Temporary downtime on PA Wilds Marketplace website as upgrades are made
The PA Wilds Marketplace at ShopThePAWilds.com will have a temporary downtime on Monday evening (February 20, 2023) as we make upgrades to the website.
This website outage is expected to take about 6 hours as the MakerPlace team works to improve the ShopThePAWilds.com website. Although we know website downtime can be frustrating, please know that this is a planned outage that is necessary to enhance the platform, making it better for customers and sellers alike!
What’s the upgrade about?
The upgrade will provide the latest version of Adobe Commerce and give us three years before another upgrade is needed (outside of security patches). Not only are we upgrading Magento, but we are upgrading to the latest version of all extensions that we currently use on the site, including the help desk, payment processors, promotions manager, site navigation, and the blog.
Here’s a quick summary of what the upgrade will include:
Latest version of Adobe Commerce
Important Security & Performance enhancements
Latest versions of all extensions used on the marketplace
AI-powered Live Search function
Inventory integration with Shopify
This upgrade will also lay the foundation for many exciting upgrades/features in the future, such as AI Product Recommendations and more!
How does this benefit PA Wilds Marketplace storefronts?
First and foremost, this upgrade provides enhanced security, with new technology that helps keep customer and seller information safe. The upgrade also improves the functionality of the platform, enabling more orders to be processed at a faster rate. The enhancements are a benefit to both you as a seller and for your customers, allowing for more intuitive browsing, searching, shopping and ordering of products.
What should PA Wilds Marketplace sellers do to prepare for Monday evening’s planned website downtime?
This planned temporary website downtime means that the PA Wilds Marketplace will be inaccessible to both sellers and customers during that time. You’re encouraged to refrain from posting any new links to ShopThePAWilds.com on your social media pages or elsewhere until the PA Wilds Marketplace is back up and running, likely Tuesday afternoon. In the meantime, there are no extra steps or precautions you need to take during the downtime. Your information, products and storefront will still be accessible after the update is completed. Once the PA Wilds Marketplace is upgraded and the website is back online, please let us know as soon as possible if you find any bugs or issues.
Not a seller on the PA Wilds Marketplace yet?
These new improvements to the ShopThePAWilds.com website mean that the platform is ready for even more Wilds Cooperative artisans to join the PA Wilds Marketplace! Makers can apply to be considered for joining thePA Wilds Marketplace, and they must be invited to be listed as one of the storefronts. Sellers run their online storefront, adding products and shipping orders… all while only giving a 15% commission to support website operating fees and the PA Wilds Center’s mission. That’s less than most other online platforms, meaning PA Wilds entrepreneurs keep more revenue for themselves! Interested in joining the PA Wilds Marketplace? Fill out the interest form at shopthepawilds.com/sell-on-pawilds.
Questions and concerns
If you have any comments, questions or concerns, please reach out to Megan Steele (PA Wilds Marketplace Manager) at msteele@pawildscenter.org. In addition to any questions you might have about the temporary website downtime, you are encouraged to email any general questions about your PA Wilds Marketplace storefront and how to best utilize the platform.
