If I were in your shoes, the very first thing I’d do is write a one-page document titled ‘Why are we doing this?’ and I wouldn't start any other work until that page is crystal clear. So much of the pain in replatforming comes from projects that are a solution in search of a problem, and this simple exercise prevents that.
I’d start here because, as James Gurd made the point on eCommerce MasterPlan, you absolutely need a compelling business case to get leadership aligned and prevent chaos later. In week one, I’d take that document and talk to every department head. What are the top three things that drive the customer service team crazy about the current site? What integration does marketing wish it had? What report does finance need? This isn't about features yet, it's about pain points. This gets to what the experts on another eCommerce MasterPlan episode called the need to define your 'destination' before you start the journey.
By month one, with that 'why' firmly established, the focus would shift to the 'how.' This is where I'd start mapping data flows. Where does customer, order, and product data actually live and how does it move between systems? This is a step people often skip, and it's a huge mistake. Amandeep Singh made a great point on Honest Ecommerce about simplifying your tech stack and avoiding needless complexity. You can’t simplify what you don’t understand. This is all about preparing a specific, needs-based shopping list for when you do finally start looking at platforms.
Throughout this process, I would completely ignore two things. First, any and all sales demos from platform vendors until my 'why' document is done. Their job is to sell you features, not to solve your specific business problem. Second, I'd ignore what my competitors are doing. Their reasons for choosing a platform might be totally different from mine.
The specific trap I'd be fanatical about avoiding is underestimating the total cost of ownership. It’s not just the platform license. It's the data migration, the integrations that need to be rebuilt, the team training, and the ongoing maintenance. What you think is a $50,000 project can easily become a $100,000 project, a lesson the host of The eCommerceFuel Podcast learned the hard way. A replatform isn't a website redesign, it's a business transformation project. It touches everything, and budgeting for what true operational efficiency looks like is the only way to save your sanity.
