Social media isn’t only a way for people to connect with each other — it is also a way for people to connect with brands. More and more, it is actually consumers’ preferred way of interacting with and learning about companies. Cannabis-based businesses are not excluded from this social revolution.
But, if you’re like most businesses, you’re contributing to the “smoke” on social media, rather than standing out. Social media is noisy, active, inundated with meaningless content and a lack of strategy.
Do you want to be another puff in the cloud, or are you ready for your cannabis brand to stand out on social media?
There are three key practices you can use to stand out from the “smoke” on social media. These practices give your cannabis business the opportunity to stand out from the crowd. This way, you can reach more customers, gain more exposure, and create more revenue.
Be Social
It’s called social media for a reason, right? All kidding aside, this is a huge area of failure for so many businesses, including cannabis companies.
When consumers are on social media, they are looking to build relationships, and not just with their friends and family. They’re looking to get that personal connection with brands and companies.
This means your dispensary or cannabis business needs to be super responsive on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Respond to all messages (consumers really don’t like it when you ignore them) and be active in the comments of your posts. Answer questions. Be helpful. Listen to the problems or questions that are coming up related to your cannabis business. How can you do more to help?
And above all…
Be authentic. Be genuine! This goes along with staying true to your cannabis brand. Today’s consumers can smell phoniness from a mile away. The quickest way to turn away potential customers is by being robotic, fake, or insincere.
Use Video
There are tons of amazing video marketing statistics that business owners can’t ignore. The bottom line is: Video is very powerful. Video easily cuts through the social media “smoke”. This is because platforms like Facebook and Instagram favor video. Plus, how many dispensaries do you see using Facebook Live to show off a new product? Next to none, if any at all.
Before giving you a few creative video marketing ideas, let’s make sure one thing is clear: You have to be a rule-follower on social media. The last thing you want is the Facebook police shutting your page down because you slipped up. Check out these guidelines to make sure you’re compliant.
Here are some video marketing ideas for your cannabis business that will help you stand out on social media:
- Unboxing or “first look” of new products
- Give a tour of your dispensary
- Cleaning Tips 101
- Interview your staff
- Give a “behind the scenes” look
- Cannabis Tips and Tricks
- Share your mission
- Promote an upcoming sale or event
Share Value
If you’re a cannabis business, you won’t want to be posting about what you ate for breakfast on Facebook. Not only is that a silly idea, but your audience wouldn’t get any value out of it. That’s key to standing out on social media: posting valuable content.
You want the content you post to be engaging and share-worthy. You should aim for retweets, likes, shares, new followers, and all the other little social media gains. If the content you’re sharing doesn’t promote this kind of activity, then you need to stop, regroup, and re-think your strategy.
Here are some of the most valuable kinds of content you can be sharing on social media:
- Infographics
- Interactive content, like quizzes and questions
- Content that is positive in nature
- Videos
- Content with images
- Blog posts, specifically list posts and how to’s
- Newsworthy articles
The other key component to delivering value to your cannabis audience is being present. Being active in a social way. That means you can’t disappear and not post on Facebook for two months. That does nothing for your cannabis business. Maintain an active presence and post regularly, at least 3-4 times a week.
The “smoke” on social media lacks that social, human component. It lacks video content, and it definitely lacks value in the eyes of cannabis consumers — and those are the consumers who you are trying to attract to your business. Being social, using video, and sharing value will help you to stand out on social media.
When you, as a cannabis business owner, take these three practices and apply them, there is no limit to the social media growth you can achieve.
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