Every migration project generates the same internal questions. Some questions come from the e-commerce team, finance or the CEO and all of them deserve honest answers.

Here are the questions we hear most often, answered the way we'd answer them in a room.

How long will the migration actually take?

Longer than the timeline someone first mentioned. A straightforward migration with standard products, basic integrations and no subscriptions typically takes 8-12 weeks from kick-off to go-live.

A complex migration including:

• Subscriptions
• Multiple integrations
• Custom functionality
• Multi-market setups

Can take 16-24 weeks. The timeline most often underestimates 3 things: SEO redirect planning, integration testing in staging and team training. If you're being quoted 4-6 weeks for a complex migration, ask what's being neglected.

Will we lose our SEO rankings?

You'll see a temporary impact and that's normal. With a properly executed redirect strategy, every old URL mapped to its new equivalent, tested before launch, most brands recover organic traffic within 4-8 weeks.

Permanent SEO damage comes from poor redirect planning. Missing redirects, redirect chains and lost metadata cause lasting ranking drops. The redirect plan should be built in the first 2 weeks of the project, not the last 2.

What happens if something goes wrong on launch day?

Something will need attention. Not necessarily a crisis, but there will be adjustments in the first 24-48 hours. The difference between a smooth launch and a chaotic one isn't whether issues occur - it's whether they were planned for.

A launch plan should cover:

• Who's monitoring what
• How issues get reported and prioritized
• What triggers a rollback

The ones that matter are payment processing issues, broken checkout flows, and integration failures affecting order fulfilment.

Will our customers notice the change?

They shouldn't notice anything negative. Things customers sometimes notice may be: URL changes they've bookmarked, a different subscription portal experience or saved carts that don't transfer.

For subscription customers, any change to billing schedule or portal experience should be communicated in advance. A brief, honest email explaining what's changing goes a long way.

How much will it cost?

Migration cost is driven by complexity, not product count.

The main factors:

• Number of integrations
• Whether subscriptions are involved
• Custom functionality
• SEO redirect complexity
• Design requirements

The more specific your brief, the more accurate the estimate.

Can we do it ourselves?

Parts of it. Product imports, content creation, basic theme configuration and team training can all be handled internally.

The technical parts like redirect mapping at scale, integration rebuilds, subscription migration, and proper testing, do require experience. The most common approach is a development partner handling the technical migration while the internal team manages content preparation and data review.

Should we redesign at the same time?

Usually it’s a no. A migration and redesign together is harder to test as you can't isolate whether an issue is a migration problem or a design problem.

The better approach: Migrate first onto a theme close to your current experience. Get the store stable and the team comfortable, then plan the redesign as a separate project.

The exception is if your current design is actively hurting conversion, in that case, combining can make sense, but go in with clear expectations on timeline and complexity.

What about our data?

Product data, customer data and order history will transfer over. What sometimes doesn't:

• Custom meta fields without direct Shopify equivalents
• Some discount code structures
• Gift card balances

Shopify admin analytics will start fresh, though your existing analytics platforms retain historical data.

Subscription data is the most complex to migrate and should be treated as its own work stream with its own testing plan.

When's the best time to migrate?

During a quiet trading period, Q1 or early Q2 for most brands. This gives you time to stabilize the store and resolve post-launch issues before peak trading season.

Avoid migrating in the three months before your busiest period. If your business doesn't have strong seasonal patterns, the best time is whenever you can commit the internal resources needed.

If you're considering a migration and have questions we haven't covered here, we're happy to talk through any specifics.

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