The current generation of business leaders is persistently widening the business paradigm by changing conventional business with advanced solutions. New business owners are thinking of projects that are both high-income-generating and sustainable. Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many to stay at home and come up with new ways to earn money. This remote work era has further encouraged everyone to explore digital platforms.
As a developing European country with a diverse economy and huge potential, Bulgaria is seen to become a dropshipping hub. With the projection that the dropshipping market will have a 28% yearly increase rate by 2025 (Falin, 2021), Bulgarians have a good reason to enter the dropshipping industry. Here are some tips for you to consider so that you can have an edge over your competitors.
Table of Contents
Look for your niche and make a business plan.
Determine the best market opportunity for your business. Familiarize yourself with the different product types, such as seasonal, trending, in-demand, and so on. Amazon and eBay have a plethora of product data that’s easily accessible to everyone. Start with the search bar as it suggests products that are being searched for the most. Another resource for knowing the latest trends is Google Trends.
The basic rules of determining the right products are:
- Researching products that are too difficult for people to purchase without directly reaching out to a supplier; and
- Researching products that are hard for retailers to keep in a physical store.
Bulgaria is a multicultural place; hence knowing about the daily lives and struggles of different ethnic communities in the country will help you customize your products and services for them. The popular products in Bulgaria belong to the categories of fashion, electronics, housing equipment, books, and medicines.
Find out market gaps.
After exploring the trends, dig deeper into where great opportunities lie. Review sold items on eBay’s advanced search setting. Compare the results with products that are being searched for to find out market gaps. Doing this will help you figure out whether there are items that have high search volumes but are not being sold on the market or are not being sold at the price consumers want.
In bigger Bulgarian cities, consumers are interested in organic, healthy food. Meanwhile, richer communities prefer small, local shops over the international supermarket landscape. More Bulgarians are also opting to shop online, although some of them still like personal interactions while shopping (Edwards, 2022).
Launch your dropshipping store.
Ecommerce platforms like WordPress, Shopify, and Magento can help you easily and quickly launch your dropshipping store. They can aid you in designing your company logo, generating a domain name, and implementing SEO, among others. You no longer have to hire a programmer to set up your website for you.
Local marketing and SEO are important to generate Bulgarian traffic to your website. To achieve this, you should localize your store for the Bulgarian market. Setting up a localized version of your business in Bulgarian lev (BGN) and in English will index your store in Bulgarian search engines and drive organic traffic.
Manage your finances.
Finance management plays a major role in any business. How you manage your finances directly impacts the success or failure of your business. Form a financial strategy on how your finances will be spent. Be careful in handling money and account for it when using it.
Perhaps, you could reinvest at least 40% for marketing, 20% for repairs or maintenance, 10% for savings, and 5% for tax for every revenue generated per sale. This is just a sample; you can modify it at will.
Also, keep in mind that taxation in dropshipping can get complicated. Check tax laws that apply to Bulgaria and to your supplier.
Pick an esteemed dropship supplier.
Dropshipping suppliers also play a critical role in meeting certain processes in a dropshipping business. Luckily, you can pick more than one supplier. But choose one that is trustworthy to lessen the risks of returns, exchanges, and refunds. Your supplier should:
- Offer high-quality products
- Have fast order processing and delivery time
- Use a tool like those found on this list of best inventory management software for 2022
- Provide reliable customer support
- Offer returns, exchanges, and refunds if the situation calls for any of it
Promote your dropshipping store.
You need a robust marketing approach as the dropshipping competition is intense. Some examples of great marketing approaches are content marketing, paid ads, and mobile marketing.
Bulgaria is conducive to starting a dropshipping business. It hosts strong internet access for its 4,155,050 users. Furthermore, its internet penetration is at 58.50% . The country also has increasing smartphone usage. Mobile ecommerce now accounts for a huge proportion of Bulgaria’s ecommerce market and is likely to outperform desktop usage very soon (Glopal, n.d.).
Internet access and smartphone usage are two factors that allow you to stay connected with your customers and suppliers at any time of the day and assure you of excellent business performance.
Set up your payment channels.
Some platforms, including Amazon and eBay, will oblige you to use their payment channels. But if you choose to take a more independent path of building your own store, the most convenient way to receive payments is through a third-party service linked to your store.
Your checkout process is another integral and sensitive part of your business. Improve your checkout for your customers, specifically your international customers. Provide local payment methods and currency conversion.
Worldwide trusted payment channels like PayPal are available in Bulgaria, letting you securely and safely receive and manage your income. Whether you’re just starting out or already running a successful business, having the right payment solution is essential according to Light Finance, a local finance firm.
Start Your Dropshipping Business in Bulgaria Now!
Different from conventional ecommerce, dropshipping is the perfect business idea for those who do not want to get bothered by inventory or shipping processes. It is also a simple, low-cost, and low-risk type of business. In addition, it is a wonderful way to traverse the world of online retail, have a side hustle for those who are working full-time, and create a money making standalone endeavor. And the best thing about it is that you can break geographic boundaries by pursuing your business efforts on a worldwide scale—all of these at the comfort of your own home.
References:
- Edwards, K. (2022, April 26). European Ecommerce Overview: Bulgaria. Ecommerce Germany.
- Falin, V. (2021, November 2). How to Start a Profitable Dropshipping Business in 2022. Ecwid.
- Glopal. (n.d.). Selling online in Bulgaria. Glopal.
