Instagram marketing can become a powerful component of your marketing strategy if executed prudently. The following tips could help you get the most from the visual platform for your cannabis business.

1. Raise voice of the community

As the cannabis community actively uses Instagram, it is your responsibility as a digital marketer to identify and exploit opportunities and ways to reach out to your target audience.

Instagram does not permit the marketing of cannabis products, so it is a challenge for the hemp industry to find ways that could help them connect with their customers. One way to achieve this objective is by making posts that highlight the issues that can attract the attention of cannabis users and activists and prompt them to connect with your brand.

Posts on the legal situation, scientific research on cannabis, and celebrity statements about legalization possess the potential to get noticed and followed by the cannabis community on Instagram. Incorporate these ideas creatively into your content strategy, and you will not be disappointed with the results.

2. Reflect the value your brand can deliver

What values does your brand uphold for the customers? Use this medium to inform and convince your audience about the quality and consistent effects your products offer.

Determining what your brand promise to customers and how you deliver to fulfill that promise in every customer interaction can help you identify the value your brand is offering.

The images of product stock, delivery handling process, employees, manufacturing, dispensary activities, and advocacy can reflect how your brand delivers value to the customers.

Do not try to sell your product, instead focus on community building and participating in cannabis culture. Highlight how your brand can help people meet their needs for natural, alternative, and holistic treatment methods to give users a reason to engage with your content.

3. Highlight the lifestyle of your audience

Images and videos that can promote the customer experience and lifestyle your brand reflects can draw the attention of your target audience.

By dedicating your Instagram marketing initiative to promoting people, experiences, and lifestyles, you can make your content interesting for users. For example, people on holidays can meet their wellness and health needs by consuming cannabis edibles; posts on this topic can attract the interest of holidaymakers. Being creative and an out-of-the-box thinker to develop content that appeals to your potential audience could play a pivotal role in your digital marketing plan.

4. Post regularly

Maintain visibility on this platform by regularly sharing images and videos. Regular quality posts can help users to think your business is legitimate and trustworthy.

Several people suggest that one post per day is the suitable number of posts that can help you achieve the required results.

Try to create engagement on your page by drawing people into discussions by igniting engaging debates. Actively respond to the comments users make on your images and videos.

5. Use hashtags

Hashtags enhance the reach of your posts on Instagram by making them searchable items. Never forget to use a set of popular and less popular hashtags to help your images and videos appear in the Instagram search results.

A combination of long and short-tail hashtags could promote the likelihood of people discovering your stuff. General hashtags such as #cannabis and #hemp, with more targeted hashtags such as #cbdedibles, #cbdformigraine can help you get some targeted traffic and leads.

6. Publish targeted content

Moving the needle with Instagram marketing requires engaging people at different levels of the sales funnel. The perfect content can get your business noticed, known, and trusted.

Trust is a prerequisite for businesses wishing to make online sales. Engaging content could prove your best bet in creating trust, and ultimately product sales. However, it is a challenge to use the potential of a social media platform that prohibits the sales of cannabis and any direct mention of cannabis products by creating appealing content.

Educate the audience to address their information needs as they move along the marketing funnel. Target people at the top of the funnel with posts that promote brand awareness and discovery using appropriate hashtags.

Encourage people in the middle of the funnel to find more about your company, products, and services by publishing quotes from customers’ reviews and product information. Help people at the bottom of the funnel in making purchase decisions by offering them appropriate information.

7. Influencer marketing

Instagram influencers can drive traffic to your page, therefore making them a part of your Instagram marketing strategy makes perfect sense. The only challenge you need to live up to is to find influencers who are the right match for your brand and then reaching out to them.

One way to search out brand-related influencers is to use hashtags that best fit your business and products. Choose individuals who not only boast a large following but also have highly engaged followers. Reach out to them and develop useful collaborations with them. Most often, influencers become ready to extend help in exchange for free-of-cost products and samples.

8. Wisely use Instagram free tools

In addition to regular posts, Instagram offers other tools to get your content across the platform.

9. Create Instagram stories

The content published using Instagram stories disappears after 24 hours. Due to their relatively instantaneous nature, the stories draw the interest of users and create high engagement. This feature can prove extremely handy in keeping your audience engaged with your content.

Therefore, publishing highly relevant content promptly is a key to get the maximum out of this feature.

10. Instagram guides

Instagram guides allow users to publish more detailed content. The shrewd marketers use this feature to create how-to tutorials, offer recommendations, and answer questions.

You can also use this tool to share DIY recipes with your customers. Use this opportunity to create some highly engaging content that your followers find of high value.

11. Instagram reels

Instagram reels allow you to record video clips, edit them with music into videos, and publish them to your story, feed, or reel tab.

By enabling the remix feature, users can create related or reactionary videos, which appear next to original videos. Uploading videos that can encourage users to interact with your content could go a long way in helping you meet your digital marketing goals.

12. Carousel posts

This feature help users to upload multiple photos and videos in a single post. Again, cannabis brands can use this feature to share related content and create exceptional customer engagement.

A report by Social Insider notes the user engagement increases manifolds when they interact with carousel posts.

According to the details, the engagement rate reaches 2.07% when all ten carousel slides are used. When a combination of images and videos is used in the carousel, the engagement rate jumps to 2.33%.

Bonus Tip: Instagram TV

Instagram TV is also known as IGTV, allows users to upload longer-form videos. Using this feature, you can upload up to 60-minutes videos from the web and 15-minutes videos from your mobile.

A great feature to publish in-depth tutorial videos, behind-the-scenes company activities, an event, or educational videos. With out-of-box, original, and creative thinking, you can develop content with the potential to get exceptional user engagement.

For example, customer interviews and testimonials can lend your business much-needed legitimacy, exposure, trust, and sales.