CANNABIS DIGITAL MARKETING
The cannabis industry is experiencing rapid growth, with the global market projected to reach $73.6 billion by 2027. Key trends include a shift towards cannabis-infused products such as edibles, beverages, and topicals, as well as a growing interest in medical cannabis for health conditions (GlobeNewswire). Digging a bit deeper, long-standing cannabis cities are grappling with the growing pains of late-stage legality, where products have become commoditized, and brand loyalty remains elusive.
The cannabis industry operates within a highly regulated framework, where strict penalties for non-compliance can have severe consequences. The regulatory landscape for cannabis varies significantly by region. Some countries and states have fully legalized both medical and recreational use, while others maintain strict prohibitions. In the U.S., the state-by-state legalization creates a complex regulatory environment, impacting cultivation, distribution, marketing, and sales strategies. An evolving legal framework presents exciting opportunities and frustrating challenges for marketing professionals.(GlobeNewswire)
Despite these challenges, a community of ambitious marketers have demonstrated remarkable ingenuity in finding loopholes, workarounds, and alternative methods to promote products while avoiding legal pitfalls. We have them all for you – right here.
Importance of Digital Marketing
Without digital marketing, cannabis brands miss out on access to a vast audience, with many platforms offering free or low-cost options to reach potential customers.
Cannabis digital marketing offers precise targeting, enabling brands to reach specific audiences based on demographics, behavior, and interests, which is crucial for adhering to age restrictions and regulatory compliance. Unlike traditional marketing channels such as TV, radio, and print, digital marketing ensures that ads are directed specifically at legal-age consumers, enhancing both compliance and engagement.
The undeniable benefits of cannabis digital marketing include:
Precise Targeting: Reach specific audiences based on detailed demographic criteria, ensuring ads are seen by the appropriate age group and interests.
Measurable Results: Utilize real-time metrics and analytics to assess ROI, track user interactions, and optimize campaign strategies.
Cost-Effectiveness: Offers flexible budgeting options and high returns on investment, making it more economical compared to traditional methods.
Your cannabis brand might be invisible and you wouldn’t even know it. Cannabis marketing - as a job- is characterized by navigating. Marketers must navigate complex age restrictions, content limitations, and platform-specific rules while avoiding blacklisted keywords and accounts that can hinder visibility. And the market has no brand loyalty. A lack of established brand recognition means that new entrants struggle to build momentum behind their new name. Instead, the decision making comes down to the product and price. Companies like Weedmaps have managed to dominate search results for product searches by leveraging their customers' combined web authority, demonstrating the power of a strong digital strategy in overcoming some of these barriers.
The CBD market has expanded rapidly due to growing consumer interest in wellness and natural remedies. Unlike THC products, CBD derived from hemp can be shipped across state lines in the U.S. if it contains less than 0.3% THC, enabling national market reach. However, the emergence of intoxicating hemp products like Delta-8 THC has created a complex regulatory landscape, with varying state laws and federal scrutiny complicating compliance for businesses.
The CBD market is increasingly crowded. You have to create differentiation through unique formulations and effective branding to stand out. On top of hat, CBD faces challenging ad restrictions on major platforms. Thankfully, Legitscript Certification has largely mitigated these issues on Google, YouTube, and Meta.
In response to their hurdles, companies have turned to alternative CBD digital marketing strategies, including content marketing, SEO, influencer partnerships, geotargeted display advertising, and email marketing. These strategies build brand awareness, educate consumers, and drive traffic to eCommerce sites. Still, utilizing compliant advertising channels and leveraging first-party data for targeted marketing can enhance a CBD brand's digital presence too. The sweet spot is a combination of paid and organic channels that appeal to your target audience.
Your bad website is probably killing your business. An easily accessible and user-friendly website reduces friction for potential customers, fosters trust and reliability while communicating the brand's value propositions. But going beyond your website alone, a digital marketing presence also provides valuable data across many channels, allowing businesses to measure and optimize their efforts across marketing platforms. With enhanced engagement and brand visibility, digital media enables businesses to build communities, fostering a sense of connection and loyalty among their audience.
Cannabis Digital Marketing Strategy
Want to be a fading memory? Go ahead - ignore your digital marketing strategy. Your marketing strategy serves as a roadmap for achieving specific goals and narrows your focus to marketing activities that are cohesive and targeted. Cannabis marketing is like playing the game on “hard mode.” By integrating digital marketing into the broader business strategy, companies enhance their visibility, drive growth, and effectively compete in the cannabis market.
The most important thing to consider when setting goals and objectives is ensuring they are SMART—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This approach helps create clear, actionable, and realistic goals, making it easier to track progress, evaluate success, and adjust strategies as needed. By setting SMART goals, you align objectives with your overall vision and ensure they are practical and attainable within a set timeframe.For example:
Increase Website Traffic: Through SEO and content marketing, aim to boost organic traffic by 30% over the next six months.
Enhance Brand Awareness: Grow social media followers by 50% annually by leveraging engaging content and influencer partnerships.
Drive Conversions: Implement targeted email marketing campaigns and optimize the website's user experience to achieve a 20% increase in online sales.
When choosing your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), the most important factor to consider is alignment with business objectives. KPIs should directly reflect the goals and strategic priorities of your business, ensuring that they measure what truly matters for success. This alignment helps in accurately tracking progress, making informed decisions, and driving meaningful results that contribute to achieving overall business objectives. Key metrics to track include:
Website Traffic: Monitor the number of visitors, page views, and average session duration.
Conversion Rate: Measure the percentage of visitors who complete a desired action, such as purchasing or filling out a contact form.
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Calculate the cost associated with acquiring each new customer.
Return on Investment (ROI): Assess the profitability of marketing campaigns relative to their cost.
Engagement Metrics: Track likes, shares, comments, and overall interaction on social media platforms.
Learn more about KPIs here > 53+ Key Performance Indicators (Kpis) For Cannabis Dispensaries
A well-defined digital marketing strategy provides valuable insights that support informed decision-making. By analyzing performance data and KPIs, businesses can identify trends, evaluate the success of their campaigns, and make data-driven adjustments to improve outcomes. Using an iterative approach allows companies to refine their strategies, optimize resource allocation, and respond effectively to market changes.
The most important thing to consider when setting a budget is aligning it with your business goals and objectives. Ensure that the budget reflects your income, and strategic priorities, such as marketing, development, or expansion, and allows for sufficient investment in areas that will drive growth and achieve your desired outcomes. Many people say you should reinvest 10-11% of your revenue back into your marketing budget. Balancing financial constraints with the need for effective resource allocation is crucial for maximizing return on investment and sustaining long-term success. Important considerations include:
Allocation of Resources: Determine how much to invest in various channels, such as SEO, PPC, social media, content marketing, or hire a cannabis digital marketing agency, based on their expected impact and ROI.
Cost of Tools and Platforms: Account for marketing tools, software, and advertising platforms expenses.
Flexibility: Maintain flexibility in the budget to adapt to changing market conditions and emerging opportunities.
Monitoring and Adjusting: Regularly review budget performance and adjust as needed to optimize spending and maximize results.
Understanding your customers is the obvious yet elusive way marketers tailor products and services to meet their needs and preferences. It ensures higher satisfaction and loyalty, more effective marketing strategies, and increased engagement and conversion rates. Clear customer profiles provide valuable insights for innovation. This is the secret to staying competitive in the market. By comprehensively examining your customers, you not only enhance their experience but also drive growth, innovation, and long-term success for your business.
Target audiences are specific groups of consumers that a business aims to reach with its marketing efforts. These segments are identified based on shared characteristics and behaviors that align with the brand's objectives. Audience segments can include various categories such as age, gender, income level, geographic location, and more. Organizing customers into segments allows businesses to tailor their messaging and strategies to personalize their engagement with different groups.
Check out our DemoGraph Audience Builder to launch ad campaigns to first and third-party data segments, or create lookalike audiences.
Collect Your Cannabis Customer First-Party Data
Collecting your cannabis customer's first-party data is a must. Data is an evergreen asset for digital marketing strategies and adds significant value when you sell your company. Capture your customer first-party data by obtaining their email, phone number, first and last name – at a minimum for remarketing email and SMS tactics and for retargeting ad campaigns. Customer data is invaluable when creating personalized marketing campaigns.
Remarketing Email: Sending targeted emails to previous visitors or customers to encourage them to return and complete a purchase.
SMS Tactics: Utilize text message marketing to deliver timely promotions, updates, and personalized messages directly to customers' mobile devices.
VIP Customer Loyalty Emails: Exclusive emails sent to loyal customers offering special rewards, early access, and personalized content to enhance loyalty.
Strain Drops: Announcements about new or limited-edition cannabis strains available for purchase.
New Product Announcements: Emails informing customers about the release of new products to generate excitement and drive sales.
Events: Invitations and promotions for upcoming events, such as product launches, store openings, or special gatherings.
Discounts and Promotion: Emails offering special discounts, deals, and promotions to incentivize purchases.
Abandoned Cart Retargeting: Emails or retarget ads sent to customers who left items in their online shopping cart, encouraging them to complete the purchase.
Latent Customer Retargeting: Targeted ads and emails aimed at re-engaging customers who haven't made a purchase in a while by offering special incentives.
Third-Party Data
Third-party data is valuable for broadening audience reach and insights as well as refining marketing strategies, but it comes with privacy and data accuracy challenges. With increasing regulations around data privacy, reliance on third-party data is diminishing, making first-party data collection even more critical for businesses. Learn more about data from our resources:
Navigating 3rd Party Data Challenges: Ensuring Quality and Compliance
3 Ways You Can—and Should—Be Using Your Cannabis First-Party Data
Together, demographics (the what) and psychographics (the why) work together to understand consumer behavior. In the right creative hands, this data lays the foundations for campaigns that resonate on a deeper level.
Demographics refer to quantifiable characteristics of a population, such as age, gender, income, education, and occupation. These factors help define consumers. For example, a cannabis brand might target young professionals aged 25-35 with disposable income.
Psychographics, on the other hand, characterize the qualitative aspects of consumer behavior, such as interests, values, lifestyles, and attitudes. This helps in understanding why consumers might prefer certain products. For instance, a brand might target health-conscious individuals who value natural remedies and sustainability.
As you dive into your consumer behavior analysis, you’ll want to understand the underlying motivations and needs driving consumer decisions. Analyze how preferences, attitudes, and purchasing triggers influence behavior changes. By focusing on these core drivers, you can tailor your strategies, create personalized marketing efforts, and enhance overall engagement and satisfaction. Key factors to consider include:
Preferences: What types of products do consumers favor (e.g., edibles, tinctures, or flower)? How do they choose products based on their needs or lifestyle?
Brand Loyalty: What factors contribute to brand loyalty or lack thereof? Is it product quality, customer service, or pricing?
Deterrents: What factors push consumers away from certain brands? Common issues might include inconsistent product quality, poor customer service, or negative brand perceptions.
Cannabis Beverages: Cannabis-infused beverages are gaining popularity, offering an alternative to traditional smoking and providing a new way to consume cannabis.
HD9 in the National Market: The emerging trend of HD9 (a cannabinoid) highlights the increasing interest in micro cannabinoids and their specific uses, beyond the typical THC and CBD.
Isolating Micro Cannabinoids: There is a growing trend toward isolating micro cannabinoids for targeted effects, catering to consumers seeking specific benefits.
Strain Selection at Retail Level: The traditional "indica, sativa, hybrid" model is losing popularity as consumers and retailers explore more nuanced strain characteristics and effects.
Public Consumption: The lack of legalized public consumption spaces continues to limit social smoking and the broader acceptance of cannabis use in public settings.
Known as the "4 Ps" of marketing— these four considerations are fundamental in shaping cannabis consumer purchase decisions.
Price
To compete, dispensaries and products often engage in aggressive pricing strategies, including deep discounts. However, this can lead to price wars and impact profit margins.
Product
Availability and variety remain issues as the market stabilizes. Consumers may choose dispensary brands based on product range and availability.
Place
Convenience is a significant factor; consumers often prefer dispensaries that are easily accessible and offer a smooth purchasing experience.
Promotion
Brand presence and reputation play crucial roles. Established and trusted brands tend to attract more consumers, as trust and familiarity influence purchasing decisions.
eCommerce Marketing Funnel
eCommerce uses a funnel model to guide potential customers through purchasing. The funnel allows marketers to optimize the customer journey from initial awareness to final conversion. The funnel includes stages designed to address the specific needs and motivations of the customer. By structuring the funnel, eCommerce businesses can effectively manage and influence customer interactions, improve user experience, and increase the likelihood of conversions by providing targeted messaging and relevant offers at each stage.
Understanding the Marketing Funnel Stages
A well-managed funnel enhances customer acquisition, retention, and overall sales performance. The marketing funnel is the best tool to understand marketing holes and increase sales because it visually maps out the customer journey, highlighting where potential customers drop off. This targeted approach effectively allocates resources to address specific issues, optimizing conversion rates. By analyzing each stage, businesses can identify weaknesses and opportunities for improvement.
Marketing Funnel Stages:
Awareness: This is the initial stage where potential customers learn about your brand or product. The goal at this stage is to capture attention and create interest through various channels, such as social media, content marketing, and advertising.
Consideration: In this stage, potential customers evaluate your product or service against their needs and options. They may research, compare, and seek more information, often engaging with content such as product reviews, case studies, or detailed descriptions.
Conversion: This is when a potential customer takes the desired action, such as purchasing or signing up for a service. The focus here is on guiding the customer smoothly through the checkout process and providing a good experience.
Loyalty: After the initial conversion, your goal is to build long-term relationships and encourage repeat business. This stage involves post-purchase follow-up, customer support, and loyalty programs to foster satisfaction and retention, turning one-time buyers into repeat customers and brand advocates.
Creating Awareness
Brands create awareness for their products or services by leveraging a variety of strategies to reach and engage potential customers. Top-of-funnel content strategies, such as informative blog posts, engaging social media updates, and eye-catching videos, help attract attention and introduce the brand to a broad audience. SEO tactics ensure that content ranks well in search engines, making it easier for users to discover the brand organically, while social media platforms enable targeted outreach and interaction. Paid awareness strategies, such as display ads and sponsored content, differ from organic methods by providing immediate visibility and reaching specific demographics. However, they often come with higher costs compared to the gradual buildup of organic reach.
Nurturing Consideration
In this context, "nurture" refers to the process of guiding and influencing potential customers through the consideration stage of the marketing funnel. Brands nurture consideration by building relationships and providing relevant information that helps potential customers evaluate their options and move closer to purchasing.
Brands use email marketing to deliver personalized content, offers, and updates that keep the brand top-of-mind and address specific customer interests or pain points. Retargeting strategies help by showing targeted ads to users who have previously interacted with the brand, reinforcing the message, and encouraging further engagement.
You can gauge if someone is ready to move from the consideration stage to conversion by monitoring engagement indicators such as repeated visits to the website, interactions with product details, or responses to personalized offers. Different conversion levels might include actions like signing up for a trial, requesting a demo, or adding items to a shopping cart, with each step indicating increasing readiness to finalize a purchase.
Marketers drive conversion by implementing strategies that persuade potential customers to take a desired action, such as purchasing or signing up for a service. The primary goal of a conversion is to move a prospect from the consideration stage to the decision stage, thereby achieving a specific business objective.
Optimizing product pages and checkout processes enhances user experience by making product information clear, compelling, and easily accessible, which helps customers make informed decisions. A streamlined and intuitive checkout process minimizes friction and reduces cart abandonment, ensuring a smooth transition from consideration to purchase.
Promotions and discount strategies can significantly drive conversions by providing immediate value and incentives to potential customers. Offering limited-time discounts, such as 20% off a first purchase or buy-one-get-one-free deals, can create urgency and encourage customers to act quickly, while promotional codes and seasonal sales events can attract attention and boost conversion rates.
Customer loyalty is difficult to establish in the cannabis market because the industry faces high product commoditization. Many products appear similar, leading consumers to prioritize price and availability over brand loyalty. Additionally, rapid market changes and evolving regulations can make it challenging for brands to maintain consistent quality and engagement, further impacting customer loyalty. To combat this market dynamic, cannabis businesses should focus on building a community and engaging with repeat customers through exclusive content, rewards, and interactive experiences, which foster stronger connections and long-term loyalty.
Effective retention strategies include:
eCommerce Email Automation and Segmentation: Tailoring email campaigns based on customer behavior and preferences to maintain engagement and drive repeat purchases.
Retargeted Ads and SMS: Using targeted ads and SMS messages to re-engage customers who have interacted with the brand but have not recently purchased.
Loyalty Programs: Implementing reward systems that incentivize repeat purchases and offer exclusive benefits to loyal customers.
Referral Programs: Encouraging existing customers to refer new ones by offering rewards or discounts.
Building a Community: Creating a sense of belonging through online forums, social media groups, and exclusive events to engage customers and foster brand loyalty.
Cannabis Digital Marketing Channels
You need to know your options. As a cannabis marketer, you’re more limited than a garden center or a coffee brand. This comprehensive exploration of cannabis digital marketing channels offers insights into best practices, potential pitfalls, and innovative approaches that cannabis digital marketing agencies would use to create an impact with digital marketing.
Organic Digital Marketing Strategy
An organic marketing strategy focuses on increasing a brand's visibility and engagement without relying on paid advertising. Organic leverages search engine optimization (SEO), content creation, and social media engagement to attract and retain customers naturally. Using your website as the foundation, this approach builds long-term credibility and trust by delivering valuable content and fostering genuine connections with the audience.
Build Your Website
In just 50 milliseconds, users make snap judgments about your website's design, usability, and credibility. This fleeting moment is critical, as it sets the tone for their entire experience and influences whether they stay or leave. A professional, visually appealing design can instantly build trust and interest, while a cluttered or outdated site may drive potential customers away before they even explore your offerings. To maximize this crucial window, ensure your website is aesthetically pleasing, easy to navigate, and optimized for fast loading times. Here's a streamlined summary of how we build a website:
1. Defining Goals and Objectives
Determine the primary purpose of your website, whether it's for eCommerce, information, or lead generation, to align your website with your business objectives. Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) that will help measure the success and effectiveness of your website in achieving these goals.
2. Research and Planning
Conduct market research to understand your target audience. Then, analyze competitors' websites to identify best practices and opportunities. Plan the website structure with a detailed sitemap and user journey diagram to ensure a seamless and intuitive user experience.
3. Choosing a Domain and Hosting
Select a domain name that is memorable, reflects your brand, and is easy to spell. Choose a reliable web hosting provider that offers the necessary features, performance, and support to ensure your website runs smoothly.
4. Design and User Experience
Create wireframes and mockups to visualize the layout and design, focusing on user-friendly interfaces and intuitive navigation. Ensure your design is responsive to provide a consistent and optimal experience across all devices, from desktops to mobile phones.
5. Content Creation
Develop high-quality content, including text, images, videos, and other media, that aligns with your brand messaging and SEO strategy. Make sure the content is engaging, informative, and valuable to your audience, enhancing their overall experience on your site.
6. Development
Choose a content management system (CMS) or website builder that fits your needs, such as WordPress, Shopify, or Webflow. Implement the design and functionalities, ensuring clean and efficient code while incorporating essential features like forms, shopping carts, and interactive elements.
7. SEO and Performance Optimization
Optimize website content and meta data to improve search engine rankings and visibility. Enhance site speed and performance through techniques such as image optimization, and minimizing code to provide a faster user experience.
8. Testing and Quality Assurance
Conduct thorough testing to identify and resolve any bugs or issues, ensuring all elements function correctly. Test the website on various devices and browsers to guarantee a consistent experience for all users.
9. Launch
Perform a final review to ensure all components are functioning as intended and deploy the website. Monitor for any immediate post-launch issues and address them promptly to maintain a smooth user experience.
10. Maintenance and Updates
Regularly update content, software, and plugins to keep the website secure, relevant, and performing optimally. Monitor website analytics to track keyword performance and make data-driven improvements for continuous enhancement.
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Cannabis Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of enhancing a website's visibility in search engine results to attract more organic traffic. This involves keyword research and strategy, site structure, content quality, domain authority and much more. Learn about Cannabis Dispensary SEO here.
On-Page SEO Optimizations
Optimizing on-page elements is fundamental for cannabis dispensary SEO. The optimization process includes refining title tags, metadata, headers, and schema to improve search engine visibility. Effective use of internal links can also enhance user experience and boost page rankings. For detailed strategies, refer to MediaJel's On-Page Optimization for Cannabis Dispensaries.
Off-Page Optimizations
Building a strong backlink profile is rocket fuel for increasing domain authority. Focus on acquiring high-quality backlinks, optimizing anchor text, and encouraging positive reviews and social shares. Off-page SEO also involves improving page speed and ensuring mobile optimization. For more insights, visit MediaJel's Link Building Strategies.
Google Analytics: GA4 Set Up
Implementing Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is vital for tracking user behavior and optimizing marketing strategies. Set up GA4, along with Google Merchant Center or eCommerce setups, to gain comprehensive insights into your website's performance. Additionally, using Google Search Console and Google Tag Manager can focus your SEO efforts by providing valuable data and managing tags efficiently.
Producing Educational Blogs and Resources
Creating educational and value-packed blog posts helps build your voices - conveying trust and authority. Focus on optimizing these posts for relevant SEO keywords to attract more traffic. For further guidance on SEO strategies for cannabis dispensaries, explore the resources available at MediaJel's Academy.
- On-Page SEO Optimizations
Title Tags, Metadata, Headers, Schema, Internal links
- Off-Page Optimizations
- Google Analytics: GA4 Set Up
- Google Search Console
- Google Tag Manager
Produce educational blogs and resources that build trust
Write Value-packed Blog Posts that build trust and are optimized for SEO keywords
- Focus on local SEO
- Focus on technical SEO
Dispensary Local SEO Plan
Dispensaries have to take special considerations for local SEO when building their plans. Local tactics enhance your dispensary’s visibility for customers seeking nearby retail locations. Often, your local SEO efforts are leading customers to get directions from search results. Local SEO also improves rankings for bottom-of-the-funnel keywords, capturing high-intent searches like "dispensary near me." A well-optimized local SEO profile, complete with reviews, photos, and accurate descriptions, boosts credibility with both search engines and potential customers. The combination of visibility and trust can significantly increase foot traffic and dispensary sales.
Google Business Profile (GBP) Set Up
Creating and optimizing your Google Business Profile (GBP) profile is the cornerstone of local SEO for cannabis dispensaries. Complete your GBP with accurate business information, high-quality images, and regular updates. Encourage customers to leave positive reviews, which significantly influence local search rankings. For a comprehensive guide, check out MediaJel's blog on Local SEO for Dispensaries.
Objective: Optimize your GBP to increase visibility in local searches.
Action Steps:
- Claim and verify your GBP listing.
- Complete your profile with accurate business name, address, phone number (NAP), business hours, and categories.
- Add high-quality photos of your dispensary, products, and team.
- Post regular updates about new products, promotions, and events.
- Encourage and respond to customer reviews to build trust and engagement.
Backlink Profile, Local Listings, and Directories
Building a robust backlink profile with links from reputable local websites and directories can enhance your domain authority and local search visibility. Ensure your dispensary is listed on all relevant local directories and citation sites with consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone number) information. For more details on citation consistency, refer to NAP Cannabis Dispensary Local SEO Citation Consistency.
Objective: Enhance domain authority and local search rankings through high-quality backlinks and consistent local citations.
Action Steps:
- Identify and secure backlinks from reputable local websites, blogs, and cannabis-related sites.
- Ensure your dispensary is listed on popular local directories such as Yelp, Leafly, Weedmaps, and other industry-specific platforms.
- Maintain consistent NAP information across all listings to improve citation consistency and local SEO rankings.
SEO Location Pages
Create dedicated location pages for each of your dispensary locations. These pages should include unique, localized content, such as store hours, contact information, and specific services offered at each location. This helps target location-based searches and improve local SEO performance.
Objective: Create dedicated pages for each dispensary location to target location-based searches.
Action Steps:
- Develop unique, content-rich location pages that include address, contact information, hours of operation, and specific services offered.
- Incorporate local keywords and phrases relevant to each location.
- Add customer testimonials and reviews specific to each location to build credibility.
SEO Collection Pages
Develop collection pages that categorize products into easily navigable groups, such as "Top-Selling Strains" or "Best Edibles." These pages can enhance user experience and make it easier for customers to find what they're looking for while improving your website's SEO structure.
Objective: Organize products into categorized collection pages to enhance user experience and SEO structure.
Action Steps:
- Create collection pages for popular product categories, such as "Top-Selling Strains," "Best Edibles," and "New Arrivals."
- Use descriptive titles, meta descriptions, and alt text for images to optimize these pages for search engines.
- Link to relevant product pages and other internal content to improve site navigation and user engagement.
State Pages for Cannabis Multi-State Operators (MSOs)
Multi-state operators should create state-specific pages that cater to each state's unique regulations and consumer preferences. Implement a strain locator tool on your website to help customers find specific products across different locations. This strategy can drive more localized traffic, improve user engagement, and help you rank for state-based keywords.
Objective: Cater to multi-state operations with state-specific content and tools to locate products.
Action Steps:
- Create state-specific pages that address local regulations, available products, and store locations.
- Implement a strain locator tool to help customers find specific products at various locations.
- Optimize state pages with local keywords and information relevant to each market.
Keyword-Focused Website Content and Blogs
Produce keyword-focused content that addresses the needs and interests of your local audience. Write blogs and website content optimized for local keywords to increase visibility in local search results. For insights on why local SEO is crucial, visit Why Local SEO Matters.
For a deeper dive into local SEO strategies for dispensaries, explore the resources available at MediaJel.
Objective: Drive local traffic by producing SEO-optimized content that addresses local search queries and interests.
Action Steps:
- Conduct keyword research to identify relevant local search terms and phrases.
- Write informative, value-packed blog posts and website content targeting these keywords.
- Update content regularly to keep it fresh and relevant to current trends and customer interests.
Content Marketing
Content marketing is like a well-tuned instrument, creating harmonious engagements that resonate with your audience. By creating and sharing valuable, relevant content you attract and engage a target audience, ultimately driving business. Agencies develop successful content through a strategic process that includes researching audience interests, generating ideas, and crafting compelling articles, videos, or infographics. Marketers can create engaging content on their own by focusing on quality, consistency, and relevance, using strategies such as blog posts on industry trends and leveraging educational resources from platforms like MediaJel to provide valuable insights and build authority.
Paid Advertising in the Cannabis Industry
Google Ads, Bing Ads, and Programmatic Advertising
Paid advertising through platforms like Google Ads, Bing Ads, and programmatic advertising enhance the visibility and reach of your cannabis dispensary. Each platform offers unique advantages:
- Google Ads: Allows you to target potential customers based on search queries, display ads on relevant websites, and utilize YouTube for video ads.
- Bing Ads: Provides access to a different segment of users, often with less competition and lower cost-per-click compared to Google.
- Programmatic Advertising: Automates the buying of ad space using algorithms to target specific audiences with precision, optimizing ad spend and performance.
Understand Your CAC and CLV to Determine Marketing Budgets and ROAS
To make the most of your paid advertising efforts, it's crucial to understand your Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and Customer Lifetime Value (CLV):
- Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including advertising spend, marketing expenses, and sales efforts.
- Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): The total revenue expected from a customer throughout their relationship with your brand.
Calculating Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) and Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) allows you to set realistic marketing budgets and measure your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) so your advertising campaigns are cost-effective and profitable.
Related Content:
- MediaJel Academy - Paid Advertising
- 3 Ways To Improve Your Roas: How To Tweak And Maximize Your Ad Spends
Programmatic Advertising
With the integration of AI, programmatic campaigns are delivering ads that seem almost psychic. Programmatic advertising leverages automated systems to buy and optimize digital ad space in real time, offering precise targeting and efficient ad spending. To get started with programmatic advertising platforms and strategies, explore our comprehensive Programmatic Advertising Ebook on the subject.
Setting Up Prospecting and Retargeting Ads
- Prospecting Ads: Use display and Google ads to reach new potential customers and attract them to your store. Craft the ads to introduce your brand and entice prospects.
- Retargeting Ads: Bring back visitors who have previously interacted with your website or store. To encourage their return, use your first-party data to retarget these users with personalized programmatic display ads.
Key Components of Effective Programmatic Advertising
- Audience Targeting Data: Leverage detailed audience insights to deliver ads to specific segments based on their behavior and interests.
- First-Party Data: Utilize data collected directly from your customers, such as website interactions and purchase history, to create highly relevant ads.
- Second-Party Data Enrichment: Enhance your data by partnering with other businesses to gain additional insights and refine targeting.
- Third-Party Data: Use external data sources to broaden your targeting capabilities and reach a wider audience.
Types of Programmatic Ads
- Display Ads: Banners and visuals on websites and apps that can be targeted based on user interests and demographics. You can also deploy geo-targeted mobile display ads to reach customers based on their location, enhancing relevance and driving foot traffic to your store.
- Connected TV (CTV) and Over-the-Top (OTT) Media: Streaming platforms that offer targeted ad placements in video content.
- Video Ads: Platforms for creating engaging video content that adheres to advertising guidelines and reaches specific audiences.
- Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) Advertising: Ads displayed on digital billboards and transit screens in approved locations.
- In-Game Ads: Advertisements integrated into video games which can engage users in an interactive environment.
- Native Advertising: Content blends seamlessly with the platform's environment, providing a non-disruptive way to reach audiences while aligning with regulations.
Paid Advertising Challenges
Utilizing pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, including Google Ads, presents challenges for cannabis businesses due to stringent platform restrictions. For cannabis digital marketing agencies, dispensaries, and brands, Google Ads is restricted and using their services is “frowned upon,” but there are effective workarounds – and we know what they are!
Hint: Focusing on educational content, community engagement, and providing value through informative resources can help maintain visibility while remaining compliant with regulations.
Google Ads, Bing Ads, DuckDuckGo Ads
Google Ads: Cannabis and CBD businesses can run Google Ads, including Responsive Search Ads that target queries like "Dispensary Near Me." Utilize Performance Max campaigns to run ads across YouTube and Google Display Network (GDN), maximizing reach and engagement.
Bing Ads: An alternative to Google Ads, Bing Ads offers a different user base and potentially lower cost-per-click. It can be an effective platform for reaching new audiences and driving traffic.
DuckDuckGo Ads: Although less common, DuckDuckGo offers a privacy-focused advertising platform that can complement your search advertising strategy.
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Email Marketing and Automation
Effective cannabis dispensary email marketing involves building robust email lists and executing targeted campaigns to drive customer engagement and retention. To create successful email campaigns, dispensaries should focus on gathering and maintaining a high-quality email list, utilizing email for customer retention through personalized promotions, and ensuring compliance with regulations.
Related content:
- Cannabis Email Marketing Academy
- Creating Dispensary Emails Your Customers Want To Open
- Are You Getting The Most From Email Marketing?
- What Is Can-Spam & What Does It Mean For Digital Marketing?
- How To Build Your Dispensary Mailing List
- Dispensary Email Marketing: How To Write A Newsletter
Building an Email List
An email list provides a direct and personal channel to communicate with your audience, allowing for targeted messaging and engagement. Building your email list enables better customer retention through regular updates, personalized offers, and exclusive content, which can increase customer loyalty and lifetime value. Additionally, building an email list means you own valuable information called first-party data that can help you understand your customers on a deeper level.
First-party data is the information collected directly from your audience or customers, such as email addresses, purchase history, and browsing behavior. This data is gathered through interactions with your brand and is highly valuable because it is specific to your audience and provides insights into their preferences and behavior. Use first-party data to segment your audience, personalize content, and tailor marketing strategies to better meet their needs, ultimately helping to expand and refine your target audience.
To collect first-party data, you need incentives, which are rewards or benefits that are given to encourage email sign-ups. Incentives can include discounts, free shipping, exclusive content access, product drops, store openings, or a giveaway entry. For example, offering a 20% discount on their next purchase in exchange for signing up for your email list can effectively drive new subscriptions.
Strategies for List Growth
- Content Upgrades: Offer additional, valuable content in exchange for email sign-ups, such as downloadable guides or checklists. For example, a blog post on "10 Tips for Better Joints" could include a free downloadable diagram for subscribers.
- Landing Pages: Create dedicated landing pages with compelling offers to capture email addresses. For instance, promote a discount on first purchases for new subscribers through a dedicated sign-up page.
- Social Media Campaigns: Use social media platforms to drive traffic to your email sign-up forms by offering exclusive deals or content. For example, running a contest where participants enter by subscribing to your email list.
- Pop-ups and Slide-ins: Implement pop-up forms or slide-ins on your website that encourage visitors to subscribe to your list for exclusive content or discounts.
- Referral Programs: Encourage existing subscribers to refer friends in exchange for rewards or incentives, thus expanding your email list through word-of-mouth.
Effective Email Campaigns
These email campaigns are so effective because they provide personalized, timely, and relevant content that meets customers' needs and interests, fostering stronger relationships and driving engagement. To convert potential customers down the marketing funnel, you’ll need to utilize these strategic touchpoints throughout the customer journey to maximize opportunities for conversion and retention.
- Welcome Series: A sequence of emails sent to new subscribers to introduce them to your brand, share your story, and highlight key products or services. This campaign sets the tone for future interactions and builds a strong foundation for customer relationships.
- Abandoned Cart Reminders: Emails sent to customers who added items to their cart but did not complete the purchase. These reminders often include product images, a call-to-action to complete the purchase, and sometimes a discount or special offer to incentivize the customer to finalize their order.
- Product Recommendations: Personalized emails suggesting products based on the customer's browsing history, past purchases, or preferences help drive repeat purchases by showing customers items they are likely to be interested in.
- Seasonal Promotions and Sales: Time-sensitive emails highlighting seasonal sales, holiday promotions, or special events. These campaigns create urgency and encourage customers to take advantage of limited-time offers.
- Customer Loyalty and Rewards Programs: Emails promoting your loyalty program, highlighting rewards, and encouraging participation. Regular updates on points balance, available rewards, and exclusive offers for members can keep customers engaged and loyal to your brand.
- Re-engagement Campaigns: Targeted emails to reactivate inactive subscribers or customers who haven't purchased in a while. Offering discounts or showcasing new products can entice them to re-engage with your brand.
- Post-Purchase Follow-Ups: Emails sent after a purchase to thank customers, confirm their order, provide shipping details, and request feedback or reviews. These follow-ups enhance the customer experience and can encourage repeat business.
- Content-Driven Emails: Emails that provide valuable content, such as blog posts, how-to guides, or industry news, alongside product promotions. This approach positions your brand as a helpful resource and keeps your audience engaged.
- Exclusive Access and Early Bird Offers: Emails offering subscribers early access to new products, exclusive sales, or special events. This tactic makes subscribers feel valued and can drive immediate sales.
- Newsletters: Regularly scheduled emails that keep subscribers informed about your brand, upcoming events, new product launches, industry news, and other relevant updates. Newsletters help maintain ongoing engagement and keep your brand top-of-mind for your audience.
Branding and Positioning
Brand positioning is the process of defining how a brand is perceived in the minds of consumers relative to its competitors. It involves establishing a unique and distinct place in the market by highlighting the brand's strengths, values, and benefits. Effective brand positioning helps the brand stand out for its specific qualities and advantages, influencing consumer preference and loyalty.
Crafting a Unique Brand Identity
Brand identity is like a signature dish; it combines unique ingredients to create a flavor that's distinctly yours and unforgettable. Using a collection of elements to represent itself, a company creates its name, logo, colors, typography, and overall visual style to represent their “flavor”. Brand Identity encompasses the brand's personality, values, and unique selling propositions, shaping how consumers perceive it. A strong brand identity helps establish a memorable and cohesive image that differentiates the brand from its competitors and begets customer loyalty.
Developing a Brand Voice and Story
A weak brand story leads to a marketing nightmare… your brand is overshadowed and forgotten, trapped in a limbo of obscurity. Creating a distinct brand voice means you define the tone, style, and personality that will be consistent across all communications. Your brand story should communicate your company's history, values, and mission, helping to build an emotional connection with your audience.
Developing a Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
A USP clearly articulates what sets your brand apart from competitors and why customers should choose your product or service. It should highlight the unique benefits and value your brand provides, addressing your target audience's specific needs or pain points. Start here to Write Your Own Unique Selling Proposition
Visual Branding Strategies
While having a cool brand is exciting, it's crucial to focus on building a brand that resonates with your target market rather than just reflecting personal tastes. A brand that meets your audience's needs and preferences will drive stronger connections. Ultimately, success comes from aligning your brand with your customers' values, not merely showcasing your vision.
Logo Design and Visual Elements: Your logo and visual elements, such as color schemes, typography, and imagery, should be carefully designed to reflect your brand identity. These elements play a big role in creating a memorable and recognizable brand.
Consistency with Brand Identity: Maintaining consistency in visual branding across all platforms and marketing materials means that customers will easily recognize your brand. This consistency helps to build trust and reliability with your audience.
Strategic Positioning in the Market
Effective positioning requires a clear understanding of what makes your brand unique and how it stands out from competitors. Conducting thorough market research helps you understand your target audience, industry trends, and competitive landscape. By leveraging this information, you can highlight your unique attributes and strengths to develop a positioning strategy that resonates with your audience and effectively differentiates your brand, carving out a distinct place in the market. To understand your market positioning, use these tools:
- Competitive Analysis Tools (SEMrush, Ahrefs, SpyFu)
- Market Research Surveys (SurveyMonkey, Qualtrics, Google Forms)
- Customer Personas (HubSpot Persona Generator, Xtensio)
- Brand Positioning Statement Templates (HubSpot, MarketingProfs)
- SWOT Analysis (MindTools, Creately)
- Brand Perception Surveys (Net Promoter Score (NPS) tools, Brandwatch)
- Market Segmentation Analysis (New Frontier Data, Headset, Nielsen, Euromonitor)
- Positioning Maps (Miro, Lucidchart)
- Customer Feedback and Reviews (Trustpilot, Yelp, Google Reviews)
- Brand Audits (Branding Strategy Insider, Brandwatch)
Analytics and Performance Measurement
Failing to use data? You might as well be driving with your eyes closed. You’re risking your business’s future on sheer luck and guesswork. Analytics and performance measurement isn’t as scary as it sounds. Most tools are already collecting and analyzing data to assess the effectiveness of your cannabis marketing strategies and campaigns. This process is crucial for making informed decisions, optimizing resource allocation, and improving ROI. By identifying trends and issues, marketers can adapt strategies to changing market conditions and track progress toward their goals. Continuous measurement allows for ongoing refinement of strategies, enhancing overall effectiveness and efficiency.
Key Metrics to Track
Tracking metrics is how we evaluate performance, but it's important not to over-track or focus on irrelevant KPIs. Concentrate on key performance indicators that directly align with your business goals to avoid wasting resources. Prioritize metrics that provide actionable insights and drive meaningful improvements. Don't waste bandwidth on the wrong KPIs
Understanding Website Analytics
You can understand friction points in your marketing funnel by monitoring user behavior, traffic sources, and conversion through these key metrics.
- Page Views: Track the most visited pages to understand user interests and popular content.
- Bounce Rate: A high bounce rate may indicate that your landing pages need to meet user expectations. Aim to keep this low by ensuring relevant, high-quality content.
- Average Session Duration: This metric helps gauge user engagement. Longer durations often signify more valuable and engaging content.
- Conversion Goals: Set up specific goals in Google Analytics to track actions such as form submissions, downloads, or purchases and optimize these paths for better conversions.
Social Media Metrics
Evaluating the performance of your campaigns and engagement with your audience requires a focus on reach, impressions, engagement rate, follower growth, and click-through rates. Experts recommend:
- Reach and Impressions: Measure how many unique users see your content (reach) and how often your content is displayed (impressions). High reach tells you the algorithm thinks your content might be interesting. Low engagement suggests a need for more compelling content.
- Engagement Rate: This metric indicates how actively your audience interacts with your content. Boost engagement by creating interactive content and engaging with other user's content.
- Follower Growth: Track the increase in followers over time to gauge the effectiveness of your content strategy and audience retention.
- Click-Through Rates: Monitor the number of users clicking on your links. Improve CTR by optimizing headlines and call-to-action buttons.
Tools for Analytics
Various tools can assist in collecting and analyzing data, providing a comprehensive understanding of your digital presence. MediaJel’s experts recommend:
- The MediaJel Marketing Platform: track impressions through to revenue for your programmatic advertising campaigns. Also tracks SEO, and SEM performance.
- Google Analytics: Offers extensive insights into website performance, including traffic sources, user behavior, and conversion tracking. Set up custom dashboards to monitor key metrics at a glance.
- SEMrush: Provides data on SEO, competitor analysis, and keyword research. Use SEMrush to identify high-performing keywords, track your site's SEO health, and analyze competitors' strategies.
- HubSpot: An all-in-one tool for marketing, sales, and service. HubSpot's analytics can help track campaign performance, lead generation, and customer engagement.
- Moz: Known for its SEO capabilities, Moz can help with keyword tracking, link building, and site audits. Use Moz's domain authority and page authority metrics to understand your site's strength.
- Social Media Analytics Platforms: Tools like Hootsuite, Sprout Social, and Buffer offer in-depth social media analytics. Track engagement, audience demographics, and performance across different platforms.
Making Data-Driven Decisions
Analyzing collected data allows you to make informed decisions and optimize your cannabis marketing strategies. Here’s what you should do with you data:
- Identify Patterns and Trends: Regularly review your analytics to identify patterns and trends. Use this data to refine your marketing strategies and focus on high-performing areas.
- A/B Testing: Conduct A/B tests to determine the most effective content, email subject lines, landing pages, and more. Analyze the results to make data-backed decisions.
- Customer Feedback: Integrate customer feedback into your analytics to understand user satisfaction and areas for improvement. Use surveys, reviews, and direct feedback for comprehensive insights.
- ROI Tracking: Measure the return on investment for your campaigns to ensure that your marketing efforts are cost-effective. Adjust your budget allocation based on the performance of different channels.
- Continuous Optimization: Marketing is an ongoing process. Continuously analyze your data, experiment with new strategies, and optimize your efforts to keep up with changing trends and audience preferences.
Future Trends in Cannabis Marketing
While no one can predict the future with certainty, it's clear that significant change is on the horizon for the cannabis industry. With evolving regulations, advancing technology, and shifting consumer preferences, the landscape is set for substantial transformation. Staying informed and adaptable will be crucial as the industry continues to evolve and present new opportunities and challenges.
AI and Evolving Digital Landscape
The cannabis industry is increasingly leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and new digital platforms to stay ahead of the curve. Innovations such as AI-driven chatbots, predictive analytics, and machine learning algorithms are enhancing customer interactions, personalizing marketing efforts, and optimizing ad spend. Emerging platforms, such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), are also starting to play a role in creating immersive customer experiences and showcasing products in novel ways.
Apps Developed to Improve the Customer Experience
Mobile apps are becoming essential in enhancing the customer journey, from product discovery to purchase and beyond. These apps offer features like personalized recommendations, loyalty programs, and streamlined purchasing processes. For example, apps that integrate with dispensary systems can provide real-time inventory updates, product information, and even virtual consultations, creating a seamless and engaging experience for users.
Privacy Laws are Shifting Targeting Tactics for Advertising
With evolving privacy laws, such as GDPR and CCPA, marketers are adjusting their targeting tactics to comply with new regulations. These laws impact how data is collected, stored, and used, requiring cannabis digital marketing agencies to adopt more transparent and privacy-focused approaches. Now, we’re finding innovative ways to reach target audiences while respecting their privacy, such as leveraging first-party data and adopting context-based targeting strategies.
Legal Status
The legal status of cannabis is like the Wild West, with regulations constantly shifting and varying from state to state. In this unpredictable landscape, businesses must be prepared for anything and stay vigilant about compliance to avoid costly legal pitfalls. Navigating this tumultuous terrain requires a cautious approach, as one misstep could lead to significant legal and financial consequences.
Keep your finger on the pulse with our State by State Advertising Regulations ebook.
Recreational/Medical Cannabis Legislation Changes:
The legal landscape for recreational and medical cannabis is dynamic, with potential changes impacting marketing strategies. As laws evolve, the availability and legality of intoxicating hemp-derived products, such as Delta-8 THC, are raising questions about how cannabis-derived THC will be regulated. If intoxicating products become widely available across state lines, it could influence the market for traditional cannabis products, potentially leading to shifts in consumer preferences and regulatory challenges. Here’s what the Cannabis Marketing Association had to say:
"Cannabis marketing is largely regulated at the state level, with varying rules and quirks in each state. This creates a challenging environment for cannabis businesses, particularly multi-state operators (MSOs), who must stay up-to-date on regulations across multiple jurisdictions. Local regulations, zoning laws, and municipal opt-outs further complicate the picture, making it essential for businesses to be aware of these nuances.
Rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III could have significant implications for the industry. While it would allow for federal trademark registration, it would also subject cannabis to FDA regulation, potentially creating a new layer of complexity.
The interplay between the trademark office and the FDA remains unclear, but guidance will likely be provided in the coming years. The DEA may create more rules or change existing ones, and once cannabis is rescheduled, the FDA will likely issue its own rules for cannabis products. Currently, the DEA's public comment period is open through July 22, 2024, before an official rescheduling announcement."
Stay Up-to-Date and Sign Up for MediaJel's Newsletter
To remain informed about the latest trends, legal updates, and industry insights, subscribing to MediaJel's newsletter is highly recommended. This resource provides valuable information and expert analysis to help you stay ahead in the ever-evolving cannabis marketing landscape.
Conclusion and Next Steps
From leveraging SEO and content marketing to engaging launching targeted ad campaigns programmatically, navigating the cannabis digital marketing world starts with understanding key trends, strategies, and tactics that are crucial for success. Cannabis brands must adopt multifaceted approaches to stand out in a competitive landscape. Emerging technologies and advertising restrictions present both challenges and opportunities, necessitating a strategic focus on compliance and innovation. For those seeking deeper insights, continuing education resources on programmatic advertising and the marketing funnel are invaluable for refining your strategies and optimizing campaign performance.
To further your knowledge and network with other cannabis pros, join us on our next webinar where we will interview cannabis industry and marketing experts, offering firsthand strategies and practical advice. Building connections within the industry is also essential.
Follow us on LinkedIn to stay updated, network with professionals, and enhance your understanding of cannabis digital marketing trends and best practices.
Let’s take an in-depth look at each digital marketing channel.
Given the unique position of the cannabis industry, we’re only covering the digital marketing channels that are permitted to use by ancillary businesses, brands, dispensary owners, mobile applications, producers, processors, and websites. There is a legal gray area when marketing cannabis companies, and you should regularly reference the laws within your state before starting any campaign.
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