Migrate from Method:Field Services to Zoho CRM

Method contacts map directly to Zoho CRM Contacts. If the contact originated from a lead source (e.g., inbound job request without a company), it routes to Zoho Leads. Primary company association uses Zoho's Account lookup field — Method contacts without a linked company attach to a default account or get flagged for manual assignment.

Method companies map to Zoho Accounts. Company hierarchies (parent/child) translate to Zoho's Parent Account field using the same parent-child relationship logic. Method's QuickBooks-synced company records carry the original QuickBooks ID stored as a reference — this identifier is preserved in a custom field on the Zoho Account record for reconciliation after migration completes and for re-linking to any future QuickBooks connector setup.

Method Work Orders are the central field-service record — they map to Zoho Deals (Potentials). Work Order status (Open, In Progress, Completed, Cancelled) maps to Zoho Deal Stage values via a value-mapping table. The Work Order number stores as a custom field on the Deal for traceability. Related technician assignments, service address, and scheduling data migrate as custom fields or linked Tasks.

Method estimates map to Zoho Quotes. All line items, pricing details, and terms carry over during migration. Quote status values (Accepted, Declined, Revised) map to Zoho's Quote Stage field through a value translation table. Method's estimate-to-Work-Order linking becomes a Zoho Deal-to-Quote association using the Deal ID as a lookup reference on the Quote record.

Method invoices map to Zoho Invoices. QuickBooks-synced invoice data carries over including payment status. If Method's QuickBooks sync created duplicate invoice records, the migration flags duplicates for de-duplication before insert. Invoice-to-Work-Order linkage stores as a custom field on the Invoice record.

Method's Field Crew technician assignments on Work Orders have no direct Zoho equivalent. FlitStack migrates this as a custom multi-select pick-list field on the Deal (Listing_Technicians__c) and creates a linked Task per technician. Dispatcher assignment stores as the Deal Owner or a custom Owner_Role__c field.

Method Time Tracking entries (clock-in, clock-out, duration) map to Zoho Tasks with Type='Time Tracking'. Original start/end timestamps and technician ID preserved as custom fields. Billable time entries create linked Tasks on the associated Deal. Non-billable admin time stores separately for reporting parity.

Method custom tables created via the Tables/Fields tool map to Zoho Custom Modules or custom fields on existing modules depending on the table's relationship to standard objects. Custom field API names in Method get converted to Zoho's naming convention (e.g., custom_date_field → UDF_Custom_Date_Field). We validate field types match (text, number, date, pick-list) before insert.

Method users are matched to Zoho users by email address. Dispatcher role in Method maps to Zoho User records — no role-level distinction in Zoho, so the Dispatcher designation stores as a custom field on the User record. Unmatched users get flagged for manual Zoho user creation before migration runs.

Method file attachments on Work Orders, contacts, and companies re-upload to Zoho CRM Attachments. File size limits per Zoho tier apply (25MB default per file). Inline images in notes download and rehosted as Zoho-hosted attachments. QuickBooks attachments linked via Method sync re-downloaded from QuickBooks if accessible.