Did you know that over 70% of online shoppers in India still prefer Cash-on-Delivery? In a market where trust and convenience reign supreme, mastering COD isn’t just an option—it’s the key to unlocking massive growth in India’s e-commerce landscape. For affiliates and e-commerce business owners, COD is more than just a payment method—it’s a proven way to attract new customers, boost conversions, and build trust with Indian shoppers. However, success in this space requires tackling challenges like higher return rates and logistical hurdles while optimizing strategies to maximize profitability.

To address these pain points and help businesses optimize their COD strategies, vCommission, in collaboration with Affiliate Social, hosted an insightful webinar where guest speaker Vipul Garg discussed strategies for mastering India COD E-commerce with host, Parul Bhargava, CEO of vCommission. Vipul brings over 7+ years of experience in building solutions for internet marketers and 5+ years of expertise in building solutions for the Indian market.

COD eCommerce, and is currently the CEO of vFULFILL. He has been a speaker at Affiliate World – Asia’s largest marketing conference.

During the webinar, Vipul took the audience on an immersive journey into the world of COD e-commerce in India by sharing actionable affiliate strategies and a 5-step blueprint to scale e-commerce businesses with COD. He also presented compelling data that highlighted the vast opportunities to leverage the COD market in 2025. To wrap up, he provided a bonus that affiliates can use to enhance their strategies further and drive success.

Growing Opportunity of COD E-Commerce in India

Vipul emphasized that India represents a Blue Ocean market, full of untapped opportunities. Focusing on India 1 cities, which make up just 10% of the population but account for 80% of e-commerce volume, gives affiliates a clear advantage. By using COD, affiliates can avoid risks like chargebacks, payment processor problems, and PayPal payment holds, making it a low-risk, high-reward model.

Cost-Effective Solution: COD offers a cost-effective solution for affiliates and e-commerce owners. With low CPM ($1-$3) and CPC ($0.1-$0.3) rates, businesses can reach a large audience while keeping their campaign costs low.
Broad Reach: With millions of impressions and accounts reached, Meta Ads provide access to a broad audience, ideal for scaling COD campaigns in India.
High ROI Potential: Low costs and significant reach enable affiliates to test, optimize, and scale campaigns for substantial ROI.
Effective Engagement: Low cost per action (₹7.21) and reasonable conversion rates (1.30%) make Meta Ads efficient for driving e-commerce sales, especially for COD offers.

In terms of best-performing verticals in Nutra, COD is especially beneficial as it boosts buyer confidence, amplifies conversions, and expands reach. Higher conversion rates, a wider audience, and lower CPA make COD a goldmine for e-commerce businesses. This approach creates a win-win situation for affiliates, as it ensures greater reach and profitability without payment-related obstacles.

5 – Step Blueprint for Affiliate Marketers

Transitioning to the most critical and interesting webinar segment, Vipul familiarized the audience with the 5-Step India COD Blueprint to follow as discussed below, from selecting a product to its sales to scale the COD business in India effectively.

Research

Conducting thorough research is the foundation of success in any campaign. By identifying popular products and analyzing key metrics, you can evaluate their potential for optimal performance.
- Find Product Ideas: Identify popular products in the market and use key metrics to assess their potential for success.
- Analyze Metrics: Determine CTR, CPM, and ROAS to assess product potential effectively.
Launch

After thorough research to identify high-potential products and key metrics analysis, it’s time to move to the next phase: launching your operations effectively.

Front-End Setup: Create a seamless user experience by setting up your store, listings, checkout process, and order confirmation using tools like WhatsApp, SMS, and IVR.
Back-End Setup: Organize fulfillment with MOQ, shipping, and COD collection, and obtain an Indian Tax ID for smoother operations.

Testing

Once your product is live, it’s time to track performance and optimize for better results. Regular testing ensures you’re on the right path to scaling your success.

Metrics to Track:

CPA: 20-25% of Average Order Value (AOV)

Confirmation Rate: 90%.

Delivery Rate: 55%+.

Bonus: Vipul also shared the exclusive Indian Ecom Profitability Calculator used by vFULFILL to help affiliates quickly assess profit margins and optimize their campaigns for better returns.
Creative Testing: Adapt TikTok-style content for Meta with minor edits, leveraging its appeal without copyright issues.

Optimization

Following the testing phase, where you’ve tracked key metrics like CPA, CTR, and delivery rates, the next crucial step is to optimize your campaigns to drive even better results. Optimization ensures that the insights gathered from testing are leveraged to refine and scale your efforts.

Optimize CPA, CTR, and CRO: Use expert fan page names, discounts as hooks, and UGC (like TikTok-style testimonials) to improve conversion rates.
Recover abandoned carts: Use WhatsApp, Wingman, and SMS to recover abandoned carts, driving 8-10% zero CPA sales.
Enhance Order Rates: Ensure 1-day fulfilment with reliable partners for 95% delivery. Add reviews, branded packaging, and upsells to thank-you pages for a better user experience.

Scaling

After successfully optimizing your campaigns, it’s time to scale. Scaling allows you to reach new audiences and maximize the potential of your campaigns, ensuring sustained growth and increased revenue.

Vertical Scaling: Launch new creatives tailored to your audience. Use data-driven insights with tools like ChatGPT to create personalized hooks and localized UGC content.
Horizontal Scaling: Diversify traffic sources by expanding to native ads, leveraging affiliate networks like vCommission, and optimizing Amazon listings to achieve 8-10% zero CPA sales.
Increase Lifetime Value (LTV): Add More Products: Bundle, upsell, cross-sell, or down-sell to existing customers using WhatsApp and SMS campaigns.
Re-Marketing: Focus on re-engaging past buyers with tailored offers to maximize retention and revenue.

vFulFill: Transforming E-Commerce Operations with Seamless Solutions

vFulfil is a comprehensive e-commerce platform that simplifies and optimizes your business operations, all under a single dashboard and with one point of contact. It enables you to identify high-demand products and source them from trusted global suppliers. With seamless order fulfilment, you can deliver products to any location in India and cater to customer preferences by accepting Cash-on-Delivery payments. The platform streamlines all aspects of your business, from sourcing to shipping, providing you with the tools needed to succeed in India’s dynamic e-commerce market. vFulFill has partnered with industry leaders like Alibaba for global product sourcing, BlueDart, XpressBees, and Delhivery for reliable delivery across India, Shopify for easy store management, and Meta for effective advertising.

By providing comprehensive insights and streamlining the decision-making process, vFulFill has developed an advanced research tool tailored to support affiliates in every campaign planning stage. This tool simplifies product research, helps validate product ideas, and provides detailed cost data to aid in decision-making. It goes beyond the basics by analyzing critical marketing metrics such as Click-Through Rate (CTR), Cost Per Mile (CPM), and Return on Ad Spend (ROAS). Additionally, it equips affiliates with winning creatives, comprehensive testing data, and insights to optimize campaign performance. The goal is to enable affiliates to make quick, data-driven decisions and maximize the profitability of their marketing efforts.

PC3 thumb rule

To make the webinar more insightful for the audience, Vipul introduced affiliates to the PC3 thumb rule —a robust validation framework to adhere to when searching for products.

Product Fit: Focus on products that address the real needs of Indian consumers, whether through discounts or by solving mental or physical challenges. Ensure the products are lightweight (under 500 grams) and practical, not just aesthetically pleasing.
Creative Fit: Use readily available creatives from the internet and prioritize those backed by strong performance metrics.
Competition Fit: Avoid products heavily sold on platforms like Amazon Prime, as this impacts delivery competitiveness. Know your product costs and price accordingly—without strong branding, it’s difficult to charge a significant premium.
Compliance Fit: Only sell products allowed under Indian regulations and approved for your traffic sources like Meta, Google, or native ads.

Vipul highlighted that products not meeting these criteria are likely to fail in the long run, even if they are currently profitable. The PC3 method ensures sustainable growth and long-term success.

Putting All Together

The “Mastering India COD E-commerce” webinar provided valuable insights for affiliates and e-commerce business owners looking to capitalize on India’s market. Vipul Garg shared a 5-step blueprint covering product research, testing, creative optimization, and campaign scaling. With tools like vFULFILL and metrics such as CTR, CPM, and ROAS, affiliates can make informed decisions and streamline their COD operations.

COD remains the preferred payment method for Indian consumers, offering a significant growth opportunity. By leveraging low-cost, high-reach platforms like Meta and using localized creatives and re-marketing strategies, affiliates can boost conversions and increase ROI. Affiliates who leverage strategic insights, such as those shared in the webinar, and adapt to emerging trends will have the opportunity to drive growth, foster customer loyalty, and scale their businesses effectively. With the right tools, localized approaches, and a focus on customer experience, the future of COD eCommerce in India is set for sustained expansion and profitability.

Have you ever found yourself juggling boxes of supplements, uncertain about the benefits they provide? Or perhaps you’re trying to shed those extra kilos and wondering if supplements could be the missing piece in your weight loss journey. In a world dominated by diet trends and quick fixes, finding the right supplement can often make all the difference—but how can you determine what’s truly effective for you and your audience?

In India, the supplement market is rapidly growing and is driven by increasing health and wellness awareness. The Nutra industry, encompassing supplements, weight management products, and functional foods, is witnessing a surge in demand. For affiliates, this presents a golden opportunity to tap into a booming sector that consistently caters to consumer wellness needs. This thriving industry not only provides a stable revenue stream but also enables affiliates to engage their audiences with personalized content that aligns with their health goals. By promoting scientifically-backed solutions, affiliates can build trust while achieving profitability in this high-demand space.

Recognizing the immense potential in the Nutra industry, we hosted an exclusive webinar in partnership with Affiliate Social. Featured Geet Sarna, CEO of Nutrafy Wellness as a guest speaker and Parul Bhargava, CEO of vCommission as host, together shed light on India’s rapidly growing Nutra market and shared actionable strategies for affiliates looking to grow in the digital space.

Growing Popularity of Nutra Vertical

Nutra, short for nutraceutical, is a rapidly growing affiliate niche that focuses on addressing people’s wellness needs with solutions backed by science. As Parul mentioned, this vertical has experienced substantial growth globally and in the Indian market over the past decade. Nutra has become a favorite category for affiliates to target in their campaigns, offering a stable vertical with high potential. It is known for hot-selling, high-demand products that cater to health-conscious consumers. The vertical thrives on high-converting ads and impressive click-through rates, often utilizing grey hat strategies that further enhance its appeal. While scalability is a key strength, capping by advertisers can sometimes pose challenges. However, this niche invites traffic from various platforms, allowing affiliates to create creative content that resonates with their audience, further enhancing its appeal.

Nutrafy Wellness: Leading Innovation in India’s Nutraceutical Landscape

The webinar began with an introduction to Nutrafy Wellness, a trailblazer in the Nutra industry and a trusted e-commerce platform catering to the Indian market. As a hub for global health and wellness brands, Nutrafy focuses on providing safe and effective healthcare products backed by in-depth research and development. Their in-house approach ensures quality at every step.

Geet Sarna, CEO of Nutrafy, highlighted the support Nutrafy provides to affiliates, offering features like customizable landing pages, regional language translations, and no restrictions on sales volume. Additionally, affiliates gain access to fresh landing pages designed to enhance performance and drive conversions. By partnering with leading global brands, Nutrafy is at the forefront of India’s rapidly growing health and wellness market. Its product brands include:

PhenQ: A powerful weight management supplement that combines multiple benefits in one pill, making it a go-to solution for individuals looking to shed extra pounds effectively.
NooCube: A premium nootropic supplement designed to enhance focus, memory, and mental clarity, ideal for those looking to boost their cognitive performance.
Crazy Bulk: A trusted supplement offering legal alternatives to anabolic steroids, catering to fitness enthusiasts aiming for significant muscle gains without the risks of traditional steroids.

HairVosk: An advanced hair care solution that promotes thicker, healthier hair, addressing a common wellness concern for many consumers.

CrazyNutrition: A high-performance nutritional supplement brand crafted for athletes and active lifestyles, ensuring optimal energy and recovery.

Key Strategies to Boost Affiliate Conversions for Nutra Products

Turning clicks into conversions is the ultimate goal for any affiliate marketer. As Geet specified in the webinar, actionable strategies to make every stage of the customer journey count, ensuring maximum impact and profitability.

Optimize Product Pages & Checkout

A streamlined and intuitive checkout process is essential for reducing cart abandonment and improving the overall user experience. A seamless, easy-to-navigate checkout system encourages customers to complete their purchases without hesitation. Optimizing this process includes reducing unnecessary fields, offering multiple payment options, and providing clear shipping and return policies.

Custom Check Pop-Up

Custom pop-ups during checkout can be highly effective in retaining users who might be about to abandon their carts. These pop-ups can include incentives like discounts, free shipping, or additional product recommendations. The goal is to make the ordering process more convenient, ensuring users don’t leave without completing their purchase. Showing the pop-up just before users attempt to exit the page is crucial as it ensures that you capture their attention at the right moment, improving conversion rates.

Product Benefits & Features Highlight

Clearly communicating the benefits and features of a product addresses potential customer concerns and simplifies their decision-making process. The key is to break down the product’s value propositions in a concise, easy-to-understand manner. Use bullet points, images, and short descriptions to showcase how the product solves a problem. Reducing uncertainty and highlighting key features builds trust, which guides users to confidently proceed to checkout.

Shopify Checkout Integration

Integrating a trusted and widely recognized checkout system like Shopify is crucial for building customer confidence. Shopify is a secure platform that ensures a smooth and familiar process for customers, which is essential for reducing friction at the point of purchase. Since 95% of online stores use Shopify, customers are likely already familiar with its checkout experience, making them feel more comfortable and increasing the likelihood of completing their order.

Pre-Landers & Tailored Landing Pages

Pre-landers are a powerful tool for guiding users through a personalized journey before they reach the product page. These pages provide tailored content, address specific concerns, and warm users up for a purchase. By filtering traffic based on customer needs or interests, pre-landers ensure users are only shown relevant products, increasing engagement and boosting conversion chances when they reach the custom landing page. Gamification enhances this process by adding interactive elements like quizzes or games, offering incentives such as discount codes. This makes the experience fun and engaging, motivating users to continue with the buying process and priming them for conversion.

Engage with Customer Stories (UGCs)

User-generated content (UGC) plays a critical role in building trust and driving conversions. Testimonials, product reviews, and before-and-after stories from real customers provide authenticity that resonates with potential buyers. UGC is particularly effective when placed on pre-landers or landing pages, as it adds credibility and addresses the natural skepticism many customers have when making an online purchase. In addition, AI-generated images can complement these testimonials by providing customized, realistic visuals that help potential customers envision themselves using the product.

Power of Hooks in Videos

In today’s fast-paced digital world, capturing the viewer’s attention quickly is more important than ever. The first few seconds of a video ad are crucial for keeping potential customers engaged. A strong, creative hook—whether it’s an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a visually captivating moment—immediately draws in the audience and sparks curiosity. As Parul emphasised, while the hook doesn’t necessarily have to be directly related to the product, it’s important that it resonates with the viewer’s interests or pain points. This tactic helps increase engagement, and as the viewer continues watching, they are more likely to convert by the end of the ad.

Flow of nutra offers

Maximizing your earnings has never been simpler. Nutrafy’s seamless flow for Nutra offers guides affiliates through a structured journey—from ad to pre-landing page, custom landing page, checkout, and finally, to payout. With efficient tracking and weekly payments, affiliates can rely on a transparent and hassle-free process every step of the way.

Further Geet mentioned that At Nutrafy, the process is seamless. When a customer places an order, it is initially tracked as “pending.” As the order progresses—first to “shipped” and then to “sale” upon delivery—affiliates can track the status and see their payout once the sale is confirmed. Nutrafy’s efficient tracking system ensures that affiliates can raise invoices once the sale is confirmed, typically within seven days. The best part is that affiliates are paid weekly, with no delays, making the process transparent and reliable.

Final Thoughts

The Nutra industry in India offers a tremendous opportunity for affiliates to engage with a rapidly growing market focused on health and wellness. In this webinar, Geet highlighted key strategies to optimize marketing efforts, including enhancing product pages for a better user experience and creating custom landing pages tailored to audience needs. Further, Parul emphasized the importance of optimizing every stage of the affiliate funnel—from pre-landers to checkout—to maximize conversions.
Leveraging customer testimonials and streamlining the checkout process to reduce friction were also key focus areas. These practical tips equip affiliates to boost performance in the Nutra industry. Nutrafy’s seamless platform, transparent tracking system, and weekly payment cycle further ensure affiliates’ success with timely payouts and efficient order management. By partnering with Nutrafy, affiliates can confidently tap into this thriving market, supported by the strategies and insights shared by Geet in the webinar.

FAQs

Q1: What platform is better for Nutra, Google or Meta?

Ans: While Google performs well for Nutra, Meta is more scalable. Nutra-branded offers on Google often fall into the black hat category, which can limit effectiveness. However, Meta offers a Gray Hat approach that works well for Nutra campaigns. Geet also recommends Snapchat, as it’s a growing platform, especially for Nutra-branded offers.

What steps should one take if their CPC and CTR are substantial but they’re not getting orders?

Ans: If your CPC and CTR are good but orders aren’t coming in, the issue could be with your landing page. Check the landing page’s CTR to see if visitors engage after clicking the ad. Ensure the page aligns with the ad’s messaging and provides a seamless user experience. A mismatch between the ad and landing page can lead to low conversions despite good ad metrics.

Q3: Why use COD and not pre-paid options for delivery?

Ans: COD is preferred in markets like India because there are no chargebacks, unlike in the US. This reduces payment-related issues and increases trust. Without pre-approval limitations, affiliates can be more confident in the transaction, which leads to higher conversion rates, lower CPAs, and a broader campaign reach.

Q4: How did you enter the Nutra industry, and why did you choose it as a business?

Ans: Geet shared, “I entered the Nutra industry when an advertiser approached me to run campaigns for non-branded Nutra products like garcinia, green coffee beans, and apple cider. At that time, e-commerce campaigns were mostly limited to platforms like Flipkart and Myntra. Running Nutra campaigns delivered exceptional results, better than any other e-commerce campaigns I had worked on. Those results inspired me to focus on Nutra as a business.

Q5: What is your biggest marketing challenge right now?

Ans: Geet explained that the most significant marketing challenge is dealing with constantly changing regulations on platforms like Meta, leading to frequent ad rejections, especially in the US. Despite these hurdles, Nutrafy continues to run campaigns and adapt to the evolving landscape. They aim to expand their product range, reach more customers, and introduce new products, enabling continued growth and a broader audience.