6 reasons to upgrade to Magento 2
So, it’s official: all support for Magento 1 will end in June 2020.
This is big news for the world of digital, especially if you run an e-commerce site. If you’re still using Magento 1 as the basis for your e-commerce site by June of this year, you may well find it becomes a lot more costly and labour-intensive to manage. Most importantly, using outdated software can pose huge security risks, which can have a devastating impact on your brand’s reputation and bottom line.
So, to keep your e-commerce site running securely, smoothly and efficiently, now is the best time to start planning your migration to Magento 2. As well as providing enhanced security and support, Magento 2 can help you grow your business by improving order management, reducing admin, and increasing your conversions with the latest tools and technologies.
That’s the short version anyway – here’s a little more detail.
Security
We’ll start with one of the most important points – the security of your e-commerce site could be at risk if you delay migrating to a newer application.
In fact, industry statistics estimate 57% of sites hacked in the last two years were running outdated, unpatched software.These sorts of attacks can cost thousands of pounds worth of damage.
The damage your business may take following an attack may have devastating impacts resulting from a loss of revenue to reduced consumer trust in your brand. This could happen even if the attack doesn’t make headlines. It doesn’t end there, either, you may have to contend with GDPR-related fines on top!
We’ve explained the basics of the General Data Protection Regulation before, but there’s one particular detail that’s most relevant here. Namely, GDPR says that every business is responsible for managing, maintaining and protecting its own customer data.
This means that if a breach occurs, the business is regarded to be at least partially at fault, and receives a fine as a result. It might not seem fair, but it certainly underscores the importance of keeping your site secure.
Crucially, just like you, attackers know Magento 1 support will end in June — which means they’re likely to prey on stores that haven’t upgraded yet. Don’t be one of them!
Happily, making the switch to Magento 2 solves this problem. It’s proactively monitored and regularly updated with all of the latest patches and security advancements, making it the easiest way to ensure that your e-commerce shop stays safe and secure.
PCI compliance
As you’ll probably already know, if you process any transactions online, you must comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).
In a nutshell, PCI is a worldwide standard to help companies process card payments securely, helping to crack down on global card fraud. There are steep penalties for noncompliance, including fines that can run into the millions of pounds. In particularly severe cases, businesses can even lose the ability to process cards through an e-commerce store.
That’s all particularly important to bear in mind given the upcoming deadline – if you’re still running Magento 1 after June 2020, then according to global card issuers, you’ll no longer be automatically PCI compliant. The official position is that a Magento 1 patch created by anyone other than Adobe will not be sufficient to keep sites in line with PCI standards.
Since Adobe itself has no current plans for any further Magento 1 patches after June, a migration is the easiest way to ensure that your business stays compliant.
The new Magento 2 application is built using the very latest security architecture, and will be regularly updated to remain in compliance with PCI and other worldwide standards. So you can rest easy knowing the heavy lifting is done for you!
Innovative extensions
The Magento 2 developer community is booming and at the time of writing almost every single category of extensions has twice as many Magento 2 applications than Magento 1. This is great news for you, as it means that you will have a greater choice between the right tools to grow your business.
A few examples of innovative extensions include machine learning search, personalised email, loyalty programs, virtual fitting rooms, subscription sales, and even instalment-based payments.
All of these extensions are designed to boost your conversions by providing a tailored, enjoyable experience for your customers, keeping them coming back to your business time and again!
User-friendly CMS
Magento 2 has an incredibly user-friendly interface for store owners and administrators. Some of the most common criticisms of Magento 1 focused on the fact people often found it difficult to navigate — including some of our clients here at 21Digital!
The UX team who designed Magento 2’s new interface have addressed that concern with a sleek and intuitive CMS that’s supremely easy to use! For example, Magento 2 has a new “Marketing” tab to provide you with quick, instant access to promotions, user content, SEO and search, and communication tools (like email and newsletter templates).
Separately, the information grids for your products now come with thumbnails by default. This can make it easier to find individual products or items (particularly if you want to change or remove them from your site).
And if you can’t find the specific functionality for your Magento 2 store, don’t worry – there are plenty of extensions and customisations for you to choose from, so you’ve always got options!
Improved performance
The new Magento 2 application was designed with performance in mind, and is optimised for JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. It also makes efficient use of your browser cache for static assets (like your logo or banners) to improve page loading speeds — which are important for Google and search optimisation.
(In case you’re wondering, you can see how your store tracks by using the PageSpeed Insights tool.)
In short, Magento 2 offers better performance from day one, so you can focus your efforts into improving the customer experience and conversion rate on your site.
Sleek user experience
A simple two-step checkout process means that Magento 2 offers an improved customer experience right out of the box. In Magento 1, this journey could have been up to 5 separate pages! The new streamlined design allows customers to tell exactly what’s in their cart (along with a few product details about their pending purchases), all at just a quick glance.
It’s all part of making the experience more pleasant and convenient for customers – for example, by making it easier to avoid making accidental orders of unwanted items.
Magento 2 also offers improved payments in terms of security and expanded payment options. For example, the new application can help you improve conversions of specific large-ticket items by allowing customers to spread the cost across multiple payments. It also gives you a broad choice of payment gateways, including: ApplePay, GooglePay, Amazon, WorldPay, BrainTree, or even PayPal.
These are just a few of the many benefits Magento 2 provides – it’s a hugely flexible application that can be customised and tailored to your business objectives to help you get more sales. Don’t forget, though, that migrations typically take between 3 to 6 months to complete, so don’t hang around too long to start yours!
As soon as you’re ready to make the switch to Magento 2, our expert team at 21Digital is here to help. With decades of specialist experience behind us, we can do all the heavy lifting with planning, designing, and migrating your e-commerce business.
Our team can also provide you all of the technical support and advice you need, including helping you to research new extensions for your site – so you can focus on running your business!
To start planning your Magento 2 migration, book a FREE Kick-Start Call today!
