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VAPE MENTORS BLOG

How to Introduce Your Customers to Pod Vaping Systems

Have you noticed that the selection of vape gear available from your distributors has changed over the years? The transition has been so gradual that you may not have noticed. Today, though, vape shops have increasingly divided themselves into two sections: a section for cloud chasers who prefer low-nicotine e-liquids and a section for pod vapes and high-strength nicotine salt e-liquids. That trend is echoed in the people you see vaping on the street; those who aren’t using sub-ohm mods are using pod systems. The vape pens and cigalikes of the past have largely fallen out of favor among mainstream vapers.

If your vape shop hasn’t begun carrying pod systems and nicotine salt e-liquid, in other words, it’s time to start because you’re leaving significant potential profits on the table. For many vapers, pod systems are the way of the future. The people who use high-end cloud chasing hardware don’t always use that hardware because they love to blow enormous clouds. Many of those people switched to sub-ohm equipment because, before nicotine salt e-liquid existed, it wasn’t possible to get a satisfying amount of nicotine with a small and discreet vaping device. Pod systems have changed that, and today’s vapers are ditching their box mods by the thousands in favor of the new generation of small vaping devices.

If you aren’t already carrying pod systems and nicotine salt e-liquid, it’s time to start. Here’s how to introduce those products to your customers.

How to Introduce Existing Vapers to Pod Systems

You probably have dozens of existing customers who are ready to switch from their box mods to pod vaping systems. If those people don’t spend significant amounts of time reading about vaping, though, they may not know about pod systems yet. It’s your job to introduce those customers to pod systems and help them understand why they’ll have a better experience if they switch.

These are some of the comments that you’ll probably hear from customers if they’re ready to ditch their box mods.

  • I’m spending a hundred dollars a month on new coils, but I have to because building my own coils is way too much work.
  • I feel like I’m constantly in here buying more e-liquid. I thought vaping would save me money!
  • How do you vape around other people? Don’t they find the huge clouds obnoxious?
  • This thing feels like a brick when I carry it in my pocket.
  • Is my vape going to blow up? I get nervous every time I take the batteries out.

Every time a customer says one of these things to you, it’s a prime opportunity to introduce that person to a new device that they’ll probably love. Here’s how you can introduce pod systems to people who already vape.

  • Pod systems aren’t like the cigalikes that you might have used when you first started vaping. The new nicotine salt e-liquids are the same e-liquids that you’re using right now, but they use a different type of nicotine that’s still satisfying even with a smaller device.
  • A pod system is small, light and discreet. It’s easy to carry in your pocket, and you’re not going to annoy anyone if you happen to vape in public.
  • The pods for pod systems last much longer than the coils for sub-ohm tanks – even if you use sweetened e-liquid. That’s because pod systems use much less e-liquid, so coil gunk forms more slowly.
  • Pod systems always have permanent batteries, so battery management isn’t a concern.
  • Between the lower e-liquid consumption and the longer-lasting coils, you’ll save a lot of money if you switch from a sub-ohm mod to a pod system.

How to Introduce New Vapers to Pod Systems

Before pod systems became popular, it wasn’t easy for vape shops to serve new vapers. You could carry cigalikes, but why would anyone buy a cigalike from a vape shop when they could get the same product from the gas station? You could carry little eGo vape pens in blister packs, but if you vaped back when those devices were popular, you know that they never really worked that well. So, many vape shops have ceded the beginner’s market to the gas stations and focused on stocking the high-end mods and sweet e-liquids that experienced vapers generally buy.

Pod systems are an opportunity to get the beginner’s market back. To do that, though, you’ll need to compete with JUUL. You could just carry JUUL, of course, but then you’d only be selling a product that you know doesn’t provide a great vaping experience. It’s better for your customers and for your vape shop to sell devices that you know your customers will enjoy.

Here’s how you can introduce pod systems to people who don’t already vape but are aware of JUUL.

  • JUUL is a closed-system device that doesn’t have any flavors except tobacco and menthol. With a refillable pod system, you can use any e-liquid from any maker. In terms of flavor quality, there is no comparison.
  • JUUL is incredibly expensive to use compared to a refillable pod system. Aside from third-party pods – which are also expensive and often don’t work well – you can only get JUUL pods from JUUL. When you sell a proprietary vaping device, you can charge whatever you want for the pods.
  • Compared to JUUL, a refillable pod system usually offers better battery life, larger pods and superior vapor production. That doesn’t just mean you’ll have a better experience; it also means that you’ll save even more money. JUUL is expensive enough if you only use one pod per day – but many people use two. If you use two JUUL pods per day, you’ll spend even more on vaping than you spend to smoke.

How to Introduce Your Customers to Nicotine Salt E-Liquid

If you’re going to sell refillable pod systems to your customers, you’re going to need to learn how to sell nicotine salt e-liquid as well. These are the most important things to keep in mind when introducing your customers to nicotine salt vape juice.

  • Nicotine salt e-liquid tends to come in much higher nicotine concentrations than standard nicotine e-liquid. It’s only intended for use in the smallest vaping devices.
  • Nicotine salt e-liquid usually comes in two variations: a lower strength around 20-25 mg and a higher strength around 40-50 mg. Smokers should choose the higher strength; those who already vape should choose the lower strength.
  • Although the nicotine strength might seem high, a pod system with nicotine salt isn’t harsh and unpleasant like the small vaping devices of the past used to be. Nicotine salt e-liquid is smooth, tasty and satisfying.