Cannabidiol Marketing Strategies in the United States: An Analysis of Three Prominent Companies

Authors

Carla J. Berg, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Gillian L. Schauer, Addictions, Drug & Alcohol Institute, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Patricia Cavazos-Rehg, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
Katelyn F. Romm, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Yan Wang, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Christina N. Wysota, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Zongshuan Duan, Department of Prevention and Community Health, Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Lisa Henriksen, Stanford Prevention Research Center, Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, USA.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

9-27-2022

Journal

Cannabis and cannabinoid research

DOI

10.1089/can.2022.0080

Keywords

cannabidiol; cannabinoids; marketing; public health policy

Abstract

The popularity and market for cannabidiol (CBD) products have expanded. Using Numerator advertising data from 2017 to 2021 regarding three popular CBD companies in the United States (Charlotte's Web, Green Roads, Medterra), we examined (1) general advertising characteristics (e.g., media channel, year); (2) ad content (i.e., themes of headlines and imagery); (3) themes of prominent sources (i.e., specific websites, magazines, etc.); and (4) ad expenditures. Across companies during the study timeframe, there were 475 unique ads (i.e., unique content), 4767 ad occurrences, and $1,471,944 total expenditures. Charlotte's Web accounted for the greatest proportion of unique ads, ad occurrences, and expenditures (53.3%, 62.8%, and 70.3%, respectively), followed by Medterra (40.4%, 33.9%, and 28.5%) and Green Roads (6.3%, 3.3%, and 1.2%). The largest proportion of occurrences and expenditures were via online display (83.5%, 54.8%), followed by mobile (15.9%, 24.8%) and print (0.4%, 20.1%). Per ad occurrences and expenditures, ads prominently featured headline themes focused on brand/trust/quality (27.5%, 18.3%, respectively), wellness (17.5%, 17.7%), pain/sport (9.9%, 20.0%), and promotions (13.2%, 11.6%), in addition to visual themes of the product itself (74.3%, 78.5%) or with women (5.3%, 10.0%). The most prominent source themes were focused on health/wellness (21.0% of ad occurrences, 18.1% of expenditures), followed by other websites and search engines (18.3%, 11.2%), news/weather (12.9%, 21.3%), and entertainment/lifestyle/culture (12.6%, 28.0%). Despite some distinctions between companies, ad and source themes were similar. Regulatory efforts must be informed by ongoing surveillance of CBD marketing and how specific consumer subgroups are impacted by marketing exposure.

APA Citation

Berg, Carla J.; Schauer, Gillian L.; Cavazos-Rehg, Patricia; Romm, Katelyn F.; Wang, Yan; Wysota, Christina N.; Duan, Zongshuan; and Henriksen, Lisa, "Cannabidiol Marketing Strategies in the United States: An Analysis of Three Prominent Companies" (2022). GW Authored Works. Paper 1587.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/1587

Department

Prevention and Community Health