It’s the busiest, most bustling retail season of the year – and dispensaries across the country are getting into the swing of the season! Data shows that from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day, dispensary profits spike anywhere from 17-56%, netting millions of dollars of holiday sales for cannabis businesses. More and more users in legal states are giving cannabis-related gifts, from premium strains and accessories to infused edibles and cannabis-themed cookbooks.
Here are 12 ways that your dispensary can get into the spirit of the holi-daze, whether your customers are looking for Christmas stocking stuffers, infused Hanukkah gelt, a “unity bong” for Kwanzaa, sacraments for Soyal, treats for Chinese New Year, or “Yule trees” for Solstice.
Branded Stocking Stuffers
Stocking stuffers are an easy way to give customers an inexpensive option for gifting. Branded lighters, grinders, t-shirts and other small items also function as a business card for your dispensary. Stocking stuffers can be merched as non-denominational gifting options, which helps reach more customers. For an easy upsell, merch these kinds of items in a conspicuous place near checkout, and train budtenders to ask customers if they’d like to add on a stocking stuffer to their order.
January “Come-back” Coupons
Most businesses experience a sales dip in January, when customers get back to their post-holiday budget. With “come-back” coupons, you can offset that January sales dip and entice customers to come back with irresistible discounts. Create a series of weekly deals in January or offer specific promotions, like 20% off your first January purchase. Include coupons with every December purchase, and train budtenders to mention the January coupon when handing customers their order.
Get Involved & Give Back to the Community
Organize a “Stoned Soup” canned food drive, set up a jacket donation drop, or designate a day in December where a percentage of sales (or sales on a specific product) are donated to a local cause. For example, this is an excellent way to encourage cannabis equity and promote minority-owned local businesses, then donate a portion of the sales to organizations that support these communities. For non-perishable food, warm clothing, or blanket drives, you can offer a discount or other incentive, like bonus loyalty points, $5 off, or a free gift with their donation.
Offer Branded Gift Cards
Gift cards are a favorite holiday gifting go-to, but many dispensaries don’t offer them. Your dispensary can get an edge on the local market with Paybotic gift cards. In addition to being a convenient and secure gift-giving option for customers, gift cards provide your dispensary with immediate revenue, a chance to win new customers, and are an easy incentive you can offer as a reward for other holiday promotions.
Holiday Giveaways
Holiday giveaways are a fun way to get customers engaged online and encourage repeat visits. If your dispensary has an eCommerce website, you can give customers multiple ways to enter the giveaway, like a “hidden gift” on the website that links to an entry form and encourages a click-through of your website to find it. For in-store customers, offer an automatic entry with each purchase, or an extra entry for purchases of a product you’re promoting for the season. Leading up to the giveaway, you can even get customers involved on social media and offer extra entries for social engagement, i.e. “Like this post for an extra entry for our 12/20 holiday gift bundle!”
Inclusive Holiday Merchandising
Christmas isn’t the only winter holiday, and studies show that modern shoppers and Gen Z are more concerned with inclusivity and social equity. Plus, more inclusive holiday merchandise gives your dispensary a greater reach. For example, if a customer is looking for “Kosher Hanukkah edibles” or “Kwanzaa presents” and your dispensary stocks an item with these terms in the description – you might make an extra sale. As the saying goes – the more, the merrier!
Host a Themed Open House Sales Event
For a holiday event, there’s no shortage of ways to score extra sales. Some ideas to consider:
Invite a local band to perform
Require online registration for the event with valid email addresses and age verification
Send event reminders, sales coupons, or other incentives
Offer an event-exclusive discount, with exclusive in-store sales during the event
Hold a raffle or silent auction during the event
Offer extra discounts to attendees who bring canned food, jackets, etc.
Give “come-back” coupons to attendees
Free goodie bags for pre-registered guests
Daily Deals
Create a series of “Deal-cember Days” to promote through your social channels, dispensary website, email blasts, or promotional materials. To make this strategy even more effective, use your sales data to identify days or times of low traffic in your dispensary, then schedule deals to boost sales during the slower times. Here are a few ideas to consider:
Sweet Saturdays – 10% off select edibles
Percent Deal Daze –10% off on Dec. 10, 15% off on Dec. 15, or 20% off on Dec. 20
Wacky Wednesdays – Offer a discount on the most interesting cannabis products you stock
Three for Thursday – Let customers choose from a selection of products and bundle any 3 for a set price
Freaky Friday – Let budtenders decide the sales!
Customized Holiday Bags
These can be fun for customers, as well as a great way to move slower-moving stock. Designate an area to create a merchandising display featuring products that customers can choose from to bundle for their own customized bag. For example, “Pick 5 for $55”, or price tiers that customers can combine for their own perfect holiday bundle.
Curated Bundles
While some customers love the DiY “create your own” gift bundle, others prefer themed, curated collections to browse. These can be fun for budtenders, too, since they’re really familiar with your dispensary’s inventory and often have great ideas for product pairings. Here are some curated bundle ideas:
For the Foodie – Higher-end cannabis products, like infused olive oil, CBD honey, artisanal confections, macarons, and infused beverages.
For the Bookworm: Cannabis-themed cookbooks, guides and essays collections, meditation books, or tarot decks.
For Cozy Stoners: Hoodies, beanies, cannabis-infused cocoa, mugs, socks, etc.
Make More Holiday Sales With Paybotic
However your dispensary handles the holidays, one thing is for sure – customers don’t want to carry cash. Cash limits the amount your customers can spend, and most customers would rather leave something behind than take out extra cash. But when customers can pay with their card, they’re more likely to spend more, add impulse items, splurge on higher-ticket items, and stock up to take advantage of sales. If your dispensary only takes cash – you’re leaving money on the table and missing out on easy income during the season.
Plus, with Paybotic, you’ll be able to easily offer customers the convenience of holiday gift cards. It’s easy to get started, fast to get approved, and gives your customers the fastest, easiest way to pay.
Get into the holiday spirit, and get Paybotic!
