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5 ways people are already creating income from the increase in cannabis tourism.
Have you seen more people coming around your area as a result of some form of legalized cannabis?
Some people come from across the country to experience your local recreational market.
Others might just want to go one state over for some of the best medicine they can find.
Either way, people are crossing borders as a result of legalized forms of cannabis.
As a business person or entrepreneur, you’re probably trying to brew up some ways that you can make some extra money in cannabis tourism.
Here’s a list of five ways that you could make money off the most delightful tourists on earth.
1. Cannabis-friendly Airbnb
If you’re a home or property owner, you might be able to help solve an important pain point.
When cannabis tourists travel, they’re always concerned with their accommodations.
Many hotels, AirBnbs, and other forms of accommodations don’t allow for any type of smoking on the premise.
For people who don’t want to worry about where they are staying, home and property owners could open their assets to travelers.
Consider the marijuana-friendly Bud and Breakfast which helps people find accommodations that don’t mind their consumption on the premises.
Extra rooms, entire homes, or even a half-acre of land with a few tents could all be converted into income-producing assets.
2. Concierge for Tourists
Some people want a custom experience without any hassle when they travel.
For this, they’ll likely be searching for a cannabis concierge in your area.
You arrange transport, tours of dispensaries or grows, and set up accommodation.
If you’re good with people, providing them the best service possible so they can enjoy their cannabis vacation is a lucrative way to make money off tourism without much limit to what’s possible.
3. Local Merch
Not everyone likes to buy souvenirs when they travel, but according to Statista, there were $16.75 billion in souvenir sales in 2017 in the United States.
How much of that could your production of local cannabis merchandise grab?
Do you have ideas for teeshirts, mugs, and knick-knacks?
If you have the entrepreneurial spirit, you could get a booth at your local cannabis events, sell your gear, spread your name, and eventually become a local legend.
4. Targeted Marketing Campaigns
As a dispensary, you have a base of customers.
You try your best to bring in more regulars that you can rely on to support your business.
However, those aren’t the only people you should be targeting.
Keep track of where your customers are coming from.
Can you market to them in their location?
Letting people know about you who aren’t around you can be just as important as satisfying your regulars.
Utilizing a blog to bring value to prospective travelers is one way to go about it.
Find the longtail keywords that travelers are using in your area.
Target them, crush them, and generate more revenue off cannabis tourism in your area.
5. Cannabis Events
Cannabis events aren’t just confined to massive spectacles with hit musical artists and awards ceremonies.
Some are smaller expos, local educational events, and niche gatherings that bring in new cannabis consumers.
Moreover, finding some time and money to invest in the smaller events may pay off in the future when those events quadruple in size and your name grows along with it.
So, how can you capitalize on cannabis events?
Here are two strategies:
- Network yourself. Bring your business cards (and enough of them), have your elevator pitch tuned up, and get to know to people. You might only truly connect with one person at an event, but that one connection might be all you need to generate the revenue you were seeking.
- Advertise. Get your name where people can see it at the event. Can you rent a booth? Can you set up a pop-up? Are you allowed to post flyers? Whatever you’re doing, make sure you have something that’s eye-catching. Think of what cannabis consumers at that event might be interested in seeing at the time they’re at the event. Draw up plans to target one or two people you can think of that would be wandering your event and see your flyer.
With so many ways to make money off of cannabis tourism, what are you doing to get a piece of pie?
If you have any questions about how you can capitalize, feel free to ask them in the comments below!