"What happens when Zendesk retires Sell CRM? Should we just migrate to Pipedrive as recommended? How do we protect our customer data and sales processes during this transition?"
When a core platform sunsets, it's not a tooling problem.
it's a context continuity moment for your revenue engine. Here's exactly what Zendesk Sell users need to know about the 2027 retirement and why this forced migration is actually your strategic opportunity to build the unified platform you always wanted.
TABLE OVERVIEW
1. The Real Story Behind Zendesk Sell's Retirement
2. What Every Zendesk Sell Customer Faces Right Now
3. The Questions You're Really Asking (And The Answers You Need)
4. Why This Forced Migration Is Actually Your Unification Moment
5. What Zendesk Sell Users Should Do Right Now
The Bottom Line: Timing Is Everything
1. The Real Story Behind Zendesk Sell's Retirement
On September 9, 2024, Zendesk announced that it will permanently retire its Sell CRM product on August 31, 2027, giving customers nearly three years to migrate. But here's what most coverage won't tell you, this isn't about product failure.
The numbers reveal the strategic reality:
- Zendesk held just 0.40% market share in CRM platforms
- Competing against Salesforce (25.02%) and HubSpot CRM (4.91%)
- Industry analyst Brent Leary noted Zendesk "lost momentum when the industry moved from siloed apps to platform offerings"
Jennifer Chang, VP of Product Development, stated: "This change allows us to focus even more deeply on what we do best—helping businesses deliver exceptional customer and employee service. By concentrating our efforts on service, we can move faster, innovate more boldly with AI." - Source Zendesk
The real question isn't "Why is this happening?" It's "What does this mean for your business?
2. What Every Zendesk Sell Customer Faces Right Now
The Official Zendesk Sell Migration Timeline
- September 2024 - August 2027: Full product access continues with normal support
- Migration planning period: Zendesk support teams available for transition assistance
- August 31, 2027: Complete product shutdown with permanent data deletion
The Data Export Challenge (This Is Critical)
Here's what you CAN export:
- Leads, contacts, deals, notes, tasks
- Smart lists and full account data
- Sales reports
Here's the problem—what you CAN'T export from Zendesk Sell data:
- Activity history
- Appointments and calendar data
- Email communication logs
- Call logs and recordings
- Documents and attachments
Translation: Years of customer interaction history could be lost forever if you don't act strategically.
Zendesk's Recommended Path: Pipedrive Integration
Zendesk has partnered with Pipedrive as the official migration solution, offering:
- Free trial periods for Zendesk Sell customers
- Native migration tools with configuration assistance
- Maintained integration with Zendesk Support systems
- Joint technical support during transition
But here's the strategic question: Is this the platform you actually want?
3. The Questions You're Really Asking (And The Answers You Need)
"Should we just follow Zendesk's recommendation and move to Pipedrive?"
If you only need basic sales functionality and your sales and support teams operate independently, Pipedrive might work.
But if you're like most modern businesses where customer success depends on seamless handoffs between sales and support, you're about to create another silo.
"How do we protect our communication history and customer context?"
This is where the data export limitations become critical. You have two choices:
- Act now: Export what you can and use third-party migration services for communication history
- Lose it forever: Wait until 2027 and accept that customer interaction context disappears
"What's the real cost of this migration?"
Beyond the obvious costs (new CRM licensing, migration services, training), consider the hidden costs:
- Lost customer context and relationship history
- Reduced sales team productivity during transition
- Potential revenue impact from process disruption
- Ongoing integration maintenance between disconnected systems
"Is there a better alternative than just replacing one CRM with another?"
This is the million-dollar question—and your strategic opportunity.
4. Why This Forced Migration Is Actually Your Unification Moment
Instead of asking "Which CRM should replace Zendesk Sell?" ask "What kind of customer experience do we want to create?"
The Context Continuity Problem
When sales and support systems are disconnected:
- Support agents can't see deal history or sales conversations
- Sales reps lose visibility into customer service interactions
- Customer experience fragments across touchpoints
- Revenue opportunities get missed due to poor handoffs
- Account management becomes reactive instead of strategic
The HubSpot Unification Advantage
HubSpot's Smart CRM eliminates these silos by design:
Sales Hub provides:
- Advanced deal management and pipeline tracking
- Automated sales sequences and email tracking
- Revenue forecasting and sales analytics
- Integration with 1,250+ business applications
Service Hub includes:
- Comprehensive ticketing and case management
- Customer feedback and satisfaction tracking
- Knowledge base and self-service portals
- Service-level agreement monitoring
The unified platform magic:
- Shared contact timeline: Every interaction across sales and support in one place
- Seamless handoffs: Qualified leads transition smoothly to customer success
- 360-degree customer view: Complete relationship history accessible to all teams
- Contextual conversations: Support tickets include deal history; sales calls reference service interactions
The Performance Data Speaks
HubSpot customers using Sales Hub see measurable improvements after 12 months:
- Starter tier: +46% deals closed-won, +85% close rate improvement
- Professional tier: +56% deals closed-won, +109% close rate improvement
- Enterprise tier: +130% deals closed-won, 1.4x performance multiplier
These aren't marketing claims—these are real performance metrics from businesses that chose unification over fragmentation.
5. What Zendesk Sell Users Should Do Right Now
If Your Sales and Support Teams Operate Independently:
- Evaluate Pipedrive as recommended by Zendesk
- Consider Salesforce Sales Cloud for enterprise features
- Look at Freshsales for AI-powered automation
- Act quickly to export data before limitations increase
If Customer Experience Depends on Sales-Support Alignment:
- Evaluate HubSpot's unified platform
- Schedule a discovery call to assess your specific migration requirements
- Begin data export and preservation processes now
- Map your current customer journey to identify integration points
For Complex Enterprise Requirements:
- Partner with a HubSpot Solutions Partner experienced in complex migrations
- Develop a comprehensive change management strategy
- Plan for RevOps transformation, not just tool replacement
- Consider this an opportunity to optimize your entire revenue process
The Bottom Line: Timing Is Everything
You have 30 months until Zendesk Sell shuts down. That sounds like plenty of time until you realize that:
- Data export gets harder as systems age
- Team availability decreases as the deadline approaches
- Migration service providers get booked up
- Your best migration timeline conflicts with busy sales periods
The businesses that will come out ahead are those who see this forced migration as a strategic opportunity to build the unified customer experience they always wanted.
The question isn't "Which CRM should we choose?" It's "What kind of customer experience do we want to create?"
If your answer involves seamless handoffs between sales and support, contextual customer conversations, and unified revenue operations, then this Zendesk moment is actually your strategic unification opportunity.
Ready to turn this forced migration into your competitive advantage? Our team specializes in complex CRM unification projects and can help you architect a solution that goes far beyond simple tool replacement. We've guided businesses through similar transitions, turning operational challenges into strategic wins.
Schedule a free discovery call → here
Let's discuss how to transform your Zendesk Sell retirement into the unified revenue platform you've always wanted.
Don't forget to share this post!
