Developing a Go-to-Market Digital Strategy for a New Consumer Brand in a Newly Regulated Industry.
The Business Challenge
As the cannabis industry was emerging in Colorado, Rocky Mountain Cannabis needed to establish a strong digital presence to capture a new market, build brand identity, and navigate the unique advertising and compliance challenges of a highly regulated industry. The primary challenge was to create an engaging, user-friendly website that could serve as both a brand hub and a platform for their advertising initiatives.
In late 2014, Rocky Mountain Cannabis, an early player in Colorado’s newly legalized cannabis industry, was facing a common but critical growth hurdle. The owner, Jeremy J, had a website that “looked like crap” after a previous developer had unsuccessfully attempted to add a new store location. As a non-technical business owner, he was frustrated, unsure whether to “restart, fix or what,” and overwhelmed by approaches from other vendors.
He needed a trustworthy, local expert to take ownership of his digital presence, provide a clear path forward, and build a professional, scalable website that could support his multi-location retail business.
My Role & Strategic Approach
After proactively reaching out to offer my services, I became their end-to-end Digital Partner. My role was comprehensive, evolving from an initial consultant and developer to their long-term managed services provider. I was responsible for:
- Strategic consultation and technology selection.
- Initial website development and launch.
- Ongoing hosting, server migration, and maintenance.
- Email hosting and administration.
- SEO, social media, and print advertising management.
As the Lead Digital Strategist and Developer, my role was to own the end-to-end creation of the company’s online presence. My strategic approach was to:
- Build a Flexible Content Platform: Utilize WordPress as a robust and easily manageable CMS to allow for rapid content updates and marketing campaigns.
- Prioritize User Experience & SEO: Design a responsive, user-friendly layout optimized for search engines to drive organic traffic and ensure a positive brand experience from the first click.
- Drive Brand Awareness: Develop and spearhead the initial advertising efforts to build brand recognition and drive traffic to the new digital property.
Process & Execution
Our multi-year partnership was executed in two key phases.
- Phase 1: The Foundational Build (2014-2015):
- Consultation & Scoping: I began by simplifying the decision-making process for the client, providing two professional WordPress theme options as a clear starting point. We agreed on a transparent project bid and a straightforward payment schedule.
- Technical Development: As the sole developer, I built their new digital foundation. This included setting up the server, installing and configuring WordPress, and customizing a responsive WooCommerce theme. I also implemented a suite of essential plugins for performance (W3C Site Cache, Speed Booster) and SEO (Yoast SEO).
- Phase 2: The Long-Term Partnership & Scaling (2016 and beyond):
- Infrastructure Upgrade: As the business grew, I identified the need for a more robust hosting solution. In 2016, I proposed and executed a full migration of the website from GoDaddy to a new, managed WordPress hosting server.
- Managed Services: I established a comprehensive 12-month service contract that solidified my role as their trusted partner. This agreement covered all aspects of their digital presence, including website and email hosting, ongoing site and plugin upgrades, a full site redesign, and ongoing SEO and social media management.
- Cohesive Brand Management: Beyond the digital realm, I also managed their print advertising initiatives. I personally designed their local newspaper ads to ensure the branding—from the logo and typography to the core messaging—was perfectly consistent with the new website. This created a seamless brand experience for customers, whether they discovered RMC online or in their local paper, always driving them back to the central digital hub.
- Supporting Business Growth: My role grew alongside their business. I provided the technical support to add new store locations to the website, such as their Canon City dispensary, ensuring their digital presence kept pace with their physical expansion.
This hands-on approach ensured that both the technical execution and the strategic marketing goals were perfectly aligned throughout the project.
The Result & Business Impact
The successful launch of RockyMountainCannabis.com established the company as a key player in the emerging Colorado cannabis market. Over a multi-year engagement, I transformed a frustrating and broken web presence into a stable, professional, and scalable foundation.
- Established a Strong Digital Footprint: The new website provided a professional and engaging platform that built brand credibility and captured early-market-share.
- Drove Customer Traffic: The integrated SEO and advertising strategies successfully drove traffic and built initial brand awareness in a competitive new industry.
- Created a Scalable Marketing Platform: The WordPress platform provided an agile and scalable foundation for all future digital marketing and content initiatives.
- Provided Clarity and Trust: I took a non-technical client who was overwhelmed with options and provided a clear, trustworthy path forward, earning a long-term partnership.
- Delivered a Full-Service Solution: I acted as their single point of contact for all digital and print marketing needs—from development and hosting to advertising design—taking the entire burden of their brand presence off their plate and allowing them to focus on running their business.
Time frame: 2015-2016
Purpose: B2C, Marketing
Platform: WordPress 4
Custom: Templates, Layouts, Styling, Advertising
Tools Used: HTML 4/5, CSS 2/3, jQuery, Bootstrap, Illustrator, Photoshop, SEO
