7 Tips for a Stellar Marketing Plan in 2024 🧑💻
So, you’ve reviewed and reflected on the health of your cannabis business, and now you’re preparing for a new year, one filled with strong and aspiring business goals.
While creating some sort of marketing plan is essential for businesses, what’s more important is properly advancing and improving your plan each year so your company can get the most out of its marketing efforts. When you’re crafting your cannabis company’s marketing plan for 2024, consider these best practices:
1. Communicate All Objectives & Goals 🤝
Creating and establishing a marketing plan for your cannabis company is meant to cover all aspects of your business. Especially for the cannabis industry, some of these plans may be outlined as more complex and comprehensive than others.
Start with a crystal-clear outline of your preferred marketing objectives, and prioritize the list of what should be addressed or accomplished first. Additionally, this may be a great time for your company to review any cannabis regulations or rules specific to your state market. These business marketing goals and objectives should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and relevant to your general business timeline.
2. Keep Your Target Audience Close 👥
Whether this was your first time taking a stab at your cannabis company’s marketing, or you’re a seasoned expert with another year in the books, we all know one essential marketing detail – understanding who your cannabis consumer audience is, what they want, and how your product or service meets their needs.
This goes far beyond the standard classifications of identifying your audience. Sure, your targeted audience may be in their late 30’s-50’s, or perhaps your cannabis dispensary targets a community base in one specific location; but to know your audience really well means digging deeper.
Develop detailed buyer personas for your ideal consumer. What does their everyday life look like? What career field or work occupation are they likely to be in? With your cannabis product or service, how could this targeted consumer benefit?
Knowing your audience well will help you strategize and shape your cannabis business toward marketing success – allowing you to think inside the mind of your targeted audience and fully understand predicted personas to make more clear informed decisions.
3. Keep Your Competitors Even Closer 🔍
With a greater understanding of knowing your audience, comes keeping a closer eye on your competitors. Knowing who your competitors are in the cannabis industry and what they’re doing can be beneficial when strategizing specific marketing campaigns, such as local SEO or pay-per-click advertising.
Especially in the cannabis industry where there are ever-changing trends and current events, staying aware of what your competitors are doing around you can help you stay ahead of the competition and set yourself apart.
From an outside perspective, examine your cannabis industry competitors – determine what they are doing well and where there are gaps. This information can leverage your brand into a new position or perspective in the market.
4. Content Continues to Be King 👑
This past year, online marketing campaigns and trends further proved that content is king. When building a marketing plan for the new year, be sure this step doesn’t get overlooked!
A well-thought out content calendar or outline ensures consistency in your created graphics or content, while remaining relevant and on brand with your company’s mission and values.
Referring to a seasonal calendar can help you get a visual of the upcoming holidays and events to come in the new year, allowing you to plan out your content to align with seasonal trends, product launches, and cannabis industry events.
More importantly, the more creative you can get with your content, the better. In an endless sea of feed scrolling, the ultimate goal is to ensure your content is captivating and will stand out among viewers online, while staying consistent with the rest of your marketing efforts. Not to mention given the nature of the cannabis industry, be sure to be putting out content that will adhere to all community guidelines!
For instance, cannabis dispensaries can curate content by shooting behind-the-scenes footage of a brand’s cultivation or greenhouse or interviewing budtenders on product recommendations. You can even get creative with photographing cannabis products with lifestyle shoots.
Depending on your business in the cannabis industry, there are plenty of fun and unique ways to stay up-to-date and in touch with your audience through content.
When it comes to content creation, this is where your brand personality can shine. Enjoy yourself and have fun in the process!
5. Up Your Social Media Game 🤳
Speaking of content, once it’s created, where is yours going? Building a strong social media strategy will help set you up for success for the upcoming year.
Considering your target audience, type of content, and your business goals will help to determine the most effective channels for reaching your audience – from Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter (X), Pinterest, Facebook, Tik Tok, even Google My Business…the social media opportunities are endless!
Whether it’s content posted on a social media platform, social media advertisements that target your audience, or a balanced combination of both, it’s important to choose channels that fully align with your brand and audience in the cannabis space.
After all, it’s not about your social media presence being everywhere – it’s about having an online presence where your people are.
6. Show the Stats! 📈 Track, Measure & Analyze
Next, let’s talk metrics. Remember your target audience and SEO keywords? The one that you know as well as the back of your hand? What were their spending habits this past year? What were your consumers buying, and not buying, and what details indicate the reason why?
Define realistic KPIs (key performance indicators) that work toward your business initiatives and your company can measure across all marketing channels. This can be done by examining and reviewing KPIs and marketing metrics from the year prior – how have these metrics changed over the given period? What conclusions can you draw from these numbers?
Remember, while it’s helpful to carve out these preferred metrics and numbers at the start of this exercise, remember to regularly analyze and adjust your plan based on these marketing metrics. Utilize analytics and metrics in your marketing efforts to better optimize and understand your overall marketing success. Numbers don’t lie, but they also don’t need to stress you out in the process!
7. Predictions, Trends & Flexibility 💭
Last but not least, remember that the only constant in business (and life) is change. The landscape of the cannabis industry is dynamic – there will undoubtedly be ongoing current events, popular trends, and shifting consumer behaviors that arise.
Building flexibility into your cannabis marketing plan means staying open and mindful of these changes, which will ultimately give you more space and opportunity to pivot and grow as a business.
Roll Out Your Marketing Strategy with Cannabis Creative
Understanding your marketing strategy at the start of the 2024 year is not just a task—it’s a responsibility that can shape the trajectory of your business. Defining your goals means aligning business initiatives and developing essential strategies and details for you to succeed in the cannabis industry. With a robust marketing plan outlined at the start of the new year, you’ll be well-positioned to navigate the ever-evolving marketing landscape.
Whether you’re feeling overwhelmed with the marketing “to-dos” piling up on your desk, or need a little extra love and support in one specific area of your marketing – let Cannabis Creative be your trusting companion to the wide world of marketing strategy.
From email and SMS automation, social media content, photography and videography skills, SEO or PPC strategy, branding and packaging design, or any little marketing task in between – our digital marketing agency has got you covered.
As you embark on this journey, remember that adaptability and a keen understanding of your audience and the industry will be your greatest assets.
Here’s to a successful 2024 filled with growth, innovation, and marketing excellence!
