Being Artistic (Whereas Nonetheless Following Model Guidelines)

At the moment’s Social Pulse: Retail Version visitor Roman Nunez, advertising and marketing director at Kana Dispensary, brings an interesting mix of tech startup expertise and artistic artistry to the hashish trade. His distinctive method to genuine advertising and marketing in a closely restricted trade gives helpful classes for any retail marketer going through challenges with rules, platform limitations, or viewers focusing on. Don’t miss this episode as he talks with host Agorapulse’s Chief Storyteller Mike Allton.

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What are a few of the most stunning limitations that you simply encountered while you first acquired into this hashish house?

Roman Nunez: You’re basically working in an fascinating house in hashish. You’re doing one thing that’s federally unlawful, and concurrently, you’re seeing advantages in your neighborhood.

You’re serving to individuals with ache, with stress, PTSD—you’re doing the precise factor, however for some motive, you’re not allowed to inform the world about it. So it’s an fascinating place to be in. A lot of challenges, such as you talked about earlier, that we will’t do something about on social media.

So it’s been navigating that path with Meta to see what we will submit. So we will do issues like we will foster our neighborhood, may discuss our occasions, can do instructional stuff. 

There are methods round it with out particularly promoting your product. Quite a lot of it has to do with training and fostering that neighborhood.

How did you outline your model voice?

Roman Nunez: As a child, rising up within the nineties, I’m nonetheless a Nike head. I’ve all the time loved manufacturers like Nike. I’m interested in manufacturers which have easy, easy designs.

I believe Chanel is among the best-looking manufacturers. Like, simply the whole lot they do is so easy. There’s not lots of fluff or element. Apple: It’s identical to you have got that image; it’s very clear. I’ve all the time been a minimalist in that method, and I’ve all the time been interested in that. There’s one thing left to the creativeness with that. 

So, once we began the model, for me, it was about being iconic and having an icon like these manufacturers that I used to be interested in. So I began with that and began attempting to construct our model voice.

And so I got here from Yelp, too. Yelp all the time has this enjoyable model voice, so I needed us to be enjoyable, but additionally as a result of it’s a black-owned enterprise, it’s in Oakland, I needed to have a bit little bit of authenticity in the place we come from. So, once we communicate to our target market, we’re a bit extra acquainted, if I can say it like that.

We’re simply going to be your mom-and-pop native retailer. So, we work together with our—we name ’em our can of fam. We name one another household. When individuals stroll into the shop, they really feel like they’re at house. So, we simply attempt to foster these tight relationships as a result of we will’t promote such as you talked about.

Quite a lot of it’s about making individuals really feel like they’re a part of a household.

Mike Allton: As a storyteller, I like the way you’re weaving in all these vital parts: your voice, your fashion, your tradition. That’s now all part of not solely who you might be, nevertheless it’s part of the messaging, and it’s mirrored in the whole lot that you simply’re doing on-line, which is terrific, and that’s why you guys are having a lot success in constructing neighborhood. I do know most of the retailers listening may face some kind of restriction, possibly not the identical ones that you’re, possibly not as extreme as hashish.

What are some common ideas that we may discuss from a restrictive advertising and marketing perspective?

Roman Nunez: Yeah, a giant one is the common precept of promoting in our house is listening. 

I believe {that a} massive piece that generally different manufacturers miss is listening to your constituents. I spent a while simply bud-tending. I’ve had a bit little bit of expertise, however not quite a bit, as a result of I simply needed to pay attention and perceive our shopper’s voice.

So simply take that point to take heed to your prospects, get suggestions, give all of them the shape, and surveys can reward them, get these opinions, do an important job, and take heed to what they need and what they’re saying. 

I believe {that a} massive a part of advertising and marketing is knowing what your shopper base needs, what the opposite manufacturers aren’t providing, and what the opposite shops that they might go to only aren’t doing for them.

I attempt to faucet into that and see how we may be higher and fill these gaps.

May you give an instance of a artistic advertising and marketing answer you’ve carried out regardless of limitations?

Roman Nunez: Actually, man, the most effective, largest device we do—and in each enterprise, that is most likely going to be true these days—is gathering these emails, gathering these cellphone numbers, getting that gold out of your prospects since you use that to phase your SMS advertising and marketing, your e mail blasts. You would attain out to prospects who, for instance, we’ve got prospects who are available that like edibles.

So what I’ll do is I’ll phase that group and attain out to ’em with custom-made digital belongings which can be geared toward bringing these prospects again by way of our door. We’ll inform ’em about recent drops, issues which can be occurring, instructional stuff. So, I just like the segmentation facet of understanding what prospects need and advertising and marketing to them straight somewhat than simply utilizing blanket options.

I might say our largest success has come from e mail and SMS advertising and marketing and utilizing these segments to surgically get in there and ship the precise message to the precise individuals.

Now you additionally talked about in-person occasions. Inform me what these appear like.

Roman Nunez: what’s humorous is the problem is there too with these occasions. After we first opened, we had an enormous yard. It’s lovely. There’s grass, there are picnic tables. So we have been using that and having a good time. However in the end, we’ve got some neighbors, and so we’ve had DJs again there. Some individuals within the neighborhood simply don’t need us there as a result of we’re a dispensary, in order that they have this concept of what we might be, and so I spent lots of time going to the neighbors saying, “Hey, we wish to invite you to our yard. We’re having a barbecue, this and that.” However that in the end turned out to not work as a result of then ultimately, we had allow points again there. And so we stated, “Okay, let’s reset. Since we will’t simply do no matter we would like in our yard, let’s now strategize instructional stuff.”

So we’ve got in-store demos with a few of our manufacturers, and we’ll have them are available and so they’ll arrange their little desk with informational stuff and simply join so the purchasers join with the manufacturers straight. We do in-store demos, and that does assist. I imply it, if individuals aren’t anticipating it and so they are available, generally they get launched to a brand new model.

So, having a few of these manufacturers that we feature from a retail perspective are available and do an in-store demo? Say, possibly we’ll have a meals vendor come and simply make tacos for just a few hours. It value us 500 bucks or one thing. However a few of these interactions may be lifelong prospects that we’re caring for, and communities are in our title, in our model title. So we like to only do stuff to provide again to the neighborhood as an alternative of a few of these restrictions.

However so far as occasions, yeah, it’s lots of in-store demos. We do have Oktoberfest on our block that shuts down the road yearly in October. And there are music and meals distributors, and it’s an opportunity for most people to get launched to us. So we reap the benefits of the pageant that occurs on our avenue yearly. It’s in Oakland, California. It’s referred to as Oktoberfest, usually the final weekend of October. And only a ton of music, and it’s enjoyable. So, I encourage anybody to swing by Kanna in the event you occur to be in Oakland throughout October.

How do you keep model authenticity while you’re continuously having to search out these workarounds and different channels?

Roman Nunez: The model itself, we’ve got our ethos, which is the hashish neighborhood and since these three pillars are what we stand on. So long as we’re offering the most effective high-quality, protected, examined merchandise, so long as we’re giving again to our neighborhood and caring for those that handle us, and so long as we keep true to our trigger, I really feel like these issues are going to face out. These issues are going to get us throughout the end line. They’re going to assist us hit all our objectives.

So long as we’re doing that, I really feel like we’re headed in the precise path. All our advertising and marketing selections are primarily based on that. We’ve lots of charity stuff on the books so far as simply cleansing up our neighborhood, doing trash pickups, and getting individuals on board with that.

Staying true to who we’re, I believe, goes to be the most effective advertising and marketing device we’ve acquired.

What about your tech startup expertise?

Roman Nunez: The tech stuff, programs knowledge, that taught me all that stuff. So I’m bringing that to Kanna. In truth, hashish operators aren’t all the time from that background. So for me, coming in there, there was lots of work to do. I’m like, “We have to arrange our knowledge.”

what I imply? Probably the most helpful factor we acquired is knowledge. So, taking all that understanding of our prospects’ age, demographics, and all that good things, that’s what we used to do at Yelp. that in my earlier expertise, I began a bit firm referred to as Eat24. That was just a bit startup, and it acquired large enough to the place it was acquired by GrubHub after which ultimately by Yelp. It modified palms. So, we constructed this enterprise from the bottom up. What I discovered from that have is simply perceive your knowledge, get your knowledge, put it in a pleasant format, like no matter device you utilize, just be sure you have all of your dashboards arrange so you’ll be able to learn what’s occurring, inform that story, and chart your path.

However that’s what I delivered to this expertise: understanding how helpful that knowledge is and leveraging that to in the end flip that into income.

Roman Nunez: It’s so on-line stuff, like I stated once we promote occasions, we’re all the time saying, “Tag your mates!” We’re doing stuff like beginning to use this merchandise referred to as a hashish bouquet, the place as an alternative of simply getting some in a jar, it’s really on a stick. It appears like a bouquet.

So what we do is we use that and say, and make a intelligent Instagram submit about it. Not promoting it essentially. However it generates likes and re-shares, and it will get these good metrics entering into our social, so attempting to be distinctive.

Individuals know our budtenders now from social media. They’re like, “Oh, like I see you on there!”

It’s creating little superstars behind the counter, simply having enjoyable. It’s important to have enjoyable. It needs to be genuine. We’re not attempting too laborious. 

I believe that’s the important thing. Don’t make certain no matter your advertising and marketing messaging you’re doing, whether or not it’s on social media or in your e mail, newsletters, no matter, simply be genuine, be enjoyable, and be lighthearted about it, as a result of I believe generally if you may get too critical and get within the weeds there.

Mike Allton: Yeah, that sounds incredible. And I like that you simply’re bringing your employees into your social presence.

It’s one thing we talked quite a bit about in a earlier episode with Dierbergs Markets. They’re a grocery store chain right here, native to me in St. Louis. They usually’re placing their butcher on their TikTok account. They’re placing them, all of the produce man, whoever, so when of us come into their shops, they’re making these neighborhood connections.

How are you at the moment measuring the precise enterprise impression of the whole lot that you simply’re doing on social?

Roman Nunez: We made a aware effort to not strive to take a look at these KPIs as this; we’re utilizing social media to push our enterprise. I steered away from that to start with. I’m like, “We’re restricted. We technically can’t submit.”

Social media, let’s not lean on that to get gross sales. Let’s lean on that simply to construct neighborhood. If it does get a sale and does generate enterprise, that’s incredible. I take a look at the info, after all, and it doesn’t are likely to translate to income particularly.

It’s extra like a brand new buyer comes up, and we’ll begin seeing new prospects are available. So, these are the KPIs that I monitor: the important thing efficiency metric is bringing individuals by way of the door, and in the end, that does result in income. However I monitor lots of stuff. However I strive to not lean on that to construct a enterprise. I attempt to lean on that simply to foster neighborhood. And we don’t do lots of reductions. We discover that we do quite a bit higher with on a regular basis low pricing and offers. So we’ll have bundles and offers, and we’ll run promos with some promotional gadgets and purchase two, get one.

We’ll do lots of that as an alternative of providing lots of reductions. After which we’re treating individuals like household. So if we’re doing that, then we’re not resting a lot on social media as a result of we will’t, but additionally as a result of it’s higher, I believe, to relaxation on your corporation practices and wonderful customer support. So far as shifting the needle on income, that’s what I’d say.

What sources or communities have you ever discovered to be simply probably the most helpful?

Roman Nunez: Yeah, in our trade, we’ve got totally different seminars and webinars you can attend, that I’m all the time on. And it simply talks about what’s happening within the trade, greatest practices, new stuff like that. I do lots of that stuff.

Simply to maintain up with what tendencies and what’s occurring within the trade. However so far as advertising and marketing by way of social media I rely a bit bit on a few of our, like I stated, youthful, extra savvy as a result of it’s virtually foolish on the market, and in the event you take a look at different dispensaries and different hashish firms, lots of ’em are like a shadow ban and blocked, and you’ll’t even discover it, so for us, let’s have enjoyable.

Don’t miss out on retail insights, recommendation, and experiences from specialists in each episode of Agorapulse’s Social Pulse: Retail Version, hosted by Mike Allton.

Let’s ensure that we’re bringing pleasure to individuals once they see our posts; they snort or giggle or get one thing out of it. However we don’t take our income, we don’t put it within the palms of social media like I discussed. It’s simply extra of a device to point out that, “Hey, we’re having enjoyable over right here. It’s an excellent time at Kanna. Come on by way of that.”

Mike Allton: I couldn’t agree extra. You guys are doing it proper. The opponents are doing it mistaken, which is why they’re getting banned and blocked, and shadow-banned and so forth. 

They’re attempting to skirt round these guidelines to make a quick buck somewhat than create that long-term technique of constructing relationships, constructing neighborhood.

Thanks for studying the highlights from this episode with Roman Nunez. Don’t overlook to search out the Social Pulse Podcast: Retail Version on Apple or Spotify, the place we’re digging into the challenges, successes, and tales of social media and neighborhood professionals within the trade, identical to you.