April 20th is a significant day for the cannabis industry — a worldwide celebration for our love of cannabis, its many benefits both recreationally and medically, and its growing community of users.
The 4.20 celebrations are all the more significant now, considering that cannabis is slowly becoming a huge part of our daily lives with the increasing number of states and countries legalizing it.
What Is 4.20 and Why Should Dispensaries Care?
The 4.20 celebrations are often considered “The Marijuana Holiday” and have several connotations. However, the term stems from five Californian high school students who call themselves “The Waldos.”
They coined the term “4.20” in 1971 — their code for their regular meetup at 4:20 PM to search for abandoned cannabis crops. As the years went by, 4.20 has evolved to become a celebration of cannabis consumption.
But it could go both ways. As the founder of Hempfest Vivian Peak said, 4.20 is “half celebration, half call-to-action.”
As we approach 4.20, it’s essential for cannabis brands to create a solid strategy to become a key part of the customer’s celebration experience. And it goes without saying that in the dispensary industry where the competition is tight, a positive and pleasant customer experience is crucial to stand out from the rest.
So how do you do this? What tactics should you include in your strategy to maximize sales on 4.20 and drive more growth to your dispensary?
2 Growth Hacks to Help You Seize 4.20
At Alpine IQ, we know how important yet challenging it is to amplify your brand’s reach and maximize your success in a highly regulated and fast-growing industry like cannabis. Here are our top tips to help you seize the 4.20 celebrations:
1. Create a curated playlist to match your customers’ vibe
Cannabis and music go together — think Bob Marley, Wiz Khalifa, and Snoop Dogg, just to name a few. Match your customers’ vibe by creating a playlist on YouTube or Spotify, tailored especially for stoners. It’s ideal to curate two kinds of playlists:
- An upbeat stoner playlist for house parties and jam sessions
- A mellow stoner playlist for when they are relaxing or about to sleep
Take this growth hack even further by applying the following additional tips:
- Find out your target audience’s music preferences: Use YouTube analytics to find out what songs your customers prefer. You can also run surveys on your social media and ask your audiences directly. Audiences greatly appreciate it when their opinions are heard and valued.
- Gamify your approach: Make things more exciting by running contests, such as asking your listeners to tag your business on Instagram using a photo or video of them jamming out to your tunes for a chance to win headphones. The key here is to offer a reward that’s appealing to them. This is also a good way to earn user-generated content (UGC) and drive more engagement.
- Promote your playlist: Drive your engagement and listening rates even further by letting your audience know about it. Some of the tools you can conveniently use for this is Alpine IQ’s SMS Marketing technology — just create a campaign and our AI-powered tech will spread the word about your playlist at the most optimal time.
2. Collaborate with social media influencers
Running social media campaigns can be tricky for dispensaries, but you can bypass advertising laws by establishing strategic partnerships. Pick 5 to 10 social media influencers in your area who consume cannabis and propose a collaboration with them.
A great way to collaborate is to encourage influencers to create positive content about your brand — whether it be a review or a shoutout of your brand in their usual content. Then, you can do your part in the collaboration by promoting their content on your brand’s social media channels and through other marketing channels (e.g., SMS marketing, push notifications, etc.).
Other ways to maximize this growth hack:
- Set up an affiliate program: Influencers have their own loyal following. Widen your reach even further by leveraging your collaborators’ followers and offering a 20% discount if they use the influencer’s code or link.
- Give branded gifts: Have a more personal approach by offering branded stoner survival packs that can be used as giveaways to the influencer’s followers. The contents of your pack may vary, as long as you include the essentials and ensure that your brand logo is included in the packaging. However, to help you get started, here’s our Stoner Survival Pack Formula:
- 1 Unit of Eye Drops
- 1 Unit of Rolling Paper
- 1 Unit of Mints
- 1 Unit of Air Freshener
- 1 Unit of Hand Sanitizer
- 1 Beautiful Lighter
- 1 Bar of Chocolate
Power Up Your Dispensary with the Right Tools
Being a memorable, positive part of the customer experience isn’t easy, and this is a key reason why numerous dispensaries fail or struggle to make a profit. However, with the right strategy and the right tools such as Alpine IQ’s suite of marketing solutions, your dispensary can succeed not only on 4.20 but also even beyond that.
If you want to know more and you’re ready to grow your cannabis brand, contact us at https://alpineiq.com/ to get started!
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