Red Cardinal

What a company stands for matters, and Red Cardinal stands by its core values. The cardinal rules of this brand are respect, equality and dignity, forming an acronym for the first word in its name.  The Amherst, Massachusetts dispensary is determined to provide quality products and warm customer service that take its business beyond the cannabis taboo.

Starting from scratch

Red Cardinal had two major goals: first, they needed a website that incorporated their brand standards and provided a unique experience for users; and second, they needed to grow a social media following to establish a presence in their local community of Amherst. Initial brainstorming required guidance and expertise from the team at Cannabis Creative, as most of the brand’s leaders have law backgrounds and were new to the cannabis industry. However, one thing was clear: they wanted to use their digital presence to stand out from the crowd, separating themselves from cannabis stereotypes to offer potential customers an elevated experience.

Flight of the imagination

Our team took on several challenges during this project, which offered us a chance to get creative. Their website name was the first hurdle, as redcardinal.com was already spoken for. We pitched a list of similar domain names, and to address potential issues with organic ranking, presented a detailed outline of website content. The client was happy with our solution and decided on the domain name, red-cardinal.com.

 

In the development process, the gray of their logo was blending in with the dark background we chose, so we brainstormed options outside of their brand standards and created design elements with alternative shades of gray. The client also sought advice on ecommerce and email marketing, and we provided recommended software partners for email, SMS and online ordering menu platforms.

Growing the flock

Cannabis Creative planned a comprehensive social media strategy for Red Cardinal, including a hashtag strategy, and launched their accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Utilizing their brand standards for consistency, we crafted social media content and story decks, with a heavy focus on engagement, and created graphics for their profiles. Additionally, we recommended potential social media contents Red Cardinal could run and provided steps for setting them up. Over the course of four months, we built their following from scratch, helping them gain over 100 followers on Instagram.

A brand spreads its wings

As a result of our collaboration with the client, Red Cardinal has an attractive, authentic website that is easy to navigate. A black background with red, white and gray highlights, paired with red flock graphics throughout, contributes to a modern aesthetic, while subtle cannabis imagery with muted and gray tones offers a professionalism that separates the brand from marijuana stereotypes. Further, the company’s new social media presence has helped introduce their brand to the community, setting them up for success with a “flock” of followers and potential customers.

“Our Account Manager at CCG provided excellent customer service. She always responded quickly, professionally, and in an organized manner every time we needed assistance.”

Red Cardinal
Management Team
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