What We Learned From Migrating 5 CRMs to HubSpot

The good, the bad, and the “why didn’t we do this earlier?

CRM migrations can feel intimidating. Data mapping. Property conflicts. Missed workflows. And the constant worry of, “Will we lose anything?”

We’ve helped businesses migrate from Salesforce, Zoho, Pipedrive, Monday.com, and Freshsales into HubSpot—and here’s what we’ve learned that’ll save you time, budget, and sanity.

Don’t Just Copy—Redesign

Most CRMs are bloated with unused fields, outdated pipelines, and messy tagging.

Migrate what matters. Redesign what’s broken.

We helped one client simplify from 9 deal stages to 5 and instantly improved reporting clarity.

Clean Your Data Before Import

Data migration is a chance to clean house. Run a pre-migration audit:

• Remove inactive contacts
• Merge duplicates
• Standardise dropdown values (e.g. “Marketing Qualified” vs “MQL”)
• Validate emails and phone numbers

Garbage in = garbage out. Clean first.

Rebuild Workflows Natively in HubSpot

Don’t try to move automations 1:1. HubSpot’s workflow builder often replaces:

• Manual email follow-ups
• Deal stage updates
• Task reminders
• Lead assignment logic

We rebuilt one client's entire lead rotation logic with fewer steps—and no dev work.

Tag Imported Contacts for Traceability

Use an import tag like: Source: Salesforce Migration – June 2024. This helps you filter, test, and refine your data post-migration.

Bonus: You can create smart lists or workflows for migrated contacts only.

Expect 20% Custom Property Cleanup.

Every CRM has custom fields that no one remembers creating. You’ll need to:

• Map only the necessary ones
• Rename for clarity
• Archive or skip what’s no longer used.

Less clutter = easier adoption by your team.

Always Do a Dry Run

Before full import, test with:

• 10 contacts
• 10 companies
• 10 deals
• A few workflows

Validate mapping, visibility, and ownership before going live.

Train the Team Early

The best migration can still fail without buy-in.  

Create simple guides:

• How to update a deal
• Where to find the contact history
• What changed from the old system

Involve key users early—they’ll help others adapt.

Final Thought

Migrating CRMs isn’t just a tech move; it’s a growth opportunity. If done correctly, switching to HubSpot can simplify your sales process, enhance reporting, and ultimately provide your team with a CRM they can use.