{"id":136,"slug":"rule-treat-no-export-as-hostage-situation","title":"RULE: A platform that cannot produce a clean export today is a hostage situation. Treat it as such.","kind":"rule","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","claude-code","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["agency-methodology","platform-lock-in","data-portability"],"reference_body":"**Rule:** When evaluating a platform / vendor / agency for a Candid client, the **empirical test** is: *can the client get a clean, working export of their content and data today, without vendor cooperation?* If the answer is no, classify the situation as **hostage in slow motion** — there will be a forced migration event, and the cost will be on the client.\n\n**Why:** Three live 2024-2026 case studies prove forced migrations happen:\n\n- **Shopify checkout.liquid sunset** (see [[shopify-checkout-liquid-sunset-2024-2026]]) — 18 months notice, $2k-$10k rebuilds, unmigrated code DELETED\n- **Squarespace + Google Domains** (see [[squarespace-acquired-google-domains-2023]]) — 10M domains migrated automatically to a vendor customers didn't choose\n- **ACF → SCF takeover** (see [[acf-scf-forced-fork-october-2024]]) — 2M+ sites silently switched plugin source\n\nAdd the SaaS-export-impossible cases ([[wix-no-export-by-design]], [[squarespace-7-1-no-xml-export]]) and the pattern is clear: platforms that can't export *will* eventually impose a migration the client doesn't want.\n\n**How to apply:**\n- During platform selection: weight portability as a primary criterion alongside cost and capability\n- For existing clients on non-portable platforms: schedule a migration **proactively** to a portable stack, on the client's timeline, not the vendor's\n- The 18-month / 5-year audit cadence (see editorial direction in [[research-brief-owning-your-stack]]) catches these before the vendor forces the issue\n- The honest counter-position ([[managed-platforms-buy-security-team]]) still applies: some clients should be on managed platforms despite the lock-in. The rule isn't \"never\" — it's \"name the trade and document it.\"","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[{"slug":"shopify-checkout-liquid-sunset-2024-2026","title":"Shopify checkout.liquid sunset (Aug 2024 → Aug 2025 → June 30 2026) — unmigrated customizations will be DELETED","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"squarespace-acquired-google-domains-2023","title":"Squarespace acquired Google Domains for $180M (Sept 7, 2023) — ~10M SMB domains migrated automatically","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"acf-scf-forced-fork-october-2024","title":"ACF → SCF forced fork (Oct 12, 2024) — first unilateral plugin takeover in 21-year WordPress history","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"wix-no-export-by-design","title":"Wix officially: \"no export is possible\" — confirmed in writing as a structural property","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"squarespace-7-1-no-xml-export","title":"Squarespace 7.1: no XML export at all. 7.0 export omits images, products, custom CSS, video, audio, drafts, non-blog pages","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"managed-platforms-buy-security-team","title":"Counter-argument: a $200/mo managed platform buys you a larger security team than most agencies have","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"}],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-owning-your-stack","title":"Research brief: Owning your stack — why agency-managed platforms cost more than they save (piece 4 of 15)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"drupal-7-eol-january-2025-291k-sites","title":"Drupal 7 EOL January 5, 2025 — ~291,386 sites still on D7 in Sept 2024; migration is effectively a rebuild","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-reduce-plugin-count-as-security-discipline","title":"RULE: Plugin count is the WordPress security surface. Audit quarterly; one-in, one-out rule.","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"vertical-saas-export-portability-comparison-2026","title":"Reference: vertical SaaS data portability comparison (ServiceTitan / Jobber / Housecall Pro / Clio / Karbon / Tekmetric)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"servicetitan-open-data-pledge-vs-exit-friction","title":"ServiceTitan: \"Open Data Pledge\" promises CSV export — but practitioner reports cite $24k-$39k exit contract buyouts (flag for verification)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"}]},"created_at":"2026-05-22T19:17:26.891Z","updated_at":"2026-05-22T19:17:26.891Z"}