Stop blaming Meta for failed cannabis marketing and get creative

(This is a contributed guest column.To be considered as an MJBizDaily guest columnist, please submit your request here.) Amber Craig (Courtesy photo)We continue to hear about cannabis brands facing shadow bans, censorship or flat-out deletion of their accounts on social media.

It happens, because brands continue to do everything these sites tell us not to: violate their policies. ADVERTISEMENT Marijuana has been listed as prohibited content on Meta’s Facebook and Instagram (and pretty much every other social site) since well before it was a legalized substance anywhere in North America.

The policy is filed right under “Drugs and Pharmaceuticals” in Meta’s Community Standards Policy.There is room for advocates and lobbyists in the cannabis industry to make noise about the apparent archaic nature of such policies.

But for most companies, time and resources are better spent working within the guidelines set not only this platform but also any of the others that restrict marijuana content.It’s time to stop blaming social media for failed marketing campaigns.

It might be an unpopular thing to say, but your ideas are the only thing restricting your cannabis company’s marketing.Instead, look at creative ways to innovate and grow brand loyalty without trying to fight an uphill battle.

Restrictions should breed innovation, not stifle it While every legal jurisdiction has its own unique laws and regulations for marketing and advertising, marketers have always had to look at things differently in this industry because it is regulated.Marketers that come from traditional industries would certainly find it frustrating to enter a space where you can’t apply the same playbook that has always worked: media spend, print and digital advertising, social media, etc.

When one door (or 20) closes, another opens. This cliche has never been truer than in this instance. ADVERTISEMENT &...