The cannabis industry is flourishing and is no longer just a budding business idea. This industry’s medical use segment is expected to generate $22 billion in the next four years. Today, 36 of the 50 states are allowing patients to use medical cannabis with a proper prescription.
Some of the top companies in the cannabis industry have built multi-billion-dollar businesses based on strong packaging and brand identity. Therefore, cannabis packaging company is not something that should be overlooked. Since there’s a lot of competition in this industry, you must stand apart from the other brands with custom branded packaging for your cannabis and CBD offerings.
Here’s how a well-designed cannabis packaging will help grow your business faster.
1. Understand Your Customer
Before you start working on your cannabis products, you must understand your target market, prospective customers, and the experience you want to promote. You should also be able to identify what pain point your product is solving for the consumer.
It would be best if you considered the following target markets:
Luxury Cannabis and CBD Customers
Luxury clients expect premium products and packaging. Therefore, packaging options for such products should be high quality, clean, minimal, and over-the-top, as these consumers look for quality, sense and taste in the product. Moreover, the packaging should always deliver on the implied promises defined by the brand.
Millennial Cannabis and CBD Customers
The youthful clientele is attracted to authenticity instead of traditional advertising and coercive marketing. They are drawn to celebrity and influencer endorsements from people they perceive to have values that align with their own. They are also open to trendy designs and unique product uses and experiences. They look for simplicity, sustainability, and products in limited editions in packaging because they want something not everyone has.
Customers Looking for Relief
All medical marijuana customers have a medical need for cannabis, though qualifying conditions vary by state. According to a study, approximately two-thirds of medical marijuana patients define chronic pain as their chief reason for treatment.
Therefore, patients looking for pain relief for medical issues will be drawn to custom branded packaging that promises what they desire. They look for medical symbols that deliver health benefits or logos pairing cannabis leaves with medical symbols. They also prefer a simple design and a clear and concise description of the product and its benefits.
2. Capture Your Intended Audience’s Attention
Good packaging reassures consumers that they are purchasing a legitimate, legal, and safe product. Stand-up pre-made pouches, for example, have high sales in the cannabis edible market. They give a premium look, offer enough space for labeling and branding, and give the product a limited edition feeling, attracting modern consumers.
However, companies should be careful with the design choices that unintentionally appeal to children. Bright and eye-catching graphics and words like “candy” and “cookies” may attract their attention. A minimal and sophisticated design will position the product well and save time.
3. Make Sure It’s Fresh and Effective
The shelf life and effectiveness of the flowers are degraded when exposed to oxygen. One way to extend the product’s shelf life and freshness are to use a Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) solution called nitrogen gas flush during the packaging process. This technology pumps nitrogen gas inside packages before they are sealed, displaces the oxygen, and delays oxidation and spoilage.
4. Make Sure It’s Environmentally Friendly
Consumers today are looking for environmentally friendly products. Therefore, if cannabis packaging businesses follow more sustainable and ethical business practices, it will fuel their sales.
With the growth in the cannabis industry, there has been a tremendous amount of packaging being wasted, and the utilization of hard-to-recycle plastics ends up in landfills.
However, now companies are attempting to solve cannabis’ plastic waste problem by using 100 percent plant-based hemp plastic, reclaimed ocean plastic, and other sustainable materials. They also use innovative packaging technology, create eco-friendly packaging, and invest in sustainable practices such as peel-back labels that reduce the amount of waste created by cannabis packaging. This helps brands reach environmentally conscious consumers and make an impact on a growing global issue.
5. Don’t Forget Compliance Labeling
Brands should consider the regulatory labeling that will appear on the cannabis packaging. There needs to be enough area to ensure that the packaging identity is not lost among compliance stickers. It is also imperative to educate salespeople about where to place required labels to not obscure important information on the packaging.
However, because federal and municipal regulations governing cannabis are complex and compliance laws are unique to the District of Columbia and the eleven states cannabis is legalized in for adult use – Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington – the regulations on what is required on packaging varies across state lines.
6. Be Flexible
Since cannabis regulations vary across city, state and county lines and are changing, compliance issues exist throughout the entire landscape. Cannabis packaging and labeling are important in dealing with those changes, so companies should proactively go beyond the current requirements. This could potentially save time and money on reprinting the labels.
Companies should do extensive research on the rules before committing to packaging or equipment purchases. Though manufacturers of packaging materials and machines often grasp the laws, it is the retailer’s responsibility to make sure their packaging meets regulations when determining which product to place on their shelves.
7. Child-Resistant by Law Packaging
Many states have legalized cannabis as an alternative to prescription medications, but this doesn’t mean cannabis use is without its risks. Incidents of child pot poisonings occur when children accidentally ingest medical marijuana or cannabis-containing edibles. Such incidents add responsibility for medical cannabis-using adults to lock up their medication securely, so all cannabis packaging must be child-resistant by law. Besides children and teens, pets can also end up consuming these products.
Cannabis companies will need to submit to Child Resistant Packaging (CRP) parameters set by the Consumer Product and Safety Commission. For approval, the packaging must be certified as child-resistant and must undergo rigorous testing to prevent child access, along with packaging testing by a third party.
Since medical cannabis and cannabis-containing edibles pose a threat to children’s health and well-being, just like any other medicine, they should be kept in exit bags, push-and-twist caps, squeeze-and-pull-designs, metal tins, and metered dosing with locking features.
If you are looking for packaging which can help grow your cannabis business faster, visit our website today!
Author Bio:
Jack Finkelstein has expertise of twenty five years within the field of sales and sales management within the market of the USA. and North American nation. With Med-lock he’s managing the one-stop search expertise for compliant packaging solutions. Jack has been connected with an in depth contact list of enormous U.S. and Canadian retailers for quite twenty five years currently.
