Jigoshop to Shopify Migration - Step-by-Step Guide & Expert Services

Seamlessly Transition Your E-commerce Store from Jigoshop to Shopify

Replatforming your e-commerce store is a strategic decision that can unlock significant growth and operational efficiencies. If you're currently running your online business on Jigoshop, an older WordPress e-commerce plugin, you might be seeking a more robust, scalable, and dedicated e-commerce platform. Shopify, renowned for its user-friendliness, extensive app ecosystem, and powerful features, is an excellent choice for merchants looking to enhance their online presence and streamline operations.

This comprehensive guide will walk you through the process of migrating your store's valuable data – including products, customer information, orders, and more – from Jigoshop to Shopify. We'll leverage an automated migration solution like Cart2Cart to ensure a smooth, secure, and efficient data transfer, minimizing downtime and preserving your critical SEO rankings and link equity. By the end of this guide, you'll have a clear, actionable plan to transition your store with confidence, setting the stage for a superior user experience and greater business success on Shopify.

Prerequisites for a Successful Migration

Before initiating the data transfer, thorough preparation of both your existing Jigoshop store (source) and your new Shopify store (target) is crucial. This proactive approach helps ensure data integrity and a seamless transition.

Preparing Your Jigoshop Source Store:

• Full Store Backup: Always perform a complete backup of your Jigoshop database and files. This serves as a safety net in case any unforeseen issues arise during the data transfer.
• FTP/cPanel Access: Ensure you have full FTP (File Transfer Protocol) or cPanel access to your Jigoshop store’s hosting server. This is essential for uploading the Cart2Cart connection bridge.
• Install Migration Module: The Cart2Cart Jigoshop Migration module is required for the migration tool to connect to your Jigoshop store effectively.
• Data Review: Clean up your existing Jigoshop data. Remove any outdated products, unused customer accounts, or irrelevant information to ensure only necessary data is transferred, optimizing the migration speed and target store performance.
• For more details on preparing your source store, consult our How to prepare Source store for migration? FAQ.

Preparing Your Shopify Target Store:

• Set Up Shopify Store: Create a new Shopify account and complete the initial store setup. You don't need to add products or customers manually, as these will be migrated.
• Disable Notifications: It is highly recommended to disable email notifications in your Shopify admin during the migration process to avoid sending unnecessary alerts to your customers.
• Review Shopify Plan: Be aware that Shopify's "Pause and Build" plan blocks order processing. Ensure you are on an active plan that allows orders before the migration.
• For comprehensive preparation steps, refer to our How to prepare Target store for migration? guide.

Performing the Migration: A Step-by-Step Guide

Follow these detailed steps to perform your Jigoshop to Shopify migration using Cart2Cart.

Step 1: Initiate Your Migration

Begin by navigating to the Cart2Cart website. You’ll be prompted to either create a new account or log in to an existing one to start your migration wizard.

Step 2: Connect Your Jigoshop Store (Source Setup)

This critical step involves establishing a secure connection to your current Jigoshop store.

• Select Jigoshop: From the dropdown menu, choose Jigoshop as your Source Cart.
• Enter Store URL: Provide the full URL of your Jigoshop store.
• Upload Connection Bridge: As Jigoshop uses a "Bridge only" connection method, you will need to download the Cart2Cart connection bridge file. Unzip it and upload the "bridge2cart" folder to the root directory of your Jigoshop store via FTP. This bridge acts as a secure gateway for data exchange. The Cart2Cart Jigoshop Migration module is essential for this connection.
• Once uploaded, the connection will be verified.

For more on secure access, see The Short & Essential Guide to Access Credentials for Cart2Cart and What is a root folder and where can I find it?

Step 3: Connect Your Shopify Store (Target Setup)

Next, you’ll connect your new Shopify store where your data will be transferred.

• Select Shopify: Choose Shopify as your Target Cart from the dropdown list.
• Enter Store URL: Input the URL of your Shopify store (e.g., yourstorename.myshopify.com).
• Install Cart2Cart App: The recommended method is to install the Cart2Cart Store Migration App directly from the Shopify App Store. Click the provided link (https://shopify.pxf.io/LPAx6M), follow the installation instructions on Shopify, and then return to the migration wizard. This grants the necessary API access for data transfer.

Step 4: Select Data Entities for Transfer

Now, specify which types of data you wish to migrate from Jigoshop to Shopify.

• You can select "All entities" or choose specific data types, such as Products, Product Categories, Product Reviews, Customers, Orders, and CMS Pages.
• Jigoshop supports additional entities like Manufacturers, Invoices, Taxes, Stores, and Coupons. Shopify supports Gift Cards, Price Rules, and Blogs/Blog Posts. Carefully select the entities relevant to your new Shopify store.

Step 5: Configure Additional Options and Data Mapping

This step allows for granular control over how your data is transferred and formatted on Shopify.

Additional Migration Options:

Enhance your data transfer with various checkboxes. Common options include:

• Migrate Images in Description: Transfers product and category images embedded within descriptions.
• Clear Target: Clears all existing data in your Shopify store before migration, ensuring a fresh start.
• Preserve Product IDs, Preserve Order IDs, Preserve Customer IDs: Crucial for maintaining existing links, SEO rankings, and historical data. See How Preserve IDs options can be used?
• Create 301 SEO URLs: Automatically sets up 301 redirects for your old Jigoshop URLs to their new Shopify counterparts. This is vital for preserving link equity and SEO rankings.
• Password Migration: Migrates customer passwords securely.
• Migrate Groups to Tags: Transfers customer groups from Jigoshop into customer tags in Shopify.
• Specific Jigoshop options also include "Create Variants from Attributes" and "Migrate Invoices".

Data Mapping Setup:

Ensure data integrity by correctly matching your Jigoshop customer groups and order statuses to their equivalents on Shopify.

• Map customer roles (e.g., "Customer" to "Customer").
• Map order statuses (e.g., "Pending payment" to "Pending", "Processing" to "Processing").

Step 6: Run a Free Demo Migration (Recommended)

Before committing to the full migration, run a free demo. This allows you to transfer a limited number of entities (e.g., 10 products, 10 customers, 10 orders) to your Shopify store.

• Purpose: The demo helps you verify the accuracy of the data transfer, check how products, customer data, and order history appear on Shopify, and identify any potential issues with data mapping or additional options.
• Review: Carefully review the demo results on your Shopify store. If satisfied, proceed to the full migration.

Step 7: Initiate Full Data Migration

After reviewing the demo and making any necessary adjustments, you are ready for the complete data transfer.

• Review Summary: Cart2Cart will display a summary of your migration, including the total number of entities and the estimated cost.
• Migration Insurance: Consider adding a Migration Insurance Service, which allows for re-migrations within a certain period if needed.
• Start Migration: Click the "Start Full Migration" button. The process is cloud-based, meaning your Jigoshop store will remain operational with no downtime, allowing your customers to continue shopping while data is transferred to Shopify.

Post-Migration Steps: Your New Shopify Store Checklist

Once the data migration is complete, there are several crucial post-migration tasks to ensure your new Shopify store is fully functional and optimized.

• Review Migrated Data: Thoroughly check all migrated data. Verify product details (SKUs, variants, images, descriptions), customer accounts, order history, and CMS pages on your Shopify store to ensure everything transferred correctly. Pay special attention to product reviews, as Shopify typically requires apps like AirReviews for their management.
• Configure Store Design & Theme: Choose a Shopify theme that aligns with your brand and customize it to create an appealing user experience.
• Install Essential Apps: Leverage Shopify's extensive App Store to add functionalities such as advanced SEO tools, marketing automation, customer service integrations, and review apps (like AirReviews for migrated reviews).
• Set Up Payment & Shipping: Configure your preferred payment gateways, shipping zones, and rates within Shopify.
• Implement 301 Redirects: If you did not use the "Create 301 SEO URLs" option during migration or if you have specific legacy URLs, manually set up 301 redirects to preserve your SEO rankings and link equity.
• Update DNS Records: Point your domain name to your new Shopify store to make it live.
• Conduct Thorough Testing: Perform extensive testing of your new store. Place test orders, check all forms (contact, signup), test payment processes, and ensure all functionalities work as expected.
• Go Live & Monitor: Announce your new store to your customers. Continuously monitor your store's performance, user experience, and SEO rankings post-launch.

By following these steps, you'll successfully transition your e-commerce store from Jigoshop to Shopify, ready to capitalize on the new platform's capabilities. Should you encounter any questions or require assistance, our Frequently Asked Questions and dedicated support team are always available via Contact Us.