Blackthorn, which describes itself as a
Salesforce-native event management app, today will unveiled a new platform vision
with enhanced AI tools designed to improve efficiencies for event organizers.
But first—what does a “Salesforce-native”
app actually mean for event organizers and how does this differ from event
platforms that use an API integration with Salesforce?
“Salesforce-native means we’re built on the
[Force.com] platform itself. We use its underlying data model, security,
automations—all of the enterprise-grade functionality of Salesforce,” said
Blackthorn chief product officer Andrea Mantilla. “So, event planners are already working inside the same
systems their business is using… they’re not jumping between tools to create, manage
and measure events.”
This enables Blackthorn customers to
leverage data across the Salesforce ecosystem and create more data-driven
events, according to the company.
“We are the platform and the system of
record for events end-to-end,” Mantilla said. Other tools connect to Salesforce
via a “syncing process,” which creates “a lot of manual work for data
reconciliation,” she added. “Lots of tools connect to Salesforce, but very few
make it the operational backbone for events.”
However, Mantilla acknowledged that using
an enterprise-grade tool like Salesforce also brings a certain level of
complexity to the user interface. And here we arrive at the new platform
vision, promising “easy-to-use” tools and a simplified UI.
“This product vision is about trying to
preserve our CRM-native strength while also creating the most modern experience
we can,” Mantilla told BTN. “Our core belief is that teams shouldn’t have to
choose between a powerful Salesforce-native platform and an easy-to-use event
experience. So, the vision is to remove the trade-off.”
This will come to life across three product
pillars: a web-based planner interface “that requires less reliance on
Salesforce expertise” and one that is “optimized” for complex event workflows;
a drag-and-drop event page designer tool that will give planners “granular
control” over branding; and an AI intelligence layer that will work across the
platform.
The latter includes a natural language,
chat-based AI agent—distinct from Agentforce—that can assist with repetitive
tasks such as processing a refund or transferring a ticket. There will also be
a series of pre-built dashboards and reporting templates that will “make it
easier to surface actionable insights from Salesforce data,” Mantilla said.
“This is a result of looking at industry
trends and really listening to our customers and prospects,” she added. Currently,
Blackthorn's primary customer base is in the U.S. and North America but also
extends across Europe and Australia.
The new Blackthorn platform will be
introduced via a phased rollout from April 2026. Enhanced capabilities will be
launched in stages, and once implemented, these features will be accessible to
clients across all existing markets.
The company did not announce any changes to
its pricing model. “As we roll out new platform capabilities, our priority is
to ensure customers continue to see strong value from the platform,” Blackthorn
said. “Any future decisions around packaging or pricing would be guided by
customer feedback and communicated clearly in advance.”