The Migration Manual: Building Better Platforms, One Switch at a Time
Part 3: How to Plan a Stress-Free Migration
Let’s be real: the word “migration” doesn’t exactly inspire peace of mind. It sounds like you’re moving digital mountains, risking downtime, SEO disasters, and endless headaches. But with the right e-commerce migration strategy, it doesn’t have to be that way.
At WMD, we’ve migrated platforms for brands big and small ~ without the drama. Here’s how to map your move so it’s strategic, smooth, and (dare we say) satisfying.
Step 1: Audit Everything You’ve Got
Before you even look at a new platform, take inventory of what’s on the old one. That means:
Your product catalog (including variations, pricing, SKUs)
Pages and blog posts
Customer accounts and order history
Apps and plugins
Backend functionality (shipping, taxes, reports, etc.)
Treat this like packing before a move ~ figure out what’s worth keeping, what needs to be updated, and what can be left behind.
Step 2: Define What’s Not Working
This is the part where you vent. Is your current site painfully slow? Hard to update? Lacking mobile optimization? Confusing for customers?
Make a list. It’ll help you prioritize must-haves when choosing your new platform and prevent you from recreating the same problems on a shinier system.
Step 3: Pick a Platform That Fits (and Grows With You)
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why choosing the right platform is at the core of any successful ecommerce migration strategy.
Want out-of-the-box simplicity with strong app support? Shopify’s a top pick. Prefer full customization and control? WooCommerce might be your match.
We help our clients weigh cost, scalability, integrations, and ease of use so you land on a platform you won’t outgrow in six months.
Step 4: Migrate Strategically, Not All at Once
A successful migration happens in stages—not a surprise launch that breaks your checkout at 3 a.m.
We break it into clear phases:
Development: We build and customize your new site in a staging environment.
Data migration: Product info, customer records, and order history come next.
Redirects: We map every URL from your old site to your new one so your SEO doesn’t tank.
Testing: Every click, every checkout flow, every button—tested across devices before launch.
You don’t lose traffic. You don’t lose customers. And your team gets to preview everything before it’s live.
Step 5: Communicate with Your Customers
You don’t need to announce every backend update ~ but a full platform change is worth sharing.
Let your customers know what’s new. Highlight improved navigation, mobile experience, faster checkout, or anything else that benefits them. Frame it as a glow-up, not a disruption.
Bonus Step: Don’t Do It Alone
You could try to wing it. Or you could hire a team that’s done this a hundred times and knows exactly where things can go sideways.
At WMD, ecommerce migrations are one of our favorite challenges. We handle the details, so you can focus on the big picture ~ like growing your business on a better platform.
Check out some of our recent migrations:
Cooper Street’s switch to Shopify
Shinetrim’s move to WooCommerce
And when you’re ready to migrate without the migraines, Contact WMD. We’ll help you make the leap—minus the chaos.
