A few years ago, my family and I moved into a brand-new home. As I sat in my cozy living room the other night, I started thinking about how much work went into getting here.
We spent a lot of time thinking about our ideal home, one we’d want to live in till our older kids graduated from high school. We listed everything we wanted in a house, determined our budget, then went on the hunt. After looking at what felt like dozens of houses, we found “The One” – the house our family could call home for years to come.
Then it was time to move! We divided our belongings into four categories: “keep,” “sell,” “donate” and “toss,” packing only what we decided to keep. We hired movers, took measurements and planned out our home upgrades. It was a lot of work, but we have enjoyed the benefits of it! I’m sure many of you can relate to this experience of deciding what is important, what has to go, and what has to be stored. Upgrading your marketing automation platform to Oracle Eloqua is very much like moving into a new home. Rest assured that you’re making the right decision – so congratulations! With proper planning and preparation, you can move your existing assets and campaigns with ease.
Some Marketing Automation Platforms are easier to migrate away from than others, but with the right plan and guidance, nothing will get broken (unlike my sand ceremony vase from my wedding. I’m still traumatized). Here’s a step-by-step guide to plan your migration to Eloqua:
1. Take inventory. Just like our sorting process for our seemingly endless piles of belongings, it’s important to take inventory of everything in your existing MAP no matter how much is there. Identify which of your items you would like to move over into Eloqua and which ones you can eventually scrap.
2. Archive key assets you may need later. Even though you might not be taking them with you, archive historical assets that you might need to help you recreate things later. Archiving can be as simple as taking a screenshot or saving code to a text file. When considering what to archive, take stock of the following:
• HTML
• Old emails
• Landing pages
• Campaign workflows
• Form submission data
• Reports
3. Plan your move. Now it’s time to measure the metaphorical rooms in your new Eloqua database. Working with your implementation partner, create a plan for configuring your new database. Things will be different in Eloqua, so it may take some getting used to. Using the moving home analogy, when I moved, we decided to put pieces of furniture that once occupied multiple rooms in our old home all into our new den. The move to Eloqua will feel like that: What was once four or five campaigns in your old MAP may become just one single campaign in Eloqua (and isn’t that a bonus? To have everything under one asset?).
4. Allow for extra time. We waited to turn in the keys to our old place until all of our old stuff was completely cleaned out and the belongings we deemed “keep” were completely packed. We did not want to be rushed and end up throwing stuff into garbage bags just to get it out of the way. We intentionally added time to our moving schedule just to be 100% sure about what we were taking. The extra effort was worth it even though it delayed the closing just a little. Your migration to Eloqua should work the same way: Keep your current MAP online until you’re comfortably moved into your new Eloqua database. Allow at least three weeks between your Eloqua go-live date and the contract end date of your old MAP… just in case.
5. Allow for proper testing during the move. Work with your implementation partner to determine the ideal time to start moving your old assets and campaigns over from the old MAP to the new. Start early enough to ensure you have enough time to properly test your data in the new system. This will ensure a seamless process and save you the time and effort it will take to build something new without really learning the ropes.
6. Set a cut-off date. Decide on a date to begin building new assets and campaigns in Eloqua and end campaigns in your old MAP. This is especially important if you have web forms, a CRM, or other systems integrated with your old MAP. Migrating these assets will take time and you must make sure this is done accurately so that you don’t waste time cleaning up bad data or fixing a malfunctioning web form.
Your migration will take dedication, time and precise planning. While these steps take a significant amount of effort, it will be well worth it. Eloqua is a Marketing Automation Platform that you grow into and never out of. This will be the last time you need to “move” your MAP!
Want to make sure you stay organized and on task during your move to Eloqua? Download our migration planning workbook. It’s the perfect companion to the planning process, helping you take inventory of what you can “keep,” “sell,” “donate,” or “toss”.
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