Zoovy to Volusion Migration - Step-by-Step Guide & Expert Services

A Comprehensive Guide to Transitioning from Zoovy to Volusion

Are you an e-commerce merchant looking to move your online store from Zoovy to a more robust, feature-rich platform like Volusion? While Zoovy has served many businesses well, modern retail demands a scalable and versatile solution to foster growth and enhance the user experience. This guide provides a detailed, step-by-step walkthrough to help you navigate your e-commerce platform migration with confidence.

Due to Zoovy's platform architecture, the migration typically involves exporting your data to CSV files. These files will then be seamlessly transferred to your new Volusion store using a specialized migration service and a secure bridge connector, ensuring data integrity and minimal downtime during this critical replatforming process.

Prerequisites for Migration

Before initiating the data transfer, careful preparation of both your existing Zoovy store and your new Volusion environment is essential for a smooth and successful transition.

Prepare Your Zoovy Store (Source Preparation)

As Zoovy does not offer a direct API connection for automated migration tools, the process involves exporting your store data into CSV (Comma Separated Values) files. This method ensures all essential information, from product SKUs and descriptions to customer records and order history, can be transferred.

• Data Cleanup: Take this opportunity to clean up your existing Zoovy store. Remove any outdated products, inactive customer accounts, or unnecessary data that you don't wish to transfer to your new Volusion store.
• Backup Your Data: Always perform a complete backup of your Zoovy store's database and files before beginning any migration process. This safeguards your information in case of unforeseen issues.
• Export Data to CSV: Export all relevant data entities from your Zoovy store, including products, product categories, customer information, orders, and reviews, into CSV files. Ensure these exports are as comprehensive as possible. For more details on this process, refer to our CSV.File Data Migration service.

For additional insights, review our guide on How to prepare Source store for migration?

Prepare Your Volusion Store (Target Preparation)

Your new Volusion store needs to be ready to receive the influx of data from Zoovy.

• Set Up Your Volusion Store: Ensure you have a functional Volusion store set up. This includes choosing your theme, configuring basic store settings, and establishing your desired currency and tax rules.
• Install the Cart2Cart Volusion Migration Module: This is a critical plugin required for a successful connection. The module acts as a bridge, securely facilitating the data transfer. You'll need FTP access to upload the bridge file to your Volusion's root directory. This component is vital for the migration service to establish a secure connection and populate your Volusion database.
• Gather Access Credentials: Have your Volusion store's admin URL, login credentials (username and password), and FTP details ready. These will be necessary to establish the connection for migration.

For further guidance, consult our How to prepare Target store for migration? article.

Performing the Migration: A Step-by-Step Guide

With both your Zoovy export files and Volusion store prepared, you're ready to commence the migration process. We'll outline the steps using a professional migration wizard.

Step 1: Initiate Your Migration

Begin by navigating to the migration service's website. You'll typically find an option to start a new migration or launch the migration wizard.

Step 2: Configure Your Zoovy Source Store

On the migration wizard, you will configure your source e-commerce platform.

• Select 'CSV File to Cart': Choose 'CSV File to Cart' as your Source Cart from the dropdown menu. This option is specifically designed for migrations where data is imported from CSV files, which is the method for Zoovy.
• Upload Your Zoovy CSV Files: You will then be prompted to upload the CSV files you previously exported from your Zoovy store, containing your product listings, customer information, order details, and other essential data.

Step 3: Connect Your Volusion Target Store

Next, you will specify your new Volusion store as the migration destination.

• Select 'Volusion': From the Target Cart dropdown, select 'Volusion' as your new e-commerce platform.
• Enter Volusion Store URL: Provide the complete URL of your Volusion store.
• Confirm Bridge File Location: The migration wizard will typically auto-detect the bridge file you uploaded earlier via FTP. If not, you may need to manually specify its location. This bridge facilitates the secure data transfer, ensuring data integrity during the replatforming process.

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

Step 4: Select Data Entities to Transfer

This crucial step allows you to choose exactly which data you wish to move from your Zoovy CSV files to your Volusion store.

• Choose Entities: Select the specific data types, or entities, you want to migrate. This commonly includes:
• Products (with SKUs, variants, images, descriptions)
• Product Categories
• Customers (including their associated data)
• Orders (with full order history)
• Products Reviews
• Manufacturers
• CMS Pages
• Coupons
• All Entities Option: You can often select all entities with a single click or pick them individually for a more tailored migration. Consider options like "Preserve Product IDs," "Preserve Orders IDs," and "Preserve Customers IDs" to maintain existing identifiers, which can be beneficial for historical data consistency.

Learn more about How Preserve IDs options can be used?

Step 5: Configure Additional Options and Map Data

Refine your migration further by selecting additional options and mapping your data fields.

Additional Migration Options

This section allows you to customize the migration process with various enhancements:

• Migrate Images in Description: Ensure product images embedded within descriptions are transferred.
• Clear Target: This option, if selected, will remove all existing data from your Volusion store before migration. Use with caution, especially if you have manually added content. Learn more about Clear current data on Target store before migration option.
• Password Migration: Migrate customer passwords securely to your new Volusion store.
• Create 301 SEO URLs: This is highly recommended for preserving your SEO rankings and link equity. It ensures that old Zoovy URLs redirect seamlessly to their new Volusion counterparts, preventing broken links and maintaining search engine visibility.
• Skip Custom Attributes: If your Volusion store doesn't support certain custom attributes from Zoovy, you can opt to skip them.

Data Mapping Setup

The data mapping step ensures that fields from your Zoovy CSV files align correctly with the corresponding fields in Volusion. You'll typically map:

• Customer Groups: Match customer roles (e.g., "Retailer" to "Customer").
• Order Statuses: Align order statuses (e.g., "Processing" from Zoovy to "Processing" in Volusion).

Step 6: Perform a Free Demo Migration (Optional but Recommended)

Before committing to the full migration, run a demo. This typically transfers a limited number of entities (e.g., 10-20 products, customers, and orders) to your Volusion store.

• Purpose of Demo: The demo allows you to preview the migration results, verify data integrity, check mappings, and ensure everything functions as expected in the new environment. It’s an excellent opportunity to identify and resolve any potential issues before the complete transfer.

Explore our Migration Preview Service for more information.

Step 7: Finalize and Launch Full Migration

Once you are satisfied with the demo results, you can proceed with the full migration.

• Review and Confirm: Double-check all your settings, selected entities, and additional options. Review the total cost, which is typically calculated based on the number and type of entities being transferred.
• Consider Migration Insurance: Opt for Migration Insurance Service for added peace of mind. This often provides options for multiple re-migrations within a certain period, which can be invaluable if you discover minor issues or need to update data post-migration.
• Initiate Full Transfer: With everything confirmed, launch the full migration. The service will handle the bulk data transfer, keeping downtime to an absolute minimum. You'll be notified upon completion.

Post-Migration Steps

The migration isn't truly complete until you've thoroughly verified your new store and made it live.

• Thoroughly Verify Data: Systematically check all migrated data. Review product listings (SKUs, variants, prices, images, descriptions), product categories, customer accounts, order history, and any transferred CMS pages or reviews. Ensure all fields are correctly populated and displayed.
• Test Store Functionality: Conduct comprehensive testing of your Volusion store. This includes testing the checkout process, payment gateways, search functionality, customer account logins, contact forms, and other critical features.
• Update DNS Records: Once you are confident that your Volusion store is fully operational and verified, update your domain's DNS records to point to your new Volusion store. This will direct your visitors to the new platform.
• Configure SEO Settings: Verify that all your 301 redirects (if chosen during migration) are functioning correctly. Update your sitemap and submit it to search engines like Google via Google Search Console. Pay attention to SEO metadata for key pages to maintain your search engine rankings and link equity.
• Install Essential Apps and Plugins: Integrate any necessary Volusion apps or plugins for analytics, marketing, shipping, inventory management, or customer service that were not part of the core migration.
• Remove Old Zoovy Store: Once you are completely satisfied with your Volusion store and its performance, you can consider decommissioning your old Zoovy store.
• Plan for Recent Data Migration: If new orders or customer data appeared on your Zoovy store during the migration period, consider utilizing a Recent Data Migration Service to transfer these latest updates.

For more common questions, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions.