Cannabiz Media Blog

Pioneer Intelligence founder, Ben Walters, joins Ed Keating on the Cannacurio podcast to talk about how his company leverages data to benchmark and explore marketing performance of consumer-facing cannabis brands.

Numerous studies over the past several years have proven companies that use data to make decisions have more success. However, accessing reliable data on a consistent basis, which can be used for decision-making, can be challenging, particularly in the cannabis industry.

Periodically, this blog checks in on new license counts throughout the value chain. For this post, we will evaluate what has been happening with dispensaries and retailers. According to the Cannabiz Media License Database, states have added 1,066 licenses in the first five months of 2022. Four states have issued 100 or more licenses with Oklahoma in the lead.

Cannabiz Media Director of Regulatory Research, Jason Kikel, joins Ed Keating on the Cannacurio podcast to talk about microbusiness licenses in the cannabis industry today and what we can expect to see in the future.

Data is transforming the cannabis industry, and as a result, new technology companies are opening in the cannabis space. In addition, traditionally non-cannabis companies are extending their brands to the industry. Today, databases, predictive analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning are having widespread effects on cannabis businesses, investors, regulators, and consumers.

Cannabiz Media worked with Wells Fargo’s Equity Research team to conduct one of the most comprehensive outreach programs to cannabis cultivators. We reached out to thousands of growers to develop a list of ~500 licensed cannabis cultivators across six states. They were reached via email and telephone surveys. The key takeaway for Wells Fargo is that “this recovery will take longer” and it has implications for the hydroponic sector for the second half of 2022. Wells Fargo has downgraded shares of Scotts Miracle Grow to Equal weight and lowered price targets on Grow Generation and Hydrofarm Holdings Group.

Data is transforming the cannabis industry across the entire cannabis industry, and technology opportunities continue to grow in importance as competition increases. It’s clear the companies that develop reliable and repeatable processes to collect, store, analyze, and use data will win in the future. However, data alone is just numbers. Cannabis businesses and ancillary businesses need the right technology to truly leverage the power of data. Together, technology and data are a formidable force. Let’s take a look at some of the ways technology and data will influence the future of the cannabis industry.

Leaf Trade is the leading wholesale marketplace between licensed cannabis cultivators/processors and dispensaries in regulated cannabis states. The company’s B2B technology powers orders, fulfillment, and payment processing. Cannabiz Media recently spoke with Leaf Trade President Michael Piermont to learn how he and the team at Leaf Trade use the Cannabiz Media License Database for research, strategic planning, and more.

Sales and marketing integration is essential to cannabis industry success, and the most powerful way to integrate these two functions is through the strategic use of data. In fact, revenue growth is 70% more common among B2B organizations that have tightly aligned sales and marketing departments than those organizations that have not integrated their sales and marketing teams according to the findings in Outfunnel’s Revenue Marketing Report 2022. 

Did you know that data-driven organizations are 23-times more likely to acquire customers and 6-times more likely to retain customers? They’re also 19-times more likely to be profitable. Information is power, and when a company has access to the right data, it can use that data to drive business growth and success rather than simply using data to report and reflect on the company’s performance.

Did you know that data-driven companies are 58% more likely to exceed their revenue goals than organizations that are not data-driven? That statistic comes from a Forrester Consulting study, and numerous research studies over the past several years have found similar results. Therefore, it’s not surprising that data has become a critical part of the cannabis industry.

In 2020, Cannabiz Media started researching cannabis mergers and acquisitions as a byproduct of license tracking. M&A is a key transaction because licenses change ownership in these deals. Recently, we wrote about which MSO’s led in buying versus building cannabis stores. For this post, we want to share what we found about who advised them. This data was obtained from our Cannabiz Intelligence™ Advisor Leaderboard.