Marijuana is now legal for medicinal and/or recreational use in the majority of the United States. This has created a fierce, thriving, and competitive industry. Unfortunately, because marijuana is still illegal on a federal level, many traditional forms of advertisement are not allowed. This makes it difficult for dispensaries to market their products and merchandise.

Dispensaries must utilize all of the legal marketing tools that are available and develop an effective advertisement campaign. This includes website creation, social media management, and programs that encourage repeat customers.

The following informational guide will explore the various marketing tactics that can be used to increase traffic, improve brand image, and generate sales.

Educate Yourself on Local and National Laws

Dispensary owners must first educate themselves on the local and national laws regarding the advertisement of cannabis products. Some states have strict laws that prohibit all forms of marijuana ads. Some states do allow billboards, magazines, and print ads.  These laws are location-specific.

It is illegal on a national level to advertise marijuana via television and radio broadcasts. Contact your legal representative to learn more about what is legally allowed in your area.

Develop a Loyalty Program

Customers should be rewarded for repeat purchases. Business owners need to develop and implement a loyalty program as a fun way to demonstrate your appreciation for their loyalty. Typically, this is a simple, dollar-for-point-based system, that provides regular shoppers with special discounts, merchandise, or freebies when they accumulate points and meet specific tiers.

The highest tier in the loyalty program should entail something along the lines of VIP status. Which provides the loyal consumers with extra special discounts and incentives. You should also reward customers for referrals and provide a discount for the referred individual as well.

Make Customers Feel Valued

Customers appreciate instant gratification and rewards. When asking customers to join your loyalty program offer them an immediate discount on their current purchase for doing so. This impediment discount makes customers more likely to sign up.

Utilize SMS

SMS is the most common and effective means of communicating. Use SMS and email marketing to reach the maximum number of consumers. You can send updates regarding inventory, specials, and other shop-specific information.

You can personalize this experience by keeping notes regarding each regular consumer’s favorite products, and other personal and circumstantial information. This will allow you to reach out to customers when their favorite strain is in stock. This unique attention to detail and service will make the consumer feel important.

Develop a Social Media Campaign

Social media is one of the most critical pieces of a successful marketing campaign. Many entrepreneurs choose to hire a professional to manage their social media accounts. This is a wise decision because the accounts must be maintained, and message response times should be completed in a timely manner. Best of all, this means of communication is free, easy to use, and accessible.

Optimize Your Website

Digital marketing is the most effective and cost-efficient method for running successful advertisement campaigns. Your website must be developed using search engine optimization, or SEO. This is a strategy that involves optimizing your content to show up at a higher ranking on search engines. This involves creating engaging, easy-to-read content, that includes relevant search terms that consumers use to find your website.

Format

Optimizing your website content, including headlines, articles, photos, formatting, etc. allows for search engines to scan your content quickly, and consider your business relevant and reputable.

A clean and easy-to-read format is important for both the reader experience and SEO content rankings. Search engines have an easier time scanning content that is formatted neatly. You can accomplish this by including bullet points, lists, numbers, and subheadings. Paragraphs should be short and well separated.

Keywords

Keywords are words that consumers type into search engines and ultimately lead them to your website. There are keyword tools available but determining keywords is a straightforward process. Keywords should be used strategically throughout the content, including in your headline, subheadings, and image captions.

Links

Customers are more likely to purchase products if your advertisements are easily accessible. Be sure to include links to your products or specials so that customers can easily visit these pages from their email, SMS, or social media posts.

Reach Out to Local Businesses

Cross-promotion is another great way to market your business, as well as help another local business increase its traffic. Work together to develop a co-marketing campaign that will benefit both parties and divide any associated costs.

Get Creative

The best marketing campaigns are ones that are well-thought-out, unique, and fun for both your employees and customers. Don’t be afraid to share what makes your business unique. Visit local competitors online to examine what methods of advertisement are utilized.

Find fun incentives that encourage customers to leave a review for your dispensary online. The majority of people search the internet for reviews before their visit. Offer a special discount, free merch, or free loyalty points for customers who leave a review.

Provide Payment Options

Customers prefer to shop at dispensaries that allow them to use electronic methods of payment. This can be difficult for businesses in the cannabis industry because of all the legal stipulations associated with cannabis sales.

It is important to choose a financial solution that is custom-tailored to process marijuana transactions quickly, affordably, and within legal requirements. Many dispensaries turn to Paybotic, a marijuana payment processing company that provides solutions for numerous brands across the nation.

Contact Paybotic

Reach out to Paybotic today to learn more about cannabis-specific financial tools and solutions. Paybotic is the leader in reputable, affordable software tools, and is dedicated to helping dispensary owners obtain a software system that is specific to their business needs.