Volusion and BigCommerce are two professional eCommerce platforms that deliver sufficient flexibility, toolsets and special features needed to set up, manage and customize online stores. The systems both deserve user attention yet they still differ in terms of functionality, customizability, pricing policy and general approach to the process of web store creation.
Volusion is an all-in-one eCommerce website builder that enables merchants to design visually appealing online stores without the need to have extensive technical expertise (our Volusion review). The system provides a variety of features like inventory management tools, secure payment processing options and SEO parameters to enhance online visibility. This platform offers various pricing tiers to accommodate different business requirements, making it accessible to startups and established enterprises alike (see examples).
BigCommerce is a powerful eCommerce software that stands out for its distinctive web store creation focus, robust SEO capabilities and a range of niche tools/features needed to expand entrepreneurs’ reach across various online marketplaces and social media platforms. BigCommerce provides extensive analytics and reporting tools as well as eCommerce solutions, empowering businesses to establish reliable web presence.
If you currently have a developing web store powered by Volusion, you may occasionally feel that its functionality becomes not enough for further promotion. In this case, transitioning to BigCommerce seems to be a reasonable solution.
How to Transfer a Website from Volusion to BigCommerce – The Ultimate Guide:
Both Volusion and BigCommerce are reputable eCommerce platforms, each having its strong and weak points. The choice between them depends on your specific business needs, aspirations, project development perspectives and, of course, budget. The only thing you may be sure of is that the migration process won’t be as simple as it may seem. Read on to find out what stages exactly it includes and what challenges you may encounter on your way.
Moving Website from Volusion to BigCommerce – Is it Worth It?
You may have various reasons to move your Volusion web store to the BigCommerce platform. The most widespread of them are listed below:
- BigCommerce is much more scalable than Volusion, which makes it a great pick for a growing project. As your web store expands, you may realize that Volusion features/tools cannot cover its needs any longer and you need a more powerful alternative. BigCommerce can handle increased traffic, products and sales without the need for significant tech adjustments;
- BigCommerce simplifies the process of selling products across multiple channels, including social media platforms and online marketplaces. Such an expanded reach can boost your sales and brand exposure.
- BigCommerce grants access to multiple migration tools and support to make the transition from Volusion smoother. This eventually minimizes the disruption to your business operations during the switch.
- BigCommerce comes with an extensive selection of third-party apps and integrations that can enhance your project functionality. This makes it possible to add features and tools that are a must for effective business management.
- BigCommerce supports more payment gateways as compared with Volusion. As a result, customers have more shopping options, while web store owners get higher conversion rates.
It doesn’t really matter what goals you actually have to migrate between the platforms. Just get ready that the process itself is quite time-taking and responsible as you have to control every stage that affects the result.
Volusion versus BigCommerce – What Is the Difference?
Volusion and BigCommerce serve the same purpose – eCommerce website creation and customization. This doesn’t mean, however, that the systems are alike. Their functionality still differs a lot. To be able to decide whether to move your web store between the platforms, let’s figure out the major distinctions between them.
To start with, BigCommerce is a more feature-laden website builder that comes with advanced scalability and project development perspectives. It can easily handle large product catalogs and high traffic volumes, while Volusion works better for small to medium-sized businesses and may provide limitations as your business grows.
Secondly, BigCommerce offers a more extensive and rich catalog of customizable templates and design tools. Volusion cannot provide such a diversity of themes yet it also has a gallery of built-in designs.
Thirdly, BigCommerce excels at integrations due to its extensive library of third-party applications and widgets. Volusion has its own app marketplace as well, but the range of extensions available there is quite limited for a large web store. If your business relies heavily on specific integrations, BigCommerce will be a better choice.
Both platforms offer various pricing tiers, but the cost structure still differs. As a more advanced and full-featured website builder, BigCommerce sets higher rates for its premium services. At the same time, you get advanced features that cannot be found in Volusion.
As seen from above, Volusion and BigCommerce are both worth user attention. However, the services are somewhat different, which makes them a nice pick for diverse project types. While Volusion works better for small and medium web stores, BigCommerce mostly targets large projects. Take your time to evaluate the features and benefits of each platform to pick the one that works best for your eCommerce business.
How to Switch from Volusion to BigCommerce – The Ultimate Guide
When it comes to Volusion to BigCommerce migration, get ready to complete several must-have steps to make the procedure a success. We have listed them below to simplify the process for you:
- Set up the account with BigCommerce. To get started with your web store migration, you initially have to create an account with BigCommerce, if you don’t have it yet. Follow the steps the software offers yet don’t hesitate to ask for support. The software may offer it to their new subscribers.
- Pick a plan. The next move is to select a plan that aligns with your business needs and budget. BigCommerce offers four major plans, including Standard, Plus, Pro and Enterprise, each catering to diverse levels of business operations.
- Export/import products and customers. To be able to keep working with your products, you need to initially export them from Volusion and then import them to BigCommerce. The most reliable way to do that is by means of creating a CSV file. As soon as it is ready, reach your BigCommerce store for import. Mind that you may face the need to reformat the source CSV file for correct transfer. If your product range exceeds 10000 SKUs, it makes sense to use a migration app and then a CSV import to clean up your product data.
- Transfer the content. As soon as you are done with product/customer transfer, it is high time to move the content – web pages and blog posts. They are not included in migration apps and they cannot be imported as a CSV file. This has to be done manually. BigCommerce recommends copying the raw HTML from the web page’s source to a new page in the BigCommerce control panel. As soon as the page is ready, use 301 redirects for maximum SEO data preservation.
- Customize the web store. When all your web store entities are transferred, go ahead to customize the design. To do this, use BigCommerce tools and themes to replicate the design of your previous shop (see examples).
- Integrate the extensions. BigCommerce makes it possible to choose and integrate third-party extensions. Pick those that refer to your web store niche and follow the instructions for their integration.
- Set up permalinks and SEO settings. Reconfigure your SEO settings on BigCommerce to maintain or improve your online store’s search engine rankings. Pay attention to URL structure, metadata and keyword optimization.
Thoroughly test your new BigCommerce store to ensure that everything functions as required. Test product listings, payment processing, checkout options and any integrated features to be able to detect and fix any bugs before going live. If everything is ok, publish the web store. Don’t forget to monitor its performance on a regular basis and contact the support team in case of any inquiries.
How to Transfer Own Domain Name from Volusion to BigCommerce
Moving web store entities from Volusion to BigCommerce is one essential part of the transfer process. Domain name migration is no less important. Here are the steps to undertake to make it a success:
- Unlock your domain. Access the domain management section or contact Volusion support team to unlock your domain before the transfer. Disable any domain privacy settings if they are enabled.
- Obtain an authorization code (EPP Code). As soon as the domain is unlocked, request the EPP (authorization) code that is needed to initiate the domain transfer process.
- Start the migration. Log in to your BigCommerce account and reach the domain management section. Click the Transfer tab, choose the domain from the displayed list, fill out the required transfer info (along with the EPP code) and then click the Transfer button. Wait until your domain will be transferred to BigCommerce.
- Confirm the transfer. Once the domain is successfully transferred, you will get a confirmation email you will need to activate. Volusion will also receive a notification of the transfer request and may contact you to confirm your intent to transfer the domain. Handle these issues with the Volusion team promptly to expedite the process.
- Update DNS settings. After the transfer is complete, log in to your BigCommerce account to update the DNS settings. This is needed to point the new domain to your BigCommerce store. You can find these settings in the domain management section. Wait for DNS changes to come into power. This may take up to 48 hours.
As soon as you make sure the domain has been successfully transferred, go ahead to cancel hosting with Volusion or the entire account.
Professional Volusion to BigCommerce Migration Services
It goes without saying that the procedure of migrating from Volusion to BigCommerce is not an easy one. This is especially true, when it concerns non-techies. There are lots of issues and steps to undertake to make it a success. If you feel that you are not ready to cope with the task on your own and need professional assistance, you may consider several solutions.
The first one is to use professional website migration services. There are many of them out there, each offering particular tools and solutions. The only notable disadvantage is that the prevailing amount of these systems are completely automated. As a result, some of the essential and special details of your business may be overlooked during and after the switch. This especially concerns those website entities that cannot be transferred automatically and, thus, require manual migration and individual approach. If you are afraid of such situations, it makes sense to hire the experts.
Website migration pros are not only aware of special nuances of both platforms, but they are also ready to stay in touch with you to figure out the required aspects as they emerge. They have practical experience and a portfolio of successfully moved projects to assure you that the result will be as expected. What’s important, they will be available even when the migration is complete to provide you with a piece of advice any time. Finally, they usually charge fixed rates for their services, which lets you stick to the planned budget.
The cost of hiring website migration experts differs with regard to multiple factors. However, the average price range is between $3000 and $7000. Quite expensive, indeed.
Bottom Line
Volusion and BigCommerce both work well for starting and running an online store. As your business evolves, the need to transfer from the simple Volusion platform to the more powerful and feature-laden BigCommerce software becomes obvious. This is where most users face challenges.
The migration process is not easy and it becomes even more complicated, if you are a beginner. There are several steps to complete in order to move your web store entities and the domain name. You also have to be twice attentive when checking SEO parameters to make sure your web store traffic and positions remain unchanged.
If that is a problem for you or you just don’t want to take a risk, go ahead to hire professional migration services. Yes, you will have to invest in this endeavor, but this will definitely pay off in the long run.
