As more states begin to legalize recreational and medicinal cannabis, the industry is booming. With this success, however, comes serious challenges for cannabis brands.
Many cannabis businesses are struggling to stand out in a crowded market, especially when competing with brands that have been established in the industry for years. Without unique and compelling branding, it’s easy for even a high-quality cannabis brand to fall through the cracks.
That’s why effective brand messaging is so important. A strong brand message is how a brand conveys its value and carves out a niche in the cannabis market. Most importantly, it’s how cannabis businesses establish a strong connection with its customers for long-term success.
To tell a compelling story for your brand, you need to be following the right brand messaging framework. In this brand messaging guide, we’ll cover the four key tips you need to know for truly memorable cannabis branding.
1. Define Your Brand Mission
Every successful cannabis brand must be able to talk about the “why.” Your brand mission captures the essence of why you started this business in the first place.
Whether it’s to deliver wellness-based cannabis products, educate more customers about the benefits of cannabis, or achieve a social justice goal, you need to define your brand mission. This story informs the rest of your brand messaging — it’s the core of what sets you apart from other dispensaries in your area.
2. Know Your Audience
When developing your brand messaging strategy, you first need to understand your audience. If the messaging doesn’t resonate with your target audience, all of your dispensary marketing efforts could fall short.
Narrow down your intended audience by demographics like age, gender, average income, and more. But you should also dig deeper and think about their motivations. What brought these consumers to a dispensary in the first place, and what are they looking to get out of the experience?
3. Create a Clear Brand Image
Brand messaging isn’t just about what you say. It’s also what you show to customers — your visual identity. Branding can be communicated just as effectively through dispensary logos, color palettes, iconography, typography, and other visual elements.
All of these dispensary design elements should reflect your brand’s story and values. They should appeal to your target audience and appear consistently across channels, from your brand’s cannabis website to the packaging.
4. Develop a Unique and Innovative Voice
With thousands of businesses already on the market, a bland and uninspired messaging strategy won’t cut it. You have to find ways of communicating differently. Don’t just talk about what sets you apart, but talk about what makes you the best choice for your audience.
To cut through the noise and truly resonate with customers, your marketing messaging must develop a unique voice, tone, and personality.
Investing In Your Branding For Cannabis Marketing Success
As the cannabis industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace, it takes an innovative messaging strategy to keep up. An effective brand lets you reach and connect with your target audience, strengthening relationships with your customers for long-lasting success.
The best cannabis brands have compelling brand stories that set them apart from other brands. But most importantly, they know how to communicate that dynamic brand personality through marketing techniques and creative design elements.
Does your cannabis brand do that? If your cannabis marketing strategy isn’t having the impact you want it to, HIGHOPES can help. Our cannabis branding agency can help you deliver a seamless and effective strategy across channels, from your product packaging to your social media marketing. Learn more about what we do or get started with a partnership today.
