Social media is one of the most important tools for marketers – no matter the space. But, with cannabis content being more strictly controlled than most other niches, it’s important to understand the dos and do nots…
Legal medicinal cannabis hit the streets over 20 years ago and recreational weed has been around for over close to a decade in certain jurisdictions. With these changes has come a new social acceptance of all things green and sticky-icky.
But, when looking at the social media giants, cannabis culture is still suppressed in certain ways and is certainly scrutinized in a much heavier fashion than most of the other interests that concern society as a whole. The big guys (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok especially) have recently started to police their terms of conditions in a heavier-handed manner than what we have been used to seeing in recent times, going on what many are coining a “shadow banning spree”.
This type of control can have an obvious (and often instantaneous) limiting effect on the ability of brands, content creators, and influencers to reach their target markets. Each platform has a different set of Community Guidelines that need to be adhered to if you want to guarantee no chance of the dreaded shadow ban, or even straight-out account deletion.
What is shadow-banning?
Shadow banning is when an account is restricted, or fully banned, without the owner of the account being notified. This can happen in the form of content not showing in hashtag searches, main feed posts being restricted from users, or even the whole profile essentially being taken down with the owner of the account being aware of the actions taken against them.
This is not to say that we don’t understand the reasoning behind these stricter control methods. For the most part, they have been put in place to reduce the rise of unlicenced marketplaces, but the AI controlling the bans cannot (or does not) separate fully legal businesses or brands from the dodgy ones.
What steps can be taken to reduce the risk of accounts being banned?
- The wording used is super important – Using certain words and terms, such as “cannabis”, “ THC”, “weed”, and “marijuana seeds” among a whole list of other everyday terms for cannabis can result in the post being flagged and removed, followed up by a possible instaban. This is true for both post comments and hashtags. Cannabis accounts skirt these rules by changing the spelling of weel known terms, resulting in the adoption of words such as “ouid” or “w33d” to help promote a page or account.
- Avoid using pictures of cannabis plants, flowers, and products – No matter if these products are being consumed, and the product is being promoted for the medicinal market. Many users now substitute the product for other well-known items, such as using a twizzler stick in place of a rolled joint.
- Use “safer” terms for your hashtags – While you can change the spelling, as mentioned above, you can also adopt safer terms to increase the chances of hits from target users while lowering any odds of the AI flagging the content. Commonly used hashtags include #organic, #harvest, #medicated, #420life, #420communtiy, #sativa, #indica, and #homegrown.
- Focus on educating your audience rather than selling to them – Research shows social media platforms prefer educational accounts. Educating your target audience on the effects of all weed-related topics shows the platform that you are more than just a brand but also a teacher.
While there may be no clear method to totally foolproof your cannabis-related posts and social media accounts, by following these guidelines you will give yourself the best chance at dodging the bans. Good luck!
