Champs is one of the leaders in travel accessories. They supply luggage and travel accessories to major companies like Costco, Best Buy, TheBay and more. To improve their website and reach more customers online, they decided to redesign their website. We worked with them on the development of their site. The mandate was first to migrate their site from version 1.9 of Magento to version 2. Then, we had to redo the entire design. We put our expertise to work to help them achieve their goal. In addition, we have therefore developed the site under Magento 2 and made the site transactional.
Description of the Champs project
As mentioned in the introduction, the old Champs site was under Magento 1.9 and was not transactional. Indeed, the majority of their customers visited their site just for reference before placing the order. Over time, the need for customers to be more and more autonomous in the ordering process is increasingly felt. That's why Champs decided to add features to the site that should allow customers to order online. However, since Magento Version 1 will no longer be supported by the end of 2020, it was imperative to migrate to Version 2. As a new specification, we will need to:
- Create a new site in Magento 2
- Migrate content from old site to new
- Integrate third-party resources such as payment and delivery method
- Give the customer the possibility of accessing only information specific to his group.
The development of the Champs site is taking place in several phases. Here is a summary of the steps
1- Feasibility analysis
In this phase, it was a question of analyzing the customer's needs. Indeed, although the owner has his expectations, we are aware of the limitations of Magento and must consider them. During our discussions, we agreed on the tasks to be accomplished to finalize the project. We have also developed timelines to better move the project forward.
2 – Sitemap
Based on the current sitemap, we decided which URLs to keep or improve. When creating the sitemap, we took a long time to decide on the keywords to use and the structure of the URLs and sublinks.
3 – Design and design
The client's specifications allowed us to create a design adapted to their needs. We also examined the ergonomics of the site and the compatibility with browsers. Indeed, aware that a large number of visitors are on their mobile or tablet, setting up a site that corresponds to this target is essential.
4 – Integration of third-party resources
Once the development was done, we integrated payment and delivery modules and some marketing tools such as Mailchimp.
5 – Content migration
During this phase, it was important to transfer content from the old Champs website to the new site. We also kept some features from the old site. To be able to complete this task, we made use of the tool offered by Magento. Indeed, to allow users of their software to migrate from versions 1 to 2, Magento offers a tool called “Magento Data migration tool”. Using this tool, migrate content where some basic functionality is easy.
6 – Testing and validation
Once the project was completed, we proceeded to testing and validation. Together with the general manager of the company, we carried out a series of tests on the site to ensure that it was ready for production. Some of the tests performed are:
- Performance testing – To ensure that the site is fast enough and accessible on any browser.
- Usability Validation – We originally developed the site using Bootstrap. To ensure that all pages are compatible with any screen, we have validated the ergonomics of each page, thanks to the automation of tests.
- Browser compatibility
- Site Security Validation
- Other tests
7 – Deployment of the Champs website
Once we confirmed the site was close to production, we migrated to the field server. With the management team of Champs, we are committed to supporting them in the SEO aspect and maintenance of the site.
