With the growing number of people in the United States, and world, looking for ways to support local charities and communities, community-oriented cannabis businesses become important contributors.
Through business partnerships and donations, marijuana company employees are able to support local non-profit organizations through their work at the company. Many of these organizations focus on social justice issues such
purposes include supporting homeless individuals and families, fighting discrimination against people with disabilities, promoting community involvement and education, and combatting substance abuse.
Because of this partnerships between companies and donations from employees, pot shops are one of the only places where you can see and be yourself. Whether you are an employee or owner, being able to contribute to a good cause is important.
This article will talk about some of the different types of marijuana companies that can help contribute to the community and how you can do so.
Contributions to local businesses
When a client or customer is very specific about their budget, it is possible to help them out with some local business contributions. Many marijuana businesses are able to provide free products in exchange for business, which is a nice way to say thank you for your patronage.
There are several ways to give money away. A cash bar would be the easiest way to hand out money, but pot frisbees and golf carts can be paired together as well as ways to help recipients feel special.
There are several websites that collect money from the public and send it to specific organizations like Way Too Long To Name That Which Is That Which Can Help. If you are feeling generous, you can even jokingly send them thousands of dollars!
These online platforms make it easy to collect money from people in your community without being directly involved in an event. It also helps build relationship-type donations into the future.
Encouraging the use of local banking services
Up until now, most people who signed up to buy cannabis in California had to rely on either non-bank cash advance or credit card purchases.
By working with Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Discover,Californian bank users have a new option: encourage their customers to use their services by offering them a reduced rate on their first deposit if they apply for a Wells Fargo credit card.
This offer is only available through the Wellsfargocloqvvvcard.com website and through Wells Fargo’s mobile app.
Supporting grassroots organizations
Community is an important consideration when looking at how the marijuana market should operate. The industry has a social responsibility to support local charities and non-profits, and work towards changing current drug laws to allow for more compassionate treatment.
This is another way of thinking about the market- philanthropy pairs well with money spent on community development, education, & health services. People who donate to non-profits are typically not business people and do not have the expertise to evaluate businesses fully.
However, business people can be a great fit because they can evaluate a company on their donations rather than from the outside. For example, if a company spends $10,000 in fundraising but doesn’t see any results, then perhaps it was not worth it.
There are several ways businesspeople in the cannabis industry assist non-profit organizations: donating time, facilitating fundraisers, hosting events for donors to meet other individuals in the industry, and helping with marketing campaigns.
Charitable events
Having a marijuana social event can be a fun way to meet other people and enjoy a cannabis experience. Many people find it enjoyable to attend events for the social interaction and to learn more about the industry.
An event is a great place to engage in community. Look for open spaces with free TVs, decorations, and snacks. You want to make sure they have an adequate amount of security because you’re going to be surrounded by people with different interests and behaviors.
If there are prerequisites for attendance, such as age or drug use status, those should be considered before creating the event, as there may not be enough space if there are too many people looking to attend.
Marketing marijuana as a product similar to wine
As seen in the previous bullet point, marketing marijuana as a similar to wine is an effective way to support local charities.
By doing this, organizations such as The Giving Campaign promote their programs and services through their network of charities, which includes marijuana-related organizations.
The Giving Campaign was recently added as a trusted source for nonprofit information by the United States Department of Treasury. This makes The Giving Campaign one of the first national nonprofits to receive this designation.
Local community members can either purchase marijuana from a state-regulated store or from a home-grow store, which is typically located in more affluent neighborhoods. These stores provide education about cannabis to residents, thus increasing community participation.
Generate positive publicity for the brand
Even though cannabis is a relatively new industry, there are already signs of future community support systems. Several local businesses have partnered to generate publicity for their establishments by offering complimentary products in their stores and/or events through hospitality partnerships.
Many of these hospitality partnerships include establishing connections with local charities and organizations to obtain free or discounted products or services. For example, McClellan Grocery in Sacramento offers a free marijuana-tincture bottle at their annual charity drug-testing event, where members of the public can request a free product if they provide proof of purchase via the company website.
These networking events are great way to build support for your organization, as you get recognition from others for your product or service but also do something positive with your time and energy.
Enhances customer service
As outlined in the bullet point, community members can visit a dispensary to support a local charity or donate money to a charity run by the same organization.
By supporting local charities, these dispensaries promote and increase their communities support system and their products. By donating money to charity runs, these companies earn additional funds for their operations.
To maintain great customer service, staff must be knowledgeable about their products and services. By being aware of their products and services, staff can better help the client. This continues the friendly vibe of the establishment which increases its appeal and sticks people to it.
Customer service is important to people because it affects how they purchase from or interact with an establishment. If people do not feel like they are being treated fairly or with respect, then they will not buy from them which is why this is so important.
Helps customers manage their cash flow
In addition to having a debit/credit card acceptability policy, cannabis shops and marketplaces offer cash flow plans. These allow you to set up an account to manage your cash flow, which includes having a limit on how much money you can possess in cash while shopping at sellers.
This can help prevent fraud and money laundering, as only the seller has access to the correct amount of funds. Set up is free and you can have as much or as little of a tolerance as you want for ingesting cannabis, so there is no reason not to take advantage of this feature.
In my opinion, this feature is one of the best parts of the marijuana industry. Set up helps show people that you are serious about your business and offers help for people who get stuck with very little funds. It also helps show others that the business owner is open and helpful.
