Marketing 101: Building Your Dispensary Target Audience

Let’s start this one off by defining what a dispensary target audience is.

It all boils down to WHO cares about cannabis products.

Some of them may know your business, most may have never heard of you. In either case, it’s your job to help them understand that your dispensary is the one they should come to when they want cannabis products.

Different people have different reasons for being interested in your products. So, it’s important to understand:

• WHY they are interested in the first place
• WHAT makes them interested in a business providing those products

Only then can you understand HOW to deliver on those needs and bring them through your doors.

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Why Knowing Your Audience is Important

In the world of retail cannabis, understanding your target audience is crucial. The success of your dispensary depends on how well you know your customers. 

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“I remind myself every morning: Nothing I say this day will teach me anything. So if I’m going to learn, I must do it by listening.”

— Larry King

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Your customers tell you their needs, preferences, and show you what they want with behaviors every time they interact with your business. 

With that information, you can:

• Present your products and marketing in ways that meet their expectations
• Show that you are listening
• Ensure you stand out in a competitive market

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How to Identify Target Audiences In Cannabis

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Think of identifying audiences for marketing purposes much the same as completing a puzzle.

Start with the obvious pieces of information: corners, borders, and the like. This information helps us shape the smaller images we are trying to build into a bigger picture.

In this case, the image is a persona, (a fictitious representation of a customer fitting a certain set of criteria) of a target customer or group of people. 

The big picture is the success of your business.

Moreover, this approach makes it easy to start building broad groups, like people who prefer to buy flower or people who consume cannabis medically, which can then be broken down into more specific groups. 

That effort allows your marketing to be much more personalized for the recipient, much more effective in grabbing their attention, and compelling them to make a purchase. 

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Doing Market Research

Identifying your target audience begins with market research. Don’t let the phrase intimidate you, it’s just a grown-up way of saying do your homework.

It takes a bit of effort to ensure you’re on the right path. Research is the first leg of that, doing is the next, and analyzing is the last bit.

That said, here are some effective research methods to get to know your audience better:

1. Surveys: Conduct surveys to collect direct feedback from your customers you already have or people who you at least know go to dispensaries and buy the types of products you sell.

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Ask questions about what their preferences are, why they gravitate to specific products or shops, how they prefer to consume cannabis, and record the answers they give you. Online surveys are easy to distribute and review, while in-store surveys can give you immediate customer feedback and reactions with the opportunity to have real conversations.

In any case, customer input is valuable and, if you can, you should reward them for taking the time to share that information with you.

2. Focus Groups: Focus groups are just deliberate efforts to get people together into a setting where you can ask them their opinions. 

It may sound like too big a bother, but it can be easily arranged in-store as a promotional effort, i.e. come in this week and give us your opinion for a pre-roll, or you can get feedback as part of a collaboration at an event or other local business. 

The point here is that you are taking an opportunity to get a more nuanced understanding of why customers feel one way or another about specific topics relative to your business.

These small, guided discussions provide valuable information that more generic surveys might miss. They also give you the opportunity to ask follow-up questions based on the initial answers given.

3. Review your data: When you don’t have someone to ask directly, use your sales data to reach informed conclusions about what people are buying, why they might be buying it, and how to get them to continue or increase that activity. 

Things like sales data, website analytics, and social media metrics can be used to identify patterns and trends.

Look for recurring themes in customer behavior, such as seasonality, peak purchasing times, popular products, and the types of people who shop at your business.

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Finding Patterns in Data

Being able to effectively use data to understand your business is important in many ways. 

If you want to understand your customers better, you need to be able to identify patterns in their behavior. From there, you can make pretty accurate predictions and meet them in the moment because you know, or have a reasonably accurate idea of, when and what they’ll want to buy.

Here are some ways to do that:

1. Break things down into segments: Divide your customer base into segments based on demographics (age, gender, location), purchase history (basket size, products, brands), and behavior (frequency, why they consume).
2. Identify Trends: Look for trends within each segment. For example, you might find that younger customers prefer vape products, while older customers lean towards edibles or topicals. An older demographic might shop later in the day or on weekends, while younger customers may have looser schedules.
3. Collect Feedback: Collect and analyze customer feedback from reviews, social media comments, and budtender interactions. This feedback can highlight common pain points and preferences, giving you valuable information on how to improve the customer experience.

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Understanding Customer Needs and Preferences

When you know your customers’ needs and preferences it becomes easier to market to them without pissing them off with irrelevant promotion.

After all, you wouldn’t advertise dab deals to established customers who have never purchased dabs from you or indicated an interest in that consumption method.

You won’t know that without paying attention to their behaviors and getting their feedback from interactions with your dispensary and its staff.

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Exploring Customer Behavior and Feedback

Here are some ways to explore customer behavior and feedback:

1. Behavior Analysis: Track purchasing patterns, such as frequency of visits and popular products. Use this data to stock products that meet customer demand.
2. Customer Feedback: Regularly collect feedback through surveys, reviews, and direct interactions. Pay attention to common themes and address any recurring issues. Have meetings with your teams to discuss any comments or concerns made by customers to get ahead of problem areas or identify new opportunities.

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Tailoring Your Offerings

To meet customer needs effectively, make sure that your product selection is in line with their preferences. 

Avoid stocking products that don’t sell well, as this can waste resources and shelf space.

Instead, focus on:

1. Popular Products: Stock products that are consistently in demand. POS software can help with this, but retail cannabis purchasing software makes this effort much easier.
2. Trends: Stay updated on industry trends by attending events, and reading publications that will give you the best perspectives on new products that align with customer interests.
3. New Additions: Keep up with industry product releases, especially those local or near your region as they have a tendency to build affinity among local customers and tourists alike.‍
4. Customer Requests: Listen to customer requests and try to accommodate them when possible. Understand that not all products are readily available and having a few suitable substitutions will help address customer needs while also giving you the opportunity to be an advocate as well as display subject matter expertise.

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Creating Customer Personas

Customer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customers. They help you group people with similar traits together, making it easier to understand and cater to the different segments of customers.

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How to Create a Customer Persona

Follow these steps to create effective customer personas:

1. Collect Data: Use the market research methods discussed earlier to gather comprehensive data on your customers.
2. Identify Traits: Identify common traits and behaviors within your customer groups. Focus on demographics (age, gender), psychographics (attitudes, interests), and behavior patterns (purchasing habits, values).
3. Create Detailed Profiles: Develop detailed profiles for each persona. 3-5 is a good number to start with. Give them names, ages, occupations, and backgrounds. Describe their preferences, usage habits, and purchasing behaviors relative to cannabis.

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Example Personas for Different Segments

1. Smokers:
   • Name: Sarah
   • Age: 28
   • Occupation: Graphic Designer
   • Cannabis Preference: Prefers high-quality flower for smoking
   • Behavior: Visits the dispensary weekly, values variety and potency
2. Eaters:
   • Name: Juan
   • Age: 45
   • Occupation: Chef
   • Cannabis Preference: Prefers edibles, especially gummies and chocolates
   • Behavior: Buys in bulk monthly, interested in new flavors and dosage options
3. Vapers:
   • Name: Alex
   • Age: 32
   • Occupation: IT Specialist
   • Cannabis Preference: Prefers vape cartridges and pens for convenience
   • Behavior: Purchases vape products bi-weekly, values discretion and portability
4. Dabbers:
   • Name: Taylor
   • Age: 27
   • Occupation: Freelance Writer
   • Cannabis Preference: Prefers concentrates and dabs for intense effects
   • Behavior: Regularly purchases concentrates, potency chaser interested in new extraction methods
5. Elders:
   • Name: Mary
   • Age: 65
   • Occupation: Retired Teacher
   • Cannabis Preference: Prefers topicals and low-dose edibles for pain relief
   • Behavior: Visits the dispensary monthly, values knowledgeable staff and product education

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Again, none of these people are real; they are compositions built around data for those specific groups of customers. Because we can’t refer to them all by name and exact individual preferences yet, this is the next best thing in ensuring they get the marketing and promotions most suitable for their needs.

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Tailoring Marketing to Different Personas

Messaging that resonates with each audience segment is key to effective marketing.

The best way to do this is to make it as personal or relatable to the target persona as possible.

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Crafting Messages for Each Segment

1. Smokers: Highlight the quality and variety of your flower selection. Emphasize potency, freshness, and unique strains.
2. Eaters: Focus on the flavor and convenience of your edibles. Mention any new flavors or limited-edition products.
3. Vapers: Promote the convenience and discretion of vape products. Highlight any new technology or flavors available.
4. Dabbers: Emphasize the intensity and purity of your concentrates. Showcase any new extraction methods or high-potency options.
5. Elders: Highlight the therapeutic benefits of your products. Emphasize ease of use and provide educational resources on usage.

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Connect with Personalization

Personalization can enhance customer engagement and loyalty. We're not talking about 1-to-1 messaging where you send a text or email to each individual. Way too much effort there and we're trying to work smarter, not harder.

Here are some simple strategies you can use

1. Personalized Emails: Use customer data to send personalized emails with product recommendations and special offers. Show your customers you know them with marketing they care about.
2. Loyalty Programs: Loyalty programs that reward repeat customers with discounts and exclusive offers are very effective when done right. Use that customer information to support your marketing and personalize opportunities to bring them in-store.
3. Targeted Ads: Use targeted advertising on social media and search engines to reach specific audience segments with tailored messages. Remember, localization is key to advertising in the retail cannabis space.

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Conclusion

Knowing your target audience is the foundation of successful marketing for your dispensary. 

Build stronger connections with your customers and drive business growth by:

• Conducting thorough market research
• Creating detailed customer personas
• Understanding customer needs
• Tailoring your marketing messages

For more tips and insights on understanding your target audience, hit us up at Happy Cabbage or schedule a demo to see the difference effective marketing can make for your retail cannabis business.