Docs · Migrating from Another CRM

Moving from another CRM — start here

What comes across, what doesn't, and the order to do it in — whichever platform you're leaving.

Who this is for

The agency owner or admin running the switch. Plan a few days end to end — not because the import is slow, but because rebuilding automations and testing them properly takes real time.

Before you begin

  • Admin access to the system you're leaving, enough to run an export.
  • A decision about who owns the switch. Migrations stall when it's nobody's job.
  • Your own account set up here first — branding, phone, A2P. Texting can't start until A2P is approved, and that's the long pole.

Steps

  1. Set up your own account first — branding, phone number and A2P registration. Nothing can text until that's done, so do it while you're still exporting.
  2. Export your contacts from the old system as CSV.
  3. Import the whole file as leads. If it has a stage/status column, match those stages when the importer asks — that's what keeps sold customers from being cold-texted.
  4. Convert the real customers to Clients one at a time as you work them. Lead → Client is the supported direction and there's no way back, so promote rather than guess up front.
  5. Map your opt-out / DNC column. Never skip this one.
  6. Point your existing forms and funnels at an inbound form URL so new leads keep flowing while you switch.
  7. Rebuild your automations. Do your highest-volume sequence first and watch it run before building the rest.

Do not switch everything in one night. Run both systems in parallel for a week: point new leads here, keep the old one readable, and cut over once you've watched a real lead go from form to text to booking.

The three separate problems

People lump these together and it's why migrations go badly. (1) DATA — getting contacts in, deduplicated, with opt-outs preserved and sold customers parked rather than cold-texted. (2) SETUP — fields, tags, pipelines, templates. (3) AUTOMATIONS — your sequences. Data and setup mostly move for you. Automations are rebuilt by hand almost everywhere, because almost no platform exposes their internals through an API. Budget accordingly.

What we can pull automatically today

GoHighLevel is the one with a direct connector — custom fields, tags, pipelines and email templates copy across, and you get a rebuild checklist for the automations. For every other platform the path is CSV export plus rebuilding your setup here, which for most agencies is an afternoon. If you're coming from something not listed in this category, the general path still applies and we'd like to hear about it — the list grows as we see real migrations.

The one that has legal consequences

Opt-outs. Anyone who unsubscribed or was marked DNC in the old system must arrive marked here, or your first campaign texts people who told the last CRM to stop. That's a TCPA problem and it burns your number's reputation with carriers at the same time. Every importer has a column for it; map it, and check the preview count before committing.

What never transfers, from anywhere

Conversation history (texts, call recordings, email threads) stays in the old system — export it for your records before you cancel, because you usually lose access at the end of the billing period. Phone numbers can often be ported, but that's a carrier process with its own timeline, so start it early and don't assume it's instant. Landing pages and funnels stay where they are: we connect to them rather than rebuilding them.

Which platforms are covered here

GoHighLevel · Spreadsheets (Excel/Google Sheets) · AgencyBloc · Radius/Radiusbob · HubSpot & Salesforce · Velocify & Ricochet360 · Zoho & Pipedrive · Carrier back-offices and NAAIP. Each has its own article with what that specific export contains and the mistake people make with it.

How to check it worked

  • Import a test batch of 20–50 records before the full book, and open a few records to confirm the fields landed where you expect.
  • Confirm your opt-outs arrived suppressed — search for someone you know unsubscribed and check they're marked do-not-contact.
  • Submit one of your own forms and watch the lead arrive and the automation run.
  • Only then import the rest.

Common mistakes

  • Skipping the stage-matching step. That's what stops sold customers getting a cold opener from the AI — the single worst migration outcome, and the hardest to apologise for.
  • Skipping the opt-out column because the import 'worked without it'.
  • Importing the whole book before testing a small batch.
  • Cancelling the old system before exporting conversation history you may need later.
  • Rebuilding every automation before testing one. Get one sequence fully working end to end first.

Related

How do I move over from GoHighLevel?Your fields, tags, pipelines and templates copy across automatically.Migrating from a spreadsheet (Excel or Google Sheets)The most common starting point.How do I bring my opt-outs and DNC list across?Map the opt-out column during import.Will importing my contacts text my existing customers?Not if you map your stages on the way in.Matching your old CRM's stages to oursYour stage names don't have to match ours — the importer maps them for you, and shows what each one will do to those leads.How do I connect a form, funnel or website I built somewhere else?Create a form URL, paste one block into whatever built the page — Claude, Manus, Lovable, Webflow, WordPress — and submissions land here as leads.

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