CBD Marketing is one of the newer niches in town, and it has taken the digital marketing industry by storm, and for a good reason!
Because you see, CBD or cannabidiol, the non-psychoactive compound found in the hemp plant, has been legalized in the US and removed from the list of controlled substances in the 2018 Farm Bill. In other words: you are allowed to produce and sell CBD-related products. And because of that, the demand for CBD marketing strategies has been high (pun intended).
But, before you jump on the CBD bandwagon and start selling CBD products, it’s essential to understand that you need a solid marketing strategy to beat the online competition. And while there’s no “one-size-fits-all” marketing strategy, there are some key takeaways that can help you navigate the world of online marketing for CBD.
In this article, I will guide you through the 5 main online marketing channels that fit CBD-related businesses that give you the edge to make your business a winner in this exciting new industry.
So, buckle up, grab a CBD-infused beverage, and let’s dive into the world of CBD Marketing.
It is primarily because of the strict advertising rules that cause marketing limitations for CBD businesses. Google does not let CBD businesses advertise, Facebook does not let you promote anything CBD-related, and Instagram has its own guidelines on the subject.
But here, I will discuss five online marketing channels for CBD marketing that you CAN use.
Wondering how to advertise CBD if Google doesn’t let you? With search engine optimization is arguably one of the most effective ways to increase your digital presence. Although this strategy can take a long time before you can reap its fruits, it typically costs a lot less than alternative forms of promotion. While you might face restrictions on social media and search engine advertising, SEO can help you rank organically without legal complications.
The best way to approach SEO for CBD is to hire an SEO specialist to identify and optimize the right keywords for CBD marketing. S/he will help you rank for terms people often use on Google and other search engines or product directories when looking for CBD-based health products.
It is crucial to optimize your website’s code (Google-facing) and content (consumer-facing) with a thorough SEO and keyword strategy if you wish your products to appear for semantically relevant search queries.
Using the right SEO techniques can ensure your business ranks on top, making it easy to acquire and retain new clients.
Influencers usually aren’t considered advertisers. Therefore, I recommend CBD businesses to make the best of influencer marketing. All you need to do is collaborate with the influencers on top social media sites such as TikTok and Instagram, letting them speak about your products.
They can even vouch for the effectiveness, performance, and quality of your product. This will help you gain heavy traction on your website from their followers. Besides, it is the only legal way to promote your CBD products on social media. Influencer marketing not only creates brand awareness but also collects testimonials and builds reputation too.
If you’re already promoting your CBD oils through influencers, you might consider providing the most popular influencers with an affiliate marketing scheme as an added incentive.
With this method, you can potentially lower your entire influencer marketing budget and build a long-term sales funnel. You may also seek beyond social media platforms for the ideal influencers to promote your CBD products.
You might not be able to advertise on social media, but you can share your content! So besides creating great content for SEO (articles), you should also share your content (articles, images, infographics, data) on your social channels.
Your original, value-based content shows authority, trust, and experience. It will help you acquire new leads and retain old customers.
One of the best ways to acquire customers is by collaborating with big brands. However, I am quite wary of this marketing technique. While you might be able to gain some hardcore customers, it requires detailed homework to help you identify the right collaborators.
You first need to understand the core audience of your brand partners, as the CBD market is highly niched. If you have CBD skin products, you might collaborate with big beauty brands, but if your CBD products are for pain management, depression or anxiety, you will need to collaborate with health-based brands.
Then you might also want to consider the type of products: are they topical applicants or supplements? Oils or balms? Tinctures or oral drugs? Partnering with the wrong brand can result in failure, as the audience will not be interested in your product.
Email marketing should be part of your CBD marketing plan. According to research, 95 percent of consumers read their emails every day and of those, 46% do so twice or three times daily. Therefore, email is a fantastic tool to keep current customers informed about your (new) products and turn them into recurring customers.
However, you need to find a solid email marketing platform first. Speak with different email platforms about CBD since it is illegal in some countries. Find out if you may send promotional messages for CBD goods using their service.
It is critical to obtain written responses to avoid suspension. Your whole email subscriber list is lost if your account is suspended. Once you have the all-clear, begin compiling your list.
Email might sound outdated in this highly tech-advanced era but it is the best way to approach and retain customers. It also generates significantly higher revenue compared to any other marketing channel. So, here are 5 different types of emails that you can use throughout the sales funnel:
CBD marketing can be highly effective if done rightly. To ensure you’re on the right track, get to know all the challenges you might face when promoting your CBD products. Here, we discuss the most common ones:
While the US market has legalized the consumption of CBD products, new laws still need to be introduced for product regulation. Across the EU and the US, you can’t say or advertise your CBD products.
You must ensure your online content, social media posts and ads must comply with FDA laws. For instance, you can’t promote your CBD supplements, tincture, or topical ointments as medications but rather as wellness additives. Furthermore, you can’t claim it to cure medical ailments including common colds and flu.
While new products are being introduced in the market to attract consumers, many businesses still struggle to gain dominance in the niche. Therefore, you need to invest heavily in CBD marketing to outsmart the cutthroat competition.
Besides, sub-par brands might label their products wrongly as they are unable to distinguish the difference between hemp-based and CBD-based products which means you face unnecessary competition. That is why you should create trust and make transparency the core of your CBD marketing strategies.
CBD-based wellness products are a relatively new and expanding field; thus it requires effective marketing strategies. Nearly every CBD business owner is looking for ways to promote its products, attract new leads, and boost sales for brand survivability.
In this article, I have talked about 5 simple ways for CBD marketing that can help you avoid all the legal complications associated with the niche. Let a professional SEO consultant analyze your CBD business website to help you devise an effective and tailored marketing strategy for your brand.
Even if you’ve been in the business for quite some time, an SEO audit will identify avenues you can improve for better online ranking and customer acquisition.
