Tag Archive for: cannabis PR

3 Lessons Cannabis Tech Can Learn From Silicon Valley Failures

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Some have said that the fastest-growing sector in cannabis is cannabis technology. While cannabis technology companies often serve very specific regulatory needs and enter the marketplace in a tech-mature world (as opposed to those during the initial dot-com era), cannabis tech companies with hyper-growth ambitions can learn from the tech company failures of the past.

Think Ahead, But Not Too Far

Many emerging industry companies have gone bust because they were simply too progressive. From the dot-com era, WebVan and Kozmo were two delivery companies with considerable capital that both went bust, only to see companies like Amazon eventually optimize the services they both introduced. Not every first mover gets first-mover advantage. There’s a lot to be said for meeting the customer or client where they’re at.

But moving people ahead is completely possible. Cannabis tech companies can think through the future of their business by planning past a regulatory world and creating brand loyalty well before any necessary pivots.

Setting an agenda to change the narrative and create demand is a long-term play, but consumers DO change behaviors and in the wake of COVID, there is still an opportunity to maximize the massive mind-shift happening. Cannabis itself is an outstanding example of changing the narrative. In fact, changing the narrative is an excellent competitive strategy and a way to differentiate yourself.

How Cannabis Tech Can Prepare for Bigger and Better Funded

As cannabis becomes a bigger part of the economy in more states, there will be more entrances into the marketplace.

Cannabis tech only has to look at what happened to the CBD space after the Farm Act passed to see a more recent cannabis example of this. From a tech perspective, a good example of this is the Pebble Smart Watch, which raised $10.3 million on Kickstarter (the most successful Kickstarter ever at the time). But of course, they struggled to compete with competitors like Apple Watch.

B2B cannabis tech companies are vulnerable to this as Silicon Valley continues to double down on cannabis tech from companies and founders with no experience in cannabis, but more funding. Dutchie is an example of this. Dutchie’s model is less cannabis and more tech as they model their services to something more akin to GrubHub. Silicon Valley likes companies that reinvent proven scale models.

Cannabis tech companies, whether they serve B2B or B2C should leverage both advertising and PR, together to secure market share AND trust simultaneously. Align your cannabis advertising and PR campaigns and messaging. Don’t isolate your advertising data from PR. Together they can be stronger. Branding dominance and brand value is the way to secure marketplace valuation; had Pebble done that, they would have stood a better chance of survival or at the very least gotten closer to the original offer of $740 million (which they got in 2015), as opposed to the sell to Fitbit for less than $40 million in 2016.

Cannabis technology companies should also be prepared to tell stories that aren’t technology-oriented. Whether those be founder stories, or purpose, there is also more to talk about, so prepare yourself and get those corporate stories in place.

And when there are lulls in cannabis tech VC funding, that’s a great time to prepare for the future and focus your energies on the most important initiatives to help you stand out when the funding cycle returns.

Watch Consumer Tech Trends

Media consumption on the biggest social media platforms may well have peaked already. 2021 was the first year Facebook reported a decline in users. So what’s happening to those consumers? They certainly haven’t left the internet, they’ve simply shifted platforms.

Consumer communication with a cannabis niche or cannabis advertising platforms can learn so many lessons from the failures of social media platforms, in particular Facebook. These platforms need to evaluable the trust equation and invest in it immediately. Whether the customer is B2B or B2C, there is a broader techlash going on.

Leveraging the trust of third-party media outlets is imperative now. And unlike plant-touching brands, cannabis tech companies have a wide-open playing field about the media outlets who will write about them. We always say that “trust is an inside out job,” and that means PR can only clean up so much if you’re abusing trust; if you’re the Theanos of cannabis tech, PR won’t be your biggest spend.

 

Cannabis tech is sure to be a competitive and thriving sector with massive ups and downs, but those who reach hyper-growth will have taken a page out of the successes and failures of past Silicon Valley darlings.  Check out our PR Case Studies and Results for more ideas about how to stand out in cannabis tech.

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Preparing for a Cannabis Product Recall

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Is your cannabis brand prepared for a product recall? No one likes to talk about it, but it’s probably not a question of IF, but when. Anyone who has been around consumer products for any period can tell you: product recalls are a fact of life. But for cannabis brands, product recalls are intense because of the regulatory environment and the cost of operating as a cannabis brand. We recently handled crisis communications during a cannabis brand recall. It honored us to be chosen, but it’s never fun to see the immeasurable stress a recall puts on a brand.

Because the cannabis industry is new and highly regulated, and in some locations, a medicinal-only product, cannabis recalls ARE news. A cannabis recall will get local and potentially national media coverage. So, how should cannabis companies prepare for the inevitable recall? In short, these 3 steps will help you tremendously: learn, lean, communicate.

 

Learn the Product Recall Process From Your State Cannabis Regulatory Body

Because the cannabis industry is new, so are the regulatory bodies that oversee them. Keep in mind your cannabis regulation division may not even have staff members who have started a recall. Get ahead of it.

Ask your regulatory body what their process is for recall. Who will be your contact during a call? What will they need and expect from you? How and when will they inform you? What steps will they take to inform the public? What triggers a recall? Who will be audited in a recall (the brand, the testing facility, the retailer)?

Knowing the answers to these questions will help you prepare internally. Plus, having an open and engaging relationship with the regulatory body will ease communications during the recall itself.

Lean into Industry Relationships

Ask your retail partners what their internal product recall processes are. The more you know about how they handle and store products, how they prepare their budtenders for product recalls, the better off you’ll be. Find out if you can collaborate with them on budtender communication and customer notification. Be transparent with your retailers about your process too. You should do the same for any other 3rd party in the supply chain: labs and distributors as well. If your product includes any 3rd party ingredients, then communicate with them too. Tell them who they can contact about questions if they’re doing internal planning.

Create a Crisis Communication Plan

Based on how a cannabis recall happens, preparing your internal steps is critical because you can either take the lead or be pummeled. At the very least, define the first 3 external communication steps your brand will take the moment it knows of a potential or actual recall. You should have a single spokesperson identified, while your supporting cast should know their roles and how you will handle the situation internally.

Create plans for at least two scenarios: one for if your processes and/or procedures are at fault, and one plan for if your processes and procedures are not in question.

At the minimum, you should have a statement to your retailers drafted already, as well as a social media post, an email to customers, and a statement for your website. Your spokesperson should undergo crisis communication training, in front of a camera. You can also have a shortlist of local and industry media outlets you will proactively reach out to during the recall to provide a media statement. Be prepared to be nimble during your crisis process and consider what you might do if there is very little coverage vs. a lot of coverage. Review this plan annually, and make sure everyone knows their role during a cannabis product recall.

 

No one likes to talk about cannabis product recalls. It sends a shiver down everyone’s back. But preparing for a recall helps take the sting out it. Contact us, we’re experts in cannabis PR firm if you need help creating a plan for a cannabis product recall.

Download our special report: Preparing for a Cannabis Recall

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9 Reasons Every Cannabis Company Needs PR

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Public relations isn’t new, but cannabis PR hasn’t been around very long, relative to PR. You’ve probably heard that PR is an excellent investment in your company, particularly because of limited advertising options. But maybe you’re still wondering what you should expect from cannabis PR.

Here are 9 reasons every cannabis company should invest in cannabis PR. 

  1. Great content inspires trust, creates credibility, and increases brand value. 
    There is no greater content than an unpaid third party. Cannabis consumers today are hip to the fact that influencers, affiliates, and advertising are all getting paid to say what you want them to say. But journalists remain independent and adhere to a code of ethics and that’s exactly what makes their content so trusted and valuable.
  2. Allows a company to own its own story.
    Cannabis companies who fail to invest in cannabis PR are basically allowing everyone else, from media to competitors to customers, to create your brand story. Why not author your own brand’s story? That’s what PR allows you to do.

    “PR is not something a CEO can do herself.  PR is a highly specialized vertical with a distinctive set of talents, relationships and experience, plus, it takes an exceptional amount of time away from running the company. An agency allows CEOs to get back to their highest and best use of time. – Tara Coomans, CEO, Avaans Media 

  3. Cannabis PR outlasts advertising and social media.
    Unlike advertising which turns off the minute you finish paying, PR sticks around indefinitely. We’ve placed pieces which continued to drive traffic and conversation 3-4 years later. What advertising or social media has that kind of longevity?
  4. Amplify and maximize your cannabis message.
    A strong cannabis PR program typically involves media relations. Media relations means your PR team is working with journalists who are interested in the verticals your brand best fits into. For example, if you’re a cannabis beauty brand, you’ll have stories you want to tell to each vertical.
  5. Building community capital. 
    As we’ve discussed previously, crisis and downturns happen. Having relationships in the media is particularly important when you need support. An ongoing media relations campaign provides trust both with journalists and the public which you can put in the bank and earn interest on for a rainy day. Plus, if you have a crisis, which is all too common in the cannabis industry, then you having a PR firm on retainer could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars in brand value, wasted time, and crisis PR fees. A PR agency you’re already working with knows you best, and knows how to handle your crisis in a brand consistent way.

    “When we discuss the value of PR, we often forget about the sales, M&A and partnerships that come more easily because PR drives trust and shortens the sales cycle,” – Tara Coomans, CEO Avaans Media 

  6. Compliments sales efforts. 
    Ask any salesperson, distributor, or business development executive what happens when they can reference a piece in major industry or national publications. Suddenly, people start paying attention. Adding your coverage on your website, sales materials, and other external communications amplify your cannabis PR.
  7. Creates an opportunity to consider your cannabis company’s impact.
    Ongoing PR makes a company and it’s stakeholders consistently aware of its impact on people. This is important because it’s those same people who have perceptions that shape the company’s values and builds (or damages) its reputation.
  8. PR IS content. Content is a big buzzword today, but PR has always been about content, the only thing that’s changed is that there are more avenues to share content. That’s why so many cannabis PR firms also offer social media and/or event marketing services. PR’s perspective provides a well-rounded point of view that makes content more accessible, shareable, and timely.
  9. Enhances digital efforts like SEO. 
    Online earned media is usually chock full of relevant keywords and known publications have strong SEO signals. Consistent media placement helps with organic search results and the best part is, the efforts pay increasing dividends over time.If you’re ready to invest in PR to get all these benefits and more, why not find out more about whether you’re a good fit for Primo PR’s services? 
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Questions to Ask Top Cannabis PR Firms

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You may be at the beginning of your search, or you may have narrowed down your choices, but wherever you are in your cannabis PR firm search, you should know that the top cannabis PR firms should all have these skills. Notice these skills may differ from PR services and that’s because what separates an outstanding PR firm from the average PR firm is the ability to understand how social, cultural, and business changes will affect their clients. We’re providing you with 3 questions to ask your top cannabis PR firms to help you differentiate them from one another.

Emotional Intelligence

We’re living in dynamic times. Top cannabis PR firms can understand your company, its goals, and how media shifts will change your reputation and media outreach strategies. That’s right, outstanding PR means you have a team who has their pulse on the big picture – they know when to raise the red flag and when to take a breath and let the moment pass. Emotional intelligence also means your PR team continues to learn from itself. You’ll find emotionally intelligent teams hold themselves accountable, they are solution-oriented, and they are easy to collaborate with. Emotional intelligence isn’t necessarily a feature of maturity, but the two do often go hand in hand. Be sure you meet your team and understand who you will be working with before you sign on the bottom line. To get a sense of your PR team’s emotional intelligence, ask your top cannabis PR firm: what advice would they give you at the beginning of the COVID pandemic? 

Digitally Forward Perspective

Social media has been a sub-section of PR for a decade, and yet, many PR professionals don’t consider social media part of the PR landscape. Ask yourself why you’d want a PR agency that doesn’t concern itself with your most visible and accessible communication channel? No doubt about it – social media is an important player in your cannabis company’s reputation. You may not choose to have your PR DO your social media, but a top cannabis PR firm should absolutely provide guidance and oversight. This is also true for choosing influencers. Ask your cannabis PR firm for their perspective on cannabis influencers. It will tell you something about how they approach your media strategy. Ask your top cannabis PR firm: what’s your perspective on social media for my cannabis company? 

Cannabis PR Specialty or Specialization?

The cannabis industry, though still an emerging industry, is past its most nascent stages. Cannabis PR firms that only work in cannabis have advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is extreme specialization; the disadvantage is their perspectives might be myopic. Ask yourself which is more important for your business objectives? You want a top cannabis PR firm that can provide content and insights into the industry, but is it also important that your strategy reflects audiences that aren’t specific to the cannabis industry? For example, if you’re looking to attract an untapped market of cannabis customers, then having a cannabis PR agency that has a broad perspective on consumer PR might be helpful. If you’re a cannabis B2B company, then you may want a PR agency that’s able to cross over into national media outlets, besides cannabis-focused publications for your cannabis business stories. A top cannabis PR firm should be able to review with you how your competitors are doing in the media and recommend some strategies to position your company based on your stated cannabis business goals. Ask your top cannabis PR agency: what advice do they have for a company at your stage of growth?

What Is Your PR Plan?

Every top PR cannabis agency has a distinct approach to achieving your business goals. It’s important for you to know whether that approach suits the rest of your overall strategy. Many PR firms provide you with a plan based on one or two conversations. But is that realistic? This is the exact reason Avaans Media offers a proprietary approach to working together. Ask us about our discovery process and what it means to your PR campaign.

Since 2015, Avaans Media is one of the top cannabis PR firms (previously Primo PR). We’re based in Los Angeles and we work with emerging industries like cannabis. If you’d like to ask US these questions, please reach out.

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Michael Rosenfeld Cannabis Advertising Expert

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Meet Michael Rosenfeld VP of Business Development at Cannavu. Michael is a cannabis advertising expert with the marketing chops to back up all his advice.  Michael’s passion for brand building has been a career-long journey that made him into the cannabis industry advertising expert he is today.

First, a little background about Michael:

Since my youth, I’ve always loved awesome branding.

I think it started in my skateboarding days when the coolest skaters had the most awesome board designs and shapes. That passion to create visceral experiences guided me to marketing, advertising, and media where over the next 20 years I worked with brands from Apple to SEGA, FOX Sports, MTV, Beats by Dre to the Viceroy Hotel Group, and a ton of action sports labels.

Today I take that passion and experience in integrated media and work with client companies to create smart campaigns that best position them to attract the right customers authentically.
And though I don’t skate anymore, I do love going into skate and surf shops just to see what ‘the cool kids’ are staring at.

What were you doing prior to cannabis?

I have been in advertising and media for 20 years, working as a lead strategist and head of sales for agencies serving brands in fashion, action sports, entertainment, hospitality, and consumer tech.

As an agency owner and consultant, I love working with brands (and the people that guide them) to improve their chances for success.

When did you first start working in cannabis?

Since going to college up in San Francisco in the early 90s you can say Ive worked on-and-off in cannabis. But I officially began in this new legal-cannabis generation in 2019 when I became the Head of Sales and Strategy for CannaVu, at the time, the largest digital ad platform serving cannabis and CBD marketers.

Do you sit on any marketing or cannabis industry boards or associations that you’d like to mention?

Not currently.

Formerly Strategic Advisor to ALTRD.TV, and Industry Council member of WeedWeek.

What lesson did you learn BEFORE cannabis that’s been most valuable in cannabis?

Building a brand that people love takes time and effort. The authenticity of a ‘core’ brand can’t be bought, it must be lived, and earned.

With the meteoric rise and interest in the cannabis industry countless companies have entered the market, and too many of them rush to market without understanding how important building a brand really is, and how much work is really required.

Is there a particular cannabis project you’d like to highlight?

I’m really excited about the new technology we’re bringing to the category that revolves around dispensary visitor data. Being able to identify traits of customers that visit one dispensary over another and how to market each type with accuracy.

These insights will enable us to build audience segments we can then market to with more intent and authenticity.

What’s the biggest misconception cannabis companies have about branding, advertising, marketing, PR, and social media?

The biggest misconception, or rather, misstep, by many brands is thinking that if you build it (or grow it) they will come and that advertising/media is not important in building brand awareness.

Cannabis has evolved from a retail sales experience to an industry that requires a digital presence, so it is very important to have a strong digital experience and support it w a digital media strategy to help create awareness, and sales. As customers become more interested and research brands and dispensaries before they purchase, they are being hit with competing brands advertising. Make sure you’re playing at the same level to capture those hearts and minds as they surf the web looking for the new product.

In your view, what is the biggest branding/marketing/advertising challenge facing cannabis companies today?

One of the biggest challenges for brands in cannabis is the lack of ‘traditional’ methods to advertise and be discovered. We are unable to buy Facebook ads, or PPC/SEM, or run fun direct social media programs without the potential of being flagged and removed from the platform. So we are forced to put together campaigns that don’t have the level of targeting and scale non-regulated industries have the luxury to use.

This, coupled with state-by-state differences in compliance makes for confusion amongst brands and their advertising partners.

What will get easier in cannabis marketing/branding/pr, what will get harder?

Things become easier as brands mature, and marketers learn to navigate w the tools available, as advertising platforms merge to offer integrated solutions that capture customers at awareness and reconnect w them down the ‘funnel’ to purchase creating predictable ROAS.

However, compliance, competition, education, market maturity, or lack thereof will still mean that brands have headwinds to deal with when wanting to run effective campaigns to grow and scale.

What can companies do to alleviate their branding/marketing/PR/advertising challenges?

As the industry matures, working with experienced and knowledgeable branding, advertising, and PR partners will be key to success.

In your view, what is the most underrated tool in the branding/marketing/advertising/PR toolbox for cannabis companies?

The most underrated tool is Retargeting.

Companies spend a lot of money to drive customers to a site, social tactics, PR, dis[play advertising, email marketing, but very few are implementing a retargeting line to drive them back.

Lest then a 1% of customers buy in the first site visit. You need to re-message them to remind them you exist and come back to your site.

Another underrated tool is building your SEO. People naturally go to ‘search,’ yet not all companies are versed in best use-case seo tactics.

In your view, what is the most over-rated tool in the branding/marketing/advertising/PR toolbox for cannabis companies?

Social Media, namely Instagram.

Spending time creating content to get banned, or shadow banned.

Looking at vanity metrics to see engagement, but do these customers actually live in your area? Are they destined to buy? Social is so transient that very few brands are making money w social media posts.

What’s the BEST piece of advice you give everyone you work with?

Know your market, your competitors, your true customers, and then work with someone that truly knows how to build a plan to help you grow sales and awareness based on your stage and position in the market.

What’s your advice for people who want to get into cannabis marketing/advertising/pr/branding?

Learn from people that have done this before so you know what you can do, and then do it better.

Thanks, Michael, you really are a cannabis advertising expert.

How can people get in touch with you?

My personal site
My business site
My LinkedIn

This post originally appeared at avaansmedia.com.

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4 Trends for Marketing and PR During a Recession

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Marketing and PR during a recession? Who does that? Well, the answer may surprise you: brands that grow the fastest. Why? Studies who brands that market during recessions gain additional advantages because it’s less noisy and easier to be seen and heard. Make your marketing and PR budget go further by tapping into these consumer trends.

Consumer Brands: Remember the Lipstick Effect

Coined by Leonard Lauder in 2001, the term “lipstick effect” when he observed that lipstick sales are inversely correlated to economic health. Why? Because consumers still want to treat themselves and small indulgences fit the bill, even during economic downturns. Luxury lifestyle brands do this with their perfume and makeup offerings. Yes, $69 for Hermes lipstick is a lot for lipstick, but for the Hermes customer or aspirational customer, $69 is an easy purchase compared to a $6,000 purse. Consumer PR and marketing during a recession can help you gain market share and grow when you offer your customers a way to sport your brand without making a gigantic purchase.

What’s your brand’s “lipstick”? What is the product that makes customers feel like they’re treating themselves without large expenditure? 

Find the Fun with Your Customers

What did the post-pandemic consumer teach us? They want fun and frivolity in the pandemic’s wake – and they STILL want that, perhaps even more, with all the gloomy news about a recession. While you, as a CEO, or CMO, might feel doubly beat up, it’s really up to you to bring the fun. From marketing to PR, if you give consumers something fun to talk about or a sense of escapism, consumers will find a way to your party, because they really want to have fun. So while you may be cutting your marketing or PR budget, make sure the things you keep are fun-filled. Not only will this improve your bottom line, it will attach fun to your consumer’s experience of your brand, which means they’ll associate you with fun after the recession too.

What’s your customer’s ideal way to escape? Find them and play with them there. 

Make Lasting Memories with Nostalgia

When uncertainty strikes, consumers love to “remember when.” Whether it’s nostalgia-based packaging or scents to connections to movies and songs, yesterday always brings comfort to consumers. If you’re a legacy brand with long-time customers, then you should absolutely take this opportunity to remind your customers of the good ole days you had together. If you’re a new brand and you don’t have that depth, you can trigger fond memories through partnerships and advertising.

What era makes your customers nostalgic?

Avoid Deep Discounts that Train Customers

If you train your customers to wait until the next sale, they will never buy if there isn’t one, whether or not there is a recession. Resist the urge to devalue your own brand right now. Not only do price discounts squeeze your margins during a time when you can least afford them, constant discounting feels desperate. Desperation is never a great look, especially for luxury brands. To maintain brand and positioning, the beloved cupcake brand Sprinkles resisted the urge to discount during the pandemic:

“Customers had been taught by other bakeries to expect that the product at the end of the day was worth less than at the beginning. But with our just-in-time baking system, these cupcakes were as fresh as their morning relatives. Even then, as tempting as it was to sell off those last few cupcakes at a discount right before closing, I knew we had to stand firmly behind the price. I preferred to donate those cupcakes than to eat into the value of our brand.” -Candace Nelson, founder.

The better option is to carve out a single day (or two) that your brand will offer value pricing, and when you do, look for ways to add value to your current price rather than discounting the product itself. You could offer a gift with purchase or a VIP experience.

Budget planning for marketing and PR during a recession feels less fun than when budgets are flush, but the reality is, you can make major headway during a recession AND you can enjoy the process and the output just as much if not more.

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