5 Ways to Approach Marketing for Amanita Mushrooms – Rolling Stone
If you are unfamiliar with amanita mushrooms, they are poised to be the next big thing to hit the legal market and the cannabis industry is hopping on board. Native to the Northern Hemisphere, amanita mushrooms have been utilized throughout history as psychoactive substances, as they are known to induce mild hallucinations. Now the fungi are popping up in cannabis stores around the world.
One theory about amanita shrooms is that they’re responsible for the way Santa dresses. The iconic red and white color scheme of Father Christmas may be a tribute to the fly agaric mushroom, a white-speckled, red-capped fungus that is featured in many fairy tales. Reindeer that come across patches of yellow snow left by shamans who have taken the drug may act in an excited manner, as if they were intoxicated. Reindeer herders in Siberia and Lapland began harvesting the mushrooms and processing them to maximize their psychoactive effects.
When fresh, the mushroom contains ibotenic acid, which is converted to muscimol after being dried. Muscimol is a potent hallucinogen that interacts with receptors in the brain and can cause distortions in size, time and space. The consumption of muscimol likely caused Alice to experience hallucinations of growing alternately tall and short when she visited Wonderland. The phrase “getting pissed” likely originated from the fact that muscimol, a hallucinogenic drug, passes through the body relatively unchanged.
In 2020, Oregon became the first State to legalize psychedelics for therapeutic use, while Washington, D.C., voters approved a measure to decriminalize psychedelics, including amanita mushrooms. It appears likely that shrooms are currently experiencing a similar surge in popularity to that of cannabis products’ recent acceptance and legalization. Businesses must stay up to date with their marketing strategies to capitalize on the growing amanita mushrooms trend.
For those in the cannabis industry who are following the expansion of legalization and want to plan for offering amanita and other mushrooms, it’s not too early to consider marketing approaches. Identifying your target customers is essential for developing an effective marketing strategy in the adult-use cannabis industry. It is important to consider who your potential customers are and how best to reach them.
Don’t Limit Your Market
Despite millennials being the primary purchasers of cannabis products, accounting for roughly half of all legal cannabis sales last year, Gen Xers and baby boomers have also increased their market share. Recent market research indicates that even consumers who primarily consider themselves “recreational users” are using cannabis for wellness purposes, such as improving sleep and relieving stress. The traditional “burnout” stereotypes of who is buying cannabis products and why are no longer accurate. If you’re only targeting millennials for adult-use and boomers for medical-use, you may be missing out on potential customers from other age and gender groups. In other words, it is important to consider a broader range of demographics when marketing amanita mushrooms.
By understanding why customers use cannabis, you can create marketing strategies that appeal to a variety of demographics. Identifying the common interests of your target customers will help you develop tailored approaches to address each segment’s needs, while also creating messaging that resonates.
Create a Distinctive Brand Profile
Establish a logo and voice that will make your brand recognizable and unique in a crowded shroom market. Incorporate these elements into your online presence and marketing materials. Of course, doing so can be a bit challenging in the mushrooming industry. Companies must follow a handful of legal regulations as well as the terms of service on various advertising and social media platforms.
The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?
Adhering to the regulations regarding health claims for products not regulated by the FDA can be costly for a new business. With this in mind, a company selling amanita mushrooms should avoid overstepping regulatory boundaries and instead focus on communicating benefits of their product in a creative way. Creativity can lead to unique and memorable branding. The cannabis industry has taught us that packaging and asset design are essential for more than just name recognition. To ensure success, your brand’s imagery and language must be attractive to consumers.
Teach, Don’t Preach
Amanita mushrooms may struggle to reach consumers who have been exposed to decades of negative messaging about psychedelics. One effective way for a store to stand out in a competitive market is to offer clear instructions on the advantages, risks and applications of their merchandise. A business can establish itself as a reliable source of knowledge by sharing straightforward, yet precise data.
By utilizing a content marketing strategy that employs SEO, the company can benefit from increased consumer engagement and trust, while also elevating its search engine rankings. Educational content is also a key component of successful online shrooms marketing, as it helps to build brand reputation and attract new customers.
Expand Your Digital Advertising Efforts
No single approach to online marketing is suitable for every amanita mushroom vendor. Besides, depending on a single channel for sales and lead generation is a surefire way to fail. An efficient website, an SEO strategy and social media marketing are all essential. Incorporating social media influencers can help boost a company’s brand recognition and draw in new audiences, as well as potential customers.
As the popularity for amanita mushrooms and other natural psychedelics grows, it is essential to expand online marketing to multiple platforms in order to maximize visibility. You can also tailor content to different types of consumers, like concertgoers and extreme sports fanatics. Social influencers are becoming increasingly important too, as they have more freedom than official brand accounts on social media.
Embrace New and Existing Marketing Platforms
Rather than relying solely on internet marketing, amanita mushroom brands can take their advertising efforts offline. Email marketing, billboards, mailers and promotional events are all effective ways to reach potential customers. Traditional advertising and marketing channels provide a means to interact more intimately and directly with potential customers, especially for companies that depend on local markets. Local advertising networks and wellness activities offer opportunities to inform consumers about the background and research of amanita mushrooms, and introduce new businesses in the field to audiences that are already interested in and open to natural health products.
As psychedelics continue toward further legalization, businesses taking part in the creation and sale of such products will be looking to see how the product category fits within the overall industry of psychedelics and cannabis. Marketing is an important component of this exploration and business leaders should consider the options and approaches to form an effective strategy.
