There's no denying it - The cannabis industry represents a huge opportunity for entrepreneurs. The current market has an estimated net worth of more than $7 billion worldwide and is expected to reach more than $30 billion by 2021, according to Forbes.com.
Although cannabis is more mainstream and accepted now than it has been in years past, marketing for the marijuana industry is still pretty complex. Advertising for marijuana in most states is heavily regulated, with strong prohibitions on where you can advertise and what you can say in your advertisements.
Even in the digital space, platforms that allow for pay-per-click advertising will restrict advertising for marijuana products in the same way they restrict advertisements for medications or tobacco products.
So, what is a budding cannabis entrepreneur to do if they want to gain a competitive edge in this growing industry?
Well despite the fact that certain forms of advertising may be restricted, there are still several important steps a marijuana business owner should take if they want to grow.
1. Create a Quality Website
Your customers are online - are you? In our society, if you do not have a quality, highly intuitive website, you may as well not be in business. Sure, you'll likely get business from locals who know about you or tourists who find you by accident, but you won't be as competitive as other dispensaries that do have a website.
2. Create Quality Content
One of the key reasons a consumer will visit your website is to research your products. You want your customers to trust you and your product, but they can't trust you if you don't give them a reason to. Create a blog that covers topics important to your readers. Include product reviews and descriptions, tips, advice, cannabis news and similar topics to show your customers that you are an industry leader.
3. Create a Strong Social Presence
Although you may be restricted in advertising specific products on social media platforms, you are still able to use the platforms to promote your business in other ways. Social media is a fantastic way to get your business in front of a targeted audience. The trick here is to use social media a way to engage your audience rather than simply dump content at them. People like to buy things, but not many people like to feel 'sold to' - and you can take advantage of that preference by providing information rather than trying to sell through social media posts.
4. Engage Search Engine Optimization
The restrictions on advertising in some areas may seem like a good reason to avoid digital altogether. In reality, those restrictions only stop you from paying Google or other platforms for your new customers. They do not stop you from being found during internet searches if you have quality SEO.
Google and other search engines base their rankings for SEO on factors like how user friendly your website is, whether or not your site is mobile friendly, and the quality of the content you put on your site. These factors are not influenced by how much money you pay to an advertising platform, but instead depend on how much effort you are willing to put into your search appearance.
As an added bonus, many consumers trust first page organic results in their internet searchers over the paid advertisements. This means that people will find your store easier and are more likely to make a purchase.
5. Use Email Marketing & Loyalty to Your Advantage
Remember all of that quality content that I have been harping about in this article? Well, here is one more good reason for it. Naturally, you want to drive new customers to your store but it is also important to keep existing customers engaged with your products. That is where email marketing and loyalty come in.
With email marketing, you can keep your subscribers up to date on the latest and greatest from your shop including new products, sales, discounts, and more. You can set up automated emails based on customer preferences, important dates and shopping behavior to encourage loyalty and repeat business.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of the ways you can market your cannabis business. As the industry matures, it is certain that new avenues for traditional and digital marketing will be made available to marijuana entrepreneurs.
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