Cannabis Branding Ultimate Guide: What You Should Do and Don’t

If cannabis branding is what you’re searching for? Then you’ve come to the right place for it. Not only will we shower you with the essential guide for cannabis branding, but we will also share our Do's and Don'ts.

Cannabis has been a booming industry lately, especially with the help of millennials who are choosing cannabis over alcohol. With a non-stop expanding market, legal support, and the young, fascinating mindset about the usage of cannabis, this is your perfect time to consider launching that cannabis company you have been longing for.

With cannabis branding, don’t just sell, tell the story. Give people a look into who you are as a cannabis brand, staying authentic and true to the core. This approach is so important these days as more decisions in purchasing are done based on the trust of "give back" to either an organization, the planet or several other give back options.

The ultimate guide you’d ever need for cannabis branding

The first thing you should keep in mind is that branding for cannabis products, or any other, is so much more than just having a logo or a color palette. But what should you do next?

1. Understand your position

Take a seat, we have some questions you should ask yourself before stepping any further in this process. Knowing your brand position means you’re fully aware of your own product and business. This will help you identify yourself from others as your first step. Now, let's dive in:

• How does your product either solve an issue or help the consumer to reach the desired effect?
• What is the purpose of your new product line?
• Why and how is your product unique, how could you differentiate it from others?
• Is there anything in your marijuana product that only you can provide to your customers?

Though these are just a few questions to start, it is a solid kick start with cannabis branding: by knowing your position in the market. When we work with clients, we actually have a very robust brand audit that we have our clients fill out. This will be the first step in better understanding where your current brand either is or where you wish your new business to be.

2. Who are your audiences?

Knowing your customers is a critical step in a well-crafted brand. By understanding what your customers like or dislike, or other details about their shopping behavior will help your brand design and communication. We have a few more questions for you to think about, so take your time.

• Who will be most likely to buy your product?
• What aspect of your product fulfills their needs?
• Does your product fit their personality and lifestyle?

Once you’ve got the answers to all these questions, you’d have quite a foundation to build your brand. We often like to include an exercise in brand messaging where we create these customers, these dream clients. We look at where he or she shops, what they listen to for music, what drives their purchasing decisions.

3. Your brand story

Who are you, why did you start doing this business and why would you offer these products to customers? These are things you should think of when creating a brand story. The more details you can show, the better. In this sophisticated digital world, the best way to conquer the heart and attention of customers is by having a really good story. Tell your story and connect to ones who resonate. And my friend, there is no shortcut when it comes to cannabis branding.

4. Keep your audience engaged

Gaining people's attention is not an easy thing to do, but here are some ways you could do it. Invest in your visual, this means your packaging design, website design, social vision, and almost any type of graphic your customers see. The next thing you’d want to do is communicate your message clearly and consistently.

Did you know that you only have 2-3 seconds to capture the attention of your customer? The first impression, no matter by product packaging or social visual, is critical to engage them and move them beyond that few seconds to a few minutes on your website, learning about your story, reading your blog posts, shopping for your products. Creating a brand that catches their attention is a must these days.

When it comes to communication, you must be absolutely sure about your key message. Be clear on your brand’s personality, voice and mood. Don’t forget to communicate with inspiring and easy-to-understand content. Social media, website, email push, or print ads shall be your best friend.

Last but not least, is keeping customers engaged. This must be calculated and tracked both by organic results and with the help of digital advertising.

Do and don’t

Do:

• Be unique & easy to remember: Human attention span and memory are either short and hard to trigger. So if your cannabis branding looks like others on the market, you’ll have no chance. Always create connections between the brand name, products, and how you communicate.
• Be creative: by visually telling your brand's story to your target audience, you can gain their attention. If you skip the step of understanding your audience, you may create designs that do not speak to them, leaving your product in the dust.  
• Be wise with your content: Depending on your niche, your content can change accordingly. However, even the best marijuana websites need a good content strategy to keep everything in place. Be wise, write for your audience in subjects they require the most and you’ll see great results.
  

Don’t:

• Be generic: The market is crowded enough, and customers surely don’t need another boring cannabis retailer. We’ve seen brands rely completely on outsourcing and not putting any effort of personal touch into their cannabis branding which does not resonate well.
• Be cheesy: Don’t be THAT brand that people cringe at. Say goodbye to cheese trends, irrelevant content, and cliches about the cannabis industry.
• Be complicated: We recommend creating a cannabis brand that is easy to remember, not overly complicated. The more sophisticated you try to do with branding, the harder for customers to understand. So instead of confusing, overlay complicated graphic design, opt for a more minimalistic and timeless design.

We hope you enjoyed our tips in Cannabis Branding! If you have any questions or are interested in chatting with us about working with you to create your cannabis brand, feel free to set up a free discovery call with us today!

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