Guest Post: Marijuana Millions – The Road Map to Your Success, Part 1

Step 1 – Defining Your Unique Selling Proposition

Alexa Divett, founder of Maya Media Collective
Alexa Divett, founder of Maya Media Collective

By Alexa Divett, Maya Media Collective, LLC

At Maya Media Collective, we believe that the key to marijuana millions begins with knowing who you are and why you are unique, and then using this discovery to build your company’s brand and overall strategy for success.

The first step is to define your Unique Selling Proposition.

Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) is a marketing concept that is the foundation of your business and your brand. If the word “selling” turns you off, you can think of it as your Unique Market Proposition, or to make it more fun, your Unique Awesomeness.

Regardless of what you call it, it is imperative that you define it early on in your business.

Think of your USP as your reason for being.

Your USP is literally that which you propose to sell to your market that is unique from your competition. From the customer’s perspective it is the answer to the question, “Why should I do business with you?”

The USP should always come before your elevator speech and before your branding.

In fact, it is the driving force behind your branding, your niche, and your elevator speech.

Deciding on a USP Is One of the Most Important Decisions You Can Make About Your Business.

If you make your business stand apart from the crowd, everything you do will be easier. Customers will be easier to come by and they will happily spread the word about what you do because they love it.

On the other hand, if you don’t develop an effective USP, building an audience or getting any customers to pay attention to you will be a constant struggle. 

How to Find Your Unique Selling Proposition

In order to find your USP, you must be willing to tap into your creativity and passions.

However, all the soul-searching in the world will not help you find your USP if you’re not willing to put your ideal customer first. At the end of the day, your USP is all about your ideal customer, and not about you at all.  

In order to do this correctly, you must be willing to get out of your own way, start thinking about your perfect customer, and learn everything you can about him or her so you can target your approach to meet his or her needs.

Imagine your perfect customer and what would make them eager and excited to do business with you and spend their hard-earned dollars on your products and services.

Speaking of your products…first-nations-medical-marijuana

If you are a grower or processor in any of the western states such as Oregon, amazing products are NOT a USP. States like Oregon, Washington, California, and Colorado have had medical programs and access to seriously strong “high-grade” medicine for over a decade.

In places such as these, having the best product isn’t unique, it’s MANDATORY. Honestly, if you have anything less than the best, your business won’t make it through its first week of operation.

Remember, competition is fierce and you need more than the best product to be unique.

Instead of banking on your amazing product as your ticket to marijuana millions, think of becoming the best at something no one else is attempting.

You want to be able to confidently say, “Hey, at XYZ Company we’re all about X. We do things differently. If you’re into X come see us, we’re the only place where you can get it.”

Remember, You’re Not Trying To Appeal to Everyone

It’s easy to feel like you’ll be leaving out some potential customers when you start to narrowly define your USP. It’s a natural tendency to want to please everyone. Unfortunately in business when you try to please everyone, you generally wind up pleasing no one. When you connect more strongly with a particular audience, your influence can spread more quickly.

Be Unique, But Not For Its Own Sake

Being unique is an important marketing strategy, but beware of being unique for its own sake. Avoid the urge to come up with some catchy and unique just because it seems cool rather than because it’s something that the market truly wants.

Your USP only works when you’re addressing a specific market need. And it requires clarity. If your USP takes someone minutes or hours to understand, it probably won’t be effective.

Once You Have Developed Your USP…

Your job is to communicate it clearly and often.

A great business name, strong tagline, and professional design will bind everything together and put you on the path to marijuana millions.

Come to the Cannabis Business Summit and Expo to hear Alexa speak about branding and marketing in the cannabis industry on June 29 – July 1 in Denver, CO. For more information about the agenda, speakers, and how to register, please visit http://www.cannabisbusinessummit.com.


Alexa Divett is the Co-Founder and Marketing Director of Maya Media Collective (http://www.mayamc.com), a Portland, Oregon-based marketing and design firm that provides brand identity packages, marketing strategies and business coaching to marijuana business owners and entrepreneurs. Maya Media Collective has been a member of NCIA since January 2014. With over 14 years of experience in marketing, public relations and coaching, Alexa helps cannabusiness owners earn marijuana millions while uplifting the cannabis industry.

Guest Post: Top 6 Reasons to Hire a Dedicated Cannabis Marketing Agency for Your Business

By Kurt Whitt, Studio 420

In this new and competitive multi-million dollar industry, the benefits of hiring a full-service cannabis marketing agency are many. Here are a few of the highlights that translate into higher performance and better visibility for your cannabis business.

The People

1. Time Is Money

It’s a numbers game, and the numbers work in your favor. A single marketing person in-house will have a longer turnaround time than a dedicated team from a top cannabis marketing agency sharing the work. Instead of hiring your own staff, contracting with an agency to communicate with a single member of your team makes it possible for all marketing to be completed swiftly and cohesively. If you have a marketing director, he or she can work directly with the agency to direct services such as event marketing or custom design work to further enhance your business.

2. Resourceful Talent and Talented Resources

With a full-service cannabis agency, you are able to choose the services tailored to your needs. You avoid the hassle of piecing together services from different providers, hoping they will all be on the same page to meet your vision. A dedicated agency will have a team of talented people at your disposal. Their diverse skill-sets will assist you with strategy, design, market research, search-engine optimization (SEO), social media, and more. If you’re looking to re-brand your business or simply want a print advertisement for Culture Magazine, the agency’s mission is to increase your return on investment and help your bottom line, and they will use their considerable resources to do it.

The Market

3. A Personal Ambassador for Media Buying and Cannabis PublicationsCigarette_rolling_papers_(8)

A cannabis marketing agency worthy of its designation has invested in building relationships with both cannabis-specific and traditional trade publications. As such, they possess the ability to negotiate with sales representatives at various publications and leverage your media advertising buys. A dedicated marketing agency also has access to all of the latest publications’ media kits. By studying these, they can prime your marketing strategy and provide upcoming editorial and advertising trend forecasts.

4. The Power of Connection

A cannabis-savvy marketing agency has spent time and resources networking with journalists proficient in the industry, and thus they know which journalists can best pitch your brand and convey your specific message. By virtue of the constant networking involved, a cannabis marketing agency is also highly in-tune with consumer trends, and you reap the benefits of these connections.

The Laws

5. Dedication to Their Bread and Butter

By necessity, the cannabis-specific marketing agency possesses a thorough understanding of this unique marketplace. They are plugged into the wider community and are aware of current news and events, maximizing their ability to promote your brand at any given opportunity. As a member of the cannabis industry, the marketing agency is invested in the image, longevity, and future of the marketplace, and they will be highly motivated to portray your brand in the best possible light. If they’re committed to serving the cannabis industry, they should be members of the National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA), the only industry-led organization created to serve and protect the interests of those in the business. Through banding together with other like-minded businesses, your cannabis marketing agency can be a powerful ally, helping to fund education and PR campaigns to evolve the image of cannabis-related industries and to promote friendlier laws.

6. The Law and Lay of the Land

Regulations and laws regarding cannabis are constantly changing, and it’s imperative to work with a marketing agency fluent in the ever-changing landscape of marijuana legalese. Marketing, advertising, and packaging all have their rules (for instance, marijuana edible packaging) and ignorance is no defense in the eyes of the law. A truly knowledgeable and dedicated cannabis marketing agency can be your trusted guide through the minefield of political and legal jargon and help you stay in compliance with the most current laws.

brand-ambassador copyStudio 420 became a Sponsoring Member of NCIA in April 2015, and is a leading Denver-based digital marketing agency specializing in promoting high-profile marijuana retailers, dispensaries and cannabis-related products. They have experience in providing company and product branding services, website design and development, e-commerce and online shopping, as well as digital marketing strategies.

 

 

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