Cannabis shops are the face of the cannabis industry, and they should be the epicenter for expert knowledge and service. It is, in fact, where ALL of the customer interactions are happening currently.
Unfortunately, it’s very common for cannabis shops to be filled with people who have never been given proper training about cannabis, and are not equipped with the proper tools to truly service the modern cannabis consumer. But it’s not their fault!
In fact, one of the biggest challenges for the cannabis professional is finding authoritative information regarding cannabis. A lot of the time, the staff at a cannabis shop is limited to the same disorganized (mis)information that the customers find on the internet.
This is why Ganjier is so critical to our industry! By bringing together some of the best and most experienced minds in the field of cannabis, Ganjier is creating a training and Certification Program designed to ensure people have the necessary information, training, and skills needed to provide perfect service to the consumers.
Here are a few examples of what that looks like!
Budtending: The Most Important Job in Cannabis
One of the most important jobs in the cannabis industry is budtending, and, considering how important it is to the industry, it is kind of ridiculous that it is considered an entry-level position.
With all of the restrictions around cannabis, Budtenders are the ones with the unique responsibility of selling cannabis for consumption, and interacting with the myriad of different cannabis consumer types. They are on the front lines of providing service!
Since most of the public is still unaware of what quality looks like in cannabis, they need someone to help them know what they are looking for. They need someone that can guide them into an understanding of cannabis and curate products that will meet their specific needs. They need someone they can trust.
Budtenders are supposed to be that “someone.”
But a Budtender who never got the training to understand what quality looks like, or how to meet the needs of their customers, are basically a vending machine, and, honestly, that is what much of the public has come to expect from their Budtenders.
Furthermore, for a brick and mortar shop to be successful in our digital age, it is paramount that it provide a service that goes beyond product navigation and processing. Buying cannabis online and having it delivered to your house is already a reality, and online cannabis purchasing is only going to increase over time. In short, stores need to be better than a vending machine if they expect people to show up!
The cannabis shops that will thrive are going to be the ones that people enjoy going to because of the service they receive. They have a staff that can go beyond the product descriptions written on the packaging and make sure that each customer leaves happy and confident in their purchases. In other words, they have a Ganjier!
People that go through the Ganjier Certification will be trained how to identify quality in cannabis. From how it is produced, to how it’s processed, to how it is sold, our Council teaches everything that goes into creating a quality product. This includes training in the Systematic Assessment Protocol (SAP) – the Ganjier’s official guide for grading quality in cannabis flower and concentrates.
Budtenders are not only expected to be knowledgeable about cannabis, they need to be able to use that knowledge to help people get what they want. This is why the Ganjier program has a strong focus on customer service. Through the lens of our Customer Interaction Protocol (CIP), our Council of experts will train you how to effectively listen to the needs of your clients and use your expertise to curate products and convey knowledge.
Buyer: Curating Excellence in Cannabis
The Buyer for a cannabis shop works behind the scenes. It is their job to procure and curate the shop’s menu. In other words, they spend most of their day drowning in emails and unscheduled visits from potential vendors that are looking to get their product on the shelf.
The Buyer also has to simultaneously navigate a heavily regulated industry (whose rules are constantly changing), keep up on inventory levels (sometimes in multiple locations), and understand market trends. It’s a big challenge.
But how do they make a decision about who gets the shelf space? How do they ensure they are buying the correct products to meet the needs of all their customers?
Yes, a great Buyer needs to be aware of things like market trends; however, their primary job remains is always deciding on whether or not the quality of a product matches the acquisition price. Before anything reaches the shelf, a Buyer sits down and grades the quality of the product and makes the call to buy or pass.
If a Buyer does not have the skills necessary to grade quality, they are at a huge disadvantage when it comes to curating their inventory to meet the needs of the customers. The customer may not always be right, but they know what they like, and, if they can’t get the products they want at your store, they will go someplace else.
The Ganjier Program will make sure that a Buyer has become masterful at grading quality. This not only includes understanding how to assess the quality of a finished cannabis product, it also includes learning how quality is produced.
A huge part of a Buyer’s job involves speaking with vendors, and everything goes a lot smoother if the Buyer understands how the vendor is making their product. They know what questions to ask in order to get a full picture of the quality of the product and they know how quality translates to an acquisition price.
In short, the Buyer is the gatekeeper for products in the store. It is vital they have the assessment skills and industry knowledge necessary to do their job well. The well-being of the store is dependent upon it.
By becoming a Ganjier, you will be thoroughly trained in EVERY aspect of this process, plus have our signature Systematic Assessment Protocol™ app in your hand to perform the analysis.
Inventory: First Line of Defense
The Inventory Crew is the first line of defense for quality control at a cannabis shop. After all the samples have been sampled, and all the orders have been placed, the product finally arrives at the store.
The inventory department is in charge of receiving, storing, and keeping track of the products as they make their way through the store. A lot can go wrong.
For example, incorrectly packaging and storing products can cause mold to form, and having a lot of lighting and/or a high temperature in the storage room can degrade the flower.
The Inventory Crew needs to understand what goes into making quality cannabis – a big part of which is understanding how these products retain their integrity until it gets to the consumer. Standard operating procedures need to be put in place to ensure that quality standards are maintained.
The Ganjier Certification ensures that the Inventory Crew has the skill and knowledge to do this work effectively!
For example, Ganjier training gives inventory clerks the assessment skills (SAP) to identify quality issues at the point of delivery, ie, before the product gets accepted into inventory. Ganjier training also gives students wisdom in creating storing and tracking procedures that do not lead to the degradation of the products.
At the end of the day, before a product hits the sales floor, it passes through the hands of the Inventory Crew. Wouldn’t it be great if they had the skills to make sure everything looks the way it should before the customer sees it?
There should be a Ganjier at every shop
If a shop wants to be successful, everyone needs to be great at what they do. There really isn’t a position at a cannabis shop that couldn’t benefit from Ganjier training, and, just because you are in one position now, doesn’t mean that you won’t want to move into a new position tomorrow.
The Ganjier Certification can help you be ready for any opportunity that comes your way. It’s a language that translates to every aspect of the industry and gives you the skills necessary to be the expert in the room.
More than that, Ganjier is a community. It’s a place where cannabis professionals from all over the world will come together, learn, grow, and share expertise and wisdom. It’s the place where people can be trained by the experts to be an expert. Ganjier is the space that elevates the conversation around cannabis.
Make sure you sign up for the interest list for details on how to become a Certified Ganjier. Applications to apply are currently closed but will open again in the near future for people on the interest list.
