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

Seamlessly Transition Your E-commerce Store from DaWanda to BigCommerce

As a former DaWanda merchant, you're likely searching for a new, robust platform to continue your online selling journey. With DaWanda having closed its doors, replatforming to a powerful e-commerce solution like BigCommerce offers a significant opportunity to scale your business, reach new customers, and leverage advanced features. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the entire process of migrating your valuable store data – from products and categories to customer information and order history – from your DaWanda legacy to a brand new BigCommerce storefront, ensuring a smooth transition and preserving your store's integrity.

Given that DaWanda is no longer operational, the most effective method for extracting your store's data will involve exporting it into structured CSV files. Our guide will detail how to use these CSV files as the source for your data transfer, enabling a precise and efficient move to BigCommerce.

Prerequisites for a Successful Migration

Before embarking on your data transfer journey, a few preparatory steps are essential to ensure a seamless and efficient process. Addressing these prerequisites will minimize downtime and potential data integrity issues.

For Your DaWanda (CSV) Source Data:

• Export Your DaWanda Data: Since DaWanda is no longer active, you should have previously exported your store's data into CSV (Comma Separated Values) files. These files are crucial and should contain all your products (including SKUs, variants, descriptions, images), customer records, order history, and any other relevant e-commerce data. Ensure these files are well-organized and accessible. For more detailed information on preparing your source data, you can refer to our guide on CSV.File Data Migration.
• Data Review: Take time to review your exported CSV files. This is an excellent opportunity to clean up old or redundant data, ensuring that only necessary and accurate information is carried over to your new BigCommerce store.

For Your BigCommerce Target Store:

• Set Up Your BigCommerce Store: If you haven't already, create a new BigCommerce store account. You'll need an active store to serve as the destination for your migrated data.
• Obtain BigCommerce API Credentials: BigCommerce utilizes an API for data connections, requiring specific credentials for secure access. You will need:
  • Store URL: The URL of your BigCommerce store.
  • Client ID (Username)
  • Access Token (API Token)
  • API Path
  To generate these, log into your BigCommerce admin panel, navigate to Settings > API Accounts, and create a new V2/V3 API Token. Ensure the custom app created has the required scopes for read/write access to all entities you plan to migrate (e.g., Products, Customers, Orders). Remember, BigCommerce enforces API rate limits, so planning your migration during off-peak hours can be beneficial. HTTPS is also a strict requirement for API access. For a comprehensive guide on obtaining these credentials, please read The Short & Essential Guide to Access Credentials for Cart2Cart.
• Prepare Your BigCommerce Store: While the migration tool can handle most data, you might want to configure basic settings (like currency, time zone) or install a theme before the migration. For more on preparing your target store, see How to prepare Target store for migration?

Performing the Migration: A Step-by-Step Guide

With your preparations complete, let's dive into the actual migration process using a professional data transfer service. This guide assumes the use of a tool like Cart2Cart for a streamlined experience.

1. Step 1: Start Your Migration

   Begin by accessing the migration wizard. If you're new, you'll need to create an account. This initial screen presents options to start a DIY migration or inquire about assisted services. Choose the DIY route to proceed with the wizard.

   

2. Step 2: Connect Your DaWanda (CSV) Source Store

   Next, you'll configure your source store. From the dropdown menu, select 'CSV File to Cart' as your source platform. You will then be prompted to upload your prepared CSV files containing your DaWanda data. This method is specifically designed for handling data from platforms that don't offer direct API connections, like your DaWanda exports. There are no plugin requirements for this step, as the connection is file-based.

   

3. Step 3: Connect Your BigCommerce Target Store

   Now, select 'BigCommerce' as your target cart from the dropdown list. Enter your BigCommerce store's URL. Crucially, you'll then need to input the API access credentials you obtained earlier: the Client ID (Username), the Access Token (API Token), and the specific API Path. This information allows the migration tool to securely communicate with your new BigCommerce store and perform the data transfer. Remember the BigCommerce limitations regarding API rate limits and the need for a custom app with appropriate scopes.

   

4. Step 4: Select Data Entities for Migration

   This is where you decide precisely what data you want to move. The migration wizard presents a checklist of various data entities. For a typical DaWanda to BigCommerce transition, you'll likely want to migrate:

   • Products: Including product details, images, SKUs, and variants.
   • Product Categories: Your store's organizational structure for products.
   • Customers: All customer accounts and their associated information.
   • Orders: Historical order data, essential for customer service and record-keeping.
   • Coupons: If applicable and transferable via CSV.
   • Blogs Posts & CMS Pages: Your content, such as informational pages or blog articles.
   You can select all entities with a single click or pick and choose based on your specific needs. BigCommerce's API supports these entities, ensuring a comprehensive data transfer.

5. Step 5: Configure Additional Migration Options

   The next step offers a range of additional settings to customize your data transfer. These options are vital for maintaining SEO rankings, preserving link equity, and optimizing your new store's user experience:

   • Clear current data on Target store before migration: Recommended if your BigCommerce store is new and empty, ensuring no duplicate data. See Clear current data on Target store before migration option.
   • Preserve Product IDs, Preserve Category IDs, Preserve Customers IDs, Preserve Orders IDs: Essential for maintaining internal linking, historical records, and avoiding broken links. More info available at How Preserve IDs options can be used?.
   • Create 301 SEO URLs: Crucial for SEO to redirect old DaWanda URLs to their new BigCommerce counterparts, preventing 404 errors and retaining search engine ranking.
   • Create Variants from Attributes: If your DaWanda products had attributes, this option helps translate them into BigCommerce product variants.
   • Migrate Images in Description: Ensures product descriptions and CMS pages maintain their visual content.
   Select the options that best fit your replatforming strategy.

6. Step 6: Map Data Fields

   Data mapping is a critical step that ensures consistency between your source and target stores. Here, you'll match specific customer groups (e.g., 'Wholesale' customers) and order statuses (e.g., 'Processing,' 'Completed') from your DaWanda CSV data to their corresponding fields in BigCommerce. This process guarantees that your customer data and order history are correctly categorized in your new store.

   

7. Step 7: Run a Free Demo Migration (Recommended)

   Before committing to a full migration, we highly recommend performing a free demo migration. This transfers a limited number of entities (e.g., 10 products, 10 customers, 10 orders) to your BigCommerce store. Use this opportunity to thoroughly check the transferred data: verify product details, confirm customer accounts, and ensure order information is accurate. This step helps you identify and resolve any potential issues before the main data transfer.

8. Step 8: Perform the Full Migration

   Once you're satisfied with the demo results and have reviewed your selected entities and options, proceed with the full data transfer. Confirm the total migration cost and consider adding Migration Insurance Service, which allows for multiple re-migrations within a specific period, providing peace of mind. For more details, refer to How Migration Insurance works? Initiate the full process and let the service handle the heavy lifting of moving all your DaWanda data to BigCommerce.

   

Post-Migration Steps

The data transfer is complete, but your journey isn't quite over. These post-migration tasks are essential for launching your new BigCommerce store successfully and maintaining your SEO rankings.

• Review Migrated Data: Conduct a thorough audit of your BigCommerce store. Verify product descriptions, images, prices, SKUs, and variants. Check customer accounts, ensure order histories are accurate, and confirm that all categories are correctly structured.
• Configure BigCommerce Settings: Set up essential store configurations like shipping zones, tax rates, and payment gateways. Integrate any necessary apps from the BigCommerce App Marketplace to extend your store's functionality.
• Update DNS Records: Once you're confident your new BigCommerce store is ready, update your domain's DNS records to point to your BigCommerce storefront. This officially switches your online presence to the new platform.
• Implement 301 Redirects: Even if you used the 301 redirect option during migration, double-check that all critical old DaWanda URLs are correctly redirecting to their new BigCommerce counterparts. This is paramount for preserving SEO link equity and preventing lost traffic.
• Test Your Store: Perform extensive testing. Act as a customer: browse products, add items to the cart, go through the checkout process, and test customer login. Ensure all functionalities work seamlessly to provide an excellent user experience.
• Update Integrations: Reconnect any third-party services you use, such as email marketing platforms, accounting software, or analytics tools, with your new BigCommerce store.
• Inform Your Customers: Announce the launch of your new BigCommerce store to your customer base. This is a great opportunity to re-engage them and highlight any new features or improvements.
• Consider Recent Data Migration: If new orders or customer registrations occurred on your DaWanda legacy after your initial data export, consider utilizing a Recent Data Migration Service to transfer any delta data.

By following these steps, you can confidently move from DaWanda to BigCommerce, unlocking a world of new e-commerce possibilities. If you encounter any challenges or require specialized assistance, don't hesitate to Contact Us for expert support.