Page 1 - CNF April 2021 Revised

CANNABIS Americanna
Laboratories
BUSINESS Appoints Wyman
Dickey
DIRECTORY as New CEO

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April 2021

2019 Cannabis Business Award’s Publication of the Year

Loyalty Programs Key to Retaining

Customers, Boosting Profits

BY VANESSA ORR

One of the best ways to stay in business is by establishing a loyal customer base—and one of
the smartest ways to do this is by creating a loyalty program that recognizes and rewards cus-
tomers for their repeat business.
“Everybody understands loyalty and rewards programs; they are tested and proven methods
for driving customers into stores more often and getting them to spend more than they would
otherwise spend,” explained Jeff Harris, founder of springbig, a leading cannabis marketing pro-
gram designed to help retailers and manufacturers increase customer retention, boost revenue Jeff Harris Eric Stevens
and build customer loyalty. “However, if the program is not designed correctly, it can just be a
cost instead of an investment that drives more revenue. It needs to be structured so that busi- Controversial
nesses get the most out of it.”
In 2016, springbig entered the cannabis market after spending more than 20 years of providing loyalty programs for big-box THC Cap Bill to
retail stores and small businesses around the country ranging from hair salons to yogurt shops. “We realized that this was a grow-
ing industry that could use our help in developing and getting their message out to the consumer,” said Harris of the company
that has already established a strong foothold in the Florida market. Affect Dosage,
“One of the things that sets us apart is that we were loyalty experts first; we weren’t cannabis experts learning the loyalty indus-
try,” he added. “Our core expertise is helping retailers and brands drive the most revenue out of their marketing program specif- Cost of Medical
ically by using loyalty programs.”
Cannabis Care
Loyal Customers Drive Profits
Repeat customers can make a big difference in a business’ bottom line.
“Depending on how they choose to use it, we usually see at least a 10 percent bump in business when companies start using BY VANESSA ORR
loyalty programs; that’s a very meaningful percentage,” said Harris, adding that he has seen sales increases of up to 40 percent.
“When we don’t send out a message on a given day, the difference in sales is tremendous.” More than 500,000 patients in Florida
depend on medical marijuana to help
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them deal with conditions ranging from
epilepsy to PTSD to cancer. Yet two con-
Fear and Loathing in Florida: troversial proposals—House Bill 1455
and Senate Bill 1958—are currently
Patients React as Lawmakers making their way through the legislative
process, which could change the efficacy
of the medications that these patients
Threaten MMJ Program receive.
These proposals, introduced by Rep.
Spencer Roach and Sen. Ray Rodrigues
BY JODI JAMES respectively, would place a 10 percent
THC cap on smokable marijuana, and
The room in the Knott Building at the Capitol seemed empty, thanks to COVID restrictions and limit THC levels in all other forms of
social distancing, when the Representative from Lee County, Spencer Roach, took the dais. For the cannabis except edibles, like concen-
next twenty minutes, he would explain HB 1455, a proposal that is “taking a wrecking ball to the state trates and powders, to 60 percent. THC,
medical marijuana program,” according to Democratic Representative Carlos G. Smith of Orlando. or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the main
In the days between the bill being introduced and it being heard, over 50,000 people took action psychoactive component of marijuana.
to oppose the CAPS. Jodi James The bills also impose advertising restric-
The CAPS Bill, HB 1455, and its companion in the Senate, SB 1958, would limit the potency of tions on doctors who order cannabis for
THC to 10% in flower and 60% in concentrates, if it becomes law. The bill CAPS the total amount of THC a patient can receive every their patients.
35 days. It CAPS free enterprise by making the Department of Health pre-approve advertising for doctors and limiting who can invest These proposals are being roundly
in Cannabis businesses. criticized by numerous groups ranging
As Representative Roach explained his bill to lawmakers on the Professions and Public Health Committee, advocates in the audi- from physicians and patients to medical
ence, doctors, patients, and lobbyists alike, were astounded by what they heard. The Representative quoted studies saying pain cannabis companies and advocacy
patients respond better to THC levels under 10%. The studies report THC higher than 10% increases pain responses. The groups.
Representative concluded that patients using high THC were really drug seekers and the doctors who certify patients for high THC “This has been a highly charged topic
just want to get rich. He would repeat twice that patients using high THC were more likely to use opiates, more likely to be amongst all in the cannabis space; lower
addicted/abuse opiates, and more likely to suffer from depression as a result of Cannabis use. THC potency means patients would be
The bill is bad, but the debate in committee between lawmakers is creating fear and loathing among Florida medical marijuana
forced to buy more, pay more, and use
Continued on page 30 Continued on page 26