Why All CBD Brands Seem the Exact Same on Instagram
In an effort to remain completely transparent, I set out to write this article about my favorite CBD brands to follow on Instagram. A few hours into my research, I came to bit of a harsh realization. Infinitely more CBD brands follow the same social strategy than those that step outside of it. In an industry engaged in all out warfare against itself for market share, the brands who successfully distinguish themselves are destined to win. So why aren’t more brands opting out of floating the mainstream?
Most CBD brands use these data points to build their social strategy:
1. Most CBD users are female (Brightfield Group, HelloMD).
What CBD brands think this means: CBD brands positioning themselves as female-focused will have the most success because more CBD users are female.
The screenshots below are from four different CBD brands. Their posts are well-curated and they beautifully feature the product. Unfortunately, they all consist of the same things: women holding the product, the product placed next to aesthetically pleasing props, and pastel colors infused into each photo. Because each brand takes on a similar approach, they all miss one of the most important aspects of social media — a sense of reality. How isolating are these posts for men, or women who aspire for more than a life of overpriced brunches with their dogs? I know that’s a little harsh, but in your eyes, what story do these photos tell about the CBD brand that posts them?
What this actually means for CBD brands: Immense competition to gain traction amongst young women already exists in the marketplace between CBD brands.
While women present large buying power in the CBD space, brands who build their strategies to focus in on a female audience must find a way to do-so in a unique way. I know, the word “unique” comes up way too much in marketing. What do I mean when I say that? The brands above fail to establish a differentiating approach to their social channels. Stray away from building your strategy around colors, images, and messaging traditionally used when associating a product as feminine. The world views women as far more than social influencers who love millennial pink, so should your CBD brand.
Easier to show an example of a CBD brand doing this well than to talk about one, right? While no one’s perfect, I think premium CBD brand, Lord Jones has done a fantastic job differentiating themselves while still maintaining a female-focused approach to their social strategy. Lord Jones mixes up their social content. One second you’re looking at a product photo, the next you’re hooked on a meme of Barack Obama. One day they bless your timeline with a powerful photo of nature, the next they post a snippet from the New Yorker mentioning their product. They build the notion of a premium CBD brand by showing other premium things on their feed.
2. Most CBD users consume CBD for anxiety relief (NY Times).
What CBD brands think this means: Brands that position their products for tranquil moments will have superior engagement to brands that don’t.
“We’ve got to position our products around moments of tranquility and clarity!” says 90% of the CBD industry marketing professionals, probably. Citrus fruits, sunset lens flares, and a perfectly poured latte do evoke emotions of calm and focus; however, potential customers sniff out a lack of authenticity from a mile away.
What this actually means for CBD brands: By positioning their products in such an idealistic way, CBD brands actually isolate their potential customers. CBD comes in handy when life throws obstacles in one’s way. They aren’t taking it to yoga with them. They aren’t sitting at the park passing around the CBD dropper with their friends. No. Most people consume CBD privately and as a tool to manage anxiety and/or stress. CBD users take CBD in raw moments. They put drops into their coffee the day before a big client pitch. They take it before bed to avoid their thoughts running wild about COVID-19.
Brands who befriend their customers will win in this industry. The people who follow a CBD brand’s social profile likely do so because they seek relief from the stresses of their world and want to know how that brand can help them. CBD brands should acknowledge and lean into that.
3. Most people don’t know what cbd actually is.
What CBD brands think this means: My CBD brand needs to be the one to educate consumers on the benefits of CBD.
Nearly every young CBD brand spends resources developing an education content plan, and in my eyes it’s a waste of time and resources. Instead, CBD brands should focus on winning in other aspects of the consumer journey, seen below.
What this actually means for CBD brands: Think about the way you learn about things in today’s world. Do you turn to brands to educate you on topics? Unless you follow Ben and Jerry’s on Instagram, the answer is probably no. Most of us turn to Google and more unbiased parties to understand the benefits of using a certain product, so why not spend more time working towards telling your brand story instead of trying to educate them on the entire category?
There’s reason for the hype around CBD, but the more you explain the science behind it, the more you’ll risk confusing potential customers. Let’s look at Advil, for example. Do I know the mechanism by which Advil helps cure my hangover after a handful of dirty martinis the night before? Nope, but that isn’t going to stop me from taking it. To go further, I’d be much more likely to search “Why does Advil help my headache” on Google than to go to Advil’s Instagram and see if they had an explanation somewhere.
The FDA regulates what companies can and cannot say about their products. Because of the lack of government-backed studies on CBD, you legally cannot make many claims on the benefits of CBD as a company selling CBD. Bloggers, activists, and unbranded pages, on the other hand, do not have the same restrictions and thus are ripe to give customers easy-to-digest, easy-to-understand explanations on the benefits of CBD. If a customer wants to understand more about CBD, they’re more likely to do so by conducting their own research rather than trusting the information from your CBD brand.
Moral of the story: Think from the standpoint of a customer’s journey and how a “normal” person would obtain information rather than deploying content buckets that might confuse potential customers on the benefits of CBD.
The main takeaways for CBD Brands:
Don’t fall into the trap of using traditional messaging to target women.
Aim to be the person your customer would want to hang out with.
Learn about the full consumer journey and where your different marketing tactics come into play for them.