Migrate from Front to HubSpot Service Hub

Front Conversations map directly to HubSpot Tickets. Each conversation's message segments are concatenated into a single HubSpot ticket body in chronological order, with author attribution, timestamp, and channel prefix preserved in the text (e.g., '[Email from [email protected] at 2025-03-14 09:22]'). Conversation status (open, archived, spam) maps to HubSpot Ticket status. The Front conversation_id is stored in a custom HubSpot property front_conversation_id__c for reconciliation.

Individual message segments within a Front Conversation flatten into a single threaded ticket body on HubSpot. Sender identity, segment timestamp, and channel source are preserved inline. If the customer requires granular sub-comment tracking, we can create separate HubSpot Ticket Comments via the Conversations API, but this requires Professional or Enterprise Service Hub. Note that HubSpot's native ticket model supports one body plus internal notes, not the multi-segment thread structure that Front provides natively.

Front Contacts migrate 1:1 to HubSpot Contacts by email address as the dedupe key. Name, email, phone, company link, custom properties, and all contact handles across channels transfer. Front contact handles (Twitter handle, phone-based contacts) that lack an email address receive a synthetic email (e.g., [email protected]) for import compatibility. Custom contact properties map to HubSpot Contact properties of equivalent type; any property with no HubSpot equivalent is created as a custom property before import.

Front Teammates map to HubSpot Users by email match. Role names (Admin, Member, Guest) migrate to HubSpot Roles and Permissions. We resolve all assignee and inbox references by HubSpot OwnerId. Teammates without a matching HubSpot User are held in a reconciliation queue for the customer's admin to provision before production migration.

Front Inboxes define channel routing and team access. We map each Inbox to a HubSpot Team, preserving channel association in a custom ticket property front_inbox__c. Complex permission inheritance across nested Inboxes requires HubSpot permission set configuration post-migration. Teams should audit whether all Front inbox-to-teammate assignments map cleanly to HubSpot Teams during scoping.

Front's channel source (email, chat, SMS, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, phone) is stored as a custom HubSpot ticket property front_channel__c on each migrated ticket. This preserves the origin context that Front maintains natively but HubSpot does not track at the object level without a custom property.

Front Tags applied at the conversation level migrate as HubSpot Ticket Tags. Tag hierarchy and tag group organization do not carry over as structured metadata; they flatten to a flat label set. Customers who use tags for taxonomy (e.g., product category, priority tier, region) should review whether HubSpot's built-in ticket properties or custom fields are a better structural fit.

Front Notes attached to conversations or contacts migrate as HubSpot Engagement Notes linked to the corresponding Contact or Ticket. Note text content and author attribution transfer; note formatting (rich text, attachments) migrates where the format is compatible. Notes that reference specific Front conversation URLs may require link updates post-migration.

Front custom fields on conversations and contacts are exported with their data types (text, number, date, dropdown, boolean) and mapped to HubSpot Contact and Ticket properties of matching type. Text fields with character limits map to HubSpot text properties with equivalent or greater length. Dropdown fields map to HubSpot single-select picklists; multi-select maps to HubSpot multi-select. We create missing custom properties in HubSpot before the import phase begins.

Front Automation Rules contain conditional logic, delays, and multi-step actions that do not export structurally. We document every active Rule during discovery with its trigger event, conditions, and action sequence, producing a written specification for the customer's HubSpot admin to rebuild as a Service Hub Workflow. Rules involving inbox assignment, teammate assignment, tag application, or status changes require manual reconstruction.

Front Workflows are multi-step process automations distinct from Rules. Workflows with branches, delays, and conditional logic require reimplementation in HubSpot. We export the full workflow definition (step sequence, conditions, actions) and deliver a written rebuild guide for the customer's admin. Multi-step workflow rebuild is outside standard migration scope and may require a separate automation implementation engagement.

Front knowledge base articles migrate as HubSpot Knowledge Base articles with article content and body preserved. Published status migrates; draft articles may require re-publishing. Article category hierarchy, translated versions, and article ordering do not carry over as structured metadata. Customers using translated knowledge base content should plan for manual category setup and translation verification in HubSpot.