How Do I Become A Hemp Seller?

Thinking about starting your own hemp business to invest in the thriving cannabis industry? 

According to BDS Analytics and Arcview Market Research, “the collective market for hemp sales is expected to exceed $20 billion in the United States by 2024.” With hemp oils, topicals, food and beverage items, cosmetics, and even pet care on the market, it is easier than ever to start your own hemp business. 

Here, we explore some of the important factors to consider when establishing your budding hemp business. 

In order to properly prepare your new business for the exciting world of the cannabis industry, let’s review some basic steps that will play a role in setting your brand up for success. 

Research

Before you even set up your business plan, focus your energies on research. 

First and foremost, if you are planning on selling Cannabidiol, you will need to become fluent in it. In order to truly be an excellent seller of hemp, you need the industry knowledge to put yourself in a position to succeed from the very beginning. You will find yourself much more prepared as a business owner this way. 

As hemp is in the news frequently, it is also important that part of your research be dedicated to the legalities of hemp in the current market. Laws and regulations can vary from state to state, so make sure you are familiar with your state’s policies on sourcing, growing, selling, and possessing hemp as you begin your business plan. 

If your business operates in a state where cannabis is still illegal, you must ensure that your hemp is extracted from hemp plants, legally falling below the 0.3% THC limit. 

Hemp is often touted as incredibly beneficial but there are strict rules for approved language and content involving the mention and sale of hemp. It is essential for business owners to do their due diligence in understanding all information regarding state and federal regulations. Your research should include the potential benefits of hemp on people by poring through health studies and related information. 

Once you know the ins and outs of hemp, you will be the best advocate and brand ambassador, so you need to be informed and buy into what you are selling more than anyone else. 

Set Up a Plan for Your Business

Craft a unique approach that will prepare you for all aspects of the market. 

In order to legally sell products, you must obtain the necessary licenses and certificates required for operation. This includes obtaining a business license, which might be an LLC for small businesses. 

Additionally, resale licenses are important if you are planning to source your products from wholesalers and resell them yourself. Individual states are in charge of handling business licenses, resale licenses, and permits, so you should check with your individual state’s requirements to determine your next steps. 

Source

While this is not the first step, it is a vital one in order to ensure that your hemp business establishes credibility and sustainability from the beginning. 

Today’s consumer is a well-researched one and so, providing a quality product that lives up to your marketed claims will be the differentiating factor between you and unreliable hemp businesses, ever rampant in the industry. Define yourself with quality inventory.  

When considering sourcing for your hemp business, make sure that you invest in quality manufacturing -- certified to sell by the state or federally -- subject to regular third-party testing for purity and potency. 

Products

Consider the assortment of hemp infused products on the market and which collections better suit your hemp business. With a smaller budget, you might want to consider white label sourcing, which involves turnkey branding of industry-vetted products. It requires much less capital on the front end and the turnaround time is much shorter. 

Private label customizations take the branding process one step further, giving you the ability to provide unique product specifications and craft custom formulations. With a slightly longer time to market, private labeling offers businesses the chance to create a unique item, exclusive to that particular brand. 

Website 

If you are starting from scratch, you will need to purchase a domain name for your website, but this is easy to do from a number of platforms that allow you to set up an ecommerce site without much work. You may want to double check that this site allows for the sale of hemp products, as some can have restrictions on content. 

If your company already has a website, make sure to update your website to keep it current with SEO trends, so customers can locate your products on search engine results pages. 

Double check that all of your pages and links work. This will boost conversion rates and ensure that visitors are not lost on dead ends. Your website should function seamlessly at the mobile level. Lagging web pages can lose valuable customers, so keep your site speeds functioning well and employ 5G connectivity. 

Marketing

Pay attention to the SEO marketing on your page. By keeping your keywords relevant, you can outrank your competitors. Ensure that all meta titles and meta data are updated to reflect the content of your site. Then, when visitors land on your site, ensure they are aware of the competitive advantages of your hemp brand. 

Establish Credibility

Part of generating SEO will be in crafting meaningful content. Start a blog for your site and ensure that your content reflects current keyword trends based on research. However, make sure that your content actually relates to your products and services in order to encourage your brand credibility. 

Free and paid programs exist that provide more specific data results on specific search and long tail keywords. By taking these terms and placing them strategically within your websites, meta data, and blogs, you will increase the search engine optimization rate, placing your website above other competitor sites. 

If you focus on determining the desired outcomes of online shoppers, you can refresh your content in a way that drives conversions from buyers, not just occasional visitors. In this way, you will build brand credibility and a loyal network of customers. 

Don’t forget to display legal requirements -- see your state’s legal hemp regulations -- including transparent product information and dosage. And don’t forget to update your terms of service and privacy policy to reflect the website host’s standards and the existing legal requirements for hemp.  

Navigating the cannabis industry does not have to be difficult. The process of starting and marketing your hemp business involves choosing the right ingredients, manufacturer, products, and branding to meet your business needs.