Marijuana Supplier and Dispensary
Because of cannabis’s federal scheduling, marijuana businesses cannot access traditional banking services.
Because cannabis remains a Schedule I substance under federal law, sales are treated as illicit. Banks face significant regulatory hurdles in serving cannabis businesses, including the requirement to file suspicious activity reports for each transaction, as these businesses remain federally prohibited.
As a result, most banks and major card networks refuse to process cannabis transactions or open bank accounts, leading many businesses to operate in cash. This barrier to accessing the financial system creates security risks, higher costs, and constrained growth and investment.
The government's red tape limits the full potential of these American businesses.
ISSUE
SOLUTION
THG worked to change the narrative around cannabis rescheduling.
We deployed multiple campaigns — each with a unique message and voice — to deliver pro-rescheduling messages to the current administration.
With help from influencers, grasstops, and paid advertising, we set out to portray cannabis in a more favorable light.
To start, THG conducted stakeholder mapping for the DEA, DOJ, and the White House to identify the networks around key decision-makers. From there, we let the creative tell the story.
Different messages, determined by audience testing, ran at various points throughout the six-month project. Paid ads surrounded selected targets within the administration. We ensured that the messages were everywhere they looked.
Paid CONTENT SYNDICATION & Media
Conservatives for Marijuana
In key swing states, the ads framed the issue as essential for true conservatives, and many young conservatives signaled support for reclassification.
Vets for New Therapies
Rescheduling marijuana is a win for veterans. This syndication campaign generated 2.85 million impressions in just one month.
Improved Healthcare Research
Focusing on the benefits to the medical and research communities, these ads helped humanize the change.
THG selected seven content creators, with a total of 5.5M followers, who posted on their social channels, generating 4.2M impressions and more than 20,500 article clicks in less than 72 hours.
INFLUENCERS
ONE-PAGERS
The President and his staff received handouts and one-pagers at donor meetings to further emphasize the message.
RESULT
The president noticed our ads — and changed his policy agenda.
Through A/B testing and multiple campaign refinements, we reached senior administration officials, including the president himself. At a donor meeting, he said he was seeing the issue everywhere.
Our campaign successfully put marijuana rescheduling on the president's policy agenda. Major news outlets covered the issue, further amplifying the impact through earned media.