Marketing & Promotion

Impressions and clicks once defined digital marketing success, but they never showed whether anyone actually paid attention. As privacy rules tighten and AI accelerates audience behavior, cannabis brands are turning to attention data to understand real engagement. Here's why vanity metrics are fading, how attention metrics work, and what they mean for compliant cannabis marketing strategies moving forward.

Public relations plays an outsized role in cannabis marketing — but impressions alone don’t prove value. This feature breaks down how to measure PR ROI, connect earned media to revenue and market share, and build attribution systems executives and CFOs actually trust.

As operators finalize their 2026 plans, fresh data shows cannabis consumers are changing in ways that directly impact marketing, product development, and retail strategy. From the rise of wellness and discreet formats to the growing demand for personalization, digital-first shopping, and founder-led authenticity, here’s what today’s consumers expect and how brands can adjust for the industry’s next era.

As the cannabis industry matures, PR and marketing demand greater discipline, credibility, and accountability. We asked a group of respected agencies to share what operators need to know about earned media, attribution, trust-building, and sustainable growth and how to make smarter decisions in a regulated market.

Green Lane Communication makes the case for trust-first public relations — where credibility, preparation, and respect for the press matter more than shortcuts, hype, or empty promises.

Surfside brings a performance-first lens to cannabis marketing, using retail media, attribution, and data-driven personalization to connect media investments directly to measurable business growth.

Pisgah Peaks Ventures helps cannabis operators scale marketing and revenue through embedded, fractional teams — prioritizing brand-building, realistic metrics, and execution that compounds over time.

KCSA Strategic Communications brings decades of experience in regulated industries to cannabis, helping brands build credibility, navigate volatility, and align earned media with long-term business goals.

Maverick Public Relations focuses on long-term credibility in cannabis communications, emphasizing trust, data-driven strategy, and disciplined storytelling in highly regulated markets.

Cannabis Marketing 3.0 is here, and the old playbook doesn’t work anymore. Social myths have collapsed, AI alone can’t save creative, and brands are losing customers because their websites feel like relics from 2017. These are the new realities of marketing in a rapidly changing industry where creativity, speed, data, and customer understanding must work together. The brave win. The passive fade. Here’s what actually drives growth now.