Instagram Marketing for Cannabis Companies – Gaining Followers

Instagram is undoubtedly a powerful social media platform to promote any business today. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram have tight restrictions on marketing CBD (cannabidiol) products though. While you might find your ads being removed by Instagram, or your account being shut down, there are intelligent ways to go about marketing your cannabis products on Instagram. In this article, we will cover these.

Content matters

Poor content, poor response. So, what is considered good content anyway? You could start by using pre-designed templates, these are easy to find with a quick internet search. The next important factor is to use high-quality photos such as stock images. If you have money to spend on great photos you could use sites like Stocksy or Megapixl. Then, you need to consider using Instagram marketing for cannabis companies by mixing up the content formats. If you post the same stuff over and over, people will lose interest and you will not gain followers. Try mixing it up by posting photo albums, 60-second videos, GIFs or whatever may be trending at the time. Remember to keep a balanced though. If you want, you can repost great content from other cannabis brands on Instagram, but remember to ask permission and give credit where it is due.

Hashtag CBD

Instagram has algorithms for its hashtags (#). Hashtags sort of group similar content making it easier for people to find and follow what they are interested in. Hashtags work in your favor when using Instagram marketing for cannabis companies in two ways. First, you can follow hashtags and accounts to discover quality content by searching for other inspiring accounts who aren’t necessarily competition but post great content in line with your brand. The second way they help market your company is by using them to get more views. By using them more often, you will gain more followers. For example, #cbdhealth has 1 million posts.

Promote your CBD brand

Marketing means promoting thus Instagram marketing for cannabis companies means marketing in three ways that are unique to Instagram and are free, they are: like, comment and follow. The key is to go onto your Insta account and search for hashtags related to your brand, such as #CBD, and go on a liking spree – just like tons of their pictures. This helps you to engage with your community and is likely to catch their attention. Just be careful not to become a “spammer” though. Following other brands that relate to yours and commenting on their posts helps you to gain more followers.

Make it unique

The first thing worth noting, when using Instagram marketing for cannabis companies, is that you should try to share different content on your different platforms. If you have followers on all of your platforms, they will just see the same content, thus it’s good to switch it up a little. Although, it is important to keep the aesthetic of your posts consistent and in line with your brand. Some tips for making your brand unique and consistent includes choosing your brand’s core colors, experimenting with grid layouts, use illustrations, use great calligraphy and create videos that tell stories.

Socialise

Your followers will appreciate your engagement. Using Instagram marketing for cannabis companies is great because it offers different engagement mechanisms. One of these is your story, posting your brand’s content on your story allows your followers to engage with you. You can also use story stickers to encourage engagement. Another method is to respond to your followers’ comments on some of your posts. It is important to make sure that you avoid fake followers, they will not lead to any engagement and engagement is what helps you to grow your brand.

Make your bio interesting

When using Instagram marketing for your cannabis company, it is important to use your Instagram bio to your advantage. Bio’s are like first impressions, make sure to keep your interesting while effectively giving a great representation of your brand. To make your bio interesting you can: explain what your brand is and what it’s about, use keywords to target your niche, link your CBD website or blog if you have one – if not you should look at doing it, let your personality shine and give your followers a way to get in touch with you.

Use influencers

The goal is to search for other cannabis brands that have many followers and collaborate with them. This helps you to gain more followers and to expand your audience. If your cannabis company is relatively small, you would collaborate with micro-influencers who have a following of 10,000 – 50,000, making it a little easier to get them on board. You would want to focus on influencers who fit your brand. When searching for influencers that fit your brand, consider their engagement rates. This is a good determiner of genuine followers.

Conclusion

Using Instagram marketing for your cannabis company is a great strategy. It helps you to promote your brand in ways that would not be possible offline since it gives you access to hundreds and thousands and even millions (in some cases) of followers relating directly to your brand. This marketing strategy helps you to grow awareness and inevitably grows your online business. It is most effective when you have a blog or website that you can link your Instagram followers to. The key to being successful is, to be honest, creative and engaging.