Migrate from Star CRM to Zoho CRM

Star CRM Contacts map directly to Zoho CRM Contacts. Standard fields (name, email, phone, address) migrate 1:1. We infer the actual field names during API discovery since Star CRM does not publish a public schema. Custom contact properties are flagged during scoping and mapped to Zoho custom fields, which we pre-create in the destination account before migration. The contact's primary company link resolves to Zoho Account lookups after the Accounts phase completes.

Star CRM Company records map to Zoho CRM Accounts. Company names, addresses, and domain data migrate directly. We use company name as the deduplication key during import. Accounts are migrated first so that the Account-Contact lookup relationship is satisfied at the moment of Contact insert. If Star CRM stores multiple contacts per company, all child Contacts reference the same Account ID.

Star CRM Deals map to Zoho CRM Deals with stage, value, owner, and expected close date preserved. Pipeline stages do not map 1:1 between systems, so we define an explicit stage mapping table during scoping that matches each Star CRM stage name to the corresponding Zoho stage in the customer's target pipeline. Closed-won and closed-lost reasons from Star CRM migrate as custom fields in Zoho.

Star CRM Activities (calls, emails, meetings, notes) split into Zoho's separate module objects: call engagements map to Zoho Calls, meeting engagements map to Events, and email and generic activities map to Tasks. Date formats vary between systems and are normalized to ISO 8601 during the transform phase. Activity-to-contact linking uses the Star CRM activity's associated contact ID resolved to the migrated Zoho Contact ID.

Where Star CRM distinguishes Leads from Contacts as separate record types, we export them separately and import into Zoho Leads. Lead source, status, and score fields map to Zoho custom fields if the customer's Zoho edition does not include standard equivalents. Star CRM leads that are sales-ready can be converted to Contacts and Accounts in Zoho post-migration using Zoho's native Convert action.

Star CRM Users (sales reps, admins) map to Zoho CRM Users by email match. We extract all distinct owners referenced on Contacts, Companies, Deals, and Activities and match against the Zoho destination's User table. Any Star CRM owner without a matching Zoho User goes to a reconciliation queue for the customer's admin to provision before record import resumes.

Tags on Contacts or Deals in Star CRM migrate as Zoho Tags. Multi-select tag collections may split into separate tag assignments per record. We preserve tag names and apply them consistently during import. The customer chooses whether to use Zoho's native tagging or convert tags to custom picklist fields during scoping.

Custom fields on any Star CRM object are inferred during API discovery and documented in the scoping deliverable. We pre-create matching Zoho custom fields (with correct field types: text, number, date, picklist, lookup, etc.) before migration begins. Custom fields are not available in Zoho CRM's Free edition, so the customer must select Standard ($14/user/month) or higher before custom fields can be created. Lookup field limits in Zoho are 5 per module at paid tiers.

Star CRM deal pipeline stages map to Zoho CRM Pipeline stages. We define the mapping explicitly during scoping because stage counts and names differ. Each Star CRM pipeline maps to a Zoho Pipeline with corresponding Stage values. Probability percentages transfer where available and are set on the Zoho stage configuration.

Star CRM exports attachments as individual files named by the system without a structured archive. We download all attachment files, build a manifest linking each file to its parent record ID (Contact, Company, or Deal), and re-associate them in Zoho during upload using the Zoho Attachments API. This step adds time to projects with heavy attachment volume. Files are uploaded to the correct parent record by matching the manifest's record ID to the migrated Zoho record.