Emerging Thought Leadership from USCC Reveals Urgent Need for Consumer Research in the Cannabis Space

SoapBoxSample Announces the Launch of a New Cannabis Consumer Research Service

As competition heats up in the cannabis market, what factors will determine whether brands can survive “the green rush”?  One clear takeaway emerged from thought leaders at the US Cannabis Conference (USCC) in Phoenix last week – know your customers; they may not be who you think they are.

Business owners, investors and experts gathered at the USCC for an event focused on the new era of cannabis. SoapBoxSample led a session in partnership with Jupiter Research and ProGrowTech titled, “Will You Survive the Green Rush?” The session focused on how consumer research can help companies get the right message to the right audience at the right time. At the start of the session, Jacqueline Rosales, SoapBoxSample COO, took questions from the audience that were sent out to respondents in real time, providing attendees with immediate feedback from real consumers.

SoapBoxSample presented data collected from cannabis consumers – much of what they uncovered contrasted with current assumptions. One example was the startling statistic that while 1/3 of cannabis consumers are purchasing in dispensaries, only 12% trust dispensary employees as a source of information about new products. Companies that distribute their products in dispensaries left the event with a clear directive that opportunities to educate consumers are being left on the table.

To demonstrate their commitment to cannabis research and their passion for the cannabis industry, SoapBoxSample announced the launch of their new product — a bi-weekly survey of cannabis consumers built around the research needs of growing cannabis businesses. Clients will be able to tap into a custom-built resource, ask questions, and access insights – all at a low cost.

Kaila Strong, Dir. of Marketing for Jupiter Research, a vaporizer technology company, urged business leaders to take a more conscious approach in their marketing. “This type of research is useful for product testing, product development, allocation of budget and also our own internal understanding,” said Kaila. “The golden rule of marketing is that you don’t assume that you are your consumer.”

Andrew Myers, CEO of ProGrowTech, a company that builds high-end lighting solutions for large-scale grow operations emphasized the importance of research for his company as they move into direct-to-consumer sales and unveil new products for 2019.

Brands that are able to gather feedback from their customers in order to improve their products and marketing are the ones that will survive and emerge as leaders in the industry. “People are invested in this space because they believe in it, and they’re passionate about it,” said Jacqueline Rosales.

Read Another Cannabis News Release – Age, Gender Play a Role in Cannabis Consumer Habits

In the Cannabis Market, Big Spenders Plan to Be Bigger Spenders

New research from SoapBoxSample reveals cannabis spending will increase even faster than expected, as new products attract big spenders in higher income brackets

 

Consumer spending on cannabis products is on the rise with no signs of slowing. A nation-wide poll conducted by SoapBoxSample uncovered that users intend to spend more on cannabis this year than last year, and even more next year. The study focused on a range of cannabis consumer types, their shopping habits and the motivations behind their purchasing decisions.

How do cannabis consumers currently get their supply? 52% buy their supply from a friend, 37% go to a dispensary and 18% shop online for cannabis. (This data includes people who shop in multiple outlets.) By narrowing in on the preferences of cannabis users with the spendiest habits, SoapBoxSample uncovered some trends unique to this group. Those who spent more than $101 dollars last month use cannabis products to relieve stress (65%), and also for enjoyment (50%), but not necessarily for social reasons (29%).

Not surprisingly, the biggest spenders are likely to buy in dispensaries, where they can browse through an array of different products. An unexpected finding is that 47% of users in this high-spending group rely on recommendations when deciding which dispensary to visit, compared to 32% of those in the lower-spending categories.

While big spenders are throwing down for premium products, they are also looking for deals. 44% of users in the high-spending group look for special offers for new users when choosing a dispensary to visit (compared with 31% of users who spend $51 – $100 per month, and 29% of users who spend $1 – $50).

The survey also revealed that the highest-spending group is looking forward to trying new products. Among respondents who have not tried them, edible baked goods or candies, topical ointments, vaporizers, and cannabis-enhanced beverages are a few of the products likely to be sampled in the next six months.

To predict trends in the cannabis maket, SoapBoxSample also looked at the preferences of users in high income brackets. Those with incomes of $100K+ are more likely to purchase cannabis products through a dispensary than those with lower incomes. Additionally, users who make over $100K per year are more likely to choose vaporizer or edible products that those who make between $50K and $99K.

As new dispensaries pop up, and competition tightens, consumer preferences will determine which locations will survive. SoapBoxSample revealed that when it comes to in-store cannabis buying, everyone wants a good price, but women are more concerned with the friendliness/helpfulness of dispensary employees (59% of females say they look for this quality when choosing a dispensary compared to 45% of males.) Another interesting finding — 20% of men say they look at advertising when choosing a dispensary, compared to 12% of females.

Every generation of dispensary shoppers say they look for price, location, and friendly employees. Baby Boomers are more likely than Gen Xers or Millennials to state that they look for friendly employees when finding a dispensary. Baby Boomers and Gen Xers are more interested in the dispensary location than Millennials.

The survey results presented in this press release are part of a larger study of cannabis users (N=1,003) and non-users (N=502), fielded between June 28, 2018 and July 2, 2018, with a margin of error of +/- 3%.

To learn more about SoapBoxSample’s cannabis research, visit SoapBoxSample.com/cannabis

Quirk’s January Issue

Google now processes, on average, over 40,000 search queries every second; this translates to over 3.5 billion searches per day and 1.2 trillion searches per year worldwide. The way people engage with brands and online content is constantly evolving. No single day of digital behavior is the same as another. If I want to learn about the newest fitness gadget, I search it online. By the next day, I may be over fitness and want to know how to convert my home to a “smart” home, so I search it up. Later that same afternoon, I may want a new refrigerator that can build me a shopping list. Or, I may just want to buy something mundane like shampoo (you know the kind that makes my hair that cool silver-purple color) , so I simply look it up on Amazon and click “buy now.” If brands want to stay competitive, they need to able to keep up with radical, fast-paced changes in consumer online behavior.

Brands have a great appetite for understanding how people behave and make decisions online. They need to understand their customer’s purchase influencers beyond demographic and attitudinal data; passive tracking data captures how consumers move across the digital world, allowing brands to keep up by tracking their customer’s digital journeys – in real-time.

Adopting a passive metering strategy is not without challenges. The challenges range from technology implementation and respondent adoption to understanding of the data. There are oceans of it, and it is totally unstructured. Despite these challenges, more and more clients are diving in and having success finding those nuggets of “data gold” they would never have uncovered with surveys alone. Brands need to start somewhere, and rather than trying to uncover the holy grail of all that Passive Metering can do, simply looking for trends in the data at a high level can deliver those unexpected “aha moments” brands want.

Keep in mind, consumers are complex. Passive Metering is a super effective starting point to understand what people are doing without disrupting or influencing their behavior. However, there is no one simple research formula or methodology that is all-knowing. Blending methodologies has been — and will continue to be– crucial for brands to really understand their customers. The opportunities for connecting digital behavioral data with traditional survey data, 3rd party data or even longitudinal data available through other innovative research approaches such as Insight Communities, translates to in-depth, actionable insights brands need.

We keep hearing Passive Metering is coming as the next “big” thing in research. Truth is, it is already here. It has been here for years. I encourage researchers to stop overcomplicating it. Take the risk of not knowing everything in advance, find great clients to experiment with and dive in. Remember, you don’t know what you don’t know until you know it.

Read the Full Issue

U.S. Hispanic Holiday Shopping Trends

We polled members of MySoapBox to find out how people are giving and gifting this holiday season. This year we focused on Hispanics  – the fastest growing consumer segment in the U.S.

 

SoapBoxSample Announces Two Promotions Following Year-Long Hiring Initiative

Newly appointed Vice President and Senior Research Director Promoted from Within

After a year of strong growth resulting in major hiring initiatives throughout 2017, SoapBoxSample announced the promotion of two employees. Mike Chavarria has been promoted to Vice President of Business Development and Valerie Hanson has advanced to Senior Research Director. Both are effective immediately.

Mike has an extensive background in Market Research with over 10 years in the industry. In his role as Director of Business Development since 2014, he has distinguished himself as an expert in high touch research approaches, including Insight Communities, Mobile Research, and Digital Passive Metering.

Valerie was the first employee of SoapBoxSample’s Full Service department. She joined the company in 2014 following the acquisition of CickIQ. Valerie’s vast experience and in depth knowledge of client of key client’s business, has continued to result in year of year account growth.

Over the last year SoapBox has been on a hiring kick, and has increased the staff by 25% since January. Last month, SoapBox celebrated their 5-year anniversary.

Jacqueline Rosales, COO, commented, “SoapBoxSample’s staff expansion allows the company to focus on optimizing new products and services while continuing to provide high-quality, customized solutions for our clients. The addition of new talent, along with the incredible success rate of internal advancement and promotions has allowed us to build an amazing staff.”

Over the course of 2017, SoapBoxSample has been focused on adding enhancements to MySoapBox Meter, their Passive Metering technology. MySoapBox Meter tracks consumers’ step-by-step interactions as they move across the digital world. Clients can build a detailed roadmap of the path to purchase without disrupting the process.

In 2016, the SoapBoxSample and icanmakeitbetter (ICMIB) operations were integrated following the acquisition of ICMIB by SoapBox’s parent company ISA. With the addition of Insight Community platform capabilities, SoapBoxSample now offers an even more diverse portfolio of products.