How to use packaging in your sales strategy like Carolina CBD Solutions

If you’re in sales or marketing, you know one of the primary goals is to be memorable. Research shows that we make up our minds about people and products within 30 seconds – and that once that first impression has been formulated, it’s almost impossible to undo. It’s why presentation is so important.

Laura Misenhelter, co-founder of Carolina CBD Solutions would wholeheartedly agree. She relies on cold calling as a sales strategy, often needing to leave products in the hands of someone other than a main decision maker, but her presentation is memorable. And it’s smart.

BEGININGS

You’d think Misenhelter comes from a sales background, but she doesn’t. She first spent 31 years in pharmaceuticals while also dedicating her life to help her autistic son Aaron. Even with her job in traditional medicine, she was open to using natural remedies.

After forming the Charleston Autism Academy with her mother, who is also a pharmacist, Misenhelter and her partner Henry Wilfong started looking for alternative ways to help Aaron. They knew there had to be more options out there. “There is an autism crisis and I was so focused on it because of my son Aaron. I had one eye on natural products, and one eye one on the pharma industry,” says Misenhelter.

It was CBD that made the difference. Misenhelter and Wilfong would even tell you that CBD has changed Aaron’s life. It was such a noticeable difference that Misenhelter left her corporate job and started her own CBD company, researching and formulating her own process.

With a company goal to provide top shelf CBD products that promote good health, they called it Carolina CBD Solutions. But competition in the CBD industry is fierce, so the duo needed to find a way to increase brand recognition and start getting noticed.

“We built a website and started to do outdoor events like art and music festivals which drove business to our site,” remembers Misenhelter. “But everyone was racing to get into brick and mortar stores. We needed to be different. We wanted to leave people with an experience.”

How do you make your brand and product memorable? What can you do when most people don’t have the time to talk or you can’t gain access to the person responsible for purchasing? You do what Carolina CBD Solutions did; you create a sales kit using custom packaging. 

box is best

The co-founders now go into independent pharmacies with a box designed to hold test samples. “We found you only have enough time to hand something over. Most people will throw away paper, but they hold onto boxes. It hangs around for a while, so you get a lasting impression.” says Misenhelter about her new, smarter version of cold calling.

They chose CompanyBox for the low minimum order quantity (MOQ), fast lead times and competitive prices. “The MOQ was perfect for us because we needed to try it out. And now we’re ready to go!” She also loved the customer service. “The CompanyBox team helped me work with the graphic designer to figure out exactly what I was doing,” she notes.

kicking it up a notch

The sample kits have had a huge success rate and are now a top sales tool. Covid has people looking for alternatives in conventional health care and the unboxing experience gave Carolina CBD Solutions the extra footing they needed. “Presentation is everything,” adds Misenhelter “You’re dealing with professional people, so you need to kick up your branding.”

“This shows that just a little branding on boxes gets you more business,” says Cara Walters, Marketing Lead at CompanyBox. “ It doesn’t have to be over the top.”

next steps

CBD has helped Aaron with autism, but the two owners know it also helps people with anxiety, insomnia, and joint and muscle pain. They are now looking at getting into the golf community with a target market of 45+ and up. As people start returning to in-store shopping, they also want to focus on retail store displays.

“We love seeing smart marketing strategies,” adds Walters. “Effective packaging will drive business, create interest and increase customer experience. “


This company also struck the perfect balance with their CBD products and packaging.

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