Want to expand your cannabis firm’s reach? Try age-specific advertising, marketing

(This is an abridged version of a story that appears in the February issue of Marijuana Business Magazine.)

Millennials might be a marijuana business’ bread and butter.

But more and more adults who are middle-aged or older are starting to turn to cannabis for medical or adult use – and that underscores the need for companies in all aspects of the marijuana space to come up with generation-specific tactics for marketing, advertising and outreach.

“There’s so much advertising clutter out there,” said Chuck Underwood, founder and principal of The Generational Imperative, an Ohio consulting firm that helps businesses better understand and market to the various generations.

Members of each generation have unique triggers in their brains that tell them, “This ad or this TV spot is meant for you,” Underwood said.

“Generation-specific messaging does a stunning job of cutting through the clutter,” he added.

Underwood and other marketing experts shared insight with Marijuana Business Magazine about how to develop marketing, advertising and outreach strategies for the different generations.

To learn which advertising/marketing tactics might work best for the cannabis customers you’re targeting, click on the respective links below:

• Millennials, ages 18-37 (industry professionals advise not marketing to anyone younger than 21)
• Generation X, ages 38-54
• Baby boomers, ages 55-74
• The silent generation, ages 75-94

The professionals also suggested that marijuana entrepreneurs put together focus groups to take a deeper dive into what their customers want.

Click here to read some best practices for conducting focus group research.