The cannabis industry has grown to become an integral part of the healthcare and wellness sectors. Thanks to expanding scientific evidence regarding hemp’s medicinal and therapeutic properties, it has bloomed in recent years. Over the next four years, experts believe that the medical marijuana market alone will be worth $22 billion.
As legalization occurs rapidly across Europe and North America, branding and marketing cannabis has become integral. Medical marijuana is now legal in over 36 states in the US, and as a result, industries related to cannabis have grown exponentially. Packaging, labeling, and branding hemp products are vital to ensuring improved sales. If you are unsure about how to package your cbd products, look no further! Read on to learn more about the different trends within the CBD packaging industry and how to make the most of them.
Why is CBD Packaging Important?
Due to the market’s rapid growth, the industry has over a hundred companies competing for customers. As a result, businesses need to differentiate themselves from others to attract customers and improve their sales. CBD packaging can help companies stand out from the rest by personalizing and customizing orders and products. Hence, your packaging is an integral part of your branding. Investing in appropriate designs can lead to an increase in your potential customer base. Your packets, boxes, or jars should attract your target customers and make them relate to your product.
Additionally, consumers should understand what you offer at first glance. Therefore, all your product designs should combine functionality with innovation and aesthetics. First appearances are vital in the cannabis industry as it helps consumers make their purchasing decision. High-quality and unique designs compel customers to experiment with your product and boost your overall brand image. Since your product design can distinguish between a consumer opting for or avoiding your product, the packaging is integral to your business.
How to attract customers with your products?
Research suggests that attractive packaging can help consumers buy more products when compared to neutral designs. Compelling graphics and containers trigger intense activity within our brain’s impulsive corners, leading to quicker and more positive purchasing decisions. Bland designs leave more time for reflective thought, leading to confusion, guilt, and indecision. Additionally, attractive designs provide impetus to our brain’s reward responses, whereas buyers associate neutral ones with negative emotions.
Hence, cannabis companies should opt for visual imagery that convinces consumers of their quality and genuineness. They should use their packaging and labeling as a means to connect with their customer base and craft a lasting relationship with them. Building trust and credibility are integral to sustaining highly competitive industries, such as healthcare and wellness. To do so, companies need to understand their target customer base and craft a unique buying experience for them. Additionally, designs should highlight the specific pain points your products help solve.
What are the different customer groups companies can target?
The first step in coming up with a unique branding or packaging solution is understanding your customer base. By focusing on their wants and needs, companies can craft personalized and customized solutions. These will address their pain points and convert more sales. Here’s a look at a few customer profiles cannabis companies should try to focus on to build their target audience.
1. Luxury segment: Provide high-quality products with unique, minimal, and luxurious packaging. Invest in premium materials to elevate your brand status and opt for over-the-top designs that celebrate your uniqueness. Ensure your designs deliver on all your claims and provide high-value products that function impeccably. Opt for unique tactile user experiences that break the stereotypes people associate with marijuana.
2. Millennials: The youth are an integral customer base for cannabis products, and designs for products aimed at them should celebrate their carefree existence. Go for out-of-the-box packaging that is authentic and trendy while also unique and original. When branding such products, try to connect with social media influencers and other celebrities to connect better with your customers. Go for minimalist designs that celebrate simplicity while also upholding environmental sustainability since most youth care for nature deeply.
3. Medical reasons: Customers who rely on marijuana for medical relief will focus on their technical or scientific side. Such customers prefer products that advertise the medical benefits they provide. Therefore, make sure your labeling highlights all the therapeutic and scientific benefits offered by the product. Companies can persuade potential customers to buy such products by focusing on product efficacy and efficiency. Avoid flowery language, and opt instead for a concise copy that focuses on your evidence-based approach to cannabis.
What are the signs of a good cannabis product design?
1. All CBD packaging must combine design, utility, uniqueness, and information as these products are new to the market. Hence, all excellent containers must include details regarding your product on a unique, visually appealing label. Additionally, companies should pay attention to federal and local guidelines to ensure they stay on the right side of the law. Include dosing recommendations, batch numbers, expiry dates, and sourcing details in all designs. Here’s a quick look at some of the essential information that all packaging labels should contain.
● Essential manufacturing details
● Active ingredients
● Quantity, potency, and dosage recommendation
● Expiry date
● Lot or Batch Number
● Positive qualifiers regarding your extraction process of manufacturing technique
● Company’s contact details
● Visual branding elements
2. The package or container must protect the product from a harsh environment, transit, and overly curious customers. The design should be sturdy and must feature a proper seal that allows users to reseal the product after use. Choose between lids, zip-locks, interlocking closures, and adhesive locks depending on the nature of your item. Since small children should not use these products, the design must be child-resistant and should follow the guidelines listed in the Poison Prevention Packaging Act guidelines. Also, the design should make tampering look evident while not compromising on its structural integrity. If you are selling consumable products, state laws mandate that packs or containers must be opaque.
3. Research trends within the industry and try to incorporate elements of them into your product design. Choose ones that actively support and aid in marketing your brands, such as leaf or nature imagery, environmentally-friendly designs, and minimalist packaging. Other useful trends within the industry include focusing on medicinal benefits, removing the stigma, and breaking stereotypes.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, investing in the perfect branding and marketing strategy can help you reach out to more people and improve your sales. Watch out for trends within the industry and research your target audience to understand what moves them to relate to them better. Experiment with sustainable packaging to connect with the youth and move towards a cleaner, greener planet. What was an effective packaging strategy that helped you boost your sale of CBD products? Mention the trends you think will define the CBD packaging industry in 2021 in the comments section below!
