13 reasons to upgrade to Magento 2

Magento does not support Magento 1 anymore since the 1st of June 2020. On the official Magento blog, you can read that the time has come to upgrade to Magento 2: ‘‘While we’re committed to supporting the success of all merchants, the time to upgrade to Magento Commerce 2 is now. ’’

Read more about what to pay attention to when switching from Magento 1 to Magento 2➡

Although there are still possibilities to keep running on Magento 1, we would recommend you to switch to Magento 2 when you are ready to go.

Think carefully about the impact from an upgrade like this and collect advice from experts to substantiate your decision.

Hipex collaborates with the best Magento development agencies that can provide you with clear advice, these agencies have already completed Magento 2 migrations successfully several times.

Although the support and security updates will be maintained, the speed of this will become slower and slower through the time.

This increases the need to switch to Magento 2.

Don’t despair

You don’t need to despair, because many online stores switched to Magento 2 successfully in the last few years, and this number grows every day. The popularity of the successful open source platform (that was acquired by Adobe) can be seen when looking at Google Trends.

The interest in Magento 2 has increased constantly for 2 years now:

We also plead for a switch to Magento 2. Not only because Magento 1 is phased out, but also because Magento 2 offers a lot of advantages over the previous version, Magento 1.

Below you can read 13 reasons why you should upgrade to Magento 2:

1. More and more extensions available

Although the range of Magento 1 plugins still exceeds the range of Magento 2 plugins, this is not expected to last long. Not so long ago it was sometimes quite a search for the right Magento 2 plugin, but that is now a thing of the past.

Whether you are looking for an SEO plugin, Blog plugin, Layered Navigation, or an Abandonment Cart plugin: you can now choose from a large number of providers. One of the most famous Magento 2 plugin developers is probably Amasty. Take a look at the Amasty website for some nice plugins.

2. Magento 2 Visual Design Editor

If you do not have a permanent developer at your disposal or if you do not want to incur a lot of costs for a freelancer, then the Visual Design Editor of Magento 2 is a real solution.

The VDE is a page builder that is simple to use and works with drag & drop, for example. This way you make adjustments to a theme a lot easier.

Please note: this feature is currently only available for Magento Commerce.

3. Responsiveness

In times when Google considers the use of mobile more and more important and has even switched to a "Mobile first index", it is a must that your own environment is also mobile friendly. And that is Magento 2. Mobile ready! In concrete terms, this means that the basic theme of Magento 2 is responsive, but other developed themes are also responsive.

You are therefore less dependent on a developer to make the design of your shop responsive. With this we do not argue for the fact that you do not have to worry about anything anymore, because keeping a website or online store responsive is an art in itself.

4. Improved speed

Speed ​​has been our greatest core value since our foundation. We think it's cool that Magento 2 is delivered a lot faster by default than its predecessor.

For example, the server load has been reduced considerably by, for example, making smart use of Varnish and the configuration thereof has been greatly simplified. Varnish is a powerful tool that can be widely used.

Consider, for example, load balancing, firewalls, file compressions, cookie management, etc. Another clear speed improvement has been made by Magento 2 by minimizing and combining JavaScript, enabling Image compression directly on the server instead of manually and a better process. for browser caching for static content.

Everywhere we can say that Magento 2 is by default 20% faster than Magento 1.

5. Better User Interface

A point that is not entirely unimportant:

Magento 1's outdated admin panel really needed an update.

To begin with, the look and feel has really improved enormously, which makes working a lot more pleasant. Navigation is simplified and specific parts are simpler and can be found within a few clicks.

Where it was difficult for online store administrators or other admins in Magento 1 to navigate between sections such as system configuration, catalog, products and reports, this has been made a lot easier in Magento 2.

Take-away: do you prefer not to contact your developers too often (they are always busy 😉) if you want to remove or add a new column in the order and contact management screen? Magento 2 is a great solution for this.

What then?: You can do it yourself! Add the desired columns yourself from the available options and adjust the screen to your liking.

Our advice: Ask Hipex to prepare a Magento 2 installation for you so that you can click around and get acquainted in an accessible manner.

6. Advanced CMS Content Interface

"What you see is what you get" (WYSIWYG) editors aren't always the most user-friendly online tools. Fortunately, this has been well thought out in Magento 2.

The improved version than the Magento 1 variant feels a lot nicer to use and really makes it easier to produce content that looks good.

7. Update of file structure

For many web builders involved in developing custom themes, this is a very nice improvement over Magento 1.

Unlike Magento 1, in Magento 2 each module has its own view directory in which you can call up other files from other modules.

Super nice of course because now you can easily call up less, template and, for example, javascript files. Working with blocks, views and templates has become a lot easier!

8. Security updates!

We could also have put this point at the very top, because security is not only for us, but should have top priority for every online store owner or developer.

Due to the popularity of Magento 1 and the fact that support for it is going to decrease, a lot of Magento 1 shops can be targeted by hackers. Obviously this is not desirable and you must prevent this at all times.

It is still possible to secure your shop yourself, but general bugs / leaks will be picked up less quickly by the community because there will be fewer and fewer Magento 1 shops. In addition, this means sky-high development costs and extra time.

In the meantime, you are also not sure whether a leak will not be found by hackers the next day.

Another important security argument is the fact that Magento has introduced the new "pub" folder. This pub folder ensures that the entire root is no longer so easy to access and is therefore easier to secure.

9. Easier integrations

One of the most powerful functionalities of Magento is that you can seamlessly integrate other software (ERP, CRM stock management, etc.) into your Magento store. The simpler integration options are mainly due to a better API. A lot more attention has been paid to the API, making it easier and better to use.

10. Automatic testing

Running tests was not an easy task in Magento 1. Fortunately, attention was paid to this during the introduction of Magento 2. Because testing your software is important.

Thanks to the built-in test framework, you can now automatically perform tests in Magento 2. Regardless of site, size or complexity: automatic testing is an option!

More information about testing in Magento can be found here: https://devdocs.magento.com/guides/v2.0/test/testing.html

11. Improved check-out

The fact that the check-out runs smoothly is a no-brainer for every web shop owner. After all, no or few orders without a good checkout. Magento has made the checkout in version 2 a lot better.

Out of the box, it is easier to use by the visitor to your shop. checkout is enabled by default for customers without an account and automatically recognizes registered visitors by his or her email address.

Registering after the checkout process is also an option and a lot simpler than in Magento 1. The faster checkout in Magento 2 by using AJAX request, among other things, ensures fewer premature shopping cart abandonments!

12. Easily upload products

Magento 2 makes creating new products a lot easier by being able to upload via a simple step-by-step upload process.

With this new step-by-step method you can add products to your shop faster and more accurately. This tool makes adding products up to 4 times faster in Magento 2.

13. Better search functionality

The standard search functionality of Magento 2 has really gotten a lot better. Visitors find products faster and more efficiently. The standard search functionality now includes the popular ElasticSearch technology (enterprise edition).

Configuring and customizing ElasticSearch is easier, faster and results in better search results and lower development costs.

Are you ready for the step to Magento 2?

The time is right to upgrade (or switch) to Magento 2. Magento 2 is faster, better and more secure for both administrators and visitors.

Not ready for the switch yet?

You can, but keep in mind the approaching deadline in which support for Magento 1 will end.

Do you need help with the migration or do you want advice whether Magento 2 is the right platform for you? Please contact us so that we can help you make the right choice!