Can Marketing Reduce Cannabis Stigma?
Opinion Piece Believes Most See Cannabis as Good, Though Cannabis Stigma Persists – LPC
Ben Plomion, Chief Growth Officer at the GumGum media company, believes cannabis stigma is real. He also believes that marketing can help solve that problem in the United States. He points to the close of the Prohibition Era as proof. Apparently the liquor industry was shamed into not advertising when alcohol was legal again.
“Here we are now, nearly 90 years later, and we’re seeing something similar,” Plomion writes. “This time, though, it is the marketing agencies that are late to the party. Yep — the cannabis party has been raging for nearly a decade, but where is the advertising?”
He also points to a poll that says 80 per cent of Americans in all 50 states agree cannabis should be legal. Plomion believes the only answer is cannabis stigma – that most people think cannabis is fine, but also think others think it’s not. (Another possibility is that it might be the 20 per cent who are in power. And that’s assuming that the numbers, which seem high, are right.)
Even though cannabis is legal in Canada, the strict marketing laws only reinforce the stigma. This is especially apparent – though perhaps understandable – with edibles packaging. From the beginning, the government restricted the use of bright packaging that could attract children. But does it go too far when Seth Rogen can’t say that he promotes his own brand of cannabis?
There’s good reason for keeping cannabis away from youth. But there’s also good reason to help lose cannabis stigma.
This editorial content from the LPC News Team provides analysis, insight, and perspective on current news articles. To read the source article this commentary is based upon, please click on the link below. Are you part of the legal cannabis industry in Canada? Add Your Listing and get found by your potential customers.