CRM migration is critical for businesses looking to switch or upgrade their systems, but it can be a risky and complex process. In this blog post, we’ll share a detailed CRM migration checklist from pre-migration planning to post-migration optimization for a successful transition.
Key Steps for a Successful CRM Migration
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Pre-Migration Planning: Build a team, define success goals, select the right CRM partner, and check system compatibility.
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Data Preparation: Audit and clean your data, apply retention policies, and map fields accurately.
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Testing and Validation: Run pilot migrations, test edge cases, and prepare rollback plans.
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Post-Migration Optimization: Rebuild workflows, audit user permissions, and monitor performance metrics.
What is CRM Data Migration?
CRM data migration is the process of transferring customer data, including contacts, deals, activities, and custom fields, from one CRM system to another.
It involves data extraction, cleansing, mapping, importing, and validation to ensure accuracy, continuity, and minimal disruption to your sales and marketing operations.
A well-executed CRM migration protects data integrity, reduces downtime, and ensures a smooth team transition. It also lays the foundation for accurate reporting, personalized marketing, and better sales performance in your new CRM.
How To Migrate Your CRM (and not screw it up): Checklist
Here is a 4-step checklist for a successful CRM migration:
1. Pre-Migration Planning
Laying the groundwork before a CRM migration is crucial. A well-thought-out plan minimizes future headaches and ensures your team stays on the same page throughout the process.
Assemble a Cross-Functional Team
Building a cross-functional team is key to addressing the diverse needs of a CRM migration. When departments work in silos, critical details can slip through the cracks. Bringing together team members from IT, operations, marketing, sales, and end-users ensures a more comprehensive approach.
For a small organization with limited resources, the data team structure should include a data migration project manager, a data architect, a data engineer and a data analyst. See the structure below:
Source: Hevodata
But for an enterprise, the core data team should include roles such as data migration project manager, data architect, data migration analyst, data engineers, data quality analyst, business analyst, QA engineers and security specialist. Additional support from a database administrator (DBA) and IT support staff can further strengthen your team.
See the structure of a large organization below:
Source: Hevodata
The CRM migration project manager will oversee the entire migration, while a data migration lead focuses on technical aspects and ensures the integrity of your data. Therefore, clear role definitions and regular communication are essential for everyone to understand their responsibilities and objectives.
Once your data team is in place, the next step is to define measurable success criteria for your migration.
Define Success Criteria
Setting clear success criteria allows you to objectively evaluate the outcome of your CRM migration. You should start by assessing your current CRM to identify its strengths and weaknesses. This evaluation will help you determine the performance metrics you’ll need to track.
Next, outline the business goals your migration should achieve. Whether it’s improving customer relationship management or boosting sales and marketing capabilities, having a clear vision is essential.
Think about the benefits you expect post-migration, such as better data accuracy, enhanced reporting, or stronger customer engagement. Then, translate these goals into specific, measurable targets.
For instance, you might track metrics like data accuracy rates, acceptable downtime, system response times, user adoption rates, and the success of system integrations.
Focus on prioritizing the essential features over optional ones to keep your migration streamlined. Data security should also be a top priority and you should define protocols to safeguard sensitive information. According to the WebFX blog, 92% of businesses recognize CRM software as a critical factor in achieving revenue goals.
After defining success criteria, shift your focus to ensuring system compatibility.
Evaluate System Compatibility
Evaluating system compatibility early in the process can save you from integration issues that could derail your migration. Start by confirming that your new CRM supports your existing data formats, field types, storage limits, and API capabilities.
Define your integration goals and verify technical requirements upfront. For example, if you need real-time data synchronization with accounting software, confirm that both systems can handle the necessary API calls and data refresh rates.
Depending on your needs, you might use custom code, APIs, native integrations, middleware solutions or connector software.
Choose a platform that offers strong integration options, regardless of your organization’s size. While APIs provide flexibility, they often require technical expertise to implement and maintain.
The Automation Strategist team strongly recommends ActiveCampaign for startups and small businesses, as it delivers essential features at an accessible price point. For SMEs aiming for growth, HubSpot is the ideal choice with its robust capabilities that drive results.
Meanwhile, large organizations seeking advanced automation should look no further than Eloqua to streamline their marketing efforts and boost efficiency.
“With an integrated sales CRM platform, data is automatically synced between your CRM and third-party apps, so you’re always working with the most accurate and up-to-date information.” – ActiveCampaign
Key compatibility checks involve several important steps, including verifying data field mappings, understanding API rate limits and authentication methods, and confirming file format support for both imports and exports.
It’s also essential to examine user permission structures and evaluate backup and recovery processes.
To ensure accuracy, document how data flows and test the data mapping with sample data. Also, use encryption protocols for data transfers to maintain security. Finally, carefully review any third-party integration providers.
2. Data Preparation and Mapping
After confirming system compatibility, the next step in the CRM migration checklist is to prepare and organize your data for migration. This phase is crucial for ensuring the accuracy and reliability of your information in the new CRM system.
Conduct a Data Inventory
Creating a detailed data inventory is essential for a successful CRM migration. Start by identifying all data sources in your current CRM system. This includes databases, applications, and files that will be part of the migration process. This step helps you decide which data to transfer, modify, or discard.
You should create a comprehensive catalog of all entities and data types, paying attention to core objects such as contacts, accounts, and leads.
Also, ensure you include child objects, custom tables, picklists, multi-select fields, and relationship data mappings in your review. This thorough cataloging will reveal the complete structure of your data and highlight any potential challenges.
Additionally, analyze your data to spot patterns, inconsistencies, and structural issues. Conduct field-level audits to identify empty fields, inconsistent formatting (e.g., phone numbers or dates), and invalid references. Flag fields with outdated or non-standard values that need normalization.
Pay extra attention to data dependencies and relationships between fields, tables, or entities. This ensures related information transfers correctly without breaking links. Additionally, analyze data volume to determine how much needs to be migrated and plan for storage and movement accordingly.
For example, Winsborough successfully merged two CRM systems, removed redundancies, and saved $35,000 annually on CRM costs – all within three weeks.
Once your inventory is complete, establish data retention policies to streamline your migration.
Apply Data Retention Policies
Data retention policies guide what information should be migrated to your new system. These policies help reduce unnecessary data exposure and manage the data lifecycle efficiently. Retain only the information that serves a purpose and securely delete outdated or irrelevant records.
When defining your retention strategy, consider factors like data creation patterns, regulatory requirements, and exposure to privacy laws. Depending on your industry, specific compliance standards may influence your decisions. For instance:
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Publicly traded companies in the U.S. must comply with Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) regulations.
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Organizations handling credit card transactions must meet Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) requirements.
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Healthcare providers need to follow HIPAA guidelines.
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Businesses processing EU citizen data must adhere to GDPR.
To ensure compliance, you must gather regulatory insights and create a comprehensive data map that addresses business and regional data rules. This approach supports legal obligations and also reduces security risks by eliminating unnecessary data.
After cleansing your data, align it with the new system through data field mapping and standardization.
Data Mapping and Standardization
Field Mapping in Eloqua
Source: Goldcast.io
Data mapping ensures that data from your current system transfers accurately to the new one. This process involves understanding the data structures of both systems, identifying corresponding fields, and creating clear mapping relationships.
You should develop a detailed data mapping plan that specifies how each field in the source system aligns with fields in the target system. Prioritize mission-critical fields to ensure their accurate migration. Include a custom field for legacy IDs in each record to maintain reference connections.
If the new system’s architecture differs significantly, you may need to create a compound key using multiple fields (e.g., company and address) to preserve record relationships.
Standardizing your data is equally important. This involves cleaning and organizing information to maintain consistency across all records. Standardize formatting for capitalization, abbreviations, numbers, and resolve inconsistencies in phone numbers, dates, and addresses to avoid quality issues.
Before migrating your complete data, test your mapping process with a small subset to verify its accuracy. This trial run can uncover issues with custom fields or data transformations that need adjustment before proceeding. Throughout the migration, monitor data integrity to ensure the mapping process is successful.
Document your mapping rules in detail, specifying transformation requirements for each field type. This documentation acts as a guide during migration and helps address any discrepancies that may arise.
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3. Testing and Validation
Testing your migration process before going live is essential to spot potential issues and ensure data accuracy. This phase allows you to address problems early, avoiding disruptions to your entire dataset.
Run a Pilot Migration
Once your data is prepared, rigorous testing is key to confirming the integrity of your migration.
A pilot migration involves transferring a small, representative sample of your data to test workflows, user permissions, and system integrations before moving the entire dataset. This controlled approach helps uncover and resolve issues early, reducing risks to your live data.
You should choose a sample that mirrors the diversity of your CRM data, including different data types, custom fields, relationship structures, user roles, and account types.
Then, migrate this subset and test workflows, permissions, integrations, and automated processes. Verify data integrity and confirm field mappings are accurate. If any issues arise, refine your ETL and cleansing processes.
Once the pilot consistently delivers accurate results, you can move forward with the full migration.
Test Edge Cases
Edge cases are scenarios that push the boundaries of system input or functionality. As Rupesh Garg, Founder and Principal Architect at Frugal Testing, explains:
“Test edge cases in software quality assurance testing are scenarios that occur at the boundaries of input ranges or system limits. Identifying these ensures comprehensive coverage, preventing bugs that might otherwise go unnoticed.”
To identify and test edge cases, focus on:
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Maximum character limits in text fields
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Unusual date formats and special characters
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Records with missing or null values
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Large file attachments or extensive histories
Document the expected versus actual outcomes and address any discrepancies.
Real-world examples highlight the importance of testing edge cases.
For instance, inconsistent product codes during an inventory database migration once led to stock mismanagement.
In another case, mismatched policy numbers during a client data migration resulted in incomplete profiles, raising compliance concerns.
Using test case management software can help track these scenarios, compare outcomes, and resolve issues.
Edge case testing is critical to avoiding problems that could disrupt operations, increase costs, or damage client trust.
Once edge case testing confirms the robustness of your data, it’s time to safeguard the process with a rollback plan.
Set Up Rollback Procedures
A rollback strategy is your safety net, allowing you to reverse the migration if problems arise. Lucas Viecelli, Software Engineering Manager and Platform Engineer, stresses:
“Before executing any data migration, it is essential to define a rollback strategy, which is a plan of action to undo the data migration if something goes wrong. This plan should include criteria and triggers to initiate a rollback, such as error rates, performance thresholds, user feedback, or business impact.”
Define rollback criteria based on error thresholds, performance drops, or critical user feedback. Create full backups and store them securely offsite. Test these backups to ensure they are complete and can be restored. Document the rollback process, assign roles, and train your team to execute the plan quickly if necessary.
Mazen Zbib, Head of IT at Henley Business School, advises:
“For a successful data migration rollback, follow these key practices: Create Full Backups: Before migration, ensure comprehensive backups of all critical data are made. Test Backups: Verify backups for completeness and integrity to ensure they can be fully restored if needed. Secure & Accessible Backups: Store backups in a secure, accessible location, separate from the primary data to facilitate easy rollback. Document the Backup Process: Keep detailed records of the backup procedure, including data structure and dependencies, for efficient rollback. Retention Policy: Maintain backups for a sufficient period to address any post-migration issues.”
Throughout the migration, monitor progress closely. If a rollback becomes necessary, execute it according to your documented plan and conduct a post-mortem analysis to identify root causes and refine future migration strategies.
4. Post-Migration Optimization
Once your data migration is complete, optimizing your new CRM system for peak performance begins. This step transforms your CRM from a basic tool into a dynamic system that boosts productivity and supports business growth.
The goal here is to fine-tune operations and ensure data integrity while fully leveraging the platform’s capabilities.
Let’s dive into the key areas to focus on during this phase.
Rebuild Automations and Workflows
Data migration often doesn’t carry over automations and workflows perfectly. To make the most of your new CRM, you’ll need to rebuild these processes and adapt them to the system’s enhanced features.
Therefore, start by recreating essential components, including lead scoring models, email templates, and workflows.
While it’s important to mirror your previous processes, don’t miss the chance to incorporate new features that can improve efficiency. Update deal stages, configure custom fields for consistency, and automate repetitive tasks that previously required manual effort.
For example, you can realign sales pipelines to better reflect your team’s current workflow or set up triggers for reminders and alerts to keep operations running smoothly.
To ensure a seamless transition, organize workshops and create role-specific guides for your team. Monitor how features are being used and gather feedback to address any issues quickly.
Lastly, double-check that user access permissions align with these updated workflows to maintain security and functionality.
Audit User Permissions
Auditing user permissions is a critical step in securing your optimized CRM and ensuring it functions as intended. This process ensures every team member has the right level of access, safeguarding both data integrity and operational efficiency.
Use the “Least Privilege” principle – granting employees access only to the data and tools necessary for their specific roles. Review each user’s permissions against their job responsibilities, and adjust as needed to eliminate unnecessary access.
Here are the key elements to include in your audit:
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Documentation Review: Check all records related to CRM setup and configuration for accuracy.
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Data Assessment: Evaluate the quality and completeness of your data, looking for duplicates or inconsistencies.
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Usage Analysis: Review access levels and login activity to understand how the system is being used.
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Integration Testing: Confirm that data flows correctly between the CRM and any connected systems.
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User Feedback: Conduct surveys or interviews to evaluate usability and identify potential improvements.
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Regulatory Compliance: Verify that your CRM adheres to data protection laws and industry standards.
Strengthen security by defining clear user roles, implementing multifactor authentication, and using IP-based access controls. Schedule regular audits to keep permissions up to date and address any issues proactively.
Monitor Performance Metrics
Ongoing performance monitoring is essential for identifying potential bottlenecks and uncovering opportunities for improvement before they disrupt operations. Start by establishing baseline metrics immediately after migration to measure the health of your CRM over time.
Define key performance indicators (KPIs) like CPU usage and throughput rates to gauge how well the system handles daily tasks. Use monitoring tools to set alerts for when these KPIs exceed acceptable thresholds, ensuring problems are caught early.
Real-time analytics can provide valuable insights into both infrastructure and application performance, helping you spot patterns that may indicate emerging issues or areas for optimization.
If you’re unsure where to start, consider partnering with a managed service provider to help identify overlooked opportunities for improvement.
Additionally, regular configuration reviews are essential. As your business evolves, the settings that worked during the initial deployment may need adjustments to align with new usage patterns.
Marketing Automation tools can also assist with monitoring tasks, such as provisioning resources or addressing issues, reducing manual effort while maintaining consistent oversight.
Wrapping Up
In conclusion, for a smooth and successful transition, a CRM migration checklist should include pre-migration planning, data field mapping and preparation, testing and validation, and finally, post-migration optimization.
Break the above down into clear phases, each with specific goals and checkpoints to help your organization succeed.
Plan carefully, test thoroughly, and make adjustments after the migration to ensure a smooth transition. This checklist offers simple steps to guide you through the process.
If you need more information about the CRM Migration checklist, please reach out to one of our specialists.
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CRM Migration Related FAQs
What are the biggest challenges in CRM migration, and how can businesses overcome them?
The biggest challenges are data loss, system downtime, and user resistance. Many businesses face trouble with cleaning and mapping old data to fit the new system. To overcome these, plan the migration process carefully, run data backups, test everything before going live, and train your team in advance so they know what to expect.
How can businesses protect sensitive data and stay compliant during a CRM migration?
Businesses should follow data privacy laws like the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and industry-specific regulations like SOX, HIPAA or GLBA, if applicable. Use secure, encrypted channels to transfer data and limit access to only essential team members. Also, establish a data governance framework and provide your team with training on security protocols.
How can we improve CRM performance and encourage user adoption after migration?
You need to ensure the new CRM is properly set up and customised to fit how your team works. Focus on consistent training and support, encourage user feedback to uncover challenges and improvements and track your key performance metrics.
