RomanCart to BigCommerce Migration - Step-by-Step Guide & Expert Services

A Seamless Transition: Migrating Your RomanCart Store to BigCommerce

Are you considering moving your e-commerce store from RomanCart to BigCommerce? Replatforming your online business can unlock significant growth opportunities, offering enhanced scalability, advanced features, and a superior user experience. This comprehensive guide will walk you through every step of transitioning your valuable data, including products, customer records, and order history, from your existing RomanCart store to the powerful BigCommerce platform.

Given that RomanCart typically relies on file-based data management for exports, this migration will primarily involve exporting your RomanCart data into CSV files and then importing it into the migration tool for transfer to BigCommerce, which utilizes a robust API connection.

Prerequisites for a Successful Migration

Before initiating the data transfer, it’s crucial to prepare both your RomanCart (source) and BigCommerce (target) stores to ensure a smooth and efficient process. Proper preparation minimizes potential issues and downtime, safeguarding your SEO rankings and customer experience.

For Your RomanCart Source Store (CSV Export):

• Data Export: RomanCart stores will require you to export your data into CSV (Comma Separated Values) files. This method supports entities such as products (including SKUs, variants), product categories, manufacturers, customer records, orders, reviews, invoices, taxes, coupons, CMS pages, and blog posts.
• Data Backup: Always perform a complete backup of your RomanCart store’s database and files. This is a critical step to ensure data integrity and provides a safety net in case any unforeseen issues arise during the migration.
• No Plugin Required: For CSV-based migrations, no specific plugins are needed on the RomanCart side, as the process relies on standard data exports.
• Review Data: Clean up any outdated or irrelevant data in RomanCart before export. This improves data quality on your new BigCommerce store.
• For more details on preparing your source, refer to our FAQ: How to prepare Source store for migration?

For Your BigCommerce Target Store:

• Set Up Your BigCommerce Store: Ensure your new BigCommerce store is already set up and accessible. You should have chosen a theme and completed basic store configurations.
• API Credentials: BigCommerce relies on API access for data transfer. You will need to generate the following credentials from your BigCommerce admin panel:
  • Client ID (Username)
  • Access Token (API Token)
  • API Path

  These credentials grant the migration tool the necessary permissions to connect and transfer data to your BigCommerce store. BigCommerce requires HTTPS for API connections, and the API has rate limits, which the migration tool will manage. For detailed instructions on generating these, consult The Short & Essential Guide to Access Credentials for Cart2Cart.

• Install Necessary Apps: While not strictly a migration prerequisite, explore the BigCommerce App Marketplace for any essential apps or integrations you plan to use post-migration.
• For more details on preparing your target, refer to our FAQ: How to prepare Target store for migration?

Performing the Migration: A Step-by-Step Guide

Migrating your store involves a series of straightforward steps using a specialized migration wizard. Follow these instructions carefully to ensure a successful data transfer.

Step 1: Start Your Migration

Begin by accessing the migration wizard. Here, you will specify your source and target platforms.

Step 2: Source Store Setup (RomanCart via CSV)

Select “CSV File to Cart” as your Source Cart type. You will then upload the CSV files containing your RomanCart data. Ensure your CSV files are correctly formatted according to the tool’s guidelines for proper parsing of products, customers, and orders.

Step 3: Target Store Setup (BigCommerce)

Choose “BigCommerce” as your Target Cart. Input your BigCommerce store’s URL along with the previously generated API credentials: the Client ID, Access Token, and API Path. This information will establish a secure connection, enabling the tool to transfer your data.

Step 4: Select Entities for Migration

This crucial step allows you to specify exactly which data entities you wish to transfer. You can choose to migrate “All entities” or selectively pick items such as:

• Products (including SKUs, variants, attributes)
• Product Categories
• Customers
• Orders
• Coupons
• Blogs and Blog Posts
• CMS Pages
• Manufacturers
• Product Reviews

Step 5: Configure Additional Options

Enhance your migration with various additional options tailored to your specific needs. These options help preserve data integrity and optimize your new store’s functionality and SEO rankings:

• Preserve IDs: Maintain original IDs for orders, products, categories, and customers. See How Preserve IDs options can be used?
• Create 301 SEO URLs: Automatically generate 301 redirects from your old RomanCart URLs to the new BigCommerce URLs, preserving valuable link equity and preventing broken links.
• Migrate Images in Product Descriptions: Ensure all product images embedded within descriptions are transferred.
• Clear Current Data on Target Store: This option is often recommended for fresh migrations to ensure no conflicting data exists on your new BigCommerce store before the transfer. Read more: Clear current data on Target store before migration option.
• Create Variants from Attributes: Crucial for ensuring product variations (e.g., size, color) are correctly represented in BigCommerce.
• Password Migration: If supported by your CSV export and BigCommerce settings, migrate customer passwords.

Step 6: Data Mapping

This step ensures that all your RomanCart data fields align perfectly with BigCommerce’s structure. You will map customer groups, order statuses, and product attributes (like SKU fields and custom options) from your CSV files to their corresponding fields in BigCommerce. Accurate data mapping is essential for maintaining consistency and usability on your new platform.

Step 7: Run Demo Migration & Full Migration

Before committing to the full data transfer, run a Free Demo Migration. This allows you to transfer a limited number of entities (e.g., a few products, customers, and orders) to your BigCommerce store. Use this opportunity to thoroughly review the transferred data, check for any issues, and ensure everything appears as expected. Once satisfied, you can proceed with the Full Migration.

Consider adding Migration Insurance for peace of mind, offering remigration options in case you need further adjustments. Learn more about How Migration Insurance works?

Post-Migration Steps

Completing the data transfer is a significant milestone, but your work isn’t over. These post-migration tasks are crucial for optimizing your new BigCommerce store and ensuring a seamless transition for your customers.

1. Thorough Data Verification: Rigorously check all migrated data. Confirm that products (SKUs, variants, images, descriptions), customer accounts, order histories, and categories are all present and accurate. Pay close attention to pricing and inventory levels.
2. Configure Store Settings: Set up your shipping options, tax rules, payment gateways, and any other specific store settings within your BigCommerce admin panel.
3. Implement 301 Redirects: If you haven't already done so during the migration, create 301 redirects for any old RomanCart URLs to their new BigCommerce counterparts. This is vital for preserving your SEO rankings and ensuring visitors and search engines are directed to the correct pages, maintaining valuable link equity.
4. Theme and Design Optimization: Customize your BigCommerce theme to align with your brand identity. Optimize the layout and user experience to enhance customer engagement and conversion rates.
5. Functionality Testing: Test all critical functionalities:
   • Add products to cart and complete the checkout process.
   • Create new customer accounts and log in to existing ones.
   • Test search functionality, filters, and navigation.
   • Verify contact forms and other interactive elements.
6. Update DNS: Once you are confident that your BigCommerce store is fully operational and tested, update your domain’s DNS records to point to your new BigCommerce store.
7. Monitor Performance: After launch, continuously monitor your website’s performance, including speed, sales, traffic, and user behavior. Address any issues promptly.
8. Ongoing Data Sync: Consider using a Recent Data Migration Service to transfer any new orders or customer registrations that occurred on your RomanCart store during the final stages of the migration.

Migrating from RomanCart to BigCommerce can be a complex but rewarding process. By following this detailed guide, you can ensure a smooth data transfer, setting your business up for success on your new, feature-rich BigCommerce platform. Should you encounter unique requirements, our Migration Customization Service is available to tailor the process to your specific needs. For any questions, feel free to Contact Us.