Migrating your site is not a decision to be taken lightly. In the past when I’ve needed to move a website to a new platform, I’ve always felt quite anxious about it. There has been so much that I have needed to consider, such as making sure that I check off all the little details.
Whether you’re moving away from your existing platform because of technical issues, cost or frustration, or whether you’re just fresh out the gate with a new project and want to host it on a different platform, there are things you should do before migrating.
Any good website building platform today will have made it easy to migrate your site from one platform to another, with their built-in tools and support.
That said, there are still some things you should do before you get started.
The Backup Plan
Backup the current website. A local one is better than a remote one because it’s easier to manage and restore in case of emergency. Local backups are good since it won’t take up much space on your computer but still allows access in case something goes wrong with your online storage account.
Make sure all files are in place. Don’t forget anything like images or CSS files that might be required for the new site. Some platforms may require specific file extensions so make sure you check them out beforehand.
Replicating Your Website’s Design
All website builders have different capabilities and how they are structured on the back. With this is mind, it makes it rare that the designs will be 100% the same from one platform to another.
However, is this a good opportunity to do a website redesign to bring some new life to your regular visitors.
Moving Content
Depending on the platforms you are moving from and to, you may be able to transfer the content with available extensions or plugins. This can be done if you are migrating from popular platforms like, WordPress, Shopify, Squarespace, and a few others that I personally know of.
If you are working between less popular platforms, this may be a more manual process unfortunately.
With images, I highly recommend knowing what the default image sizes are for the new website. Then resizes the existing images before uploading to the new website. I also highly recommend uploading the images at one time, so there is less time uploading in batches.
Product Data if eCommerce
If you are transferring an eCommerce website, you should be able to transfer the data with the help of Excel or other spreadsheet software. You may need to change or sync the headers between the platforms, so make sure that you are well researched and versed in this process to minimize mistakes.
The process of exporting and importing products will differ, but it’s fairly straightforward.
Export existing product data.
Reconfigure or map the header fields to match the new platforms parameters.
Then import the new file into the new platform.
Obviously check and test the data to make sure the products transferred correctly. And also do a small test before transferring the entire product catalog. It’s easier to fix a mistake on a few products vs thousands.
Product data transfers can be daunting, but it doesn’t have to be complicated.
SEO Considerations
Any change in platform and/or site migrations is going to cause some sort of change in rankings. So keep this in mind. In fact, it’s not uncommon to see a drop in a site’s rankings. Search engines are learning and determining the new structure, so have patience and give it some time.
There are some things to do to make sure the ranking drops are minimal and the transition is as smooth as possible.
Set up redirects to make search engines aware of the changes.
Submit the new sitemap.
Make sure previous SEO optimizations are carried over in the meta data.
By doing these, you make sure you pass your pass along the authority that your website had to your new site.
Avoid Broken Links
Make sure that every page and file from your current version of the website is present in the new one as well.
Programs like Screaming Frog SEO Spider analyze all the static pages and files at once and generate a report with all those that aren’t available in the new version of your website yet.
Minimize Downtime
Test the migration process before running it live.
Install Google Analytics on both versions of your sites, old and new, so you can compare their traffic statistics after migration takes place. This way you’ll be able to see how many visitors have come from Google Search Console (if you use it), social media networks, etc., and how many of them have actually converted into paying customers or subscribers on your site.
Maintaining Records
When you are transferring a website to another host, it is important to maintain records of the hostname and IP address of the host server.
This allows you to easily point your domain name at the new host and maintain business continuity for your visitors.
There will more than likely be other records to keep depending on how the DNS records are done. Each website’s records may vary.
As a business owner, you must have a solid plan in place before embarking on migrating to another web-hosting platform. The more prepared you are the less downtime you will experience with a smoother transition.
Cathy Gray is a natural adventurer in her personal and professional life. She adapts to overcome while maintaining an infectious laugh that will make you smile.
Professionally, Cathy currently works for an industrial hose and hydraulics company. While she was a green-horn in the hose business, she spearheaded the company’s eCommerce site from the ground up from a blank canvas to live and selling within 6 months. She continues to grow the company’s online and digital presence while increasing sales year over year.
This a personal entry. I’ve been thinking more intently on life in general. Since I’ve been working on some guides on goals and productivity, I’ve been thinking on what I want. Life is getting shorter and there’s so much that I want to do.
And that’s not just professionally or personally, but in all areas of my life. In general, this is a high-level brain dump for me. I’ll list out the where I was, where I am, and where I want to be on both professionally and personally.
Professionally
Where I was
Previous work experience in:
ERP systems
E-commerce
Accomplishments at my current position
Within 6 months I designed, created and maintained an e-commerce store from scratch while also being new in the industry.
Since then have doubled sales year over year. Year 3 is also forecasted to double sales.
Where I am
I currently work at an industrial hose company where I do the marketing digital and print, maintain online orders, and 2 e-commerce websites.
I don’t want to continue to do the same thing that I am doing. As of right now, I am positioning myself to be in a strategic position within the scope of marketing.
I have also been working on a additional sources of revenue. I use to do a lot of contract work, but haven’t in the last few years.
Where I want to be
I want to be somewhere where I can go. At the time when I firs started to write this at the beginning of June 2022, he company that I worked for was bought. Before that, I was somewhat stagnant in position and such. After the buyout, it opened the possibilities of opening more doors.
I definitely don’t want to be stuck doing the same things that I have been. I want more growth.
Plan your next 5 years, make it happen in the next 6 months.
Anonymous
I’m not sure where I saw this, and not exactly sure how capable the quote is.
I do know that 6 months is a good amount of time make things happen in any area of life. Thinking about 5 years ahead and breaking it down to six months increments is a good way to process the years.
Personally
Where I was
On a personal level, there were several years that everyday was the definition of insanity. There had to be a stop to it and entrusting people. I had to come to terms that someone who was suppose to be a life partner no longer was (and this was during). I had to realize that said person didn’t care anymore and did not want to be held accountable.
Well, that all ended and just had to keep moving forward. During and after a divorce, you have your emotions, loneliness, rollercoaster type of ride life for a while.
It wasn’t so much that I had to “find me” again, but more of how to I get back to the “real me”. If that doesn’t make sense.
I once had a friend tell me during the start of my divorce that I needed to “find out who I am”. My response was “I know who I am”. If I remember correctly, she said that’s not what I mean. I get what she means, but we weren’t exactly on the same page.
Where I am
I’m better off financially that I was.
I’m more outgoing than I was,
I don’t feel as lonely anymore.
I am active doing the things that I love to do.
I’m more adventurous than before. I never would have thought I would have gone skydiving, not once now, but several times!
Where I want to be
I want to be able to go to more places.
I want to experience more things – locally and abroad.
I want my home and environment to be better.
Cathy Gray
Cathy Gray is a natural adventurer in her personal and professional life. She adapts to overcome while maintaining an infectious laugh that will make you smile.
Professionally, Cathy currently works for an industrial hose and hydraulics company. While she was a green-horn in the hose business, she spearheaded the company’s eCommerce site from the ground up from a blank canvas to live and selling within 6 months. She continues to grow the company’s online and digital presence while increasing sales year over year.
I was given a WIX website to update with creative freedom to do SEO and update.
To those in the SEO world, yes I understand the limited or not the choice compared to other platforms, however this website is for branding, and is informational. Most of the traffic is direct. In it’s current state, it is not indexed by Google for the company name.
For those not in the SEO world and are asking themselves what’s wrong with Wix. And there is nothing wrong with having a website built with Wix. It is suited for websites owners that want something easy and is maintained by someone else.
Got this bundle for the following reasons. They are not listed in a particular order.
Made by the same developing company so the plug-ins are compatible
Can broadcast emails
Can create sales funnels
In-depth customer info and segmentation
It’s self hosted. The data doesn’t transfer to another platform, but can if necessary.
Can connect to other CRMs. It’s built in, but will use it later.
Email sequences
Available templates to use for landing pages
Forms and popup integrations
Cart abandonment and recovery – Potential vs actual recovery sales comparison report
Cons
It isn’t retroactive. But most aren’t. I’d have to pull and compile the data to do so.
I like this one because it it is focused on customer segmentation and personalizing marketing to groups of customers instead of lists and tags. contact management is easier and gives a big picture with details as needed.
Why I didn’t choose other ones
Fluent CRM
Didn’t like the interface
Reporting wasn’t exactly what I wanted. If I recall correctly, it wasn’t as in depth as I’d like.
Marketing Basics Price Product Promotion And Place
4 P’s of Marketing
On a simple level basic marketing revolves around four elements: product, price, promotion, and place.
Now marketing tactics and channels may and will change, but they are the concepts everything else revolves around. Product, price, promotion, and price are principles that will not change.
Some models expand the 4 basic principles as 7 P’s or another variations. For simplicity, we’ll just refer to these four as it’s plenty to understand how marketing works.
As the example throughout the rest of the article, a kayak manufacturer will be used.
Product
This is what a business sells, either a physical item, a service, or both. From a marketing perspective, the following will need to be determined:
How many different product variations or product lines should be sold?
Our kayak manufacturer may have determined what kayak options they would bring to the market. Some variations may include: single or tandem (for two people), sit in or sit on, use of the kayak like fishing, rapids, seafaring. Colors, lengths and accessories can also fit into this category.
How should the product or service be packaged or presented?
Perhaps the manufacturer wants to market their kayaks for everyday families. So they make their marketing material relevant to families. While kayaks are generally long, they may have a specialty line for inflatable kayaks.
As a service, they may also offer credits for their customers if they want to upgrade their kayak and offer the returned kayaks as a demo for a more affordable price.
How will it be serviced?
The kayak manufacturer may have a warranty or satisfaction policy. They may also have an extensive website with detailed information on their kayaks and other products to allow their customers to understand every aspect of their kayak or accessories.
Sometimes marketers might have involvement in products are design and which features are included based on their market research.
Price
A product’s or service’s price isn’t just “how much stuff costs”. There is more to think about than that.
If marketing is all about driving profitable action, then prices need to be set at a level the market will support.
Here are some marketing considerations with prices that the kayak company will need to consider:
What is the market rate per unit of a product?
Pricing policies requires market analysis and competitive research to determine what is a fair price for a product while considering production costs and what consumers are willing to pay. If the kayak is sold at high prices, does it match with its perceived value
How should discounts be applied and timed?
The kayak manufacturer may have promotional activities and/or promotional pricing for its partnered retailers. Should the product be put on sale at certain times of year?
Does it make sense to give customers options for payments?
A retailer for the kayak may offer financing options through their website with the help of 3rd party payment processors or other payment plans.
However the kayaks and accessories are priced, as long as they are at the right price for the customer needs, they will be purchased.
Promotion
If a product is launched but no one sees it, does it exist? Technically it does, but only taking up space.
If there is a new kayak design or accessory, it needs to be marketed so customers know it exists.
Which channels will be used to promote the product?
A marketing channel the way the product or service is being marketed from the start at the company to end at the intended consumer.
This includes online and offline channels.
Some examples of traditional marketing include: print, television, and radio. For our kayak company, television or radio may not be optimal, but printed brochures or promotional displays at outdoor fitters may work instead.
Where will it be promoted?
Online promotions include social media and Google Ads for example, but are not limited to these. Offline promotions include the traditional marketing tactics that were previously discussed. It also includes in stores promoting and at relevant events.
What message needs to be communicated?
The text, images, and imagery that is used will to tell the audience what the product is all about, and encourage them to buy it.
Some examples of the promotion strategies may include, email marketing, content marketing, or advertising with local groups that have active families.
Place
The right product needs to be in the right place for customers to find it and purchase it.
Where is the product distributed?
Online then shipped or sold in retail locations.
As far as retail locations, will it be big box, like Cabela’s or Academy Sports.
Will specific locations get the product?
For example, the kayaks wouldn’t be sold in areas that are typically frozen year round. That wouldn’t make sense at all and would be a complete waste of time, money, and resources.
CONCLUSION
The marketing mix and the 4 P’s of marketing has been around since the 1950’s and has been updated and modified.
At it’s basic form, product, price, promotion and place will get any marketing strategy started and running smoothly.
If you’ve never worked on business process improvement, it’s easy to think that it’s not worth your time or hard.
Process improvements does not have to be hard and it doesn’t have to be for large or corporate companies with multiple warehouse and/or locations.
Even small businesses can benefit with simple improvements.
Simple and Easy improvements
Condense your sales cycle – digitize and/or automate repeating steps
Teach the shortcuts of copy and pasting instead of manually typing it out – it may sound like it is common knowledge, but not everyone knows about these handy shortcuts.
Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets automations on processes that you do consistently. Some of them may require some time and others an extension or add-in to use, but you’ll save time overall.
Checklists – If there are daily repetitive steps, then have a checklist and start where you were left off the previous day.
Process improvements do not have to be drawn out projects. As you can see in the examples, they can be very simple and reduce your wasted time.
