Start with your business needs. Then plan the platform, the budget and the move.
Before moving your jewelry website to Shopify, identify what is going wrong today, what the new store should improve and what you can spend to run it.
At TransPacific Software, our client conversations begin with these questions. For jewellers, diamond dealers and traders upgrading an existing store, the most useful starting point is simple: “Why do you want to move?”
What is frustrating you about your current website?
If your store runs on Magento, I first want to understand the difficulty:
- Does it go down, show errors or load slowly?
- Are server problems and upgrade bills becoming frequent?
- Is adding products or changing prices too complicated?
- Do small changes require a developer?
- Are mobile visitors struggling to browse or enquire?
In one client exchange, an older Magento store needed work across its server, operating system, platform and plugins. Restoring it involved more than a quick fix. That prompted a discussion about moving.
This does not mean every Magento store needs replacing. We should compare repairing the existing website with migrating.
What should the new Shopify store improve?
Describe the daily tasks you want to make easier. Our discovery correspondence asks clients to clarify requirements before we finalise the scope.
Do you want simpler product updates, better mobile browsing, more enquiries or easier order management? Do you sell to consumers, trade buyers, or both?
Then explain how customers buy: immediate payment, quotation, consultation or deposit. One client’s requirements combined ready-to-sell jewelry, made-to-order pieces and a deposit-based custom purchase journey. Each needed planning.
Our trade discussions have also included clarifying pricing for different buyer groups. Agree these expectations early so the finished store can be checked against them.
What are you buying into?
Shopify combines a store platform, a theme and optional apps. The theme shapes the appearance; apps add functions.
Hosting is included, so you generally do not manage a separate storefront server. Custom integrations may still need separate infrastructure. Compare the Shopify plans available in your market.
In our client discussions, we explain that jewelry-specific requirements may need apps or custom development. Apps can charge monthly, once or by usage; see Shopify’s app guidance.
There are restrictions, too. Some advanced checkout changes require Shopify Plus, as explained in Shopify’s checkout guidance. Ask which requirements fit your proposed plan before committing.
What will it cost to build and run?Our discovery emails raise app costs early. Ask for a budget covering:
| Cost | What to include |
|---|---|
| Initial work | Design, migration, custom tools and testing |
| Recurring services | Shopify plan, apps and supplier feeds |
| Payments | Processing and applicable transaction fees |
| Support | Updates, integration maintenance and assistance |
Rates depend on your plan, provider and country. On a $10,000 sale, an additional 1% is $100. Ask what every proposed app does and whether it is needed at launch.
Which products and features must stay?
Prepare a “must keep” list. Our client emails ask about diamond feeds, ring, pendant and earring builders, custom forms and menu structure.
Where does stock information come from? Should shoppers choose a diamond and then a setting? Do you need personalization or trade pricing? Our Shopify ring builder overview can help frame the conversation.
Moving product data does not automatically recreate custom tools. Agree which customer records, orders, reviews and useful pages should transfer, too.
In one catalog preparation assignment, our report identified missing metal colours, prices and duplicate product codes. We left unknown colours unresolved rather than guessing. Review sample products with someone who knows the merchandise before approving the full import.
How do we preserve SEO and plan 301 redirects?
SEO preservation means helping customers and search engines find the right pages after the move. Our TPS launch checklist makes URL mapping, content checks and monitoring part of the migration plan.
A. Record what you have before changing itExport product, collection, blog and information-page addresses. Combine a website crawl with the existing sitemap, Google Search Console and analytics. Identify pages attracting visits, enquiries and external links. Save current performance and a full backup.
B. Build a page-by-page 301 mapA 301 redirect is a permanent forwarding instruction from an old address to its replacement. Prepare a spreadsheet with the old URL, new URL, page type, priority, owner and test result. Match the customer’s original intent.
/rings/oval-solitaire.html301 →/products/oval-solitaire-ring
The same product, at its new address.
Map products to equivalent products and collections to equivalent collections. Do not send everything to the homepage. For retired content, use a genuinely relevant replacement; without one, return a proper “not found” response rather than an unrelated redirect.
C. Check Shopify’s redirect limitations earlyShopify redirects generally work from URLs that no longer serve a valid page. Reserved paths and query strings can cause problems. Ask your developer to test representative old Magento addresses and agree how exceptions will be handled. A CSV import is not proof that every redirect works. See Shopify’s redirect documentation.
D. Preserve useful content and page informationCarry over valuable descriptions, guides, titles, headings and image descriptions. Check product information used by search engines, including price, availability and genuine reviews. Update menu links and links within content to the final URLs.
Our launch checklist also checks canonical tags—the preferred page addresses—and removes accidental search-blocking settings before launch. Keep important content accessible on mobile.
E. Test before launch and again on the live storeCheck the complete map: each planned redirect should go directly to the correct working page. Record failures, loops and unnecessary intermediate stops. Prioritise high-traffic pages, but account for every mapped URL.
Confirm new pages can be indexed and the sitemap contains the intended URLs. Submit it in Search Console. A domain change may require Google’s Change of Address process; a platform switch on the same domain does not.
F. Keep monitoring after the switchCompare traffic, enquiries and important landing pages with your baseline. Review indexing and missing-page reports, fix gaps and record who owns each issue. Investigate drops rather than assuming redirects are the only cause.
Google advises keeping redirects for at least a year, and longer where useful. Rankings can fluctuate while pages are reprocessed. Its site-move guidance supports careful planning, not a promise of unchanged rankings.
How will we know the new store is ready?
Our launch documents include trial imports, data checks, client approval and a planned changeover. Test purchases, payment confirmation, refunds, shipping, product choices and enquiry delivery.
I want the team to follow a complete customer journey on a phone, then confirm the order or enquiry reaches the right place. Agree training and post-launch support so your team knows how to manage the store and report problems.
Questions to bring to the first meeting
Will Shopify solve every existing problem?No. Identify each cause and show how the proposed setup addresses it. Product information, design and support still matter.
Can we keep our design and custom features?List what matters. Our planning reviews functions individually: some can be recreated; others need an agreed alternative.
What should I prepare?Bring your website address, three frustrations, expectations, sample products, essential features and an approximate setup and monthly budget.
Explore our jewelry Shopify migration service, or talk to TransPacific Software about whether Shopify fits your business.