- Map every custom field and pipeline stage before exporting a single record.
- Run the old and new systems in parallel for at least one full sales cycle.
- Clean data during migration — don't just copy the mess into a new home.
- Rep buy-in during migration matters more than technical accuracy of the data.
Map before you move anything
Before exporting a single record, map every custom field, pipeline stage, and automation rule in the old system to its equivalent in the new one. Skipping this step is the single most common cause of migrations that lose or garble deal data on the way over.
Run both systems in parallel
Cutting over instantly, on a single day, is a high-risk move — if something's wrong with the migration, it surfaces mid-sales-cycle with live deals at stake. Running both systems in parallel for at least one full sales cycle catches migration errors while there's still a working fallback.
Migration is a chance to clean, not just copy
Moving data as-is means moving years of duplicate contacts, stale deals, and inconsistent field values into the new system too. A migration is the natural moment to deduplicate and standardize — the cost of doing it during the move is much lower than doing it after everyone's back to normal usage.
Rep trust is the real success metric
A technically perfect migration that reps don't trust still fails, because they'll quietly keep their own spreadsheet on the side 'just in case.' Involving a few active reps in testing the new system before full rollout, and fixing what they flag, does more for adoption than any data-accuracy metric.
Have a rollback plan, not just a forward plan
Every migration plan should include an explicit answer to 'what do we do if this goes wrong on day three.' Keeping the old system accessible (even read-only) for a defined window after cutover gives the team a safety net that removes a lot of the anxiety around the switch.