Chase Roberts, Public Relations Director and Correspondent for America’s Cannabis Conversation, was the invited to appear on The San Francisco Experience podcast.  As noted on the podcast…

Cannabis sales passed $17.5 billion in the United States during 2020 which was a 46% increase over 2019. Sales in California reached $4.4 billion in 2020. With 18 states having legalized recreational marijuana and 5 more states weighing ballot measures in 2022, the trend to nationwide legalization is growing. Women are playing an increasing role in the industry and in this episode, Chase Roberts discusses several of them.

We thank The San Francisco Experience for inviting one of our own from America’s Cannabis Conversation at the W420 Radio Network. Listen in on what Chase has to say about the important role women are playing in the world of cannabis.

The post Women in the Cannabis Industry. Talking with Chase Roberts of W420 Radio appeared first on America’s Cannabis Conversation.

What Do You Do if Customers Are No Longer Wrapped Around the Block?

Cannabis Recession

In some places, the sale of cannabis has slowed dramatically; in fact, in some states, dispensaries are actually closing. Why? The initial surge of something new happened everywhere, but the newness is wearing off. As we have seen, with a 60% decline in market value of many public companies, investors now are looking more for a return on their investment (ROI).

Investing

As a result of the decline, investors want a significant increase in the cost of funds. In fact, it has reached the point that in many transactions, the interest rate charged is 600 basis points risk premium over the LIBOR rate (average London Inter-Bank Offered Interest Rate) for the duration of the loan. Currently, the 1 year LIBOR interest rate is 1.65%. If you add 600 basis points to the LIBOR base, you have an actual interest rate of 7.65%. The LIBOR rate moves with the direction of interest rates. Thus, if the LIBOR rate were to increase, then your cost of funds would go up.

Some LIBOR loans have an annual cap on the maximum; this is how much the interest rate can move in one year. For the most part, but not always, the cap is 2% per year. In our example above, if interest rates move up so that the one-year LIBOR moves from 1.65% to 4%, your loan rate will go from 7.65% to 9.65% for the next 12 months.

Investors are now holding borrowers more accountable for results, and you, as the dispensary owner, have to look at operating expenses. Most importantly, what do you do to attract new customers while retaining as many of your existing customers?

Sales

On our show recently, America’s Cannabis Conversation, we had a Special Segment Manager from Lightspeed talking about how a point of sale software can help to build stronger relationships with existing customers. This can be done by using Point of Sale (POS) to build a business by marketing special offers through the contacts on the POS list.

We think our unique channel platform allows you to more fully market your company and its products and services in your local market. With the increase in business, you will be able to spend more of your budget in attracting new customers. In the past, when the lobby was full, and people were waiting to get into your store, marketing was the furthest thing in your mind. Now, it has to be the Number One thing you think about!

Contact

Why not consider talking to us about how local marketing can help build your business for the long-term. Call us at Tel: 1-888-420-8884 and see if we can help you grow your business.

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The Case for Selling CBD

This is part of a conversation with a Company who want to re-price the CBD market and make it affordable for everybody who wants to try this amazing treatment and hopes to gain significant market share. They have the chance to reprice the market, a 1 oz bottle of 250 ML of CBD tincture can retail for over $30, and we have a retail of $5.00 for the same 250 ML they will reprice the markets. With a more affordable price, we can attract and serve millions of Americans.

Fourteen percent of Americans personally use products containing cannabidiol (CBD). According to a recent Gallup Poll, one in 7 Americans is buying CBD. The population over 21 years of age is 282 million people that means close to 40 million people al already buying CBD products. If 40% of sales are 1 oz bottles of tinctures, then 40% of 40 million is 16 million buyers. By 2024 sales in this segment could be $8 billion. Why do people buy CBD, the top three reasons are?

Pain (nonspecific)
40

Anxiety
20

Sleep/Insomnia
11

Forbes suggests that CBD Market Could Reach $20 Billion By 2024

Cannabidiol is a non-psychoactive component of the cannabis plant. CBD doesn’t get people high. However, many people use CBD products for their perceived health benefits. The most popular way to take cannabidiol is using a CBD oil, sometimes called a CBD tincture. It is available in a wide variety of strengths and flavors.

The CBD industry is in a weird place in terms of price. We’ve all heard stories of CBD companies marking up products by 10, 20, or even 30 times the cost. CBD is a trendy industry, and it doesn’t cost much to package powder into a capsule. One ounce of pure CBD oil is 28,000 ML of liquid. If a one-ounce bottle has 250 ML of CBD in it, the non-CBD content is 99.2%. The profit margins are very significant. By comparison, a bottle of 60 Gummi Bears can have 30,000 MG of CBD and sells for $29. In this example, one gummy sell for 48 cents and contains 500 MG of CBD. The tincture 1 oz bottle with 250 MG of CBD selling for $5 is very profitable.

Let me make a point the most popular package of tincture is a 1 Oz bottle with 250 MG of CBD.

I understand that businesses are trying to make a profit, but we also want consumers to get fair value. We took cost into consideration in our rankings. We still featured a range of CBD products for all budgets, but we made sure each offered fair value based on their dosage, quality, and manufacturing.

Although the majority of Americans do not currently use CBD, usage may be ready to increase significantly in the coming years. The 2018 Farm Act legalized the production and sale of hemp-derived CBD when President Trump signed it into law in December. Since that time, many companies have ramped up their CBD production and distribution capabilities. With most startup operations, many will fail; others will begin to dominate. You will offer a stable price and product of a high-quality product.

Your business prospects should be asking how soon they will want to offer this product in their stores? It will not be a matter of if but only when they will have to offer this product. The sooner they act, the quicker they can leverage their price point advantage and build market share. Bringing in new customers with CBD being the attraction will expand their business.

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Caveat Emptor, CBD

CBD

According to Richard Cleland, who is the Assistant Director of the Federal Trade Commission, “The need for consumer protection exploded with the boom of CBD products that burst on the market. Claims against CBD products, therefore, range from disease treatment claims by manufacturers to quality of ingredients and actual CBD quantities.”

I had Mr. Cleland on my radio show Americas Cannabis Conversation, and during that interview, he was focused on the curative claims by product sellers being able to cure dementia, cancer, and many more illnesses. They have been joined by the FDA in investigating these companies who are making these false and misleading claims.

Marketing Claims

Many millions of Americans look for the magic bullet to cure their pain, and charlatans prey upon the elderly. If you have had conic pain most of your life and you still have the pain, you will try almost anything. The explosion of CBD sales in the last year has been incredible. According to Statista, CBD sales went from $512 million in 2018 and are expected to reach close to $850 million in 2019 up almost 60%. Industry experts suggest that CBD sales in the USA will be $20 billion by 2015.

I want to talk to you about what is happening in the industry that up until now nobody is writing or  talking about misleading selling practices. If you are like me, you are getting deluged by offers for CBD. Sometimes it is positioned as a special offer, and other times it is a free offer. This is where the headline of this commentary comes into play.

Gimics

You see a special limited-time offer, or they only have a few bottles left; they are creating a sense of urgency to make you rush to buy. You see pages and pages of testimonials and all the things CBD can cure or treat. They feature older people looking as if they are pain-free or have gotten the best sleep of their lives. You scroll through all the pages, and you get excited because you want to feel better when you see other people looking better from XYZ CBD oil.

The offer says it’s free, so you decide to click the order here button and can’t wait for the UPS driver to drop it off. Here is the real question, how much did you pay for the free offer? You think nothing it was free. You need to find out how much will you pay for the next bottle? While it may be true that the first bottle is free but the second and other bottles are not free.

Be Aware

You know very little about CBD most of what you see on the web, do you really know how much a 1 oz bottle of CBD oil with 300 MG of Hemp oil should cost? So, you are going to have to take a deep dive to find out what the price is for the next bottle. You will have to search the entire web site to find Terms. The following is a direct lift of the terms to a recent ad I received for a CBD bottle. Read the offer carefully:

“By placing your order today, you’ll be shipped a 30-day supply of Blank for only $6.96. This gives you the opportunity to try this remarkable product so you can come to a decision for yourself if this is the right product for you. If you are dissatisfied with the product, you must call (877) 227-XXXX within 14 days trial plus 3 days   (total of 17 days) from today to cancel your membership and avoid being charged of $95.13, which is the full price of the product. ”

Did you see it the price is $95.13? If you don’t cancel the order, then each month, they will send you a new bottle and charge you $95.13. I think the FTC must stop these deceptive practices and demand that consumers get transparent pricing.

Perkins Twist

If you have been taken advantage of with this pricing scam, then write to the FTC at https://www.ftc.gov/faq/consumer-protection/submit-consumer-complaint-ftc give them your pricing story and perhaps we can bring about honest pricing. In the meantime, shop around for pricing. Things to look for, how many ounces of CBD in the bottle? How much liquid is in the bottle? If you want a 1 oz bottle of CBD with 250 MG of CBD, then look for that product. On the last point, look to the number of doses to a bottle. If one dose is one drop, and the bottle has 100 doses, then each drop is 2.5 MG per dose. You may have to take more than one dose to get enough CBD to make a difference.

Until the pricing is transparent the Buyer Be Ware.

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Is It Possible That Nature Can Cure Cancer? by Dan Perkins

A New Venue for Cannabis Conversation Addresses Cancer

I told one of my blog publishers that I was starting a new radio network called w420radio network, and I will host the first show, America’s Cannabis Conversation. The network is devoted to providing unbiased information about cannabis to the American people. We found out that because of FCC restrictions on radio and TV stations broadcasting anything about cannabis, Americans are truly under-informed about the features, benefits, and advantages and disadvantage of cannabis.

A radio show host on a sizable national network, with whom I worked for years, learned from authorities that he cannot even use the word cannabis on the air.  I went back to the publisher and his position was clear.  He strongly opposed legalizing of cannabis.  I asked him if he wanted to discontinue publishing my work because of his conviction? He responded, “I like, and my readers love, your writing. Though I may disagree with your position on cannabis, I want my readers to continue to hear what you have to say on other issues.”

I must say, during the nine months we put this show together, I was shocked by what I didn’t know. The lack of factual information is astounding, and medical progress has been woefully under-reported. This subject is important to me because I recently lost a friend to pancreatic cancer, and now cancer patients may actually have some hope.

The Demand for Medical Marijuana

Many discoveries I made excited me about the possibilities of cannabis to heal people. Before my initial research, I believed that the legalization of cannabis would  expand the 21 to 35-year-old market, the so-called recreational market. I met the CFO and co-founder of a medical practice in Florida for cannabis prescriptions. He thought that 4 years ago, the average age of the buyer would be 21 to 35. He said he was very wrong; the average age is pushing 55, and he has people in their 90s using cannabis.

The reason older Americans demand cannabis displays every night on TV where pharmaceutical companies advertise their drugs. Because of disclosure rules, many of the ramifications of taking medications must be disclosed.  In many cases, one side effect is death. Older Americans are sick of drug side effects, especially if the drugs do not help them. The frustration and ineffective nature of these drugs forced them to begin looking at alternatives.  Cannabis is one of those alternatives.

One Case Study Involving Cancer

This is a true story; I will not use the patient’s real name in this article. Mary X was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and she wasn’t sure who she should see next, either her oncologist or her attorney. Pancreatic cancer has the worst 5-year survival rates, between 5 to 8%, than any other cancer. Oncologists now think that in 2020, the number of people dying from pancreatic cancer will be the second most deadly cancer in America, behind lung and bronchial cancer.

Mary heard about a study at Mass. General Hospital/Harvard Medical School on new and innovative research for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. She spoke with the head of research to tell him she would give Harvard everything she had in order to be part of the trials that begin next year.

This Study Comes to W420 Radio

I had the opportunity to have several conversations with Dr. Wilfred Ngwa, MS, Ph.D. at Harvard who is conducting the study.  I asked him if he would come on America’s Cannabis Conversation show to discuss his discovery. Hear the interview with Dr. Wilfred Ngwa in Season 1, Episode 5

The experiments performed by ‘Dr. Will’ and his team use a strain of cannabis. We are about to get very technical, but I will shortly make it simple to understand. He said the endocannabinoid system (ECS) is a biological system composed of endocannabinoids.  These are endogenous lipid-based retrograde neurotransmitters that bind to cannabinoid receptors, and to cannabinoid receptor proteins expressed throughout the vertebrate central nervous system.  This includes the brain and peripheral nervous system. If you understood that, good for you.  Otherwise, I looked for an alternative way to describe what is happening.

Let me start by putting this in laymen terms: we have several highways in our body that we can use for both good and bad. The bad guys, in this case, pancreatic cancer cells jump on the highway and take off-ramps to the brain, lungs, liver, kidneys, and other organs and dump cancer all over the body. Dr. Ngwa is building up the white blood cells with cannabis to become what he calls the “swat team” to start killing cancer cells and reducing tumors in the pancreas.

Discoveries at Harvard Medical

One unexpected outcome is that the swat team also started killing cancer cells in other parts of the body. Dr. Ngwa says they hope to begin FDA-approved clinical trials early next year. I asked him a crucial question, “Does your protocol have implications to other forms of cancer?” He simply responded, “I believe so.”

I asked him what did he hope would be the outcome of his research: “I hope that we can increase the life expectancy of pancreatic cancer patients, and to do so that the treatment will be very productive and inexpensive, making it available to everyone”. Not everyone has the money or the access to cancer treatment centers. Dr Ngwa believes this is a straightforward procedure.  They can administered it in more places with the technology almost every community hospital already has in place.

What it Could Mean

Perkins Twist: implications of this new protocol based on cannabis are ground breaking.  The cannabis industry will have an FDA procedure to test its effectiveness and the side effects of cannabis for the treatment of deadly cancer. I know of several universities that are studying cannabis for treatment in a number of other illnesses. Could it be that we may find a way through mother nature to heal ourselves at a low cost, with it being all-natural? Will pharmaceutical companies start buying cannabis growers? You can find more information about Dr. Will at: http://www.dfhcc.harvard.edu/insider/member-detail/member/wilfred-ngwa-phd/

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