14 Cannabis Marketing Strategies: The Trends and Channels That Work in 2025

When it feels like you’ve tried everything to move the needle with your cannabis marketing strategies, it’s time to try this instead. You’ve tested campaigns, tweaked your website, jumped on social trends but results still aren’t where they should be. Most cannabis marketers are missing the strategic moves that tie everything together. This playbook delivers high-impact, compliant tactics you haven’t tried yet. Before we dive into the details, here’s a quick view of the core areas we’ll cover, the building blocks of a cannabis marketing strategy that works in today’s competitive cannabis market:

Key Aspects of Cannabis Marketing

1. Digital Marketing (SEO, PPC, Email, Website) – Leverage SEO, PPC, email campaigns, and high-performing website content to drive online visibility and conversions, essential for any cannabis dispensary digital marketing strategy
2. Brand Building & Storytelling – Craft a memorable brand identity and narrative that differentiates you from competitors and builds emotional connection, a key part of any cannabis brand marketing strategy.
3. Legal & Regulatory Compliance – Stay compliant with state laws and platform policies to protect your business and maintain trust.
4. Content Marketing & Blogging – Publish educational, compliant, and keyword-optimized content that attracts and retains your audience.
5. Influencer Marketing – Partner with cannabis-compliant influencers to expand reach, build credibility, and drive engagement.
6. Social Media Strategy – Create and share platform-appropriate content that builds community and supports brand awareness.
7. Local SEO Optimization – Use location-based keywords, Google Business Profile optimization, and local backlinks to dominate local search results.
8. Cross-Promotion & Partnerships – Collaborate with complementary businesses and brands to expand your reach and tap into new audiences.
9. Event Marketing & Trade Shows – Leverage in-person activations to engage directly with customers and strengthen community ties.
10. Omnichannel Marketing (CTV, DOOH, Mobile, Desktop) – Coordinate campaigns across devices and screens to reach customers where they are.
11. Owned Media Growth (Email lists, Blogs, Video) – Build sustainable, owned channels to control your message and deepen customer loyalty.
12. Data-Driven Personalization – Use first-party data and insights to deliver more personalized, relevant campaigns
13. AI-Powered Campaign Optimization – Apply AI to personalize, test, and scale campaigns for efficiency and performance.
14. Reputation & Review Management – Utilize compliance tech to stay legally sound and manage reviews to build trust.
    

Cannabis Marketing Trends for 2025

Trends are clues about where your audience, competitors, and market are headed. When you track them strategically, you can spot opportunities early, adapt your cannabis marketing strategies before your competition, and align your brand with what customers will want next.

Omnichannel Marketing Across Devices (CTV, DOOH, Mobile, Desktop)

Digital video keeps stealing share from linear, with U.S. digital video ad spend projected to hit $72.4B in 2025 (58% of total video) and CTV called a “must‑buy” by 68% of buyers (IAB via Marketing Dive; IAB). Meanwhile, DOOH is forecast to grow +12% in 2025 as OOH hits the $10B mark (MAGNA). CTV viewing is surging (+46% in Q2 2025) and buyers expect more biddable inventory and outcome metrics (Samba TV; IAB Video Report).

Strategic Tip: Test geo‑targeted DOOH within 1–3 miles of your store and run biddable CTV with local creative (menu, promos, store hours). Optimize to store visits and online orders using outcome KPIs noted in the IAB report. Coordinate flighting with weekend drops and local events.

Owned Media Growth (Email Lists, Blogs, Video Series)

Brands are prioritizing owned lists and content because email remains one of the highest‑ROI channels (~$36 per $1) (Litmus summary). Expect renewed investment in newsletter media and video series you control.

Strategic Tip: Aggressively grow your email/SMS with in‑store QR codes and gated content (strain guides, local event calendars). Ship a weekly blog/video post tied to search demand and link to product menus. Automate welcome, reorder, and reactivation flows.

Data‑driven Personalization Using First‑party Insights

Even as Google shifts away from automatic cookie deprecation, the industry has moved to first‑party data, alt IDs, and clean rooms (IAB State of Data 2025). Google’s 2025 updates confirm cookies aren’t being auto‑removed, but the focus turns to user choice and privacy protections CMA update). Marketers still rank first‑party data as their most valuable input for personalization (Twilio/Segment via Contentful).

Strategic Tip: Treat your POS, e‑comm, and loyalty data as your personalization engine. Build segments (new vs. repeat, medical vs. wellness, high‑AOV vs. deal‑seeker) and activate across email/SMS, site personalization, and programmatic via privacy‑safe pipes.

Purpose‑driven Branding (Equity, Wellness, Sustainability)

Consumers are bombarded with ESG claims but trust is low—only ~20% believe brands’ sustainability claims (Blue Yonder 2025). Expect higher scrutiny and demand for verifiable impact rather than slogans. Sector benchmarks show pressure to improve transparency and reporting (Vogue Business Index 2025).

Strategic Tip: Publish plain‑English impact pages (sourcing, testing, equity commitments), use third‑party certifications where possible, and weave wellness/education into content. Align community events and donations with a clear, measurable cause; report results quarterly.

AI‑powered Campaign Optimization

GenAI use in video ads is exploding—86% of advertisers are using or planning to use it, and it could power ~40% of video ads by 2026 (IAB Video Report via TVTechnology). IAB’s State of Data 2025 also flags AI moving from experimentation to planning, activation, and measurement (IAB State of Data 2025).

Strategic Tip: Use AI to version creative for local contexts (city names, store hours, product availability), auto‑generate ad variants for A/B tests, and feed results back into your bid strategies. Pair with first‑party segments to deliver personalized offers while staying privacy‑safe.

Compliance in Cannabis Marketing

Cannabis marketing must comply with state-specific advertising rules, avoid marketing to minors, and meet federal guidelines for truthful and age-restricted messaging. Platforms like Google and Meta have strict policies, while others like X (Twitter) and programmatic channels allow compliant cannabis ads.

Cannabis Dispensary Digital Marketing Framework

A successful dispensary digital marketing strategy is not a checklist of separate actions but an interconnected system where each tactic amplifies the others. The goal is to create a unified presence that draws customers in, encourages repeat visits, and nurtures long-term loyalty.

Google Business Profile (GBP) Optimization – Your GBP acts as your storefront in search results. By keeping it updated with accurate hours, contact info, photos, and fresh posts, you not only improve local rankings but also reassure potential customers that your business is active, trustworthy, and ready to serve.

“Near Me” and Local Keyword Targeting – Local searches often indicate high purchase intent. Embedding location-specific terms into your website copy, blog posts, and paid ads ensures your dispensary appears when nearby customers are ready to buy. This tactic works best when paired with GBP optimization, creating a double lift in local visibility.

Dispensary-Specific Content – Detailed menu pages, location landing pages, and well-structured FAQs signal relevance to search engines. This content connects directly to local keyword targeting, creating a seamless path from search to store visit or online order.

Reputation & Review Management – Reviews influence both search rankings and buying decisions. Monitoring and responding to them promptly builds credibility and can turn a dissatisfied customer into a loyal one. Positive reviews also reinforce the trust built through your GBP and content strategy.

Geofenced Advertising Campaigns – In-person events and special offers can create spikes in traffic, but geofenced advertising ensures you reach the right people at the right time. By targeting customers within a defined radius, you can align promotions with local happenings, reinforcing brand presence in the community.

Together, these tactics create a cannabis ecommerce funnel: local search drives awareness, content converts interest, reviews build trust, and targeted promotions bring people through the door, feeding more positive reviews and visibility.

Important Considerations in Cannabis Marketing

• Target Audience Understanding: Personalize based on buyer segment (recreational, wellness, medical)
  
• State-Specific Legal Compliance: Stay up-to-date on platform, state, and federal advertising rules
  
• Truthful Messaging: Avoid unverified health claims or misleading info
  

For more in-depth guidance and resources to strengthen these areas, explore our  Cannabis Marketing Academy and see how you can apply these considerations strategically.

Cross-Promotion Strategies for Cannabis Brands

Your next loyal customer might be shopping with your partner right now. Cross-promotion lets cannabis brands tap into like-minded audiences without competing for the same space. By aligning with businesses that share your values and customer demographics, you can increase visibility, generate excitement, and build deeper community ties with co-marketing strategies.

Ways to Cross-Promote:

• Partner with wellness brands or yoga studios for co-branded events
  
• Run email swaps or bundled promotions with edibles brands
  
• Collaborate with podcasts, delivery platforms, or smoking accessory brands
  

Why It Works:
The cannabis industry thrives on community, and strategic partnerships allow brands to expand reach while sharing marketing costs. When each brand promotes the collaboration, you gain exposure to a warm audience that’s more likely to convert. Choose partners who share your quality standards, customer profile, and commitment to compliance for the strongest results.

Build a Strong Cannabis Brand Identity

Your logo isn’t your brand, your customers are. If you’re not building for them, you’re branding for ego. Strong cannabis branding starts with a clear understanding of your audience and builds outward with intention. In a saturated market, your brand identity is often the deciding factor between becoming a local favorite and being forgotten. It is all about designing an experience, a voice, and a promise that truly resonates.

Define Mission, Vision, and Value Pillars – Clearly articulate why your business exists, what you aim to achieve, and the values that guide you. This becomes the foundation for all marketing and operational decisions and is a cornerstone of any effective cannabis brand marketing strategy.

Establish Visual Consistency – Use a cohesive color palette, typography, and design language across packaging, signage, social media, and your website. Consistency builds recognition and trust while reinforcing your cannabis brand marketing strategy across channels.

Build Emotional Resonance Through Storytelling – Share authentic stories about your origin, your team, your customers, or your community impact. Emotionally engaging narratives help customers see your brand as more than a transaction and strengthen your cannabis brand marketing strategy.

Align Brand Values with Audience Expectations – Demonstrate your commitment to causes that matter to your customers, such as sustainability, social equity, or wellness. Back up these commitments with measurable actions and transparent reporting to support a strong cannabis brand marketing strategy.

When your brand is built with your customers at the center, every detail—from your mission to your typography—becomes part of a living, breathing identity. A strong cannabis brand marketing strategy ensures that your story, your values, and your visuals all work in harmony, creating a brand people recognize, trust, and return to again and again.

Tools & Channels for Scalable Cannabis Marketing

In a well-structured plan, each channel is intentionally chosen and timed to complement the others, creating momentum that compounds over time. Rather than operating in silos, these channels intersect—sharing insights, reinforcing messaging, and ensuring that every customer touchpoint feels consistent and purposeful.

Owned Media: Blog, Email, SMS, Website

Owned media is the foundation of any cannabis brand marketing strategy because it’s the only space where you fully control the message, audience, and timing. A regularly updated blog boosts SEO while educating customers, email and SMS nurture relationships and drive repeat sales, and your website serves as the central hub where all marketing efforts point. Strong owned media ensures your brand voice is consistent and your value proposition is always clear. Once this base is established, other channels can amplify your reach.

Earned Media: PR, Partnerships, Reviews

Earned media builds credibility and trust that paid channels can’t buy. Positive press, collaborative partnerships, and authentic customer reviews validate your brand in the eyes of new consumers. In the cannabis industry—where regulations can limit ad placements—reputation management through earned media can shape public perception in a way that resonates long after the initial exposure. Once your owned media tells your story, earned media spreads it organically to new audiences.

Paid Media: Programmatic Ads, X (Twitter), CTV, DOOH

Paid media accelerates your ability to connect with highly targeted cannabis consumers at scale. Programmatic ads allow you to serve creative to segmented audiences, X offers a cannabis-friendly social channel for real-time engagement, CTV puts your brand in front of streaming audiences, and DOOH connects with consumers in high-traffic public spaces. When layered on top of strong owned and earned channels, paid media acts as a powerful multiplier for brand awareness and conversion.

SEO & Local Search: Evergreen Strategy for Visibility

SEO and local search marketing are long-term investments in visibility. For cannabis brands, this means optimizing for dispensary-related searches, local product keywords, and voice search to ensure your brand appears exactly when consumers are ready to buy. Local listings, Google Business Profile optimization, and link-building keep your visibility high and your brand top-of-mind (whether you’re running paid campaigns or not).

Compliance Tech: Platforms That Manage Opt-Ins, Targeting, and Ad Restrictions

Compliance technology makes it possible to execute ambitious campaigns without risking fines or account shutdowns. From age-gating tools to geotargeting compliance filters, cannabis marketing platforms ensure your campaigns meet both state regulations and platform-specific rules. In cannabis brand marketing strategy, compliance tech is the backbone that allows you to scale confidently and legally.

A successful cannabis brand marketing strategy weaves all these channels together into one cohesive plan. This integrated approach is the difference between campaigns that make a short splash and those that drive sustained, measurable growth.

Remember: Strategy, Not Just Tactics

You’ve worked hard—testing campaigns, following trends, optimizing where you could—yet something still felt disconnected. Now you know why: insight and strategy are the missing pieces that turn effort into momentum. With the right cannabis brand marketing strategy, every move you make is intentional, every channel supports the others, and every customer touchpoint moves people closer to choosing you. This is about connecting the dots so every action counts.