Migrate from PBS Systems to HubSpot

PBS customer records map directly to HubSpot Contacts using first name, last name, email, phone, and address fields. Original PBS create dates are preserved as a custom datetime field since HubSpot's native CreatedDate reflects the import timestamp. Source PBS record ID is stored in a custom text field for delta-run de-duplication.

PBS Company records (dealerships, vendors, suppliers) map to HubSpot Companies. Company name, website, address, and industry fields map directly. Vendor type and payment terms from PBS are preserved as custom properties on the HubSpot Company record for accounts payable workflow reference.

HubSpot has no native vehicle object. We create a Vehicle custom object (Enterprise-tier required) with properties for VIN, make, model, year, trim, stock number, odometer, color, and vehicle status. Each Vehicle record is associated to the Contact who owns it via a HubSpot association. If HubSpot Enterprise is not available, VIN and primary vehicle attributes are stored as custom contact properties.

PBS vehicle sale deals map to HubSpot Deals with deal name, amount, pipeline stage, and close date preserved. The PBS deal type ('new vehicle', 'used vehicle', 'fleet') is stored as a custom pick-list field on the Deal. F&I product amounts (extended warranty, GAP, maintenance contract) are added as custom numeric fields or as line items on the Deal.

F&I products attached to a PBS deal — such as extended warranty, GAP coverage, paint protection, and tire-and-wheel — split into individual HubSpot Deal Line Items with product name, amount, and provider as custom fields. This preserves the financial structure of the original deal while making each F&I product individually reportable in HubSpot Deals.

Service ROs from PBS Service map to HubSpot Tickets. The RO number becomes a custom text field (RO_Number__c). Service advisor, technician, labor hours, labor rate, and status (in-progress, completed, invoiced) are mapped to ticket properties and custom fields. Parts lines on the RO link to HubSpot Products via the ticket's associated products.

PBS Parts catalog records — part number, description, category, cost, list price, bin location, and vendor — map to HubSpot Products with SKU, name, price, and cost fields. Real-time bin-level stock quantities from PBS are not migrated to HubSpot; they remain in PBS Parts and are referenced in the RO workflow.

PBS accounting records (invoices, payments, journal entries) have no HubSpot equivalent. We preserve a summary of open receivables and deal-financing status as custom fields on the associated HubSpot Deal and Company records. Full accounting history is exported as a structured CSV for import into the organization's accounting tool.

PBS notes, emails logged, and call records attached to customers and vehicles map to HubSpot Engagements (Notes, Tasks, and logged Calls). Original timestamps and owner IDs are preserved. Vehicle-specific notes (service history comments, trade-in inspection notes) attach to the associated Vehicle custom object record or the related Contact.

Service documents (RO invoices, inspection reports), deal jackets (contracts, F&I forms), and parts invoices stored as attachments in PBS are downloaded and re-uploaded to HubSpot Files, linked to the corresponding Contact, Deal, Ticket, or Vehicle record. HubSpot's 25MB per-file limit applies; multi-file bundles are zipped before upload.

PBS staff records (salespeople, service advisors, parts counter staff) are matched to HubSpot users by email address. Unmatched staff are flagged before migration — either their HubSpot accounts are provisioned first, or their records are assigned to a designated fallback HubSpot user. PBS role (salesperson, F&I manager, service writer) maps to HubSpot team or role properties for reporting.

PBS setups with custom-extended data tables — such as fleet contracts, dealer trades, or manufacturer incentive records — map to HubSpot custom objects. Custom object associations in PBS (which may be table-linked) translate to HubSpot association labels between the custom object and Contact, Company, or Deal. HubSpot Enterprise-tier licensing is required for more than one custom object type.