Onboarding Timeline: What Happens When
Getting started with Zipper typically takes 2–4 weeks depending on the complexity of your data and website migration. Your setup is broken into four phases, and a Zipper onboarding specialist guides you through each one.
Phase 1: Account Setup
Goal: Connect your payment system and get billing ready.
| Task | Who does it |
|---|---|
| Connect your Stripe account | You (guided setup) |
| Verify your sender email address | You |
| Activate your payment gateway | Automatic after Stripe connects |
| Configure failed invoice recovery | Zipper team |
Typical timeline: 1–3 days What you need to do: Connect Stripe and verify your email.
Phase 2: Data & Website
Goal: Import your members, set up your domain, and migrate your website.
| Task | Who does it |
|---|---|
| Import member data from your old platform | You (fill out templates) + Zipper team (runs import) |
| Connect your custom domain | You (add DNS records) |
| Validate DNS/email settings (DKIM, DMARC, SPF) | Automatic after DNS is set |
| Request PAN transfer (card data from old platform) | You (contact old platform) |
| Complete PAN transfer | Stripe migration team (2–4 weeks) |
| Migrate your website to Zipper | Zipper team |
Typical timeline: 1–2 weeks What you need to do: Fill out import templates, add DNS records to your domain registrar, and contact your old platform to request card data release.
Phase 3: Go-Live Prep
Goal: Connect marketing channels and prepare your members for the switch.
| Task | Who does it |
|---|---|
| Connect Google Business Profile | You |
| Connect Meta (Facebook/Instagram) | You |
| Upload your newsletter contact list | You |
| Complete go-live readiness call | You + Zipper team |
| Send migration announcement email to members | You (Zipper provides a template) |
Typical timeline: 3–5 days What you need to do: Connect your social profiles, upload contacts, and attend the readiness call with your Zipper rep.
Phase 4: Launch
Goal: Go live.
| Task | Who does it |
|---|---|
| Confirm your go-live date | You |
| Switch old platform traffic to Zipper | You (on launch day) |
Typical timeline: 1 day (launch day) What you need to do: Follow the launch day checklist. See: How to Remove Your Old Booking Platform on Launch Day and Launch Day: Testing the Customer Booking Flow.
How to Check Your Progress
- Navigate to: Settings > Onboarding (if visible)
- Or ask your onboarding rep — they track your phase status and can tell you exactly what’s left
Tips
- The PAN transfer is the longest step: Start it early in Phase 2. It typically takes 2–4 weeks after your old platform releases the data to Stripe.
- You don’t have to wait for PAN transfer to launch: You can go live and handle subscriptions after transfer completes. Members without transferred cards can re-enter their payment info via a claim link.
- Your onboarding rep is your guide: They’ll prompt you for each task. You don’t need to track all of this yourself.
Troubleshooting
I’m stuck on DNS validation. DNS changes can take up to 24–48 hours to propagate. If it’s been longer, check your domain registrar to confirm the records were saved correctly. Your Zipper rep can verify the required values.
The import is taking longer than expected. Large data imports (1,000+ members, complex subscription data) can take several business days. Check in with your rep if it’s been more than 3 business days.
Need a hand?
Email our team at support@joinzipper.com and we'll usually reply within a few hours.
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