55.13%

increase in spending on days when a text message campaign is sent

$3.97

Average ROI per text message sent

1 day

to gain a ROI on monthly subscription

washington cannabis market breakdown

Washington state, like Colorado, is noteworthy for the maturity of its legal cannabis industry, something that has made it somewhat of a model for the states that legalized in its wake. As with any emerging market, Washington took a few years to find its footing, but the legal cannabis economy that followed has been vibrant and full of successes. Per a report by Leafly, 2020 marked Washington’s most single-year revenue from cannabis sales at an impressive $1.4 billion, a 17% increase from 2019’s sales.

A report by Washington State University’s IMPACT Center verifies the tremendous growth the Washington cannabis industry has seen. It notes that Washington cannabis retail sales exploded by 605% between 2015 and 2020.

While Washington’s sales are thriving, the state is not without its challenges. For one, expansive regulations on cultivators and retailers, as well as a surplus of flower, have kept profit margins thin. Meanwhile, the state seems open to expanding licensing, meaning even more growers and operational dispensaries will emerge in the years ahead.

Space Needle, Seattle

As the state continues to resist vertical integration among cannabis businesses, keeping cultivation and retail separate, cannabis businesses can expect a stiffening of competition. Hopefully, this is not in the form of large multi-state firms choking smaller-scale businesses, but rather in the form of healthy competition among competitors on similar footing. At least for now, the state seems committed to maintaining a healthy competition among cannabis businesses.

Cannabis marketing in Washington

With a spike in competitiveness ahead, any cannabis business must develop a robust cannabis marketing strategy in order to differentiate themselves among their competition. However, Washington, like all other states that have legalized recreational cannabis, has a unique set of restrictions governing cannabis marketing and cannabis advertising.

Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 314-55-155 concerns the requirements for cannabis advertising. These requirements primarily target how marijuana is represented in advertisements, ensuring the advertisements is not targeted at children or minors, and where the advertisements are visible from. It also forbids promoting a brand with any handout or giveaway of cannabis products.

Advertisements cannot be in specific public spaces and must include certain state-mandated phrases warning of the effects of cannabis. Further, any certain visuals, particularly those that are especially appealing to minors, are banned. However, it is not clearly defined which visuals are permitted and which are not, making any visual branding somewhat risky.

Green Pine Trees Near Mountain Under Blue Sky

With such advertising restrictions in place, cannabis marketing is a difficult road to navigate. Nevertheless, business owners must develop a dynamic cannabis marketing strategy in order to remain relevant and compete, all while being compliant.

Cannabis marketing with springbig

With springbig’s marketing suite, businesses can take a holistic approach to targeting and retaining their clientele, certifiably enhancing their chances of success in a crowded market, all while avoiding the stress of compliance.

Our 360 Solutions™ platform ensures you are compliant by staying on top of all relevant regulations, even as they change, just so you do not have to. Dispensary marketing can be stressful. We take the edge off.

Considering the aforementioned spike in per-visit spending across dispensaries, there is no better time to adopt springbig’s loyalty program, which rewards your customers with a point-per-dollar rewards program. Rather than other rewards programs which reward customers on a point-per-visit “punch card” basis, the springbig loyalty program incentivizes higher-paying visits and rewards high-spending customers. With rewards racked up and easily accessible in their digital rewards wallet, customers are inclined to return to your dispensary instead of the competition – and have been proven to do so.

With springbig’s marketing suite, expect results and a proven R.O.I. to help your business thrive.

We analyzed the performance of Clear Choice Cannabis, a dispensary in Washington. We looked to see the increase in spend on days when text messages were sent, the ROI, and how long it took to gain ROI.