One of the most common problems that occur in migration is the presence of rogue and inaccurate data. According to a study, the presence of dirty data is the major reason why user adoption fails and the system becomes completely useless to your organization. If there is no planning in this detailed-oriented process it can get derailed in an instant, and all the time that you invested during the migration is wasted. We don’t want this to happen to you. Hence as salesforce experts, we have come to educate you on the best practices that you should follow during salesforce data migration.

1. Make a detailed plan

We, as an experienced salesforce company, plan in two different sets. One planning ensures that the entire data is shifted from legacy system to salesforce and the other is the integration of two business applications and initiating data transfer between them. Mostly we follow the first rule for proper and organized migration. Plan the migration in phases with strict yet flexible deadlines. Be clear to everyone involved to put their best foot forward to ensure the completion of the process at the provided time without compromising the quality.

2. Get some fair idea about data migrations tools, add-ons and apps

Those who know the best way to migrate, complete the process faster, and with little or nil mistakes. Salesforce and other third parties provide tools such as a data loader for importing data up to 10000 records per month. Besides that, you can use confluence, Lucidchart, ASAP utilities, Elements, Power BI and other tools/add-ons for data import, data cleaning, validation and more. First-hand information makes the data migration process easier, hassle-free and fast.

Follow a detailed communication plan

During Salesforce migration, communication is a key among all. In the process, when thousands of messages go and come, it becomes hard to keep a tap on them. Having a single communication channel not just helps in finding the files, everyone knows where to check for new updates.

Data simplification is the key

Just like, we look for some special occasion to throw away the old and obsolete items from home, a new system implementation is a perfect opportunity to take only the needed data. As you transition from old and existing CRM to Salesforce, eliminate unnecessary data objects and related things. If possible, do the manual or system verification of data for its accuracy before migrating to Salesforce. That gives better ways to the staff for obtaining accurate reports. What is the need to migrate data that is not required for anyone in the team? Make a list of required data and only migrate them to Salesforce. Alternatively, you may take a backup of unnecessary data on a server or external hard disks. Migrating obsolete data to salesforce is not a wise decision. Backup can be used in exceptional cases. This way, you get a user-friendly Salesforce system with the right information for internal and external users.

Understand the data sets difference between the legacy CRM and Salesforce

Legacy CRM could be anything from Spreadsheets to offline software developed by your in-house team or any outsource agency. When you get through the difference between the requirement of Salesforce and the existence of the same in the legacy software, the process becomes faster. For example, the new data model in Salesforce consists of contacts associated with one or many affiliations. In that case, you don’t know if your existing system has this data model or not. Having first-hand information makes you prepare better.

Understand the core of the data model

The purpose of having CRM is somehow similar to all businesses yet, there are wide variations that depend on your business vision. Take your time to understand the data model, field relationship, formula field, process builder, workflow, and develop a high-level vision. This way, you expedite the migration process and get the best of results in the short and long run.

Create API naming convention

Did you know, once the API names are created and added to process automation and workflow, you cannot change due to the risk of automation failure? Moreover, API names are required all the time to access important reports by the Salesforce admin and data analysis team. The good way is to have a consistent API convention so that it does not adversely affect the teamwork later on.

Clear naming conventions for files

To migrate objects to Salesforce, you need thousands of files. Having systematic naming for files helps the team in identifying the files easily for upsert and error tracking. It also helps in cross-checking between two systems. Every set of data leaves a long trail behind that needs to be cleaned. Use important tools for cleaning operations such as id decoding, renaming dropdown values, phone number format change, name capitalization, duplication record merger, and more. You may also use the tools to change the correct format for the data. Salesforce requires a specific date, time, name, phone number, and other details in format.

Final Thought

Have patience, salesforce migration might bring errors due to various man-made mistakes at the initial stage. Go step by step and in the end, you’ll have the best data sets in salesforce. Keep the team motivated in the process by celebrating even small victories. Once you finish the migration, you reap the benefits of hard work through salesforce. Need help in Salesforce data migration, we’re here to help you with best-of-class consultancy service.