The cannabis industry is relatively new and is not deemed legal by federal law yet. Due to these reservations, most platforms prohibit any cannabis-related content from going public through them.
With these restrictions, marketing a cannabis business is no easy task.
Many companies can grow but are searching for the right platforms to market their business and fuel their growth. The reason for that is most popular platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and even Google have strict laws against any cannabis products. Trying to directly market any cannabis-related product might get you blocked from these sites.
That is why cannabis companies need to be on their toes when it comes to creativity. They must seek and grasp every opportunity they can to get their products in the customers' eyes. There are some strategies that you can use for marketing your company; here are eight of them.
SEO
For any cannabis business to flourish, it needs to have a good online presence. If your customers have difficulty finding you, your chances of doing business are compromised.
Start by building an informative website and then try to drive traffic to your website. Having good quality content that answers common questions related to your product is one way of getting people to visit your site.
The goal here is to improve your search engine presence and drive traffic to your website. Here are a few tactics you can use to do just that.
Step up your website
Think of it like this; your website represents your company, and your company represents you. As a cannabis retailer, you need to make sure that your website is:
- User friendly and up to date
- Accessible on all devices
- Contains necessary details, such as product information and contact information
As a bonus, adding a blog or article section will help you drive traffic to your website. People will come looking for answers to questions and stay for your products.
Customer Reviews
More than 95% of potential customers will read and trust customer reviews. Your goal is to have as large a number as possible of high-scoring reviews. Encourage your customers to leave reviews about your products and services. Just remember to professionally address any negative reviews you may receive.
A high ranking on search engines greatly increases the chances of building new customers.
Social Media
Don't let the restrictions on cannabis stop you from creating and maintaining a social media presence. Just be sure to abide by the platform's terms, and you can use social media to stay connected with your customers.
You can also use these platforms to collect user info. For example, if someone shares a picture of your product, you can re-share that and portray third-party credibility.
Email & SMS Marketing
Almost everyone uses an email address these days. Consider offering little incentives to your customers in exchange for their email addresses. You can do this for purchases made in-store and through your website.
With text messages, you will have the opportunity to reach a wider audience. Just make sure that you take precautionary measures before sending out text messages and not run into the law. You can also send out personalized messages to your customers and build customer loyalty.
Billboards
With all the restrictions in place, billboards are a silver lining for cannabis marketing. They are a simple and effective way to get healthy foot traffic to your store. Cannabis-related billboards often attract more attention than others, especially in states where cannabis has just become legal.
However, there are important rules that you might have to look for before purchasing a billboard. For example, it is not legal to use billboard advertising in all cannabis-legal states. The billboard cannot be within a thousand feet of any school or daycare center in other states.
Conventions and Events
For the cannabis industry stakeholders, cannabis conventions are a great way to build awareness for your products. These events are often visited by vendors, store owners, and other related companies. You will get opportunities to grasp sales, build networks and promote your products, all under one roof.
Some methods that you can use for promotion are:
Booths
People usually do not buy a product; they buy an experience. Booths allow you to give customers hands-on experience for your product and services
Ad Opportunities
Conventions provide numerous locations for placing banner ads. Most companies taking part in the convention will have an ads page on their website. You can get in touch with them for opportunities and other details.
Speaking
If you hold authority in your industry, consider getting a speaking opportunity at a cannabis event. You will render yourself a subject expert and get your product to your customers in the process.
You can keep a lookout for upcoming cannabis events and conventions and use them to your benefit.
Cross-Promotions
You can collaborate with other brands of your industry to broaden your customer reach. You can contact a retail store chain, work with a distributor, or co-host at a trade show. With such collaborations, you will cut down on your marketing costs and tap into a wider target market.
Word-of-Mouth
With limited direct market opportunities, cannabis marketers need to develop a strong word-of-mouth strategy. If done right, a good word-of-mouth campaign can prove to be as effective as social media marketing for the cannabis industry. You will need to work on making your customers excited about your products.
Your current customers are the best tool to make this campaign successful. Get them excited, and you will see the energy will flow through to your potential customers.
Selective Digital Ads
Some publications do offer ad spaces to cannabis marketing companies. These platforms are a great tool to promote your new products to current customers. These publications will often allow advertising on CPC or CPM basis. You can negotiate good deals with these publishers, and they might serve as a gateway to much larger networks.
In the End
With all the restrictions in place, cannabis marketing can be tricky and complicated. But if you put these strategies to good use, you can be on your way to promoting your cannabis company. We at Social Pot Head are more than happy to provide you with excellent consultation to help you market your cannabis company without advertising.
