The good news about cannabis is that it’s the fastest-growing industry in America. That trend will only continue as more states opt to legalize recreational weed. Maine just legalized in October and South Dakota, Mississippi, New Jersey and Montana may soon follow.
This has many entrepreneurial-minded folks eager to get in early on the action by starting their own cannabis shops. With this movement, however, comes the inevitable drawback –- tons of competition for everyone.
Stiff competition means cannabis entrepreneurs will need powerful strategies to capture new customers and then build loyalty so that they keep coming back to you and not a competitor.
Here are four key weed customer loyalty-building strategies:
- Collect Data
Building a customer loyalty program cannot be done without the knowledge of who is coming into your shop. You must get to know them and that means capturing data. You need a systemized procedure to get the job done consistently.
How do you do that? With customer data collection software for small businesses. Many are available, such as Freshworks CRM, HubSpot and Airtable. Get one of these programs and learn how to use them. You’ll need that data to build customer loyalty.
- Customer Communication
Once you have data, you leverage this information as you engage your customers in conversations. They will have feedback for you. It is your job to respond to that feedback. Yes, it’s true your data collection will provide you with insights similar to customer feedback, but direct conversation will capture a different range of information that will be invaluable in getting shoppers to return often.
- Constantly Improve
A recent survey found that “customer service” was the No. 2 reason that buyers return to a particular cannabis business. Strive to consistently improve the way you serve customers to make their shopping experience with you as enjoyable and helpful as possible. There are always ways to improve service. Those who win the “service game” are those who will outcompete the others.
- The Pareto Principle
The Pareto Principle is also known as the 80/20 rule. Experienced business owners know that 80% of their business comes from 20% of their customers. That means if you focus more energy on your top-tier and most loyal customers, you will maximize your efficiency in making more sales with less effort. That 20% are the ones you really want to keep coming back. Give them special attention and it will pay off.