The recent legalization of recreational and medical cannabis use in many states has spurred a significant influx of point-of-sale (POS) data. This data contains a vast amount of potential that can be analyzed and translated into real-world outcomes and used in driving fact-based decision making. As with other industries, data harnessed from cannabis sales can be used to enhance and power innovation in customer experience and establish strategies that reflect consumer purchasing trends.
Streamlining and optimizing ecommerce
Although many industries had already been implementing ecommerce features for a few years now, the COVID-19 pandemic vastly accelerated the world’s transition to online shopping. Now, with many organizations relying on ecommerce platforms to facilitate their business operations, it’s critical that establishments utilize POS data in designing consumer-friendly shopping experiences.
By implementing an effective POS system that integrates data from many online marketplaces, businesses can streamline digital transactions and ensure that their customers aren’t obstructed by unnecessary obstacles and challenges. Data achieved from POS systems can also be used to custom-tailor product recommendations based on pricing, strain, and THC content. Demonstrating that your business understands its consumers and is working to provide them with a superior shopping experience not only increases the likelihood of a potential sale, but also aids in developing a stronger seller-buyer relationship and gaining a loyal customer.
Providing consumers with the products they want
The underlying engine beneath any successful sales strategy is developing a product inventory that reflects consumer demands. POS data allows dispensaries to gain a better understanding of their customer demographic and, in turn, provide a superior selection to their patrons. Due to the psychoactive nature of cannabis, it’s critical that customers have access to the product that best suits their needs.
With hundreds of different possible combinations of cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids, each strain of cannabis has its own unique psychoactive profile. Such a wide variety of combinations means each strain can have a significantly different effect from one another, and this disparity is only compounded by the variations in how individual consumers respond to cannabis. Using POS data, cannabis cultivators and dispensaries can determine which strains are best suited for certain demographics and direct customers to products that will maximize their user satisfaction.
But having the right products will do little good if they’re difficult to find. Visual merchandising plays a huge role in generating product appeal and guiding purchasing decisions. How and where products are displayed, along with general interior layout, are integral when it comes to dispensary design. POS data allows dispensaries to track information such as which products are frequently purchased together, and then use this information to ensure that these items are displayed next to each other. Furthermore, dispensaries can use this data to determine which items should be made most readily available so that customers don’t have to wait on popular products.
Promotions and customer loyalty programs
Non-surprisingly, dispensaries see a significant uptick in business during weekends, holidays, and other special occasions. By using POS data in their decision-making, dispensaries are able to coordinate promotions with their inventory to assist in managing traffic on busier days. Furthermore, offering promotions that align with holidays and special occasions also incentivizes recurring interest in your dispensary from repeat customers.
Loyalty and rewards programs can also play a significant role in establishing strong seller-buyer relationships and creating long-term patrons. Satisfied customer experiences tend to grow exponentially, as one recommendation and good review often leads to another.
So where do I start?
Meaningful and actionable data requires a comprehensive end-to-end solution that can provide your business with reliable data integration, governance, analytics, and visualization. To learn more about what data analytics can do for your cannabis business, check out Dimensional Insight’s Cannabis page.
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