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Right now, we’re seeing impressive numbers in the form of increased traffic and orders for CBD products of all kinds through the affiliate channel.
According to Christian Henderson, an account manager here at Advertise Purple very familiar with the space, “Our CBD clients are performing very well amidst COVID-19. The health-related benefits of CBD are especially relevant at this time, and we are seeing a notable increase in sales and online activity.”
It’s a vertical that has already seen its fair share of success, but under the current circumstances, it’s large array of products have seemingly been helping a lot of people cope with stay at home orders from local and national governments due to the spread of COVID-19, aka the Coronavirus.
Rather than assume you all know about CBD, let me provide a little clarity here. Cannabidiol (better known as CBD) is a phytocannabinoid discovered all the way back in 1940. It is one of 113 identified cannabinoids in cannabis plants and accounts for up to 40% of the plant’s extract.
Along with THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), it’s one of the two main extracts from cannabis that people use for treatment. An important and key distinction between CBD and THC is that CBD provides many tangible benefits, but does not provide a “high” or any noticeable euphoric or psychoactive effect.
If you hadn’t heard of it by now, I’m honestly surprised, though, because it has become incredibly popular ever since its legalization and ease of distribution (to most places). It works in various forms, such as tinctures, beverages, candies, chocolates, mints, cookies, supplements, and much much more.
So, what does it do? Well, that’s the amazing part. It totes many benefits, namely offering pain relief, stress and anxiety relief, helps with metabolism and digestion, helps with inflammation, makes it easier to sleep, and can in some cases ease depression. It can also treat epilepsy and in some cases severe schizophrenia and other nervous system disorders.
It’s also been clinically proven to work for pets, which has helped create an entirely new and separate sub-vertical within the CBD space. For dogs and cats mostly, it has been proven to provide pain relief and can also help with anxiety, without side effects other prescription drugs such as antidepressants can bring into the picture.
So, what exactly are we seeing?
Month to date year over year, we’re seeing over a 40% increase in conversion rate with revenue and click stats following suit. Really impressive stuff, especially at the current moment.
Along with those impressive numbers, we’re seeing an 89.83% increase in actions. CBD was all the rage last March too, so it’s not as if we are comparing it to a time period where there was less demand and/or less information available about its applications.
Why are we seeing this?
Well, for users who’ve already added CBD to their daily or weekly routine, there’s no reason for them to slow down their consumption patterns. But with more people at home right now, the likelihood of anxiety, stress, as well as boredom and curiosity could be allowing more people to attempt to order CBD products to ease that uncertainty and stress.
The affiliate space is a major catalyst for CBD brand sales, because people often look to the channel to try to decide which brand is worth considering for a purchase. This is true for any industry, but I think it’s especially important with a product like CBD.
Let’s just say the CBD market is still not as well-regulated as it probably should be. There are products that work better than others. There’s not as much empirical data that can address that lack of certainty, so naturally the affiliate channel is a more reliable way to reduce confusion around a purchasing decision.
A trusted source of information giving a detailed account of how the product worked for them goes a long way here.
I believe this is why we’re seeing these increased conversion rates (Upwards of 100%). There are people looking for ways to seek treatment, they find said product online, and they pull the trigger more quickly.
They do so now because they’re at home and more certain than they might be during normal times when they might abandon the sales funnel and not return later. The same decision process that might drag out over a week or two is likely happening more quickly, and with a bigger sense of urgency.
We’re helping CBD clients, but we’re also seeing bumps in some other key verticals that we work in. I’ll be highlighting those over the course of the next few weeks.
Please remember to be safe out there and let’s all make sure to take care of our bodies and minds. The wellness trend isn’t going away any time soon. And keeping it together during these times is going to take all the resources we can possibly pull together (including CBD, even).
If you work in the CBD industry, aspire to, or know someone who would like to chat with us, please feel free to reach out to our team at [email protected]. Best of luck out there!
