7 Questions a Cannabis Brand Should Be Asking to Cut Through the Event Noise
The proliferation of cannabis events is astounding. There’s a new “sesh” or popup event every week and it seems like there’s a new B2B cannabis event being announced just as frequently. The concept of measuring the ROI of events is not unique to the cannabis industry, but what is unique is how new the legal cannabis industry is. With the industry being so young it’s challenging for brands to determine which events are credible and worth their time.
For any startup your most valuable asset is your time, so you should be careful and selective with how you spend that time. Before attending an event you must ask yourself “why?” Common answers to this will be “networking”, “to build brand awareness”, and “to increase sales.” In addition to costing you your time, many of these events cost hundreds and thousands of dollars to attend or sponsor. Before you commit, ask yourself what is your business getting in return? How are you benefiting? Here’s a couple basic questions we suggest you pose to event organizers before committing to sponsoring or even attending the event:
- Who’s the target audience for the event? An event is ultimately a marketing activity, so just like anything else you’re doing for marketing, you should make sure you will be reaching your target market.
- When and where does the event take place? This may seem obvious, but you must ask for specifics. If an organizer tells you the event is in LA…ok great, but where in LA? Is it in a legitimate location? Or in someones apartment?
- How many attendees are expected? This is crucial info that impacts how many samples or other giveaways you must prepare.
- How will the event be marketed? Will there be an opportunity to receive press coverage? Depending on the scope of coverage this may help determine how much you’re willing to pay, but this a qualifying question too. If they have not put a lot of thought into this that should raise a red flag for you.
- Is there an event schedule and what does that schedule include? This is for you to better understand the event, but it’s also a way for you to get a sense of how prepared and organized the event planner is. A disorganized event can ultimately do more harm than good for your brand.
- Who else is attending or sponsoring? You want to find out if your competitors are attending or sponsoring and ,depending on your own business philosophies, that could be your signal to attend or not attend. Additionally, you want to know if potential partners will be present.
- What does my brand bring to the event? How can we add value? Is there an opportunity for your brand to truly bring value or are they just looking to collect a check and bring on another logo?
If you’re attending an event for “brand awareness” that’s great, but does it even matter if customers can’t find your products at their favorite dispensary or delivery service?
The importance of weighing the opportunity cost as it relates to your company cannot be understated. By simply asking the questions above you’ll be able to cut through the noise and easily determine who’s a pretender and who’s a contender. If you’re going to an event to “increase sales”–are you going to get better results attending the event than you would spending a day making 200+ cold calls? Or listing your products online to a network of verified buyers? Probably not. If you’re attending an event for “brand awareness” that’s great, but does it even matter if customers can’t find your products at their favorite dispensary or delivery service?
Your time is valuable–don’t waste it. Attending and sponsoring events is the fun and sexy part of running a business, but “fun and sexy” is not necessarily the best thing for your business. In the current state of the cannabis industry it’s important to have a presence at events and to spend time building relationships within the community–just be sure you’re asking the right questions to identify which events are worth your time.
