Migrating from another tool

Plain has one-click importers for the most common support tools (Zendesk, Freshdesk, Intercom, and Help Scout), plus an open API for everything else. This guide walks through what to expect, the order of operations, and how to make the cutover smooth.

What gets imported, what you'll rebuild

Plain's importers bring across:

• Conversation history: past tickets, threads, or conversations, with their messages and internal notes.

• Original timestamps: every thread and every message keeps the date it had in your old tool. Your history stays in order and your archive still reflects when things actually happened.

• Customers: the people you've supported, with their email and name.

• Tags / labels: where the source tool's model maps onto Plain labels.

What doesn't come across:

• CSAT and satisfaction ratings. Scores, survey responses, and comments stay in your old tool. If you report on CSAT history, export it before you switch the old tool off.

• Custom fields on tickets or conversations. Any fields your team added in the source tool are not imported. Decide which ones you still need in Plain and plan for labels or Tiers to carry that meaning instead.

What you'll rebuild in Plain rather than import:

• Workflows and automations: these are tool-specific and rarely translate cleanly. Plain workflows are usually simpler than what you have today, so rebuilding is also a chance to delete rules you no longer need.

• Macros and saved replies: recreate as snippets.

• SLAs and business hours: re-define per Tier in Plain.

• Knowledge base / help-centre articles: add your existing content as a knowledge source for Ari.

• Teams and groups: Plain routes with labels, Tiers, and workflows rather than a team hierarchy, so map your groups onto those.

• User accounts and roles: invite teammates fresh and assign Plain's roles.

A four-phase migration

Most teams move from another tool in this order. Phases 1 and 2 happen entirely behind the scenes, with no customer noticing anything.

Phase 1: Set up Plain in parallel

• Connect your channels in Plain (Slack, Email, Chat). Use a test address for email or a non-customer Slack channel. Don't redirect production traffic yet.

• Define Tiers, business hours, and SLAs.

• Create your initial set of labels and snippets.

• Invite a small group of teammates as a pilot crew.

Phase 2: Run a pilot

Pick a low-risk slice of traffic, such as one Tier, one channel, or one customer segment, and route it to Plain for one to two weeks. The pilot crew handles those threads in Plain while the rest of the team continues in your existing tool.

Use the pilot to:

• Validate that your workflows behave the way you expect.

• Tune your auto-triage labels and routing.

• Decide which integrations you actually need on day one (versus week four).

Phase 3: Import history

Run the importer for your existing tool. Imports are non-destructive (your old tool keeps its data), and Plain stores imported threads alongside live ones, attributed to the correct Customer and Company.

Importing history doesn't trigger SLAs, auto-responses, or workflows. Nothing goes out to your customers, and no SLA clocks start on old tickets.

A large history takes time to come across.

Per-tool guides:

• Zendesk →

• Freshdesk →

• Intercom →

• Help Scout →

Phase 4: Cut over

Two common approaches:

• Hard cutover: pick a date, point all production traffic at Plain, and freeze the old tool to read-only. Best when your volume is low enough to absorb a learning curve in a single week.

• Gradual cutover: migrate one channel or one Tier at a time over 2-4 weeks. Best when you have high volume or can't afford a noisy week.

For email specifically, plan the DNS handover carefully: forwarding rules and MX records can be moved without customer-visible downtime, but coordinate with whoever owns your domain.

Bringing your history into AI

Once historical threads are imported, Plain AI uses them as context. Past replies inform suggested responses and similar threads, and your existing knowledge-base content can be added as a knowledge source for Ari.

Things to watch for

• Don't try to replicate your old set up 1:1. Plain's data model is different. Tiers, Threads, and Tenants don't always map like for like with other platforms. Take the migration as a chance to simplify.

• Pick the new defaults consciously. Many teams arrive from other platforms with 20+ statuses, 50+ tags, and a sprawling macro library. Plain has seven statuses on purpose. Resist the urge to rebuild the old shape.

• Export what you won't be importing. CSAT history and custom field values live only in your old tool, so pull them out before you close the account.

• Communicate with customers if anything is changing externally, such as a new email reply-from address, a new Help Center URL, or a new chat widget. Most migrations are invisible; the ones that aren't deserve a heads-up.