The cannabis industry is complex.
Narrowing compliance requirements. Rapidly evolving regulations. Newcomers constantly adding on to the pressure to accelerate growth.
It can be tough trying to stay ahead of the competition and within the lines of the law. So how are the big players in cannabis doing it?
Coupling five best practices with the use of modern cloud technology helps cultivators and distributors set a flexible foundation for their businesses that can be optimized from state to state.
Reducing compliance headaches is your first obstacle to overcome on the road to success as a cannabis distributor. Start by integrating your enterprise software with state compliance systems, such as BioTrackTHC and METRIC.
You don’t just need bare-bones cannabis tracking – you need to track virtually unlimited data points throughout your supply chain. Use this methodology for all regulated materials – extraction, edibles, etc. – through the production process.
Manage your inventory and production with two goals in mind: to meet and exceed customer demand. Ideally, should demand grow, your business should grow with it (while minimizing waste). Stay on the lookout for any constraints that could result in packaging and raw material shortages, and record by-products for the reuse of trim and useful waste. Put everything else on autopilot, such as real-time data collection, financial analyses, and forecasting.
Ensure that customers get the right product at the right time by integrating barcode scanning and serial tracking. All the top performers in inventory and warehouse management do it (we’re looking at you, Amazon).
Ultimately, it’s your customers that are going to keep you in business. Nurture customer relationships with a well-integrated CRM that provides up-to-date information from marketing, sales, and support. We’ve all grown accustomed to the luxuries of instant gratification, so set up an online shop that allows customers to securely browse inventory, review past orders, and place new ones.
Cultivating a successful, scalable cannabis business comes with its challenges. You need flexibility, data, and modern technology that will allow you to efficiently produce high-quality products and ingredients. It’s possible – but, you’ll need a game plan.
Register for our upcoming webinar on strategies for standing out as a cannabis distributor, part of our cannabis industry education series!