Validation/Getting Started

Do I need to purchase a membership to join? 

No, it is always free to source material and buy products on Kush.com. Basic and monthly memberships offer additional research and marketing tools for businesses to compare market analytics, collect quality leads, and grow their sales. For more information, please visit kush.com/memberships

What are the greatest benefits of having a premium vs basic membership?

With a premium membership, vendors pay a flat fee per month ($99), or per year ($999) to use our service for selling. There are $0 in additional fees. With our basic membership vendors pay monthly or yearly fees in addition to 5-7% of total sales made on the platform. 

Because of this, basic members have far stricter rules when it comes to communication and remaining anonymous. A price must be agreed upon before the buyer or seller can exchange contact information to coordinate payment and delivery. This is to ensure kush.com receives an agreed-upon service fee. If either party, buyer or seller, has the premium membership contact exchange can happen instantly. But if both parties do not have premium membership then a price must be agreed upon before the exchanging of contact information.

The vast majority of successful suppliers on kush.com have a premium membership for this reason. It allows vendors to “strike when the iron is hot” and close a sale when interest is present. Our platform is active and successful, but it is also highly competitive. If a buyer does not get a response from a vendor soon enough interest can fade and the buyer often moves on to the next attractive listing.

Premium members also get far more benefits on our platform overall:
– Higher priority in the search results of the marketplace, providing for a significant promotional advantage. Premium members listings are prioritized over basic members

– Access to exclusive content- Expedited validation (Validation can take up to two weeks, sometimes longer)

– Access to building a storefront

– Discounts on promotions (such as featured products) and Kush.com organized events- —-Access to analytics that shows you the average cost of materials transacted on Kush.com

– SMS alerts on orders

– Priority customer service

– The ability to repost your listings on the marketplace, many others do so. 

Payment portal, and additional benefits, can be found here – https://www.kush.com/memberships

Does Kush.com collect fees on sales? 

If you are a basic member then yes, 5-7% is collected after the sale is complete. If you are a premium membership then no. You only pay your monthly or yearly membership fee.

If your account qualifies for fees, the site will automatically add 5-7% to your requested purchase price, this means if your accepting full-price offers over $1000, your potential fees would be covered within the purchase price.

What documents do I need to be validated?

Hemp: Government issued photo ID of the responsible party.

All relevant hemp licensing that your business carries. We need proof that you can operate legally. 

If you are not required to have a hemp specific license, any document that shows you are a tax-paying business. That document could be LLC documentation, a business license, or any other government-issued document.

Cannabis (Marijuana): Government-issued photo ID of the responsible party.

All relevant cannabis licensing. You must be a licensed business in order to buy/sell on our platform. Exceptions can be made for ancillary companies, but you will not have any purchasing ability. 

Why do  I need to provide a photo ID?

We must ensure all users are over the age of 21. Additionally, to provide accountability amongst our users. The photo ID provided should be of the primary, responsible user for the account.

Can I have others use my Kush.com account?

Yes, but whoever provided the photo ID is considered the responsible party. Others may use your account but they must be associated with your company (Employees, partners, ect.)

Can non-domestic companies join Kush.com?

Yes, but there are some stipulations. You must become an annual premium member on our platform. If you plan on selling you must state where your material is produced.

Why is there a validation process?

To ensure a few things: 

1. You are not a robot, a scammer, or someone who intends to spam our platform. 
2. That we have all the proper documentation for your intended actions on kush.com. Every state has different requirements for licensing required to do certain activities in hemp/cannabis. 
3. You are aware of the additional services we might be providing at the time.
4. You have no confusion when using our platform. 
5. That you are familiar with the rules

I was validated, but I have not received a call or text. What can I do?

Reach out to info@kush.com. If all documents are submitted, and you are in the hemp industry, we will sometimes validate you without a phone call. We always send a follow up email and text to set up a validation phone call, but sometimes errors can occur. Users also sometimes put down the incorrect phone number/email. 

Are there general rules to keep in mind? 

If you have a free account or if you have a basic membership you must remain anonymous, unless you are communicating with a premium member. They are marked with a green badge. The vast majority of successful vendors are premium members, so if you are buying most of the time this is not an issue. If you are a supplier, and you only have a basic membership, you must wait until a price is agreed upon before exchanging contact information.

Harassment of any form is not tolerated on kush.com. We recommend communicating as much as possible on the platform itself, as we are able to see this communication and can take corrective action if needed.

Failing to fulfill orders, or, failing to pay a vendor when material has already been received can lead to account suspension or even a permanent ban. 
Harassment of any form is not tolerated and can also lead to a suspension or a permanent ban.

In terms of products you post they must follow these guidelines – https://kush.com/blog/kush-com-rules-for-full-spectrum-or-hot-listings/

How it works

How do transactions work?

Once an offer is accepted you’ll be introduced to the buyer/seller with all the company & contact information provided.

From here, the seller needs to share acceptable payment methods (automatically sent with Storefront Orders), and the Buyer should confirm a shipping address.

We typically recommend that sellers collect payment before shipping an order, but it is to their discretion.

Confirm on-site when the deal has been successfully delivered, and that’s it if you are a premium member. If you are a basic member you will need to pay a fee of 5-7%. For more of an explanation see the “Validation/Getting Started”

Technically deals can happen off the platform if you are a premium member. We highly recommend you utilize our platform as much as possible, as it provides us with more evidence if there is a dispute. However, it is at the discretion of the seller/buyer to determine the preferred methods of communication.

How much material is sold on kush.com?

Hundreds of transactions are lined up on our platform every month. The majority of transactions are smaller scale, even under the pretense that we vet users, and supervise activity on the platform, most buyers will want to vet your material before buying larger amounts. The value of our platform comes from the relationship established from that buyer from that first sale. 1 lb sales can convert to relationships with buyers who need 100lbs a month, it’s all about that first sale (Analogy: much like a first date). Unlike other platforms, we vet our users to ensure a great environment for the creation of fruitful business relationships, which is important in this growing yet ambiguous industry.

Regardless of the size of the buyer, this is usually the case. However, buyers looking for significant quantities will often reach out to arrange tours of your facilities, or, to meet you potentially in person. In this case, they are not ready to make an offer until they see your product. This is where a premium membership can come in handy, as you cannot exchange contact information until price is agreed upon between buyer and seller.

As inferred above, some users do not actually transact on kush.com, therefore offers are not present. Premium members have the ability to strike when the iron is hot and exchange contact information with buyers instantly. While this can be useful we always recommend getting the buyer to make an offer on the platform. It helps improve your product score and allows us to take corrective action if something goes wrong. The more communication that happens on the platform, the better. 

How do I collect payment from buyers? 

It is completely to the seller’s preference. Many vendors re-direct buyers to their own website, or arrange for a paypal, venmo, or wire transfers. It is most common for suppliers to receive payment before shipping, but it is entirely dependent on the situation.

How do interactions between users happen?

There are three places where interactions can occur on kush.com:
1. Listings. All listings on the marketplace are inherently anonymous, however, if the supplier is a premium member anonymity is not required. Buyers can either “Ask” as in ask a question, “Buy” as in make an offer, or they can click on the listing to view test results and see the full product description. When a buyer clicks “Ask” or “Buy” a conversation will be created where both users can begin a dialogue.

2. Storefronts. Storefronts are only available to premium members on kush.com. Buyers can directly reach out to vendors via the contact information provided by the vendor. Or, buyers can add items to their cart. Once the buyers’ checkouts an email is sent to both the buyer and seller showing the total items ordered along with contact information of both parties. 
3. Wanted Ads. Buyers can post specific material they are interested in and vendors can respond. Once a response is made a conversation is created. 

How do I know if someone has reached out to me?

If you are a premium member you can sign up to SMS alerts, otherwise, you will receive an email notification to your registered email.

I am experiencing difficulties using the platform, something is not right. What can I do to resolve this? 

Contact info@kush.com for the fastest response from the team

How is compliance handled on Kush.com? How can I ensure the party I am sending my product to can legally receive it?

Whenever an introduction is made a compliance check is made. However, it is still at the buyer and sellers discretion to ensure the deal is compliant, we can only do so much verification.

That being said, if an activity is being performed on the platform that requires a hemp/cannabis license we have that documentation on file.

 

Security and Disputes

Is my personal information secure?

Yes! All documents submitted to the platform for your account validation are protected by our Development Team. This is all of the information you can see when viewing your account settings. All of your personal information can only be seen by you and those you wish to share it with.

Anything you share on the marketplace itself can be seen by others. Both valid and in-valid users can peruse the marketplace, keep that in mind whenever you are creating a storefront or marketplace listing. This goes for COA’s, pictures, contact information, or anything else you share/advertise.

What can I do to protect myself, and my information, on Kush.com

Try as much as possible to communicate on the platform itself. Kush.com does have the ability to suspend or ban users depending on their behavior but it greatly depends on what evidence is present. 

Transportation?

Kush.com does not provide transportation, however, we do allow individuals to market transportation services on our platform. Transportation is worked out between buyer and seller, many vendors ship USPS. If the buyer/seller is large enough often they have connections to transportation/freight companies.

What safeguards are in place for buyers and sellers? 

We vet all validated users to ensure full compliance and to ensure they are not scammers/spammers. In order to be a supplier, you must be validated. Non-validated buyers are allowed on the platform, however, as a vendor, you can choose to not accept offers from them. If you do allow bids from non-validated users you will be notified if one reaches out to you.

Users can also be banned or suspended due to poor business conduct. This includes harassment, not fulfilling an order, not paying for an order, spamming users, and anything else that might be considered poor business conduct.

How are disputes handled on Kush.com?

Our Marketplace Administrators evaluate the available evidence and take the necessary corrective action. Parties can be suspended and/or banned from using the service.

If the action is severe enough photo identification of the responsible parties can be used to aid law enforcement or other parties in an investigation.

What qualifies as a dispute?

If someone has not paid you for an order that has been shipped, or has not shipped you materials after you have paid, let us know. However, keep in mind that waiting 1-2 days for a response is not a means for submitting a dispute.

Harassment of any form is not tolerated on Kush.com and qualifies as a dispute. Depending on the severity, this could mean behaviors both and on or off the platform. We reserve the right to execute discretion, every situation is different. 
To submit a dispute email info@kush.com

Product Listings

How do I improve my product score?

The product score determines your product’s visibility. The higher the score, the more likely it is to be seen. Recalculations happen every night and every time you repost.  Here are a few key tips to increase your product score: 

– Stay active on your product (repost, conversation activity, update quantity, etc.).

– Make sure you have a product image. Missing product images results in a negative score.

– Respond to all conversations. Any conversation left unresponded to will negatively affect your score.

– If you receive an offer on the platform, accept or counter that offer. More deals completed on the platform results in a higher product score.

– BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER. Members get a significant boost in product scores

What does the eyeball on the listing indicate?

The number of times any user has clicked on your product.

Requests- what does this mean?

The amount of times conversations/inquiries have been made regarding this product.

Offers- what does this mean?

The amount of times the product has received an offer. Offers can be rejected, accepted, or if no action has been taken yet the offer has been “made”. Always either reject or accept orders, as inaction can hurt your product score. 

The Green Kush.com Badge- what does this mean? 

It means the user is a premium member – https://www.kush.com/memberships

What is a featured product?

A featured product allows vendors to stand out from the competition on the kush.com marketplace. Featuring your product keeps your product at the top of the marketplace visually, so when a buyer visits kush.com they see your listing first. It is an incredibly strong tool for garnering sales. Premium members receive discounts on featured products. We also send out a weekly email to thousands of potential buyers once a week with our featured products. 

If you are interested in purchasing a featured product, and you are either a premium or basic monthly member, let us know. We sometimes provide a free featured product if you convert to an annual premium membership.

https://get.kush.com/featured-products

How often can I repost a product?

First off, reposting is a privilege available only to premium members. Once you have these permissions, you may repost as much as you’d like–and it is encouraged. The last posted date is one of the factors that goes into the product score algorithm. With this in mind, reposting does not necessarily mean your product has a ticket to the top. It will help improve its standings but there are other factors that determine your product’s ranking (see “How do I improve my product score?”).

How do I add products? 

When signed into a user account that has a membership, you can add a product by simply pressing the red plus sign on the bottom right hand corner of the marketplace page.

Or, you can go to my products – https://www.kush.com/product-manager and add products there.

Storefronts

What is a storefront and how does it differ from product listings?

Product listings can be potentially anonymous, storefronts are not. Storefronts are almost like a social media page for your company. Contact information can be displayed and vendors can curate their business. Storefronts are only available to premium members. 

Additionally, storefronts are a place where potential buyers can see all of the products you offer in one place vs having to find them in the search.

How do I create a storefront?

You must be a premium member. Go here to get started – https://kush.com/store-promo

How are orders fulfilled on storefronts? 

Once a buyer has checked out on all the items they have put into their cart an email notification is sent to each vendor giving an overview of the products requested along with contact information. This email is sent to both the buyer and the seller.