Cannabis companies that embrace cannabis search engine optimization can get ahead of their competition by ranking higher in searches for relevant terms. This means a higher likelihood of consumers finding their products or services and establishing brand awareness—and instant street cred—in the process. Especially for brands hampered by marketing regulations that prevent the use of certain words, SEO is a powerful tool to help businesses reach qualified leads and customers.
Whether a dispensary is new or established, SEO should be a top priority for any cannabis business looking to grow. Here are a few ways cannabis brands can optimize their websites to rank better in search engines:
Conduct keyword research: Search engine algorithms consider the keywords a webpage uses as an indication of what the page is about. This is why it is important to conduct thorough keyword research and incorporate those keywords into on-page content—including title tags, meta descriptions, and throughout the website.
Build a quality content strategy: A consistent publishing schedule for high-value, informative, and engaging blog posts is a must for cannabis businesses. Regularly producing content like this establishes your brand as a thought leader in the industry and improves search engine visibility. It also helps your audience solve problems and make informed decisions, which sends positive signals to search engine algorithms that boosts rankings.
Personalize content: Understanding your target audience is vital for cannabis branding and SEO. By conducting thorough market research, cannabis brands can develop and share content that resonates with their audience on a deeper level. For example, a marijuana company could create a blog post about the benefits of specific tinctures and how they can help treat medical conditions. This type of content is not only a great way to increase engagement, but it also shows that your business understands the needs and interests of your audience—which can lead to more sales.
Include structured data: Structured data is the set of markups on a web page that tells a search engine what information is most relevant to a user’s query. For cannabis businesses, this means adding a unique product ID to each product page and making sure all structured data fields are filled out completely. Structured data is important for cannabis business because it can lead to rich search results—searchers click on these more frequently than other results.
Build citations: Citations are online references to your cannabis business that link back to your website. They help search engines determine your business’s location and can positively impact your local SEO. Start by getting your business listed on various online directories and platforms like Google My Business, Yelp, Leafly, and more.
Cannabis SEO is a complex and time-consuming endeavor. It can take months to see noticeable results. However, if you follow these best practices—including conducting proper keyword research, optimizing on-page content, and building high-quality, relevant links—you’ll be well on your way to boosting your cannabis SEO. For more information, contact a professional cannabis SEO agency.