Digital advertising opportunities for cannabis and cannabis-related businesses

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For companies operating in most industries, digital advertising is considered one of the most cost-effective marketing options. Unfortunately, digital advertising in the cannabis industry is a little different, with many of the most popular advertising and social media platforms — like Google, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter — not allowing ads from cannabis or cannabis-related companies.

The good news is that doesn’t mean cannabis and cannabis-related companies can’t invest in digital advertising. It’s just a bit more sophisticated and might be more expensive than some of the pay-per-click ad networks that businesses in other industries may use (like Google AdWords and Facebook Ads).

Below are three of the best ways your cannabis or cannabis-related business can increase brand awareness, generate leads, and increase sales through digital advertising despite the current obstacles.

Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic advertising is a cost-effective way for businesses to place ads on sites that allow the promotion of cannabis and cannabis-related brands. Programmatic advertising brings advertisers together with online publishers through a common platform where they can buy and sell ad space through an automated process.

For cannabis brands, the automated process saves time by not having to spend hours or days finding sites that accept cannabis-related ads, negotiating fees, and so on. The platform does everything automatically. These platforms also save advertisers money because they use artificial intelligence to bid on ad space, so your ads appear at the right time, to the right audience, and at the right price.

Programmatic advertising offers a variety of benefits for cannabis and related businesses, including advanced targeting, improved tracking, tools to reach new audiences, and more. While many popular programmatic advertising platforms don’t allow cannabis and side hustles, there are some that are open to the cannabis industry. There are also platforms that cater specifically to the cannabis industry, such as Mantis and Traffic Roots.

Podcast Ads

Podcasts reach 109 million Americans ages 12 and older every month, according to The Infinite Dial 2022, an annual study by Edison Research. Of this audience, more than one in two listeners is a man (53%) and almost one in two is a woman (46%).

In addition, the age of podcast listeners is younger than you might think. According to the study, 50% of Americans 12-34 years old listen to podcasts monthly, compared to 43% of those 35-54 years old and 22% of those 55 years and older.

The data shows us that podcast advertising is a viable way for cannabis and related businesses to engage with their audiences. This includes both B2B and B2C.

With that in mind, look for cannabis and cannabis-related podcasts, as well as podcasts that focus on other topics that your target audience is likely to hear. Reach out to these podcasts and see if they’re willing to include your company, brand, products or services in ads during shows, on their website, or as a show sponsor.

Blog and Website Promotion

Cannabis-related blogs and websites not only attract the right audience, but can also enable digital advertising. For example, many of these blogs and websites allow banner ads, video ads, text ads, newsletter ads, and more.

Leafwire, Ganjapreneur, CannaSOS, Cannabis Business Executive, Leafly, MJBizDaily and New Cannabis Ventures are just a few of the websites hosting both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) companies in the cannabis industry can advertise their products and services to specific audiences.

However, don’t limit your blog and website promotion to cannabis-related blogs. Research shows that 77% of internet users read blogs and not all are cannabis related. Your target audience spends time on a variety of websites, so look for other types of blogs and websites that your target audience already spends time on. These could be great places for advertising.

For example, if your business is a cannabis edibles company, look for health and wellness blogs and websites. If your business sells products or services to cannabis license holders, e.g. For example, pharmacies, growers, and manufacturers, look for business-related websites and blogs that your target audience is likely to visit to learn about and stay abreast of relevant news and current events affecting their businesses.

Email Newsletter Promotion

Many online publishers send email newsletters to their subscribers and monetize those newsletters with ads and sponsors. This is a great opportunity for cannabis and cannabis-related companies to showcase their brands to an interested audience.

A visit to cannabis sites such as Cannabis Business Executive, Ganjapreneur, and New Cannabis Ventures shows these are just a few of the sites that allow companies in the cannabis industry to advertise in their email newsletters or through one-off email marketing campaigns. With thousands or tens of thousands of subscribers, email newsletters can bring leads and sales to your business.

Keep in mind that email newsletter advertising tends to be more expensive than blog or website advertising, but it’s definitely worth testing and the results you get from it with the other digital advertising investments to compare the ones you transact.

Key takeaways about digital advertising for cannabis and cannabis-related businesses

More advertising platforms, social media sites and websites are opening up to cannabis companies, but digital advertising is still a bigger challenge for cannabis companies and cannabis companies than companies operating in other industries. However, it is not impossible. Yes, it will cost you a bit more time and money, but the results can be significant if you test and tweak.

And of course, if you’re looking to connect with cannabis license holders for B2B email marketing and sales, the Cannabiz media license database provides the contact information, email marketing tools, and CRM features you need to make it a success . Schedule a demo and see how it can help your business grow.