The journey as customers leave a dispensary can be one of the most memorable experiences. They have completed their purchase—their shopping mission. So, with bag in hand, they leave the store. Now what?
This is the final moment of the shopping journey—Touchpoint #10 – Exiting.
As we mentioned in Touchpoint #9 – Forgotten Spaces, special attention should be given to branding in the final moments of the customer journey. What do they see as they walk from the point of sale to the exit? Remember what Anne Marie Luthro of AML Insights evangelizes: merchandising and messaging back to front is important. Be sure to brand the back of signs, blank walls, and other empty areas with social media info, weekly specials, and information about loyalty benefits and referral programs.
The retail floor plan should intuitively guide customers out of the store feeling a shopping high, with a touch of anticipation for their next visit. They should also be able to easily reorient themselves to the outside, where they are, and how to return to their car. In addition to the physical action of your customers walking out the door, exiting includes all of the best practices surrounding how they conclude their retail experience in your dispensary.
You have put in so much effort to lead customers to their final purchase, don’t make them regret it in these final moments. Give them a lasting positive impression.
Memorable packaging and presentation
The retail experience includes every detail, so it’s important to focus on how products are packaged and presented for walking out the door. This packaging can bring just as much joy as the product itself—well, almost as much joy as this type of product. It should be memorable and serve as both a walking advertisement and a conversation starter. Cannabis and cannabis products are becoming a commodity, so if you’re selling the same products that the dispensary down the street is selling, one of the best ways you can differentiate is through the final presentation. In addition to the child proof exit bag, how does the gift bag, tissue paper, etc. reinforce your brand? From eco-friendly to elegant, there are numerous creative options to help you package your products in an unforgettable way. Does your packaging turn heads and have people asking, “Where did you get that?”
Incentivize future visits
Within your delightful packaging, make sure to provide information that encourages repeat business. Offer coupons as well as loyalty and referral program materials, social media info, and reminders of any events or weekly specials. You want to give customers a reason to come back. Keep them connected with the brand and incentivize them with ways to save money. With their purchase they have become an official customer, so this is the perfect time for these messages. They weren’t ready for this information when they walked in the door. Now they are in the right frame of mind to be enticed to return, leave reviews, or join your social media community.
Brand ambassadors
Who is the last employee your customers interact with? Is it the cashier at the point of sale, a receptionist as they make their way back to the front of the dispensary, or is there a security guard who escorts customers to their cars? Whoever the person is, they should be attentive and polite making sure customers had a great experience, feel safe, and are encouraged to return. This person should be a Class A brand ambassador for you. This final moment of human interaction can make all the difference in the world.
A safe farewell
Safety is a key thing to think about in the last leg of the customer journey. After making a purchase, customers are likely to let their guard down considerably. Make sure they have a safe path of travel as they happily leave your store with their purchases.
The safety of the parking lot is paramount. You have customers walking out of your store with valuable, sought after product. Don’t allow your parking lot to become an easy target for unsavory people. Make sure it is well lit, clean, and easy to navigate. Make sure your customers have a safe trip from your store back to their car.
Bear in mind, the customer journey will continue as each person returns home, uses the products, shares their satisfaction (or dissatisfaction) with others, and decides whether or not to come back for another experience.
This concludes our Cannabis Retail Design Guide. As you can see, branding and design play a powerful role at every point in the customer journey and in the success of your cannabis dispensary. Take a look back at the series to revisit previous topics:
- Touchpoint 1:Search and Find
- Touchpoint 2: Location and Curb Appeal
- Touchpoint 3 and 4: Lobby and Check-in
- Touchpoint 5: Private Consultation
- Touchpoint 6: Showroom
- Touchpoint 7 and 8: Point of Sale and Order Fulfillment
- Touchpoint 9: Forgotten Spaces
A disruptor, innovator, and entrepreneur, Megan Stone is the grand dame of dispensary design. As founder and owner of The High Road Design Studio, she has helped arm cannabis retailers with the power of design to combat stigma, overcome stereotypes, and reinvent people’s perceptions of cannabis and its users. Her unprecedented work has helped usher dispensaries onto Main Street and into the mainstream and has forever changed the international conversation about the retailing of “vice.” Her work has been lauded for altering thoughts, feelings and behaviors worldwide, blazing a trail and earning awards and commendations for design excellence along the way. She is a frequent speaker and contributing editor in both the cannabis and retail design industries.
[…] Marchand and Andrews approached each design with a ton of research under their belts, mainly focusing on what gives each community its distinct vibe. As they roll out new locations, they collaborate with local partners who provide the lowdown on cultural elements to work into each store for familiarity and a more engaging customer journey. […]