The unassuming customer would be hit with a melodramatic commercial only to be revealed towards the end that it was an ad for roof paint. From Coca-cola vending machines with a twist to larger-than-life claw machines, this generation’s brains have produced the most eye-catching or heart-tugging strategies man has ever seen. 

Zooming in on the cannabis industry, one might find that it would be challenging to promote your products online or offline since not a lot of people are open to the idea of cannabis use. It is also possible that your competition is a few steps ahead of how you market your cannabis dispensary offerings but do not fret! In a new age like ours, we need fresh and out-of-the-box ideas on how you can make your products and services stand out. 

We have rounded up some of the best millennial marketing strategies you can use for your cannabis dispensary business if it was brainstormed by millennials. 

Best Millennial Marketing Strategies

Publish Trending Content

Some might say that hopping on trends is one way to acquire a larger audience for your business and this is definitely true. Social media platforms have different algorithms which change from time to time. One of the easiest ways to keep up with this is to immerse yourself in social media and hop on trends. Let us say your brand is on TikTok, what current audios and hashtags or topics are being shown to you on your FYP (For You Page) consistently? Those are the types of content that you can adapt and create based on your business’ branding. Another example is Instagram is pushing for Reels, are you? Keeping an eye out for trending content can easily fill your content calendar and keep your business relevant. Talk about hitting two birds with one stone?!

Market Your Product/Services in Unorthodox Ways

If your business is cannabis-related and you have taken photos of your plants, products, and growing room and posted them online without giving them much thought, do not expect it to get the traction you want. If you have been in the business for a long time, one of the best ways to stand out and pique the interests of potential customers is to create content that isn’t just pleasing to the eyes but also would make them take a second look.

Let us say you have cannabis-infused candies. One of the best ways to promote this product is to create candy land-themed assets that would entice the eyes of those scrolling through their screens and take a closer look. How you set up your assets will have a big effect on your online presence. While we love the usual green in cannabis, try exploring other colors and strategies that are beyond your comfort zone. You can check these examples from Kiva Confections to spark your creativity:

Involve Yourself in Marketing

When we say involve yourself in your marketing, it’s not just being on top of your brand’s marketing department. Be the face of your brand. Give your customers a face they can visualize talking to when they send a message to your social media platforms and websites. Aside from being your brand’s own “model”, you can also explore live-streaming to interact with your audience to ask them about their experiences with your products and what else they want to see from you — this helps build a stronger brand community too!

Some iconic business figures who were and currently are the faces of their brands that launched their own success is Sophia Amoruso of @nastygal who, since the beginning, involved herself in her marketing process – not just in the backend but also upfront. Mark Zuckerberg is also a runner-up in this category. While his face is not always plastered in Facebook ads (does Facebook even need ads?), he was and still is the face of Meta. Their posts and even the launch event were led by this online magnate.

Collaborate!

It is undeniable that influencer marketing has driven sales. While it might be tricky for a cannabis dispensary business to find a mainstream influencer who is well-versed with the product or industry, you can try finding advocates who have a solid following and engagement. If they don’t agree to instantly be the main face of your brand, you can try collaborations through special discount codes and slowly build your relationship from there.

Here are examples of collaborative strategies you can explore:

• “Celebrity’s Top Picks” is a bundle of products from your shop specially handpicked by your chosen collaborator. They will create special content dedicated to this and your customers can enjoy a special discount whenever they purchase the bundle.
• Special discount vouchers with the influencer’s name are also a common strategy among brands. Whenever their follower uses the discount voucher, a portion of the sale would go to the influencer which would also encourage them to plug your business and offerings more.
• Giveaways are the best form of collaboration you can go for. The social media influencer of your choice can host a giveaway on their platform and mechanics should include following your socials and engaging with your posts to not just increase your audience but to also push for engagement. You can also include mechanics where participants can join if they make an X amount of purchase. You can collaborate with your influencer on which strategy would be beneficial for both of your brands

You should also have an influencer mindset when it comes to your brand. If your brand can stand alone without having the need to outsource help from online celebrities, that is great as well!

Related read: Marketing Your Cannabis Business on Social Media

Highlight Your Customers

One of the best ways to advertise your business of course is from your customer’s feedback. With a cannabis dispensary business, your reviews matter. You don’t have to sacrifice your customer’s identity when you use their feedback in your marketing materials. You can still create stunning visuals with customer reviews while guaranteeing their anonymity. Of course, do not also forget to ask for their permission should you want to use their reviews. You can give them a small token for this and it would also help build your relationship with them.

Also, make sure that the comments and messages left on your platforms are attended to. While bad publicity is still publicity, we do not want to risk it.

Part of normalizing the use and trade of cannabis is by creating content that is disruptive yet can still be determined as appropriate by users. Gone is the age of being careful not to catch the eyes of the public, especially with a business like cannabis. States and countries have slowly been legalizing the use of the plant and more and more diseases are treated or managed with it. It is up to business owners like you to advocate proper and moderate use while sprinkling a little bit of fun and creativity on how your brand and product will appear to your audience.

Related read: 

• How Can Cannabis Retailers Leverage On Product Education
• Marketing Strategies for Your Cannabis Dispensary App That You Should Start Using!
• Cost of Developing an App For a Cannabis Dispensary