Migration FAQ

We typically recommend a three month migration timeline for the typical association build. This provides time for preparatory planning, necessary account configuration and build functions, plus training and launch readiness activities. The website and portal build follows an eight-week schedule that starts when your design work is formally initiated, not at your kickoff date. Core processes are built in four weekly sessions, one process area per week, followed by a validation month where your team reviews the work. See Your Website and Portal Build Timeline and Prepare for Your Core Process Build Sessions.

Our team guides the process and completes the work included in your agreement, such as the contracted number of website pages, forms, and products. Your team provides information, reviews work, participates in training, validates the finished processes, and approves the final data and launch. The contracted scope is confirmed during your kickoff meeting.

Have your agreement signed and initial set-up invoice paid, name a project lead, identify a small decision-making group, and note your hard deadlines, especially the renewal or termination date of your current software. Also start gathering logo files, brand guidelines, process notes, membership rules, and your domain and payment processing details. The full checklist is in Prepare for Your Migration.

Kickoff is a Zoom working session where we confirm target timing and immovable dates, the contracted scope, who provides input and who gives final approval, how to use the project workspace, the first materials and access our team needs, and timing for the core process build sessions. Right after the session, send access to non-public website areas, an initial data export or sample, your directory field decisions, representative email and certificate examples, and session attendee names. Details are in Your Migration Kickoff Meeting.

Keep all project communication in Outlign, your project management workspace, so feedback, decisions, source files, and questions stay in one place. Email is easy to lose and difficult for a project team to track.

Data moves in two passes: an early sample export so we can plan the mapping, then a final file due one week before go live. The final file should be CSV, with one contact per row and one field per column with a clear header, no merged cells or decorative headings, a unique email address per contact whenever possible, and dates in a consistent format. Full requirements are in Prepare Your Member Data for Import.

Your organization remains responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the information supplied for import. We assist with formatting and mapping, and your team approves the final data before launch. Report any discrepancies to us before member invitations are issued.

Members who joined after the data was exported are not in the final import, so add them with complete details: membership type, status, join date, renewal date, and your other membership fields. For renewals, build lists of unpaid renewals from the old system and members near renewal who will miss the normal reminder sequence, then send both groups a direct renewal link and reconcile payments after launch. See Transition Members After Launch.

A brief period of downtime is normal. It may last a few minutes or, in some cases, a couple of hours depending on your domain settings. Temporary security warnings may appear while the SSL certificate finishes installing, and domain changes can appear at different times for different people and networks. Once the switch happens, the old site becomes completely inaccessible from your organization's domain, so confirm an alternate administrative URL for your previous platform before launch day if you still need access. Details are in Publish Your New Website on Launch Day.

Portal invitations are typically sent after the site is stable, often the following day, and we issue them when you tell us you are ready. Access is typically based on membership type and status, with additional groups controlled by tags or other agreed rules, so accurate contact data is essential before invitations go out.

Training Lab offers live, instructor-led sessions on four rotating topics: Website Editing, Portal Management, Contacts & Communications, and Forms & Automations. Each topic is offered twice per month, you can complete topics in any order, send as many administrators as you like, and repeat any session. Upcoming dates are at journeycare.app/training.

Report a deviation from what was agreed in a build session through Outlign so our team can address it. For new ideas and desired improvements, make the adjustment with the support of Training Lab or Office Hours. Guidance on validating your build is in Get Your Team Ready to Launch.

Four options, matched to your question:

• Help Center: quick lookup in online documentation plus AI-powered assistance, available 24/7 at help.journeycare.app.

• Help Desk: quick how-to questions, typical response within 2 hours. Email [email protected] Monday-Friday, 8 am-5 pm US Central, and include URGENT in the subject line if you need immediate assistance.

• Daily Office Hours: strategy questions or problems that are easiest to solve while sharing your screen. Monday-Friday, 1-2 pm US Central, register at journeycare.app/officehours.

• Training Lab: gain familiarity with a core feature, four rotating topics each offered at least twice per month. Schedule at journeycare.app/training.

The full rundown is in Get Support After Your Launch.