SEO for Cannabis Retailers

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High on SEO: A Smokin’ Guide to Increasing Web Traffic to Your Cannabis Store Website

Cannabis entrepreneurs and ganja enthusiasts, listen up! We’re delving into the smokin’ world of search engine optimization (SEO) and how it can blaze a hot trail for recreational and medicinal marijuana retailers to market their businesses. 

We all know that finding the perfect joint or exotic edible can be a challenge, especially for our out-of-state visitors who don’t know where to go to get their hands on some top-shelf weed. So, what will they do? They’ll do a Google search and that’s when your retail cannabis store needs to show up–at the top of the search engines.

When it comes to marketing your weed shop, there aren’t a lot of advertising options. While you are fortunate enough to be in a state that permits the sale of cannabis, those nasty federal regulations cause most media outlets to not accept your message. Major social media platforms Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter won’t take your ads no matter the state your store is in. While many traditional media outlets can legally run your ads, most choose not to.

The Good Stuff: Why SEO is Marketing Dope 

SEO is like that secret stash you keep hidden away for special occasions like a Pink Floyd concert marathon. Here’s why it’s especially effective for cannabis retailers:

• Guiding Lost Souls to the Holy Grail of Weed: Picture this – someone from out of state is desperately searching for the nearest dispensary. By optimizing your website with location-specific keywords, you can ensure that lost souls find their way to your oasis of green goodness.
• Breaking Free from the Advertising Ragweed: We all know how strict the advertising rules are for cannabis retailers. Traditional platforms like Google pay per click and your regular TV and radio spots are a no-go. But fear not, my green-loving friends! SEO isn’t just a pipedream; it’s chronic killer green bud.
• Riding the Wave of Weed Enthusiasm: The demand for cannabis is growing like rasta weed. As more and more states legalize recreational marijuana, search trends for all things Mary Jane are growing like flower tops. With Purplegator’s SEO strategy, you can ride that killer wave of enthusiasm, thus attracting a larger online audience and expanding your store’s foot traffic.

Rolling Up the Perfect SEO Strategy

Let’s get down to business and discover how to ace the marketing for your whacky tabacky retail business. Here are some tips to guide you on your journey to becoming the green goddess of 420 retail sales.

• Puff on Keyword Research: Start by lighting up some comprehensive keyword research. Find those nuggets of gold that potential customers are typing into their search engines. Mix general terms like “weed dispensary” with location-specific keywords such as “DC cannabis shop” to attract both local and out-of-state tokers.

• Optimize Your Kush Website: Your website is like the sensimilla of your online presence. Sprinkle those keywords throughout your website’s content, from your product descriptions to your blog posts, headlines, alt tags, title tags and meta descriptions. Make sure your website loads as fast as a rocket ship and works smoothly on all devices, because nobody wants to wait when they’re craving locoweed.

• Get Locally Baked: Since many vape and weed-seekers are looking for a dispensary near them, you gotta focus on local SEO. Get your business listed on Google Business Profile, include your name, address, phone (NAP) and operating hours. Encourage your customers to leave glowing reviews, because good reviews are the magic smoke of local SEO success.

• Home Grown Content: Don’t just be a dealer of other’s content; be a guru of dank knowledge. Create killer cannabis content that informs and entertains your audience. Write blog posts about marijuana-related news, strain guides, and mouthwatering edible recipes. Be the go-to source for all things hemp, and watch your SEO rankings go up in smoke!

• Bake Up Backlinks: Backlinks are like the communal joint of SEO success. Reach out to industry influencers, local businesses, and cannabis directories, and ask for a little love weed in the form of quality backlinks. When other websites endorse your green goodness, search engines will see you as a reputable source and boost your rankings.

Success is Just a Puff Away

At Purplegator, we’ve got more SEO knowledge than Snoop Dogg has strains. We’ve worked our magic for other cannabis retail stores, helping them smoke their competition and attract stoners and medicinal marijuana users. We can score the same marketing results for your cannabis store. Contact us. We’ll hook you up.

Author’s Note – We had some fun writing this article, but we also recognize the important value that medicinal marijuana provides to patients with cancer, pain, nausea, PTSD, anxiety, and other ailments. Whether your cannabis business sells in a recreational use or medicinal use state, Purplegator knows we can help you sell more with a SEO program.