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Harvest Migration Guide

This guide walks through migrating your client data from Harvest to Tillage. The import process is quick and preserves your existing client relationships.

What Gets Imported

Client Records

  • Company names
  • Client status (active/archived)
  • Notes and metadata

Contacts

  • Contact names and titles
  • Email addresses
  • Phone numbers (office and mobile)
  • Primary contact designation

Automatic Detection

Tillage also analyzes your Harvest data to detect:

  • Recurring billing patterns
  • Suggested retainer setups
  • Client billing frequency

Before You Start

Prepare Your Harvest Data

  1. Review client list - Archive clients you don't need
  2. Update contacts - Ensure email addresses are current
  3. Check for duplicates - Clean up any duplicate clients

Have Your Harvest Credentials Ready

You'll need:

  • Harvest account access
  • Permission to connect third-party apps

Step-by-Step Import

Step 1: Connect Harvest

  1. Go to Settings > Integrations
  2. Find Harvest in the list
  3. Click "Connect"
  4. Log into Harvest
  5. Authorize Tillage to access your data

Step 2: Start Import

  1. Once connected, click "Import Clients"
  2. Choose import options:
    • Active clients only - Skip archived clients
    • All clients - Import everything
  3. Click "Begin Import"

Step 3: Review Import

Tillage shows you:

  • Clients found in Harvest
  • Contacts per client
  • Potential duplicates detected

Review the list and confirm.

Step 4: Handle Duplicates

If duplicates are detected:

  • Review each potential match
  • Choose to merge or keep separate
  • Duplicates detected by company name match

Step 5: Complete Import

  1. Click "Complete Import"
  2. Import runs in background
  3. Notification when complete
  4. View imported clients in Clients section

What Happens During Import

Client Matching

Tillage checks if clients already exist:

  • Match by source ID (if previously imported)
  • Match by company name
  • Creates new record if no match

Contact Handling

For each client:

  • All contacts imported
  • Primary contact designated
  • Email, phone, and title preserved

Data Preservation

Your Harvest data remains intact:

  • Import is one-way (read only)
  • Original records unchanged
  • Can re-import later for updates

After Import

Verify Data

  1. Spot check imported clients
  2. Verify contact information
  3. Check primary contact designations

Add Missing Information

Harvest may not have:

  • Client industry
  • Company size
  • Full addresses

Add these in Tillage for better AI suggestions.

Set Up Retainers

If Tillage detected recurring patterns:

  1. Review suggested retainers
  2. Create quotes for ongoing services
  3. Set up contracts with recurring billing

Re-Importing / Syncing

Updating Existing Clients

Run import again to:

  • Update contact information
  • Import new clients added since last import
  • Sync changes from Harvest

How Updates Work

  • Existing clients updated (not duplicated)
  • New contacts added
  • Changed data reflected

Best Practice

  • Periodic re-sync (monthly)
  • Or after significant Harvest updates
  • Keep both systems aligned

Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

"Unable to connect to Harvest"
  • Check your Harvest credentials
  • Ensure you have admin access
  • Try disconnecting and reconnecting
"Authorization expired"
  • Tokens expire periodically
  • Reconnect Harvest in Settings
  • Re-authorize access

Import Issues

"Client not found"
  • May be archived in Harvest
  • Check "All clients" import option
  • Verify client exists in Harvest
"Duplicate detected incorrectly"
  • Can skip merge during review
  • Import as separate record
  • Merge manually later if needed

Missing Data

"Contacts not imported"
  • Verify contacts exist in Harvest
  • Check contact has email address
  • Required: at least first name

What Doesn't Import

Not Transferred

  • Time entries (Tillage doesn't track time)
  • Existing invoices (create new in Tillage)
  • Expense records
  • Project data

Why?

Tillage handles the quote-to-cash workflow differently than Harvest. You'll create new quotes and invoices in Tillage going forward.

Migration Strategy

Recommended Approach

  1. Import all clients to Tillage
  2. Continue using Harvest for active projects
  3. Start new projects in Tillage
  4. Gradual transition as projects complete
  5. Full migration when ready

Running Both Systems

During transition:

  • Harvest for time tracking (if needed)
  • Tillage for quotes, contracts, invoices
  • Client data synced between both

Complete Migration

When fully on Tillage:

  • All new work through Tillage
  • Reference Harvest for historical data
  • Cancel Harvest subscription when ready

Benefits of Migration

After Moving to Tillage

  • AI quote generation - Faster proposals
  • Variance buffers - Profitability protection
  • Integrated contracts - No separate tool needed
  • Better payment collection - One-click payments
  • Unified workflow - Quote to cash in one place

What You'll Gain

  • Hours saved on quoting
  • Better profit margins
  • Faster payment collection
  • Professional client experience
Related: Harvest Integration | Getting Started | Clients
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