Cloning a WordPress site is like duplicating it. When moving your site to a new hosting service, this is the first thing you do.
This process is not simple, especially for non-tech-savvy people.
Although it’s okay if it seems complex initially, making multiple mistakes during website migration can make things even more complex.
We’ll discuss about these common WordPress site cloning mistakes here, but before we dig into that, let’s first understand the term “ Website Cloning” and why we need it.
What is Website Cloning ?
Website cloning recreates the original site. It can be done manually or by using diverse site migration plugins. Regardless of the option you choose for WordPress website cloning, you can replicate your site without affecting the speed and performance of your original site.
Why do you need WordPress Website Cloning ?
If you are wondering why you might need to clone your WordPress site, here are a few reasons. Let’s check them out quickly-
- You can clone your website for a quick backup. If your WordPress website crashes, you can restore the original.
- Cloning is helpful when you want to test new applications. It will allow you to spot bugs or compatibility issues before adding them to your main site.
- To check your headless WordPress site’s front-end codes and frameworks regularly you can rely on cloned version. This helps prevent technical issues and provides a smooth website operation.
- Use the cloned site as a staging area. Developers can safely test changes before making them live to a broader audience.
- Before moving to a new server, assess support, performance, and potential issues by hosting the cloned version there. Double-check that you’re satisfied before moving your website and data to a new location.
Now it’s time to take a look at the top WordPress site cloning mistakes.
Top Mistakes to Avoid During Website Cloning
It’s crucial to be aware of common mistakes one can make during website cloning and smart ways to avoid them. So, we’ve highlighted the key WordPress migration mistakes below along with effective solutions to avoid them.
1. Overlooking the Importance of Backing Up Your Website Data
It might cause potential risks such as potential data loss, prolonged downtime, configuration challenges, and additional financial burdens.
When migrating your website from one host to another or one CMS platform to another, it’s essential to have a strong backup plan.
Follow these best practices for data backup:
- Make sure to back up all important data for your website to work properly. Create at least two copies. Store one in the cloud and the other locally. This helps to secure your process and also allows verification of the backup accuracy.
- Maintain a record of what was backed up and when. This will facilitate easy restoration to a specific point if necessary.
- (Most-Important) Protect personally identifiable information and transaction details by storing them in password-protected vaults.
2. Managing WordPress Site Cloning Independently
Migrating a website from one platform to another involves numerous complex steps, each with its own challenges.
During the migration process, it is important to ensure a smooth transfer of content that include articles and media. Also, prioritize safeguarding user data.
Accurately transferring SEO settings also plays a crucial role in maintaining the ranking. To replicate the functionality of the old site, meticulously configure WordPress migration plugins and themes to.
Here, adopting a DIY approach can result in a longer time duration, increased costs, and a higher risk of errors. Consider joining WordPress communities and forums, such as WordPress.org Support, for valuable insights and troubleshooting tips.
3. Essential Pre-Migration Planning for WordPress
Moreover, security and compliance issues might arise which further impact trust and operational integrity.
To efficiently manage these challenges, it’s crucial to craft a well-considered plan before considering the use of a WordPress migration plugin.
Start by defining clear migration goals. What do you aim to achieve by migrating to WordPress? Then, hire a dedicated WP team to handle various aspects of the WordPress site cloning.
4. Incomplete Post-Migration Testing
If you skip the post-migration testing phase, be ready to face various issues, such as a poor user experience, and increased costs. This can harm your business reputation. Make sure that everything functions as expected after migrating to WordPress.
Firstly, check the functionality. Access the payment gateways, test form submissions, and verify internal links.
Furthermore, address SEO concerns like checking URL redirects, validating meta tags, and confirming canonical tags.
For security, conduct thorough testing of login mechanisms, vulnerability scans, and SSL certificate verification.
Lastly, test the user experience (UX) by evaluating factors such as load times, mobile responsiveness, and the functionality of navigation menus.
This comprehensive checklist helps in identifying and resolving potential issues across critical aspects after the migration process.
5. Don’t’ Paying Attention to SEO and Mobile Optimization
You can do the following things to minimize SEO loss-
- Check old URLs properly redirect to new ones.
- Migrate meta tags, title tags, and other SEO-related tags accurately.
- Prioritize correct mapping of all content from the old site to the new one.
- Use a staging environment to reduce site downtime, which can impact SEO.
- Choose a mobile-responsive WordPress theme.
- Implement lazy loading for faster page loading and an improved mobile experience.
- Enable swipe gestures to make navigation easier for mobile users.
