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Practical trade business guide · By Yes AI

How to switch job management software safely

Published 6 min read

Moving from Tradify to ServiceM8, from simPRO to Fergus, or from a paper diary to any job app is mostly a data and timing exercise. Setting up the new software is the shorter part. This guide covers what to move, what to keep from the old system as a record, and how to choose a cut-over day that does not drop a job or an invoice.

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Quick answer

Export customers, sites, price lists and open quotes from the old system, clean them, and import them into the new one using its template or accounting connection. Finish jobs already under way in the old system or re-enter them before a set cut-over date. Keep a full export, or read-only access, for at least five years, because the ATO requires most records to be kept that long and reconstructable after a system change.

A tradie and an office manager at a workshop bench comparing customer records on a laptop and a tablet

What should you move to the new system?

Move the records you will work from after the switch. Customers and sites come first, followed by your price list and materials, because quotes depend on them. Open quotes, open jobs and recurring maintenance schedules each need a decision: re-create them in the new system, or finish them in the old one. Staff details, licence classes and expiry dates, templates and terms also need setting up again. Completed history can stay behind, as long as you can still open it when a warranty question or an audit comes up.

  • Customers, contacts and sites.
  • Price list, materials and labour rates.
  • Open quotes with their follow-up dates.
  • Open and scheduled jobs.
  • Recurring maintenance schedules.
  • Quote, invoice and email templates.

What records must you keep from the old system?

The ATO says most business records must be kept for five years, generally starting from when the record was prepared or obtained, or the transaction was completed, whichever is later. It also says you need to be able to reconstruct your original data if your record-keeping system changes over time, and that records must be stored in a way that protects them from being changed or damaged. Before cancelling the old subscription, export everything the vendor allows, including job notes, photos and invoice history, and ask whether the vendor offers read-only access after cancellation. Store the export somewhere backed up, and write down where it is.

How do customer imports work?

Job software commonly imports customers from a CSV file using its own template. Tradify imports customer profiles from a CSV through Customers, then Options, then Import Customer From File. Customer names must be unique because they act as IDs during import, and duplicates will not be imported. When a row matches an existing customer by name, only the mapped fields with values are updated. ServiceM8 imports clients through Clients, then Bulk Import, using its template spreadsheet. If your ServiceM8 account is connected to Xero, QuickBooks Online or MYOB, clients and items are imported from the accounting software, so a separate import may not be needed.

Clean the data before importing: merge duplicate customers, fix phone and email formats, separate site addresses from billing addresses and archive customers you have not worked for in years.

How do you handle open jobs, quotes and invoices?

Choose one rule for each and write it down, so staff do not have to guess. A simple rule is to finish jobs already under way in the old system and start every new job in the new one, which keeps each job's notes and invoice together. For open quotes, re-create only the ones still live, with their follow-up dates. Invoices stay in your accounting software throughout; what changes is which job app sends them there. Before cut-over, list everything still open so nothing sits between the two systems.

  • Jobs under way: finish and invoice in the old system.
  • New jobs from the cut-over date: new system only.
  • Live quotes: re-create them with follow-up dates.
  • Unpaid invoices: follow up from the accounting software.

How do you choose a cut-over day?

Pick a day after your invoicing for the period is done and before a busy stretch, with staff already trained on the new app. On that day, everything that creates jobs must point to the new system: online booking links, enquiry forms, any AI phone answering integration and the connection to your accounting software. Switch off automations in the old system at the same time, such as invoice reminders, booking confirmations and review requests, or customers may receive two of each. Tell staff in writing that from that date, new jobs go only into the new software.

What should you check in the first month?

Expect small faults and look for them on purpose. Run a short check each day in the first week and weekly after that, so you find problems before customers do. Ask each tech and the office for one thing that is harder in the new system, and fix the settings or templates behind it while the change is recent. Keep the old system's export untouched while you do this, in case a record needs to be compared.

  • Duplicate customers created by the import or the accounting sync.
  • Sites missing from customers with more than one address.
  • Recurring jobs that did not carry over.
  • Invoices reaching the accounting software once, with the right tax codes.
  • No messages still going out from the old system.
  • Staff entering jobs in the old app out of habit.

What moves and what stays when you switch job software

DataMove to the new systemKeep from the old systemCheck after cut-over
Customers and sitesYes, by CSV or accounting connectionFull export as a backupDuplicates and missing sites
Price list and materialsYes, reviewed firstExportPrices and GST settings
Open quotesRe-create the live onesKeep for referenceFollow-up dates
Jobs under wayFinish in the old systemJob notes and photosInvoiced once
Completed jobs and paid invoicesUsually noKeep for at least five yearsYou can still open them
Automated messagesRebuild in the new systemSwitch off on cut-over dayNo duplicate messages

Practical checklist

  • Export customers, sites, price lists, open quotes and job notes before changing anything.
  • Clean duplicates and fix phone and email formats before importing.
  • Set a cut-over date and tell staff in writing that new jobs go only into the new system from then.
  • Switch off reminders and texts in the old system on the cut-over date.
  • Point booking links, enquiry forms and phone answering integrations at the new system.
  • Confirm you can open old records, or hold a full export, for at least five years.
  • Check the accounting sync and look for duplicate customers daily in the first week.

Common questions

How long does switching job software take?

It depends on how many customers, open jobs and recurring schedules you have, and how clean the data is. Setting up the new app can be quick, while cleaning data and training staff take longer. Plan the cut-over around your invoicing cycle and a quieter period, and leave time in the first month for checks and fixes.

Can I bring job history and photos across?

That depends on what the old system can export and what the new one can import. Check both vendors' import and export documentation before you commit. If the history cannot move, keep a complete export or read-only access so you can still answer warranty questions and meet the ATO's record-keeping rules for the years that follow.

Should I cancel the old subscription straight away?

Wait until you hold a complete export, the first invoicing cycle has run in the new system, and you have confirmed that no automations are still running in the old one. Ask the old vendor what access remains after cancellation before you cancel, because exports can be harder to get once an account is closed.

Do I need to change my accounting software too?

Usually you do not. Job management apps generally connect to the main accounting packages; ServiceM8, for example, connects to Xero, QuickBooks Online and MYOB. After cut-over, disconnect the old job app from your accounting software so it cannot create duplicate invoices or contacts, and check that tax codes and account mappings in the new app match the old ones.

What happens to online booking and AI phone answering when I switch?

They keep creating jobs in the old system until they are reconnected. List every tool that creates jobs, enquiries or bookings, and move each connection on cut-over day. Then make a test booking and a test call, and check that both appear in the new system with the right details.

Sources and further reading

Continue planning

Plan how job information reaches your team

Describe how enquiries and job updates reach your team. We can discuss intake, staff handovers and the checks needed before changing your process. Use a fictional example and leave customer addresses, access codes and passwords out of this enquiry.

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