Zendesk to Salesforce Migration
COMPLETE GUIDE - 2025
Complete 2025 guide to Zendesk to Salesforce migration. Learn how to move tickets, users, workflows, and help center content into Salesforce Service Cloud with best practices.
💡 Why Move from Zendesk to Salesforce?
➺ Common reasons & Benefits of Salesforce
Zendesk and Salesforce are both leaders in the CRM space, but key differences make Salesforce a stronger choice. Here’s why many businesses opt for Zendesk to Salesforce data migration:
| Feature | Zendesk | Salesforce |
|---|---|---|
| 360 View & Rich Analytics | Good | Better |
| Customization & Integration Options | Less Customizable | Highly Customizable |
| Centralized Sales & Support Data | Limited | Best |
| Customer Sucess Management | Limited | Best |
| Support Centric Standard Process | Better | Better but possible using customization |
| Feature | Zendesk | Salesforce | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 360 View & Rich Analytics | Good | Better | Salesforce offers an unified view of customer. Also offers advance reporting and dashboard generation capability, enhancing zendesk to salesforce data migration benefits. |
| Customization & Integration Options | Less Customizable | Highly Customizable | Salesforce offers a robust API-driven platform backed by Apex, LWC, and a vast AppExchange ecosystem, enabling deep customization and scalability. While Zendesk supports custom code, Salesforce stands out with greater flexibility and development power for complex business needs. |
| Centralized Sales & Support Data | Limited | Best | Customer's journey, Sales Data, Support - everything is stored and accessible with finger tips in Salesforce. |
| Customer Sucess Management | Limited | Best | Zendesk offers good way to collect CSAT, so does Salesforce. Both are good in this term, a critical aspect highlighted by zendesk to salesforce migration consultant. |
| Support Centric Standard Process | Better | Better but possible using customization | Zendesk offers a robust CC email management, Closed Case Reopen process, Solved to Closed Status Workflow as part of platform itself. In Salesforce, you need resources (Consultants/Developers) to customize and build these workflows. |
⚙️ Step-by-Step Migration Process
❶ Pre-migration audit & planning
Zendesk to Salesforce migration is not just about data migration — it also covers service operations migration, help center and knowledge base transfer, and end-user training to ensure seamless Salesforce adoption
1. Service Cloud Setup & Configuration
Case Management, Profiles, SLA Configuration, Case Status Workflow, Omni-channel setup.
3. Support Workflow Migration
Move Triggers, Workflow and Automation, Notification, Assignment Rules.
5. Help Center Transition
Setup Knowlegebase, Build Help Center using Experience Cloud, Customer Onboarding and Maintenance.
7. Testing & Validation
Verify the migrated Data, test the Automation & Workflow.
2. Data Migration
Organization & User Mapping, Extract, Transform and Load.
4. Rebuild the Integration with Other tools & Systems
Integrate with tools and apps like Survey, Jira, Voice Call, Reporting.
6. Training & Adoption
Business User Training, Feedback, Measure Performance & Constructive Feedback.
8. Post Migration Support & Enhancement
Go Live Support, Delta Migration, Maintenance and Support
❷ Zendesk to Salesforce Data Migration
❯❯ Zendesk to Salesforce Data Mapping
| Zendesk | Salesforce Service Cloud |
|---|---|
| Agent | User (Salesforce Standard License) |
| End User | User (Customer Community or Plus License) + Contact +Account |
| Organization | Account |
| Ticket | Case |
| Ticket Comment | Case Comment OR Feed Post (Whatever suits best) |
| Article | Lightning Knowledge |
| Data Category | Knowledge Category |
| Tags | Topics |
| Attachment | File |
❯❯ Important Data Migration Tips & Best Practices
➺ User Migration Considerations
- When migrating users from Zendesk to Salesforce, plan for SSO (Single Sign-On) transition. Without proper handling, end users may face login issues or disruption after migration.
➺ Organization & Customer Migration
Migrate all accounts and contacts carefully.
Handle duplicate accounts and contacts to avoid data inconsistencies.
Update required fields and maintain references to the original creator or customer.
➺ Ticket & Comment Migration Consideration
Transfer all tickets/cases to Salesforce or plan exact filters proactively.
Preserve links between related cases.
Be aware that Case Description in Salesforce does not support rich text.
- Plan Jira Issues and Custom Field Migration – often this is missed and later requested to migrate it.
- CaseComment in Salesforce does not support rich-text (and images) and supports only plain text, so plan carefully whether “Feed” or “Case Comment” will be used to store the “Ticket Comment”. Here is another article that helps you to decide this: https://tenetizer.com/chatter-feed-or-case-comment-which-one-should-be-used/
➺ Attachment, Voice Calls & Media Migration Considerations
Migrate all attachments linked to tickets, cases, or knowledge articles.
Maintain references so each attachment stays associated with the correct record.
➺ Knowledge/Article Migration - Key Considerations
| Zendesk | Salesforce |
|---|---|
| Article | Knowledge_kav |
| Category | Data Category |
| Section | Sub Category or Topic |
| Folder | Topic or Top level Data Category |
- Article Linking and Cross-References:
- Check for any links or cross-references within your knowledge articles and ensure they are properly updated during the migration. Update internal links to point to the correct locations within the new knowledge base.
- Reference to other articles should be changed to new SFDC knowledge article.
- Inline Images and videos – should be hosted on Salesforce now using content version/document.
- Formatting and Styling: Consider any formatting and styling adjustments required for the migrated content. Ensure that the formatting, such as headings, lists, images, and tables, is preserved and optimized for the new knowledge base platform.
- Section and Category Migration into Salesforce Data Category and Topic – it’s very important to plan section will go as Data Category or Topic or both. Share this your Data Migration Architect as soon as you can.
❯❯ Data Migration: Key Stages and Instructions
➺ Before Migration: Key Instructions
- While giving a migration estimate, always consider – on how many sandboxes migration will take place. Also migration will be done on sandboxes just for a set of records or full?
- Analyze resources/tools (Data loader, Batch, ETL, access to source and target system etc.) required for migration and ask for it upfront. Unavailability of any tool may impact estimates and timeline heavily.
- Volume of data must be known before providing timeline and estimate.
- Identify the fields to be migrated and let the field mapping get confirmed with stakeholders. If you miss even a single field, it may cause re-doing of everything or updating all records.
- Audit Fields: Research and prepare the list of audit fields (CreatedDate, Last Modified Date, CreatedById, CreatedByDate, CloseDate etc). Here is a Salesforce help article for the same: Considerations and activation of “Create Audit Fields”
- Do check the licenses before User migration – Feature License like Service Cloud User, Chat User, Knowledge User OR external user license.
- Maintain ExternalId: Create an ‘External Id’ field to track the external primary key of each record being migrated. Keep it unique and External in field definition.
- It’s worth brainstorming to identify the limitations (Governor Limits, Org Data Storage Limit) of migration like:
- Field Length/Size match – for example if source org has a ‘Field’ having more characters than related field in Salesforce. We have faced issues while migrating Case Description, Case Comment, Chatter Post etc
- API limit of data migration. For example, the maximum number of content versions that can be published in a 24-hour period is 5,000. </li
- Storage Limit: if any object is going to consume a lot of storage, flag it with stakeholders as Salesforce is not a data storage place and can cause huge price and performance issues.
- Date field’s timezone consideration if the dev team is in a different timezone.
- Best is to use ETL tools (Dataloader, Dataloader.io, Dell Boomi, Talend etc) instead of using manual or code based approach (batch) for efficient Zendesk to Salesforce data migration. However, if there is no workaround, using code is okay.
- Do create a strong strategy for delta migration (data created in existing system during migration window).
- Do not forget to plan the Delta Migration:
- Plan the final data migration and cutover from Zendesk to Salesforce.
- Ensure minimal downtime and data loss during the transition.
➺ During Migration: Key Instructions
- Keep email deliverability off.
- While moving Persons (User, Lead, Contact), make sure you invalidate the email in Sandboxes.
- If possible, deactivate the email alerts.
- Identify triggers | Flow | Workflows which are not required to run on these records being migrated and turn them off to increase the speed.
- Keep track of failed records otherwise you may lose some records in between.
- Rich Text Area or HTML Supported Field: Keep here special attention:
- Any images hosted on an existing system must be migrated to Salesforce and then the link of the image source must be updated in rich text.
- Find out inline links and replace them with new endpoint links otherwise users will get redirected to the older system when they click on the link.
- Import fields of existing system into custom fields you are unsure about. Sometimes Stakeholders ask for it though they have not asked in original requirement.
➺ After Migration: Key Instructions
- Do a sanity check on some records for each object.
- Pull some reports over migrated data and share with stakeholders to verify and approve it.
- New records due to migration may have triggered scheduled jobs or time based job, don’t forget to visit there and delete these jobs
- Time-based Workflow/Flow/Process
- Scheduled Apex
- Paused and waiting interview flows
❸ Support Workflow & Trigger Migration
❯❯ Analyze Workflows and Optimize
I think it’s great opportunity to optimize the process before building it in Salesforce, so we recommend to schedule some time with business to make sure that what exactly required or processes that need be added/removed.
- Understand existing Zendesk processes, workflows, triggers and other automation.
- Define requirements for migration, including data mapping, automation, and integration needs.
- Document the changes need to be introduced in Service Cloud.
❯❯ Migrate Automation & Workflow
- Zendesk Trigger: Identify key Zendesk Trigger and migrate into Salesforce Flow and Apex Triggers.
- Migrate Workflow: Move Workflow, Macros and other time-based action into Salesforce Flow, Email Alerts and Apex Triggers.
- Case Management – different views, different layouts, searching capability, access control setup. Similar configuration as Zendesk but in Salesforce way.
- Email-to-Case: Email to Case, Case new page in self service customer community, Phone to Case Integration or any other channel.
- Survey Setup, Close Case Workflow etc
❯❯ Rebuild the Integrations
- Assess the existing integration like Jira, Voice, WhatsApp, Phone or Email or any third party integration.
- Check with your Zendesk To Salesforce Migration Architect/Consultant for best way to direct the integration with Salesforce.
❹ Build Customer Help Center
Migrate Help Center using Salesforce Experience Cloud
- Migrate the support portal by creating a new Experience Site, also known as Community. Though Salesforce provides Site builder, a tool to configure by clicks, but you may need to build some custom components using LWC and Apex.
- Redirect the domain mapping in Salesforce.
- Configure self-service portal – put standard registration form and login form.
- Transform new case form along with standard case deflection.
- Enable live chat powered by Einstein.
- Customize Article detail page and enable community 360 to gather customer insights.
POSITIVE IMPACT
How can Tenetizer help companies in the process of Zendesk to Salesforce Data Migration?
As the process of migrating data to Salesforce from Zendesk is quite complex and extensive. Tenetizer helps the companies to complete the process smoothly. Apart from Zendesk to Salesforce data migration consulting, Tenetizer provides services such as Customer Portal Implementation, Salesforce Service Cloud Features, and Einstein AI services including Recommendation, Case Classification, and Einstein Chatbot. Please reach us out here: contact@tenetizer.com.
Or take a free consultation from our Data Migration Architect: ayub@tenetizer.com.