3 Social Media Video Ideas For Your Cannabis Business

Social media is the most effective platform for brands to engage with consumers, especially when businesses publish video content.

In fact, 66% of consumers prefer short-form video over any other post type, according to Sprout Social. That means short videos, often a minute long or less. These are TikTok videos, Instagram Reels, and even Facebook Reels.

Cannabis businesses have a unique challenge on social media due to most platforms having strict anti-cannabis policies for ads and content. But you can still follow the rules and create excellent content that engages your target audience and builds trust, turning them from audience members to customers who keep coming back to your store every week.

Here are 3 ideas for social media videos for cannabis businesses.

BUDTENDER VIDEO BLOGS/VLOGS

Your budtenders are front and center for your business. The customers who come in often get to know them and may eventually find they have a favorite budtender. That makes budtenders great people to feature in your videos.

Just because a budtender is great in person doesn’t mean they’re great on camera though, so don’t expect every budtender on your team to do this. But find one (or more) who are comfortable being on camera and have them record a budtender video blog (also called a vlog).

This video should be told from the budtender’s perspective and is personal to them. Here are a few topics to consider:

Day in the life of a budtender (a few short clips stitched together showing what someone’s day is like, from when they wake up, including going to work and then going home)
Budtender behind-the-scenes tour
Budtender interviews other staff members and asks everyone the same question, such as, “What’s your favorite stoner movie?” or “If you could smoke with any celebrity, who would it be?” or “What is better, edible chocolates or drinks?” Get creative!

EXPLAINER VIDEOS

You can’t show people consuming cannabis in your social media content, but you can educate people about the products that you sell!

Create a series of short videos that serve as explainer videos or product guides. These can be very focused topics, such as explaining an individual terpene profile. They can also be broad, such as showing the variety of cartridges that you have available and the differences between disposable and reusable carts. You can even create how-to videos, such as how to roll a joint or how to get started with edibles.

Think about the most common questions that customers ask when they come into your dispensary. Answering those questions with a short, 15- to 30-second video is a great way to educate your social media audience. Make it fun — feel free to crack jokes — and your audience will love it.

Just make sure to avoid mentioning sales, prices, or buying in the video. Focus on the product — consumers are smart enough to know that if you’re talking about something, that means they can purchase it at your store.

TRENDING VIDEOS ARE AWESOME

One of the most effective ways to connect with your social media audience through videos is to jump on the trending sounds and video meme formats with your unique take.

You can make it related to cannabis or simply to the area that you live in, depending on the video. Sometimes, it’s helpful to create a version simply for the area that you live in to show that your business isn’t just located in the community, but that you and your employees are part of it.

For example, remember the popular meme video of Nic Cage and Pedro Pascal laughing together in a car? You can use an app like CapCut or Kapwing to make your own version. These videos are fairly easy to do because you don’t have to record anything fresh, you simply have to come up with a really funny idea. Luckily, it’s probably fairly easy for you and your coworkers to come up with something funny for almost any video meme or trend that happens (wink, wink).

Some of these trends have short lifespans, so you want to jump on them quickly to be the most relevant. Some trends continue longer. Pay attention to what other creators (inside and outside of the cannabis industry) are doing to figure out what formats are most relevant.

As you can see, it can be really fun and easy to create great social media videos for your cannabis brand. And in 2023, you don’t need to have a professional video studio to make effective videos.

You can learn more about how to incorporate video into your social media content, including some tips on how to record video, in the blog Tips For Incorporating Video Into Social Media Content from Federated Digital Solutions.

Krystal Vivian

Krystal Vivian is the Director of Social Media and Content Marketing at Cannabis Digital Solutions. She has more than 10 years of experience using written content, podcasts, and social media to help businesses build trust and deep relationships with their audiences. A former journalist turned digital marketer, Krystal is passionate about powerful storytelling and great user experiences. She specializes in creating compelling content that educates, entertains, and engages people.