The Biggest Challenges in eCommerce Migration and How to Avoid Them

Recognizing these pain points early is critical to avoid prolonged inefficiencies. If any of the challenges above sound familiar, it’s time to evaluate your current platform and consider migrating.

Without a solid plan, you risk costly errors, data loss, and extended downtime. However, with the right strategy and team in place, you can turn this transition into an opportunity for growth.

The first step in planning your migration is to assess your current ecommerce platform and business needs.

1. Define business goals: Start by answering the why behind the migration. Business goals should focus on outcomes like growing revenue, reducing operational costs, capturing or retaining market share, or entering new markets. Once these strategic goals are clear, technical objectives—such as improving performance or integrating new tools—can be aligned accordingly.
2. Audit your existing platform: Evaluate how well your current platform supports your business goals. Are performance issues affecting sales? Are there functionality gaps limiting growth opportunities or market expansion? Identifying these limitations will help you determine what’s required from the new platform.
3. Analyze key metrics: Assess critical data points such as conversion rates, site traffic, average order value (AOV), and bounce rate. These insights will guide you in setting measurable post-migration goals and tracking the success of the new platform.
4. Inventory your data: At this stage, focus on evaluating your data to understand what needs to be migrated. Identify essential product descriptions, customer records, and order histories. The actual data cleansing and standardization should occur later, once the target data structure for the new platform is defined.

Choosing the right ecommerce platform is one of the most critical decisions in the migration process. Consider factors like customization, integration options, and long-term costs.

Popular Platforms: Shopify, Magento, and Virto Commerce offer a range of solutions for different business needs. Virto Commerce, for instance, is designed for B2B ecommerce, offering flexibility, headless commerce capabilities, and seamless third-party integrations.

• Does it offer the scalability you need for future growth?
• Can it integrate with your CRM, ERP, and payment gateways?
• What is the Total Cost of Ownership over the next 3–5 years?
• Does it meet your security and compliance requirements?
• How adaptable is the platform? Can it evolve with your business, supporting future innovations and adjusting to changing market demands?

There are two primary strategies for ecommerce migration:

1. Big Bang Migration: All data and operations are transferred to the new platform at once. This approach is faster but riskier because any errors will affect your entire site. It’s suitable for smaller sites or those with limited data complexity.
2. Phased Migration: The old and new platforms run in parallel for a set period. This strategy minimizes risks by allowing for extensive testing and gradual traffic shifts before the complete transition. While more time-consuming, it’s recommended for large, complex ecommerce operations. However, it’s important to note that this approach may not always be possible due to the limitations of the existing platform. Always consult your vendor to determine if they support phased migration and to understand any technical constraints that may affect the process.

Read more about these approaches in our Re-platforming guide! 

Data Transfer Methods:

1. Manual Transfer: Suitable for small businesses with limited data.
2. Automated Migration Tools: Many platforms offer built-in tools for seamless data transfer.

Break the migration into manageable stages, assign responsibilities, and define milestones. Avoid launching during peak sales periods to minimize customer impact. Plan for extra time to address unexpected issues and conduct final tests before going live.

Sample Migration Timeline

Stage 1: Data preparation and cleansing.
Stage 2: Platform configuration and integration.
Stage 3: Data migration and testing.
Stage 4: Full deployment and performance monitoring.

A well-prepared checklist ensures you cover all aspects of the migration process:

1. Complete a data backup: Protect your business by backing up all product data, customer information, and order history.
2. Define roles and responsibilities: Assign a project manager to oversee the migration and ensure accountability across teams.
3. Prepare an SEO strategy: Update URLs, create 301 redirects, and optimize metadata to preserve your search rankings.
4. Develop a testing plan: Test every aspect of the new platform, from performance to functionality, before the final launch.
5. Monitor post-migration performance: Track key metrics and customer feedback to identify and resolve issues quickly.

Migrating an ecommerce platform is a significant undertaking. While the benefits of a successful migration are substantial, the process itself is fraught with potential challenges that can disrupt your operations if not handled carefully.

Maintaining the accuracy and security of your data is one of the most critical aspects of ecommerce migration. Customer profiles, product catalogs, and order histories must be transferred without errors to avoid business disruptions. Even a minor data inconsistency can lead to customer dissatisfaction and lost sales.

Data security is equally vital, especially when handling sensitive information like customer payment details. The risk of data breaches can increase during these transitions if not properly managed. According to IBM's Cost of a Data Breach Report 2024, the global average cost of a data breach reached $4.88 million, a 10% increase from the previous year and the highest total ever recorded.

Key Security Risks:

• Identity theft and unauthorized access.
• Loss of sensitive business or customer data.
• Compliance failures with regulations like PCI-DSS and GDPR.

Best Practices:

• Use two-factor authentication (2FA) to protect sensitive areas of your platform.
• Make sure all data is encrypted both in transit and at rest.
• Audit your platform’s security settings and monitor for anomalies throughout the migration process.
• Use automated tools for data validation to reduce human errors.

Even a few hours of downtime can cost ecommerce businesses thousands in lost revenue. In addition to revenue loss, poorly executed migrations can cause SEO rankings to plummet, especially if URL structures change without proper redirects.

Industry experts have observed that poor SEO planning during website migrations can lead to significant drops in organic traffic. For instance, an ecommerce migration case study highlighted a UK retailer experiencing nearly a 30% decline in organic traffic and over a 50% decrease in revenue for 3 consecutive months following a poorly executed migration.

Conversely, well-planned SEO migrations can prevent such losses and even lead to traffic gains. Another example describes a British ecommerce site that, after an initial brief downturn post-migration, achieved a 20% increase in organic traffic within a month and a 40% rise by the third month.

How to Avoid SEODisasters:

• Set up 301 redirects for all affected URLs.
• Conduct an SEO audit before and after the migration to track changes.
• Monitor organic traffic and rankings closely for several weeks post-migration.

Modern ecommerce platforms rely on integration with third-party systems like payment gateways, CRM, ERP, and marketing automation tools. However, many legacy systems may not integrate smoothly with the new platform, resulting in functionality gaps.

For example, an ecommerce business relying on custom APIs for inventory management may find that these APIs need to be rewritten or updated to work with the new platform. Failure to plan for these integrations can delay the migration and increase costs.

Any disruption of UX during migration—such as broken links, slow load times, or a poorly designed interface—can frustrate users and lead to lost sales.

Migration doesn’t end when your new platform goes live. Continuous monitoring is essential to catch and fix issues that arise in the weeks following the migration. These issues can range from data discrepancies to unexpected bugs that affect the shopping experience.

Monitoring Strategy:

• Set up analytics and error tracking tools to monitor site performance.
• Review and update internal and external links regularly.
• Create a support plan for post-migration issues to resolve them quickly.

1. Plan Thoroughly

Begin with an analysis of your current ecommerce environment. Identify existing limitations, desired features, and set objectives for the migration. Develop a detailed roadmap outlining each phase, associated tasks, and timelines.

2. Develop a Data Backup Strategy

Prior to migration, implement a robust data backup plan. Secure all essential data, including product details, customer information, and transaction histories. Regular backups act as a safeguard against potential data loss during the migration process.

3. Pre-Migration Testing and Contingency Planning

Conduct testing in a staging environment before the full-scale migration. This includes validating data integrity, assessing website functionality, and ensuring compatibility with integrations. Additionally, establish contingency plans to address potential issues that may arise during the migration.

4. Maintain Customer Experience During Migration

To preserve a flawless customer experience, schedule migrations during periods of low traffic. Communicate any anticipated downtime or changes to your customers in advance. Post-migration, monitor the site closely to promptly address any user-reported issues, providing uninterrupted service.

5. Utilize AI-Powered Tools

Leverage AI-driven tools and collaborate with specialized agencies to facilitate the migration process. AI can assist in data mapping, predictive analytics, and automating repetitive tasks. Partnering with experienced agencies provides access to expertise and resources that can further facilitate your transition.

6. Be Ready for a Sales Increase

A survey conducted in the first half of 2024 revealed that one third of respondents reported sales increases of 30% or more after migrating ecommerce platforms. Make sure your team is prepared to handle additional demand by scaling your operations, optimizing inventory management, and reinforcing customer support.

Choosing the right tools can simplify the migration process and reduce risks. Here are some popular solutions:

Automated migration tools: Can simplify the transfer of standard datasets such as product catalogs, customer information, and order histories. However, these tools are typically most effective for off-the-shelf solutions that have not been extensively customized. Fo example, LitExtension, known for its user-friendly interface and support for over 120 ecommerce platforms, provides a data transfer experience for simpler ecommerce migrations.

ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) Tools: For complex ecommerce migrations, ETL tools offer greater flexibility by enabling customized data mapping, transformation, and validation. These tools are particularly useful when migrating from highly customized systems where data structures differ significantly between the source and target platforms. For instance, Talend Data Integration offers advanced data mapping, cleansing, and transformation features, ensuring high-quality data migration for large and complex ecommerce projects.

Virto Commerce, founded in 2011, is a global leader in B2B ecommerce and marketplace solutions. We specialize in highly customizable headless commerce platforms that empower businesses to innovate and transform digitally.

At the core of our offerings is the Commerce Innovation Platform, powered by our proprietary Virto Atomic Architecture™ and Virto Cloud, which deliver flexibility for businesses to scale and adapt to market demands & customization to create high-performance digital experiences.

We understand that migration is just the first step. With Virto Guarantee, our dedicated support program, we will make sure your business continues to thrive. We provide:

• Monitoring and optimization to maintain performance.
• Access to expert support teams who address technical challenges swiftly.
• Regular updates and proactive improvements to your ecommerce platform.

We are trusted by global enterprises such as HEINEKEN, Hyundai, Bosch, De Klok Dranken, and Standaard Boekhandel. We don’t just provide adaptable ecommerce technology; we partner with our customers on their digital transformation journeys.

Ready to discuss your ecommerce solution? Book a Demo!

De Klok Dranken, a major beverage and food wholesaler for hospitality businesses in the Netherlands, needed a migration solution to replace their heavy SAP system. Their goal was to improve customer experience, boost digital adoption, and stay ahead of growing competition.

De Klok chose the Virto Commerce platform and partnered with Innovadis, a leading technology integrator. Virto’s headless and modular architecture enabled easy integration with existing tools, providing data import/export capabilities and laying the foundation for continuous innovation.

The Results:

• The solution was deployed in just a few weeks.
• 80% of De Klok’s vendors are now served through the platform.
• The company achieved the fastest time-to-value and continues to add new functionalities.
• Today, De Klok is the leading beverage distributor in its sector with a general adoption rate of 80%.

Looking for the same level of success with your ecommerce store? Virto Commerce offers future-ready, adaptable technology and expert guidance to help businesses like yours thrive. Partner with us to achieve ecommerce excellence!

eCommerce migration is an investment in your business’s future. A well-planned migration can lead to better performance, customer experience, and scalability.

For large-scale ecommerce migration, trust Virto Commerce. Our tailored solutions ensure a smooth and secure transition.

Explore more resources:

• eCommerce Re-platforming Guide
• How to Choose the Right eCommerce Platform
• eCommerce Architecture Guidelines