for enterprises, but also for the broader developer ecosystem.

• Acquisition date: May 2, 2011

• Price: $276M

In 2011, Salesforce bought Radian6 to improve its customer engagement on social media. Radian6 is a company that monitors social media. This acquisition provides Salesforce with tools to track conversations across various platforms. As a result, Salesforce can better understand and connect with customers on social media.

• Acquisition date: Feb 5, 2019

• Price: $2M

SendGrid is a cloud-based email delivery platform that Salesforce acquired in 2019. This merger enables customers to send and manage their email communications with ease. It significantly enhances Salesforce’s email delivery capabilities and provides customers with a comprehensive set of tools to manage their emails effectively.

• Acquisition date: May 30, 2019

• Price: $225M

In 2019, Salesforce acquired MapAnything, which enhanced its CRM with geospatial features.

This merger enhanced Salesforce’s location-based services and improved their sales processes. The benefits of this partnership include:

• Enhanced Location Intelligence: Salesforce Maps enables users to visualize and manage sales territories using geographic data from Salesforce CRM. This tool supports informed decisions based on location and aids in planning territories.

• Improved Sales Efficiency: Sales representatives can view sales data, including revenue and activity metrics, on a map within their designated territories. They can also create efficient routes to visit customers and prospects, which helps them work more productively.

• Seamless Integration with Salesforce CRM: Salesforce Maps works well with Salesforce CRM. It lets users access and update data from any device.

• Acquisition date: Dec 01, 2020

• Price: $570M

Acumen Solutions joined Salesforce in 2021 as part of its acquisition and is now a consulting partner alongside others, such as ATKA and Kerensen Consulting. It helps Salesforce expand its reach and provide better service to customers. Acumen brings strong knowledge of Salesforce in various fields, including public services and manufacturing, which helps businesses improve their digital operations.

• Acquisition date: Feb 19, 2016

• Price: Undisclosed

PredictionIO is a machine learning server that was acquired by Salesforce in 2016. It is built using Apache Spark, HBase, and Spray and is open-source.

With this acquisition, Salesforce improved its artificial intelligence and predictive analytics for its customers. PredictionIO’s technology has been integrated into Salesforce’s Einstein AI platform. It enables users to create and utilize predictive models for various purposes, including scoring leads, predicting customer churn, and developing recommendation systems.

• Acquisition date: May 15, 2019

• Price: $45M

In 2019, Salesforce acquired Bonobo AI, a company specializing in conversational AI technology. Bonobo AI analyzes sales conversations and provides insights to help improve sales performance.

Salesforce included Bonobo AI’s technology in its Sales Cloud. This enables sales teams to leverage AI-driven insights to enhance customer interactions and achieve more effective sales results.

• Acquisition date: Feb 1, 2024

• Price: Undisclosed

Why Salesforce Acquired Spiff

The acquisition of Spiff was a carefully thought-out move by Salesforce to boost its sales enablement capabilities. One of the long-standing challenges for businesses has been managing complex sales commission structures—a process often riddled with inefficiency, errors, and a lack of transparency.

Spiff addressed this pain point through its intelligent incentive compensation management (ICM) software. By automating commission calculations and providing real-time visibility into compensation plans, Spiff makes it easier for sales teams to trust the process and stay motivated. At the same time, it helps leaders ensure compensation aligns with broader business goals.

For CROs and financial leaders, this integration means a more strategic connection between incentive plans and company growth objectives. It’s not just about paying sales reps—it’s about using compensation as a lever to drive top-line performance.

How Spiff Fits into Salesforce

Once fully integrated, Spiff will become part of Salesforce Sales Cloud, adding new layers of intelligence to performance management. The integration will give teams:

• Real-Time Commission Tracking: Sales reps can instantly view commission reports and understand how their efforts translate into rewards.

• Aligned Collaboration: Finance and sales operations teams can work more closely together, ensuring compensation strategies support larger business objectives.

• Native Performance Management: Incorporating Spiff inside Sales Cloud strengthens Salesforce’s ability to help businesses motivate talent and drive success, all within a unified platform.

Expected Impact of the Acquisition

With Spiff, Salesforce gives companies a reliable platform to handle sales compensation more openly and accurately. Instead of spending hours resolving commission errors or disputes, sales teams can stay focused on what matters most—selling.

The Spiff deal is also a reflection of Salesforce’s broader acquisition strategy—adding specialized, cutting-edge solutions that not only extend its ecosystem but also keep it ahead of competitors in the CRM space.

• Acquisition date: Aug 2, 2024

• Price: Undisclosed

Salesforce has agreed to buy PredictSpring, a company that provides cloud-based point-of-sale (PoS) software.

This acquisition is part of Salesforce’s plan to improve its Customer 360 features and grow its presence in the retail sector.

PredictSpring’s POS systems support mobile payments and assist with store operations, including managing client profiles and processing online orders. Since 2019, PredictSpring has been a partner in the Salesforce ecosystem and works with Salesforce’s Commerce Cloud and Service Cloud. Salesforce believes this acquisition will enhance personalized interactions for brands and retailers.

• Acquisition date: Sep 3, 2024

• Price: Undisclosed

Salesforce has acquired Tenyx, a small AI startup that focuses on voice agents. This move is part of Salesforce's strategy to enhance customer service through the use of AI.

Last year, Salesforce also acquired Airkit.ai, a company that specializes in solving customer problems with chatbots. Both Tenyx and Airkit.ai are expected to play a significant role in Salesforce’s new Agentforce platform. This platform aims to make customer support faster and more efficient by using smarter, more human-like AI.

• Acquisition date: Sep 5, 2024

• Price: $1.9B

Why Salesforce Acquired Own (OwnBackup)

Salesforce decided to bring Own, a leader in data protection and management, into its ecosystem to strengthen one of the most critical aspects of business today—data security and compliance.

Companies run a considerable part of their operations on Salesforce, which makes data safety and compliance a top concern. By bringing Own into its ecosystem, Salesforce reinforces its focus on keeping customer data protected and ready—no matter how regulations or business needs change.

How Own Strengthens Salesforce’s Data Protection Suite

The acquisition enriches Salesforce’s existing safeguards (like Backup, Data Mask, and Salesforce Shield) with a deeper layer of specialized protection. Some highlights include:

• Comprehensive Backup & Recovery: Own’s platform ensures that customer data across Salesforce, AWS, Microsoft, and beyond remains both secure and readily recoverable, reinforcing resilience.

• More innovative Analytics on Historical Data: Built‑in tools analyze archived and past data to highlight patterns, giving businesses new insights while aligning with Salesforce’s AI-driven vision.

• Efficient Data Archiving: Own offers advanced data archiving capabilities that optimize Salesforce org performance and give businesses more control over storage and system efficiency.

What the Acquisition Means for Salesforce Customers

Although the acquisition is still in progress, Salesforce has made it clear: partnering with Own is about building greater trust with customers. By adding dedicated backup, archiving, and protection features, Salesforce helps its clients safeguard their data while improving system integrity and flexibility.

Together, Salesforce and Own are positioned to deliver not just stronger data management tools but also a future-ready approach to resilience, compliance, and security in a digital-first world.

• Acquisition date: Sep 24, 2024

• Price: $450M

Why Salesforce Acquired Zoomin

Salesforce’s decision to acquire Zoomin, a platform that centralizes product documentation, highlights its intent to make customer support not only smarter but also faster. Companies generate large volumes of unstructured data, and Zoomin helps transform that information into valuable knowledge customers and service teams can actually use.

By connecting Zoomin with the Salesforce Data Cloud, Salesforce will boost the capabilities of Agentforce, its AI-driven service assistant. In practice, that means support teams can access the right information instantly, respond more quickly, and deliver better experiences to customers.

How Zoomin Strengthens Salesforce

The integration is set to improve Salesforce’s service and AI offerings in three important ways:

• Turning Content into Knowledge: Zoomin brings scattered information into one place, making it easier for AI to process and apply.

• Smarter Service with Agentforce: With Zoomin built in, Agentforce can provide more accurate, personalized, and context-aware answers, reducing manual effort.

• Enhanced Service Cloud: Service Cloud customers will benefit from faster, more automated case resolutions that improve both efficiency and satisfaction.

The Expected Impact

With Zoomin’s technology in play, Salesforce service teams will be able to solve more issues on the first try, reduce escalations, and manage support at lower cost. Customers, in turn, benefit from faster resolutions and smoother interactions.

This acquisition is another step in Salesforce’s larger strategy—bringing together AI, automation, and data intelligence to build solutions that keep businesses ahead of evolving customer expectations.

Salesforce Acquisitions: What’s Next

Salesforce Informatica $8 billion acquisition

Salesforce announced that it will acquire Informatica for about $8 billion. 

This acquisition aims to enhance Salesforce’s data management and AI capabilities, supporting sectors such as healthcare, finance, and public services. Informatica provides services in data integration, governance, privacy, and Master Data Management (MDM), which will improve Salesforce’s platform and support AI technologies.

Both companies' boards have approved the deal, which is expected to close early in Salesforce’s fiscal year 2027.

Salesforce Convergence.ai acquisition

Salesforce has agreed to acquire Convergence.ai, a UK-based company that develops AI agents capable of handling complex tasks in dynamic digital environments. Convergence’s technology enables these AI agents to manage online workflows, respond to real-time changes such as pop-ups and errors, and perform multi-step tasks accurately.

This acquisition is expected to enhance Agentforce, Salesforce’s primary AI agent platform, by adding Convergence’s expertise in automated task execution and rapid decision-making. The Convergence team will lead a new AI research and development lab in London, enhancing Salesforce’s presence in AI innovation in the UK. The financial details of the deal are not publicly available; however, it is expected to close in the second quarter of Salesforce’s fiscal year 2026, pending standard conditions.

Salesforce AI Acquisitions

Salesforce is utilizing AI acquisitions to remain competitive and leverage the latest technology. They are also improving their own AI tools, like the new Einstein Copilot.

In 2023, Salesforce made two key acquisitions. First, they acquired Airkit, an AI-based tool that helps customers directly, thereby enhancing their Commerce Cloud. Second, they acquired Spiff, a platform for managing sales commissions, to improve their Sales Cloud features.

Salesforce is poised to compete with major companies like Microsoft and Amazon by integrating and acquiring AI platforms and other services.

Salesforce has invested in 10 AI startups in 2023:

• Protect AI – $35 million

• Sylvera – $50 million

• Pano AI – $17 million

• Typeface – $100

• Runway – $141 million

• Anthropic – $400 million

• Simpplr – $70 million

• Cohere – $270 million

• Hearth AI – early-stage funding

• Faros AI – $20 million

This way Salesforce stays with and ahead of advanced tech.

Reasons Why Salesforce Acquires Businesses

Salesforce’s strategy of acquiring businesses is crucial for its growth and market leadership. There are five main reasons for Salesforce’s acquisitions:

Salesforce Acquisitions: Pros and Cons

Salesforce’s acquisition strategy has both benefits and challenges. Here are the pros and cons:

Pros:

• It helps the company grow in new and innovative ways, expanding into new markets.

• It offers professional growth opportunities within the Salesforce ecosystem.

• It contributes to the growth of existing businesses, which benefits the economy.

Cons:

• There may be differences in corporate culture during the integration process.

• Integrating services can be a time-consuming process.

• There are financial risks involved.

How Salesforce Wins with Its Acquisition Strategy

Salesforce’s approach to acquisitions isn’t about collecting companies for the sake of growth. Instead, it’s a carefully planned strategy designed to build a complete, connected ecosystem where businesses can manage every part of their customer journey—from marketing and sales to service, analytics, and AI-driven automation.

This vision has been central to Salesforce’s rise as the world’s leading CRM provider. For years, independent industry reports have consistently recognized Salesforce as the top CRM platform, and its acquisitions are a key reason it continues to outpace competitors.

So, what makes this acquisition strategy so effective? It rests on three pillars: alignment, market leadership, and innovation.

1. Strategic Alignment: Vision That Creates Value

At the heart of every Salesforce acquisition lies a single question: Does this company add value to Salesforce’s vision of customer success?

Each acquisition is chosen not just to introduce new tools but to solve fundamental gaps in the customer experience. Salesforce often works closely with companies through its venture arm before acquiring them—almost like a “partnership test run.” This approach ensures that when a company is acquired, it’s already a natural fit within the Salesforce ecosystem.

The result is an expansion of capabilities that customers can adopt seamlessly—whether it’s personalized marketing, more innovative collaboration, advanced analytics, or secure data protection.

2. Market Leadership: Staying Ahead of Competitors

Salesforce also views acquisitions as a way to reshape the CRM landscape and stay a step ahead of rivals. By bringing in companies that are constantly innovating, Salesforce strengthens areas where customers are demanding more—such as eCommerce, mobility, data integration, and field service management.

Instead of allowing competitors to gain ground, Salesforce proactively invests in solutions that make its platform broader and more indispensable.

3. Innovation as the Growth Engine

Perhaps the strongest thread connecting Salesforce acquisitions is their focus on technological innovation. Each acquisition introduces new ways to help businesses work smarter:

• MuleSoft expanded Salesforce’s integration power, allowing companies to connect apps and data in real time.

• Tableau brought world-class analytics and visualization into the CRM experience, enabling data-driven decision-making.

• Slack redefined collaboration by creating a digital headquarters for teams to work together more effectively.

• More recently, acquisitions like Own Company strengthened data security and governance, reinforcing trust in an era where protecting customer data is non‑negotiable.

By weaving these technologies directly into the Salesforce ecosystem, customers gain an arsenal of tools that go beyond traditional CRM.

Looking Ahead

If the past decade proved anything, it’s that Salesforce will continue to grow by adding specialized technologies into its ecosystem. With AI and machine learning now at the core of its innovation strategy, future acquisitions are likely to push the boundaries of what CRM can do—anticipating customer needs, automating routine tasks, and transforming how businesses connect with their audiences.

For customers, this means one clear thing: by choosing Salesforce, they’re not just choosing a CRM system—they’re choosing a platform that keeps evolving, innovating, and leading the way forward.

Salesforce Acquisition Strategy: What It Means for Your Business

Over the years, Salesforce’s acquisition strategy has been a game-changer, helping it become a global leader in the CRM market. By bringing companies like MuleSoft, Tableau, Slack, and many more into its ecosystem, Salesforce has created a platform that combines innovation with integration—empowering businesses to deliver connected customer experiences, drive smarter decisions, and streamline operations.

At Codleo, we understand the true power of these acquisitions because we work with them every day. As a Salesforce Summit (Platinum) consulting partner, our mission is to help businesses like yours unlock the full potential of Salesforce’s ever-expanding ecosystem.

With a skilled team of Salesforce-certified professionals, Codleo specializes in:

• Consulting & Strategy – Helping you choose the right Salesforce solutions for your unique needs.

• Implementation & Integration – Seamlessly bringing Salesforce and its acquired products into your business.

• Customization & Development – Building tailored applications, workflows, and automations to maximize results.

• Ongoing Support – Ensuring your Salesforce investment continues to grow with your business.

Ready to harness the possibilities created through Salesforce’s acquisitions?

👉 Let’s talk about how Codleo can help you design, implement, and optimize the right solutions for long-term success.

Final Words

This list highlights the most significant acquisitions and mergers by Salesforce, including those of Slack, Tableau, and MuleSoft, as well as SendGrid, MapAnything, and Spiff. These deals have enabled Salesforce to enhance its services in areas such as collaboration tools, document processing, data analysis, social media management, and email delivery.

At Codleo, our team specializes in simplifying complex Salesforce processes. With over 6+ years of experience in various industries and a strong record of client satisfaction, we can help you get the most from your Salesforce investment.

Get in touch to schedule a free CRM consulting call, and we’ll show you how to optimize your Salesforce usage.