BFCM timeline: a dropshipping how-to for the holiday sales

BFCM

Topic summary

BFCM Preparation Timeline for Dropshippers

A structured preparation plan is outlined to help dropshippers navigate the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales period:

8-10 weeks before:

  • Select winning products and confirm supplier capacity
  • Set sales goals and audit store performance (speed, mobile, checkout)
  • Develop marketing plan and prepare creative assets
  • Prepare customer support resources

3-4 weeks before:

  • Launch teaser campaigns and early-bird deals for loyal customers
  • Finalize ad creatives and budgets
  • Verify shipping timelines with suppliers

During BFCM:

  • Monitor website performance and order flow closely
  • Deploy flash sales and limited bundles
  • Maintain active social media presence and clear communication about stock/delivery

Post-BFCM:

  • Analyze performance data (top products, effective ads)
  • Send follow-up emails to encourage repeat purchases
  • Streamline returns process and document lessons learned

Community Tips:
One participant recommends early ad and checkout testing with small budgets to identify friction points, plus automatic inventory alerts to prevent overselling during peak traffic. Discussion remains open regarding specific budget allocation strategies before and after the event.

Summarized with AI on October 23. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

Hey everyone :waving_hand:

BFCM is right around the corner, and for dropshippers, it’s one of the biggest chances to boost sales - but also one of the easiest times to get overwhelmed. The trick is to start early and follow a clear timeline so nothing slips through the cracks.

Here’s a quick step-by-step plan you can use to get ready for the BFCM rush :backhand_index_pointing_down:

:spiral_calendar: 8 - 10 weeks before BFCM: Plan early

  • Pick your winning products and make sure your suppliers can handle the volume.

  • Set clear goals (e.g., “grow sales by 25% compared to last year”).

  • Run a full check on your store - speed, mobile layout, checkout flow.

  • Draft your marketing plan and prepare email and ad assets.

  • Train your support team or write templates for common customer questions.

:megaphone: 3 - 4 weeks before BFCM: Build the hype

  • Send teaser emails or countdown posts to get people excited.

  • Reward your loyal customers with early-bird deals.

  • Finalize your ads, creatives, and budgets.

  • Double-check with suppliers about shipping times and backups.

:high_voltage: During BFCM: Stay sharp

  • Keep an eye on website performance and order flow.

  • Try flash sales or limited-time bundles to keep traffic high.

  • Be active on social - reply fast and share customer shout outs.

  • Communicate clearly about stock or delivery updates.

:chart_increasing: After BFCM: Review and grow

  • Look at what sold best, what ads worked, and where to improve.

  • Send thank-you or follow-up emails to build repeat customers.

  • Make returns easy and transparent.

  • Write down your lessons while they’re fresh - they’ll help next year.

How’s everyone else planning their BFCM prep this year? Any tips that worked for you before?

3 Likes
3

Superb breakdown! :raising_hands: @TracyAtZopi One tip that’s worked great for me is testing ads and checkout flow early using small budgets. It helped me spot any friction before the rush. Also, setting up automatic inventory alerts kept overselling away during peak hours.

4

that’s sound great. Can u share how you use your budget? the allocation budget before & after the event, to maximize the efficiency

5

Sure, Tracy!

I usually break my BFCM budget into three phases to keep performance consistent. Around 25% goes into pre-BFCM testing – teaser campaigns, list-building, and warming up audiences with small ad sets. Then, about 55% is reserved for the core sale days. That’s where I push high-intent retargeting, flash offers, and ad scaling. The last 15–20% I use post-BFCM for remarketing and loyalty offers to turn one-time buyers into repeat customers.

It helps me keep momentum going even after the rush!

6

great! it’s seem you have a strategic plan. can I ask which channel or tool u usually use for re-mkt and loyal offers? Normally, i see people use GG ads to RTG but i wonder whether any other way

7

Google Ads are great for retargeting, but I like to mix it up. I usually pair Meta (Facebook/Instagram) dynamic retargeting with email and SMS flows. For this, tools like Klaviyo work really well. It helps me re-engage warm audiences with personalized offers and post-BFCM loyalty sequences. I also use Webgility to sync my ecommerce and accounting data, which helps me spot my best-performing products and customer segments in real time, so I can target repeat buyers more effectively without extra ad spend.

1 Like
8

u have a deep understand about marketing. how do u usually manage the return and stock after the holiday? i saw many people struggle the same issue

9

Returns are honestly the biggest roadblock post-BFCM as they spike hard after big sales events. Right behind that is inventory mismanagement, mainly because many solutions don’t sync inventory in real-time (across channels).

This is what I personally do for managing returns- Set clear policies upfront (visible everywhere), extend return windows 45-90 days (can vary depending on what you sell), and automate return tracking so inventory and accounting update instantly. This part is non-negotiable for me as tracking actual profit after all the discounts, returns, and fees was very challenging when I was not automating these processes.

For inventory- Run a full audit Week 1-2 post-BFCM, identify dead stock early and bundle it with winners, restock top sellers for December-January momentum.

I have witnessed when data flows automatically, you avoid the dreaded spreadsheet reconciliation nightmare.

May I ask, what’s your biggest post-BFCM headache?

10

sorry for missing. for me, the hardest part is to how to make sure the suppliers ship product on time and fast ASAP for customers. As the number of orders rising during the holiday, the delay could be increased and that make customers unhappy.

11

Totally get that. Having backup vendors or setting clear SLAs early can be of help. Hope your fulfillment runs smoother this round!