EXCLUSIVE: How Important Are Brands In Cannabis? Who's Educating Cannabis Consumers?

In the cannabis market, brands might not be as important in the short term when states legalize, but over time could show loyalty to consumers.

Importance of Brands: Cannabis brands need to be consistent and reliable and in the long term could need more of a national scale instead of a single state or couple state business model. This was the message put forth at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference by Nick Kovacevich, the CEO of Greenlane GNLN.

“Brands are going to be very important in the long term,” Kovacevich said. In the short term, some consumers might buy what’s available.

Vahan Ajamian, Capital Markets Advisor for High Tide, said price point and THC content are the two most important items for consumers right now and brands might be less of an important factor.

“There’s a subset of the market that know exactly what they want,” Ajamian said.

Other consumers are buying what’s new and asking in stores which products are selling well so they can try the hottest products.

Related Link: Weedmaps To Go Public Via Merger With Silver Spike 

Providing Education: Technology is changing the cannabis sector and helping to provide education for consumers who don’t typically spend a lot of time in dispensaries learning about products.

“Our goal is to give the consumer the access they want,” said WM Technology MAPS VP Corporate Development Greg Stolowitz.

Stolowitz said this includes providing access to dispensaries via his Weedmaps company but also through providing education with online data for consumers.

“Different consumers are at different points in their life cycle of cannabis.”

Stolowitz said most of Weedmap’s engagement on its website is on the education side of things and not about connecting consumers with the map of dispensaries.

Forian Chief Data and Analytics Officer Andrew Douglas agreed that education is important to cannabis consumers.

“I think it’s something we’re going to have to teach them and grow with them,” Douglas said, noting it’s about the consumer and engaging with recommendations.