How brands win in Cannabis Marketing and Aplivening

With many advertising channels closed, cannabis operators – and their marketing partners – are rethinking how to reach consumers in a highly competitive environment.
Instead of billboards and media buys, they turn to a smart search strategy, rich culture of content hubs and storytelling built on behavioral tracking and measured measurement to drive growth.
Agency Leaders and Digital Stratestists Tell Mjbizdaily Those marketing and advertising strategies rely on verification, owned assets and hyperlocal relevance rather than broad ad reach.
And instead of relying on Fickle Refed Media or risking corporate-media platforms, Shift allows cannabis operators and brands to rely on the channels they own.
This brings tangible returns because it is compliant, scalable and purpose-built for customers.
Laws prohibiting the legal promotion of cannabis
Almost every state that legalizes adult cannabis businesses operates within that legal framework prohibiting advertising in some way.
Some states ban cannabis billboards on public property or near schools – if not outlawed altogether.
Many states also restrict the use of broadcast and print media and online platforms.
As for the Internet platforms themselves, Facebook and Instagram Ban Poad Promotion completely – and punish accounts that post content that is considered highly promoted with a temporary or permanent ban.
Spotify and other audio networks have limited what is allowed, and google ads remain limited to certified CBD for selected locations.
Where digital ads are not allowed, states often require proof that the majority of the audience is 21 and older.
These things push operators into channels where verification is possible rather than widely accessible – and with the majority of cannabis products relying on a digital strategy, the limitations are evident.
When the sale of cannabis began: the search
So cannabis marketers focus on what they can actually control: Organic search, structured site content, customer relationship management (CRM) and first-party insights that inform these strategies.
The search is where it all begins.
Search engine optimization is the most reliable search engine for Legal Marijuana, according to Matthew Shtenberg, CEO of Santa Monica, Calif. partners. support Deeproots.
Search queries capture consumers actively looking for a store and double as Market Intelligence: Product terms, questions and pain points typed into Google reveal what users emphasize on menus, education and promotions.
And since Instagram, Facebook and Tiktok always press or Remove the content of cannabis, the search is where the investment is made with a small removal goal.
Cannabis products must make a name for themselves
But you only search when the Brand Foundation is clear.
“Brand identity is evident from SEO and content,” says Cannacontent founder Stella Morrison.
“Great SEO will not save a bad reputation or no reputation at all.”
Brands that win specific audiences and create content are where those customers truly want to know.
FAQ Hubs, educational blogs and a landing page for the site are visible over time.
Veteran Brand Strategist jp Donahue in reporting on Stone Pepper sees a similar pattern on the creative side.
In competitive markets, he said brands must first answer the tough question: Why should someone choose you?
“That response is the foundation of the brand,” he noted, and it’s the filter that drives any SEO, menu copy or content effort.
Having productive means of advertising
Once the customers arrive, the managed channels become a revenue engine.
We will learn, the founder of cannaplannan, says Pracers’ websites are “a window into the retail experience that is in the end,” and it is one of the few places that work in a few places that still have real creative freedom.
Email, SMS programs and loyalty programs offer the same control and clear ROI through segmentation and follow-up behavior, regardless of the intensity of the platforms employed.
Through all the discussions, the leaders described the same stack: Search demand capture, structured content optimization and CRM implementation.
Canned Ape’s Denahue argues these works must be collective rather than silent.
“Brand feeds acquisition and retention,” he said. “These efforts must work in diversity instead of division.”
Cannabis products tell a clear story
If affiliate channels help customers discover a brand, storytelling helps them remember it.
But this story needs to be told often, in different ways.
“The biggest misconception we see is that employees think that getting one ad, campaign, or social account live is enough to move the needle,” said Kavya Sebastian, Brand Stratestist for Cannabis Creative Group.
His team focused on the content that will take place in the store: short videos of forms, carousels and stories that will connect them with employees, provide lifestyle connections and build that on social media.
“Email and text allow you to see direct revenue, monitor touchpoints, and understand purchasing behavior,” he said. “We often see 10-20x roi on CRM campaigns.”
It’s a reminder that the most effective media coverage happens on the Off-Off-Scradic Streets Control platform.
He added: “It’s all about touch.
“Brands that create a seamless loop between social, email, their website and the in-store experience are the ones that win.”
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Staying clear and consistent is key to cannabis addiction
Experts contacted for this article agreed that the winning brands aren’t the ones that make the most noise, but the ones that use every available space to deliver a clear, humane story.
Sustaining that approach requires sharp discipline. Operators will want clean data, purposeful segmentation and CRM systems put into practice.
Combined with experiential content and reliable communication, these structures measure regardless of platform rules.
But product clarity determines how all channels will work.
“Truth, how full, in what country,” said Denahue of Ape. “Brands willing to take a big creative leap will define the next wave of positioning.”



