Despite being legalized in an increasing number of states, cannabis remains a Schedule I substance in the US. Health Canada-licensed businesses still face hurdles on social media platforms even though the country legalized cannabis in 2018.
Canadian provinces and US states maintain diverse regulations, making commerce between regions virtually impossible. Even brands playing by all the rules face penalties, ad restrictions, and shadow bans on social media.
Although barriers to direct marketing and sales make social media challenging for cannabis brands, businesses can still reap some of the benefits. Investing in your social media channels can help you build brand awareness, engage with customers, and drive traffic to your website.
Social Media Rules for Cannabis Businesses
Each social media platform maintains its own rules regarding cannabis profiles and advertising. Business owners and social media managers should stay updated on each platform’s terms and conditions and advertising policies to avoid penalties and maximize their efforts.
Facebook’s algorithm changes have made it nearly impossible to get your message to your followers without taking out ads. Unfortunately, Facebook’s ad policy forbids the promotion of “THC products or cannabis products containing related psychoactive components.”
But considering Facebook’s popularity, especially among older people, businesses need to have at least a minimal presence on the platform. Cannabis brands can still benefit by maintaining a Facebook page but should avoid any direct promotion or sales.
The most effective strategy for building brand awareness and driving traffic to your website is sharing educational content on your Facebook page. Investing in professional quality blog posts is a surefire way to increase your business’s ROI on Facebook efforts.
Brands that exclusively offer CBD products have more marketing options on Facebook. Businesses may advertise CBD products with prior written permission. CBD ads must conform to all local laws in Mexico, Canada, and the United States.
Despite Meta’s restrictive stance on cannabis advertising, Instagram remains the most popular social media platform for cannabis and CBD marketing. Instagram’s advertising standards state that ads “must not constitute, facilitate, or promote illegal products, services, or activities.”
However, CBD and cannabis businesses should use Instagram to promote brand awareness. Entrepreneurs and social media managers should tread carefully as Instagram regularly institutes “shadow bans” that block comments and make posts invisible.
Instagram is also notorious for banning accounts that it considers to be in violation of its policies. The platform frequently deletes legal Canadian cannabis accounts.
Make sure you back up your Instagram posts and list of followers so that you can create another account in the event that Instagram closes your original profile.
Here are some tips for promoting your hemp, cannabis, or CBD brand on Instagram:
- Don’t use cannabis-oriented hashtags like #cannabis, #weed, #pot, etc.
- Link only to educational information instead of product pages.
- Place a disclaimer on your bio mentioning that your website is for adults over 21 only.
- Clearly state that you have nothing for sale in your Instagram bio.
- Avoid any promotion of cannabis products.
- Take advantage of Instagram reels to create rapport with potential customers.
- Use images that hint at cannabis rather than showing the plant or other products.
- Repost user-generated content.
- Share high-quality photos.
- Geotag your content to attract customers in your legal jurisdiction.
X
The popular platform has become more cannabis-friendly since being acquired by Elon Musk and converted from Twitter to X. However, X’s advertising policy still prohibits the “promotion of drugs and drug paraphernalia.” The policy prohibits ads that include:
- Drug dispensaries
- Herbal drugs
- Depictions of hard drug use
- Accessories associated with drug use
That said, the platform maintains regional policies that allow for some cannabis advertising on X. Licensed cannabis companies must obtain pre-authorization from X before running ads. X maintains distinct guidelines for cannabis brands in different countries.
LinkedIn is an excellent platform to network with other professionals in the cannabis industry. You can create a business page for your dispensary or other cannabis-oriented business and post without fear of having your account suspended or deleted.
However, LinkedIn’s advertising policy prohibits “ads that promote the sale or use of illicit or recreational drugs.”
Despite the restrictions, cannabis brands can still run ads on LinkedIn by following a few best practices, such as:
- Omitting words like weed, pot, marijuana, and cannabis
- Avoiding the direct sale of cannabis and related products
- Using images that suggest cannabis instead of obviously depicting the plant or paraphernalia
- Targeting audiences aged 25+
- Posting informative content that appeals to other cannabis professionals
If your ad is denied, you can make changes and resubmit it for approval.
TikTok
With its immense user base, recent rollout of photos, and Gen Z demographic, China-based TikTok has vast potential for reaching new customers.
But, unfortunately, the platform has the most stringent policies regarding cannabis content. However, businesses can still create brand awareness if they adhere to the platform’s terms of service.
But be careful. The platform is quick to remove any accounts it deems in violation of its guidelines. Here are a few tips for using TikTok to create awareness for your cannabiz:
- Add 21+ to your bio and age-gate your content.
- Use alternative hashtags like #w33d, #oueed, #dispensary, #budtender, and #highlife instead of obvious cannabis references.
- Never post photos of cannabis plants, products, or paraphernalia.
- Delete any comments that include references to cannabis sales.
We recommend that cannabis businesses consider TikTok only after prioritizing more cannabis-friendly channels. With the strict platform guidelines and recent legislation that may lead to a US ban, businesses may not want to dedicate valuable resources for little Return on Investment (ROI).
Quora
Quora is a question-and-answer platform that provides an excellent opportunity for you to demonstrate your knowledge of cannabis. You can create your own business forum and participate in other cannabis-oriented communities.
Quora frowns on direct advertising, but you can link to your blog to support the questions and answers you post.
Businesses often overlook Pinterest when planning social media strategies. Pinterest is not only a social media platform, but it’s also a search engine. The platform allows you to create rich pins with links to educational content about cannabis, which can dramatically increase visits to your webpage.
Pinterest’s policy allows ads from CBD and hemp brands that conform to US regulations as outlined in the 2018 Farm Bill. However, ads must be age-gated to avoid marketing to minors.
YouTube
YouTube’s advertising policy allows advertising for topical CBD products targeted to US markets. CBD brands must first be certified by Google.
General Tips for Promoting Cannabis Businesses on Social Media
- Begin with one or two platforms before diversifying efforts.
- Display your website URL on your social media channels.
- Take advantage of the popularity of short videos. Statistics show that 80% of consumers would rather watch a video instead of reading text.
- Use social media to grow your email list. Platforms come and go, but you own your email list.
- Incorporate SEO strategies to generate organic traffic to your website.
- Write educational articles on platforms like Medium and Substack, including a link to your website’s blog.
- Post consistently on social media and use platform analytics to track your efforts.
- Don’t list anything or attempt to make sales on your profile, posts, or through DMs.
- Create guest posts on popular cannabis-oriented sites.
- Leverage influencer marketing.
- Join affiliate networks that accept hemp, CBD, and cannabis brands.
- Track your stats.
For more information on how our marketing, SEO, and professional writing experience can benefit your cannabis business, please contact us using our submission form or send an email to [email protected].
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. This article is not intended to be a substitute for professional legal advice.
Written by Cat Winske
Image by Gerd Altman from Pixabay