As cannabis retailers navigate the new consumer landscape brought on by the ongoing pandemic, many have leaned into their base of existing loyal customers to drive sales and thrive in this challenging time. But what happens to dispensaries in states like Nevada with a sizable tourist population? Building dispensary brand loyalty and maintaining sales can be difficult when a significant part of your consumer base is unwilling to travel during COVID-19, but many Nevada retailers have enlisted modern cannabis marketing solutions to offset the recent downturn in foot traffic.
According to springbig client data collected before and after the pandemic shut downs started in March, Nevada dispensaries experienced a 27% increase in sales despite a 4% dip in foot traffic. A few factors can explain this impressive sales feat in the face of brick-and-mortar retail difficulties. State officials classifying legal cannabis as an essential business during the initial lockdown was definitely a boon to local dispensaries. Regulators allowed both adult-use and medical facilities to remain open as long as they prevented crowds from forming, resulting in most dispensaries pivoting to e-commerce ordering or delivery services.
springbig’s e-commerce and loyalty integrations with leading platforms including Jane and dutchie allowed customers to seamlessly order their favorite products while still having access to their dispensary rewards programs online. When taking a closer look at loyalty redemption data, redemptions increased by almost 32%, and it can be argued that springbig’s latest integrations played a critical role in driving loyalty and engagement.
Higher rates of loyalty redemption also points to retailers doubling down outreach efforts to local residents, which is reflected in the nearly 35% increase in dispensary texting campaigns during the pandemic. In these financially uncertain times, Nevada retailers had to strategically craft their cannabis product marketing campaigns to ensure the highest ROI possible.
One of the most effective and proven methods has been Brands by springbig, which allows cannabis brands to directly reach dispensary customers through SMS marketing. Although Nevada dispensaries may have more tourist customers, compared to other states, many retailers were still able to leverage this cannabis brand marketing software by segmenting consumer profiles by zip code and sending appropriate brand promotions only to locals. Campaigns executed through Brands by springbig have created unprecedented synergies by hyper-targeting active and relevant dispensary consumers and, in turn, benefitting both retailers and brands.
As cannabis retail shifts to more modern and digital platforms, dispensaries will need to adapt accordingly to keep their competitive edge. We can see from Nevada’s sales data that embracing tech-driven cannabis brand marketing tools can mitigate potential losses from a decline in foot traffic. In this new consumer landscape, increasing product and loyalty convenience and access will be the key to maintaining customer engagement and revenue.
