Cannabis Marketing – 5 Important Things You Need to Know

Cannabis is a hot topic in the marketing industry, hence the “Cannabis Marketing” in the title. It’s a plant that has been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years, and it’s now legal in many countries. With more states legalizing cannabis, it’s important to understand what marketers need to know about this new market.

The legalization of cannabis in the United States has created a lot of opportunities for marketers. This is because cannabis is a market that has been largely untouched by mainstream advertising.

The new legal status in many states allows brands to create advertisements and marketing campaigns with clear, non-judgmental messaging without fear of repercussion from the government or public opinion (provided they follow all government regulations). These opportunities are not limited to just digital marketing either, as print ads and billboards are also available for companies looking to reach consumers in an innovative way.

Here’s all you need to know about jumping into cannabis marketing with a firm like Heady.

Legality of Cannabis Marketing

Before we get into any marketing, we have to know about the legality of cannabis products. The federal government has not made cannabis legal at the federal level. Cannabis has been federally illegal in the country since 1970.

However, many states have now made it legal for recreational and medicinal use. Some states have even passed laws that allow people to grow their own cannabis plants at home with a certain amount of restrictions.

The United States is still in the process of legalizing cannabis on the federal level. Many people call for it, but the issue remains at a standstill. It is still illegal to possess or sell weed across state borders despite it being legal in some states.

The Government Regulates Cannabis Marketing (Advertising)

The rules for cannabis marketing, or rather, advertising are not entirely clear even to many in the industry. Some states have passed laws that regulate cannabis advertising and some have not. It is important to understand these rules so that your company is compliant with the law and can grow its business in the future.

Some of the Rules for Cannabis Marketing (advertising) are:

– States with legalized recreational marijuana must adhere to the standards set by their state’s marijuana program, including whether or not to allow ads of any kind, even if they are related to a medical dispensary or retail store

– States without legalized recreational marijuana must adhere to federal regulations on cannabis advertising, which include restrictions on how much information can be provided about the product in an advertisement

-Cannabis companies cannot mention cannabis keywords in ads on Google or Facebook, since the product is not legal across the whole country.

What Forms of Marketing Work for Cannabis?

The cannabis industry is a booming one, with cannabis market expected to reach $40 billion by 2025. The modern word on cannabis SEO is that it’s not just about ranking for keywords anymore. It’s about creating content and developing an audience that will share your content with their friends and family.

The best way to get ahead in the cannabis industry is through content marketing – creating relevant, engaging, and informative pieces of content that can be shared across social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Unlike with PPC, there are no limits or regulations on what you can talk about in organic content, so cannabis brands that want to get ahead in their digital marketing should put efforts into SEO.

Addendum

When we talk about cannabis we seem to forget that we (Spinfuel) reach globally. In some countries cannabis products have little restrictions, and in others, people can still land in prison. Despite the proven health benefits for millions of patients and the relative harmlessness for recreational users, there can be no doubt that until we, as a species, can find our commonalities in life, we’ll never come together as a people. A better world is a long, far, road we must travel together. We’re just not ready.

What about the United States?

But what about the majority of our readers in the United States? While we are finally growing a lot of new readers in many countries, 49% of you are right here in the US. Do you know your laws in your state? Your neighboring states? You should, because it can save you time, money, and trouble.  For your reference, pop over to ProCon.org to find out the cannabis laws in any state, including yours.