Volusion seems to have filed for bankruptcy in Texas on July 29. This has some implications for Volusion users. Optimum7 wanted to cover what this means for you if you’re on Volusion and what this means for you if you are not on Volusion and are on a different system. (Volusion Migration)
If you are looking for the eCommerce Migration Checklist, download here.
The Volusion Review
Let’s talk about the people on Volusion. Should they be concerned?
Yes. Back in 2019, there was a gigantic data breach: over 200,000 credit cards stolen totaling around maybe $1.6 million is what they stole from those credit cards according to some hacker news. That right there was a red flag. The managers now say that they are filing for Chapter 11 now because of the hack’s aftermath. If you were on Volusion and you weren’t already considering leaving after that data breach, right now, start looking for another platform.
Optimum7 has been a partner of Volusion since 2007. They actually have a good system and many clients that make millions of dollars on the system. Yet the worst-case scenario is possible. Volusion is stating to their clients that they don’t have to worry and that this is a reorganization. Remain skeptical.
Store owners need to consider the hosting aspect and the partnerships that Volusion has. Are they going to be able to secure and maintain those partnerships moving forward in the future? No one really knows. That’s just another cause of concern is just the unforeseeable future.
At Optimum7 we’re partners with multiple systems out there. Of course, no specific system is perfect. The marketers work with BigCommerce, Shopify, SAP, Episerver, VTEX, and Magento.
Implications for eCommerce Busines Owners
What are the certain things that you need to mind with your platform or outside of it?
Many people run million-dollar operations on WooCommerce, Magento 1, Magento 2, or Magento Enterprise. They’re not hosted solutions like Volusion, BigCommerce, Shopify.
What would you say to these eCommerce owners?
eCommerce store owners need to understand that no system is one hundred percent perfect. At any point in time, any of these platforms could potentially be vulnerable to bankruptcy or hacking. Always have external backups. Do not rely on just one platform to house every part of your business
Optimum7 backs up the templates of our Volusion clients, as well as their databases. The developers have done this with BigCommerce and Shopify. If you’re a Magento or WooCommerce, make sure that you back up your database on a nightly basis.
How about for Volusion?
Many Volusion users have custom systems and integrations. The marketers would recommend performing a migration, to prepare for the worst-case scenario. The best-case scenario is that Volusion takes care of their bankruptcy issues. Then you can move on from this unpleasant situation. It is unclear, however, if that will happen.
Wide Range Of Selling Options
From a stability and scalability standpoint, what else can you do over the long period of time to not be dependent on one platform other than just taking a backup?
When it comes to finding additional revenue streams for your business, don’t rely on your eCommerce store alone. Optimum7 has clients that are selling across multiple marketplaces to diversify their revenue streams. If you’re only selling on your eCommerce store and it goes down, you’re not bringing in any revenue. The same will happen if you sell primarily on Amazon. Business owners need to pursue every single channel that they possibly can acquire.
What are the logistics of this?
In an ideal world, if all your products are on Volusion, the marketers should be able to move you within 7 to 10 days to another platform. The only way we could really do that is if you’re running a channel manager and if you have your inventory management system synced with your eCommerce store. Channeladvisor is one such system.
Without these integrations, it’s probably going to take you from two weeks to three months to migrate because the data structure, the formatting, and the options structure are different. You have custom functionality for upsells. These are called checkout upsells integrations that might have to be redone. Usually, the customer is too invested in Volusion if in this situation,
What do you say to people who are experiencing this specific problem?
You’ve invested that much in your eCommerce store but you’ve hit a ceiling. You’re not going to take that investment and see a return if you stay there. Invest in a migration, so you can now scale and finally start to see that return.
Figure out if you need to rebuild custom functionalities on other platforms. Sometimes the developer has to rebuild. Other eCommerce platforms have that custom functionality built-in natively. Weigh the pros and the cons from a cost standpoint as well. Optimum7 has been able to do it in a cost-effective manner. That takes some stress off the owners’ backs.
Always analyze if you need to migrate. Constantly research new platforms. Cover your eCommerce system and business. Take your backups and make sure that you’re meeting ideal benchmarks from a diversification standpoint before you become trapped.
Best Alternatives for Volusion: Shopify And BigCommerce
Some customers benefit from Volusion extensively. How do we convince them to migrate?
If you need to migrate, move to another hosted solution like BigCommerce or Shopify. The team doesn’t recommend Magento 2 or WooCommerce. Use incoming annual revenue to determine your choice. You might even need an enterprise-level solution to maybe take on the amount of custom functionality that you have.
If you’re doing over twenty million, you might want to go enterprise. Between one and five million in revenue, aim for BigCommerce or Shopify. BigCommerce has a convenient API while Shopify has a practical app store.
How about the price plans?
Project your costs before committing to a platform, especially out of pocket. Many people just look at the platform charge, but for example, the BigCommerce total out-of-pocket is going to be definitely lower than Shopify’s. You’re going to need 20 additional functionalities on Shopify from the app store, and BigCommerce might have most of those already.
If you have any questions about migration or which platform to migrate to please reach out to us. We also have a migration checklist that we have prepared. If you want this migration checklist, ask and we’ll be happy to provide this for you. Contact us or read more on Volusion Migration.
