A portion of the people looking to purchase marijuana for medical reasons may remember the first go around involving a beeper or a friend’s basement. That; however, alongside attitudes toward marijuana in general, has changed and General Cannabis (CANA) is at the helm of this shift. A technology-based Internet marketing service company operating in the ancillary markets of the medicinal cannabis industry, General Cannabis has begun revolutionizing the once fragmented industry.
Through their subsidiary, Weedmaps.com and the site’s mobile application, a user can identify the nearest dispensaries for medical marijuana. Today, medicinal cannabis is legally sold at more than 2,400 dispensaries in 16 states, meaning those with doctor’s recommendations have plenty of options to sift through. Today, General Cannabis unveiled the latest tool in its arsenal for change. The company announced the launch of a new website, WeedMaps.TV, which can be accessed through the homepage of WeedMaps.com.
Through its videos, the site looks to educate patients and healthcare professionals about medical marijuana. Utilizing both short video clips and full episodes, WeedMaps.TV enables dispensaries and ancillary businesses to promote their businesses and products and provide patients and health care providers access to information, resources and industry expert advice. The goal is to help elucidate the functions of medicinal cannabis and assist the 25 dispensary clients they produce content for in widening their customer base. The success of WeedMaps.com and the potential for the new television site to draw in customers, is a testament to the changing attitudes toward medicinal cannabis, and cannabis in general. The desire to advertise and expand the client base is indicative of a highly competitive industry ($87 billion is the current estimate from the Cato Institute). Should this bill pass, the need for these tools will increase even further, helping companies like General Cannabis and their subsidiaries to expand and embrace a larger audience.
WeedMaps.TV, through its educational videos, attempts to widen acceptance and educate the consumer to help chip away at the misinformation that has kept marijuana from legalization for so long. This represents one of the many tools, including merchant processing and daily coupons known as Daily Deals, that General Cannabis has relied on to help make medicinal cannabis a more accepted, organized and legal industry.
Should last week’s bill, introduced by U.S. Reps Barney Frank (D-Mass) and Ron Paul (R-Texas), pass there could be a lot more than that. The bill removes the federal prohibition on marijuana, permitting states to produce, regulate and tax it, potentially helping to create significant cash flow and widen investment and job opportunities within the field. Should it pass, it would be a ground breaking moment for cannabis and related industries, expanding already broad business prospects for companies currently operating. The legislative decision remains to be seen while medical marijuana companies, operating in what the Cato Institute estimates to be an $87 billion market, continue to plug away and revolutionize the current landscape.
