Tempering Drupal: How Enterprise can Smoothly Migrate to WordPress

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Tempering Drupal: How Enterprise can Smoothly Migrate to WordPress

Content management systems serve as the lifeblood of digital enterprises today, propelling their digital transformation and defining their online presence. With a variety of CMS platforms to choose from, selecting the right one becomes an undertaking of critical importance.

As organizations seek to overcome the challenges of using Drupal, many enterprises are migrating from Drupal to WordPress.

Drupal and WordPress, two heavyweights in the world of enterprise CMS platforms, both bring their unique features and capabilities to the table. While Drupal has been a preferred choice for many organizations over the years, WordPress has emerged as it’s biggest contender.

Transitioning from one to another is not always a seamless journey.

Explore why so many enterprise and large brands use Drupal, and find out why so many are switching to WordPress. For your organization, find out what it takes for a smooth transition between the two platforms.

WordPress increasingly popular for Enterprise

Meet WordPress, originally just a basic blogging platform, it has grown into a toolset that can be used to build anything. Dive deeper into why enterprises are setting their sights on this powerful CMS.

One of the most compelling reasons why WordPress is catching the attention of enterprise: its ease-of-use. Unlike Drupal, WordPress offers an intuitive interface and dashboard that non-technical users navigate comfortably.

In 2023, we saw WordPress market-share hold steady, and that trend is continued into 2024. For Drupal, the opposite: continued abandonment from organizations for any of the other popular Drupal alternative platforms, including WordPress, Ghost, Nextjs-based, and others.

Prepping for your migration

Migrating your enterprise website from Drupal to WordPress, for most organizations, isn’t a simple change.

A thorough audit of your current Drupal infrastructure will provide insights into its performance and stability. Is it meeting your business needs adequately or are there recurring issues that hamper functionality or user experience? Are there elements that you want to retain during the migration?

An objective evaluation of these factors will aid in constructing a clear vision for the new WordPress site.

Assessing the feasibility of migration your website

The initial stage involves a broad-scope analysis. Analyze your current Drupal website, and assess whether migrating to WordPress would yield significant benefits.

Consider factors such as the complexity of your existing website, the quantity and type of content, custom modules used in Drupal, and whether similar functionality is available in WordPress. Discuss this analysis with key stakeholders to ensure a collective understanding and agreement about the necessity and potential benefits of the migration.

This preliminary step in the migration process gauges whether your enterprise’s existing digital infrastructure and data can be efficiently transferred to WordPress. In essence, it’s about understanding the compatibility between your current Drupal version, data structure, extensions used, and the corresponding WordPress system.

Most organizations should consider professional assistance with a migration feasibility study to obtain an accurate picture of the scope and complexity of their migration project.

Making the switch can be critical for your organization

Whether it’s improved site performance, enhanced user experience, simplified content management, or more extensive integration capabilities, your organization should have the tools and platform to achieve these goals.

Defining your objectives for the WordPress website, and clearly articulating the specific needs, wishes, and overall goals will guide the migration process and help you stay on track throughout the move.

A pre-migration checklist

As you prepare for migration, remember that foresight and meticulous planning can save you from potential roadblocks and ensure a smooth transition.

Now that you have your feasibility study results and have taken a detailed evaluation of your Drupal setup, it’s time to develop a detailed pre-migration checklist.

The objective is to have an action plan in place that clearly defines what needs to be done before, during, and after the migration process. This ensures the smooth transition from Drupal to WordPress while minimizing any disruption to your business operations.

Having adequately prepped for migration, your organization can move forward with a clearer sense of direction, ultimately setting the stage for a successful Drupal to WordPress transition.

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About the Author

Katrina Pfitzner

Katrina Pfitzner

Katrina is a developer, designer, author, and thought leader on topics including Drupal and Website Migration and WordPress. For more from Katrina, find her on twitter and follow her on medium.

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Katrina Pfitzner

Katrina Pfitzner

Katrina is a developer, designer, author, and thought leader.

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