Cannabis business resolutions for 2022

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While 2021 hadn’t gone quite as we in the cannabis industry might have hoped, with major government regulatory changes going on around banking, legalization, etc., the industry continued to grow and more Americans supported federal legalization. In other words, cannabis is nearing normalization and all signs point to further growth in 2022. Is Your Company Ready?

Now is the time to make your plans and make resolutions for the next 12 months. Here are five key cannabis business resolutions for 2022 to consider as you develop your goals and strategies to meet those goals this year.

1. Create an email marketing plan

As the saying goes – the more things change, the more they stay the same. Nowhere is this statement more accurate when it comes to advertising and marketing than in the cannabis industry. As the industry evolves and grows, advertising and marketing options remain limited, and this is why email marketing is so important to companies in and with the cannabis industry.

Cannabis license holders and ancillary business owners must strategically and purposefully prioritize email marketing in 2022. This does not mean that you should send a series of general messages to large lists or people. That’s a recipe for failure when it comes to email marketing! No, that means you should take the time to get the right help or learn how to run email marketing campaigns effectively on your own.

First, read the following articles and learn more about email marketing strategy, execution, and mistakes to avoid:

2. Review your intellectual property portfolio

One of the things we learned from the MJBiz Factbook 2021 is that there are eight key factors that investors look out for when considering investing in a cannabis business and that intellectual property (IP) is on that list :

• Experience, qualifications and strength of the management team: 67%
• Potential level of return on investment: 56%
• Detailed and realistic business plan: 44%
• Historical financial data or performance: 33%
• Potential of the company and its role and awareness in the industry: 33%
• Pro forma financial metrics: 22%
• Schedule for the investor to get a return on their investment: 22%
• Strength of the company’s defensible assets, such as its intellectual property or equipment: 11%

Intellectual property includes patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets that protect your unique business advantage in the marketplace so others cannot copy and benefit from your work.

If you haven’t already reviewed your intangible assets and put a process in place to protect your intellectual property, you need to do so in 2022. With the growth and increased competition in this industry and the increase in merger and acquisition activity, there is no time to delay maintaining your IP portfolio.

3. Strengthen your teams

Your company is only as strong as the team that leads it – at all levels. As suggested by the list of the eight top things investors look out for when considering investing in a cannabis business in # 2 above, the experience, skill and strength of the management team come first.

To meet your goals in 2022 and beyond, now is the time to strengthen your internal and external teams.

To do this, you need to make sure you have the right people internally and the right vendors externally to take your business to the next level. Your company is only as strong as its weakest link. Read the articles below and start empowering your teams now:

4. Assess your ecological footprint

Sustainability and the environmental impact of cannabis companies have become hot topics in recent years. A lot of research has been done and evidence shared showing how cannabis cultivation has negative effects on the environment. The problem is exacerbated by illegal breeders.

Research shows that growing cannabis has negative effects on water, land, animals, air quality, electricity, and more. Beyond cultivation, the cannabis industry has a negative impact on the environment along the entire supply chain, with single-use packaging waste being one of the biggest problems.

Now is the time for cannabis companies to step in and make changes to further differentiate the black market from the legal market. Changes in sustainability and environmental impacts provide a perfect opportunity to widen the gap between legal and illegal cannabis markets.

5. Plan your exit strategy

What is your ultimate goal for your company? Would you like to work in your company until you retire? Then what? Do you want your business to be acquired or do you want to grow and acquire other businesses? Every business should have an exit plan, and with mergers and acquisitions happening every day in the cannabis industry, now is the time to develop yours.

An exit strategy is critical for several reasons. Even if you don’t plan to exit the cannabis industry in the near future, an exit strategy will help you:

• set goals
• Make business decisions and know which direction the company should go
• Make your company more attractive to investors and / or lenders
• Avoid unwanted exits

Think where the industry could go in the future as you develop your exit strategy. What happens if adult cannabis is legalized at the federal level? What happens when big companies with big pockets get into the cannabis industry? These are the types of questions you should ask yourself so you will be ready when the industry inevitably changes in the future.

Key takeaways from the cannabis business decisions for 2022

Your 2022 business resolutions should focus on getting your business going, not just for the next 12 months, but for the years to come. Build a strong foundation and you will be well positioned to thrive in the future.