E-Commerce Healthometer: mindamend.net/tools/ecommerce...
Did you know, Dubai is the most strategically located, in the Middle East which makes accessibility across the Middle East, fast and convenient.
Within MENA Region, Dubai has the best score for ease of doing business :
Dubai has the maximum ex-pat population within the MENA Region and getting the right talent for an e-commerce business is easy compared to other countries.
E-commerce companies prefer to have their HO in Dubai and manage last-mile deliveries across the MENA region through the 3PL partners
“05 Steps to start your e-commerce business in Dubai "
1. Know your numbers:
The dynamics of operating in each country are different. Government compliances, office rents, pay scale, and company registration compliance costs shall vary for each country. Thus, hire an expert who has experience working with e-commerce Dubai companies to know these nuances to avoid surprises later. After you know these numbers, develop the business model for local commerce within UAE and cross-border e-commerce across the MENA region to know the feasibility.
2. Market Research:
Consumer behaviour varies drastically across the MENA region. As Dubai has expats from 100+ counties, the buying pattern is very different when compared to Saudi Arabia.
Example: COD buying in Dubai is 40%, compared to Saudi Arabia which is more than 70%
There are various other buying patterns which need to be thought through like Price-mix and product-mix of your competitors, channels which are driving traffic to e-commerce websites within the region, social media channels popular amongst millennials, genZ, gen Apha, etc.
We have also released various videos on e-commerce market research, which you can refer to for conducting market research for Dubai Market. Market Research acts like an insurance for your further investment. When it comes to e-commerce, data is available. You just need the right expert to guide you on the same.
3. Operations and Location Strategy:
Dubai has various free zones which operate with their own rules and regulations. There are a few free zones that are e-commerce friendly. If you are planning to invest heavily in inventory then you must opt for a freezone warehouse. The advantage is when you get your stock to Dubai free zone you need not pay any customs charges. You pay the customs when the order is shipped to the mainland. Another main advantage lies in cross-border e-commerce. You can directly ship to other countries and pay customs only once when the product is shipped.
4. Finding a 3PL partner:
The fulfillment center is the backbone of the E-commerce business. Finding a reasonable and startup-friendly 3PL fulfillment partner is very crucial, it can actually make or break your business operations. 3PL partner must be able to provide the following support:
WMS Integration with your website & store, dispatch stock as per orders received, Quality check during Inward from suppliers, follow standards for packaging, must have tie-ups with courier partners, so you need not get into the hassle of doing individual contracts with various delivery courier partners.
5. Ensure your website is user-friendly and responsive to local market policies:
As per the consumer behbehavioraviour study of the UAE market, if your website is not user-friendly then your bounce rate shall increase drastically. A few things you cannot miss out on are: one-click Apple pay checkouts (as 90% of traffic to e-commerce websites is on mobile and 60%+ traffic is from apple mobiles), COD payment options (as 40%+ e-commerce payments are COD within UAE. It helps to build trust during your initial years of launch), Shop the look features for easy Navigation, AI enables features to suggest visitors on preferences, etc.
TAT for this video is:
E-commerce Healthometer, which will help to assess where you stand in your journey of building the e-commerce business.
If you are an E-Commerce brand who wants to start or expand in the Middle East, do reach out to us & our experts shall surely guide you.
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Timestamp
00:00 - Intro
00:47 - Step 1
1:17 - Step 2
2:09 - Step 3
2:40 - Step 4
3:18 - Step 5
4:04 - TAT