How to Market Your Cannabis Dispensary

It’s an exciting time in the United States for those involved in the marijuana industry. It’s an equally exciting time for those interested in getting involved in the marijuana industry.

With the legalization of marijuana for both medicinal and recreational use taking place in states like California, Colorado, Vermont, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, opportunities for new businesses such as dispensaries abound.

If you currently own or are looking to start a cannabis dispensary, you might be surprised to know that marketing your business isn’t exactly going to be all that simple. In fact, because marijuana is not legal in all 50 states, businesses in the industry have strict regulations they must follow when marketing them – if they want to continue to operate.

In this post, we’ll offer several helpful tips for marketing your dispensary. Want to know more? Just keep reading.

Familiarize Yourself With the Laws in Your State

With the majority of the products in the U.S., there’s a certain amount of freedom afforded to marketers – and not very many rules or regulations regarding how things can be marketed. For the marijuana industry, however, there are rules.

As you probably already know, marijuana is not yet legal nationwide. Since it’s only legal in a few states (and each state has different laws surrounding it), the laws for marketing your dispensary are going to vary depending on where it’s located. Before you can market your pot-based business, though, you’ll need to know what your state allows.

For more information on what how your state specifically allows marijuana and cannabis products to be marketed, check out this post from Leafly. It provides an idea of some of the rules and regulations throughout each state. From Alaska to Illinois to New Mexico, there’s a ton of information that’s sure to help cannabis dispensary owners no matter where they’re located.

For each state, Leafly even goes as far as to detail what the rules and regulations are regarding things like billboards, signage, print media, internet marketing, and more. However, one thing is banned no matter where the cannabis dispensary (or other marijuana or cannabis-based business) is located: marketing products to minors.

Once you’re familiar with your local marijuana marketing laws, you can begin to create a marketing plan that is in line with both federal and state regulations and laws. How you go about doing that is at your discretion, but do be mindful that failure to comply can mean the end of your cannabis dispensary.

Step It up with SEO

Or Search Engine Optimization. To make it simple, following good SEO practices means that your business will rank more highly on Google when specific keywords or phrases are searched. And the higher you rank, the more people will visit your website, and hopefully, do things like purchase your products…or (at the very least) sign up for your mailing list.

Want to find out where you rank? All you need to do is type in your dispensary’s name into the search bar on Google…and see where it crops up in the results. For example, if you had a prescription for medical marijuana and lived in Lansing, Michigan, you might type Greenwave Cannabis Dispensary in.

Most people on the internet are typically looking for something that’s convenient.

If your result is beyond the first page, it’s time to take your SEO game to the next level. But how? Mastering SEO is becoming increasingly complex as Google’s algorithms continue to change.

There are a few simple changes you can make to your website (and the content that lives on it), though:

Keywords, Keywords, Keywords

Keywords are the key to SEO success. Without including them, people who search “cannabis dispensary” on Google won’t find your website.

If you run a cannabis dispensary, focus on what people who are looking for your products would search, and include those keywords and terms on your website. Study up and place them strategically, though, because stuffing your website’s pages with keywords will get you found out by Google in no time.

Meta Tags and Descriptions

“What’s a meta tag?” It might feel like it, but you’re actually not the first person on planet Earth to ever ask that question.

We’ll make it simple for you. Meta tags tell search engines like Google what’s on the page. This description, though, lives in the coding of the page rather than on the page itself.

And just like other online practices (like using hashtags for greater visibility on social media), some meta tags are more effective for SEO success than others.

Imagery

When it comes to your content on the web, including imagery is a must. Why? It draws people to your website and, when you combine it with great content, provides them with an experience that’s engaging in more ways than one. What does this mean for you?

It means that people will spend a longer amount of time on your website, which makes them more likely to convert.

Social Media

If you want your cannabis dispensary to be relevant in 2018 and beyond, it’s essential to maintain a presence on social media. If you’re not ready to go all out at once, you can start by creating a Facebook page and Twitter. Since Instagram’s user base only continues to increase, it’s a good idea to set up an account there eventually, too.

For many businesses, social media is very trial and error. (And sometimes, it’s more error than anything.) You’ll find what works for you in time.

Market Your Cannabis Dispensary Effectively with These Tips

Now that we’ve covered the basics of what you want to focus on when marketing your cannabis dispensary, it’s time for you to take what you’ve learned and put it into practice. With adequate research and a bit of trial and error, you’ll eventually find what practices are most effective for your canna-business.

For more business articles, check out the rest of our blog.