Our goal is to become the universal and go-to resource for those involved in the cannabis industry. We want to provide best-in-class education on topics like how to grow cannabis (and a cannabis business), cannabis entrepreneurship, and how to succeed in this space.
If you like writing about those things, you’ll be a good fit.
In return, you get access to our audience of cannabis entrepreneurs as well as a backlink. Plus the satisfaction of a job well done 🙂
Here’s the process for writing for us:
Read the guidelines below. It’s important. Additionally, familiarize yourself with our blog content and style (link here).
Fill out the form below to submit a bit about you and your article ideas (If you don’t have an article idea, we can work with you to provide one. We have a large content backlog. Mention that if that’s the case.). Our editor will review your submission and reach out to you with any next steps.
Here are our guidelines:
1. Be empathetic
2. Be useful
3. Be casual
4. Be data driven
5. Be thorough
6. Be original
7. Be engaging
Rule One: Be Empathetic
The cannabis industry is a flurry of confusion, excitement, naivety, and opportunity. We are stewards of confidence and knowledge, and we must understand our readers are coming to us with the hopes of guidance.
Therefore, rule number one is to put yourself in their shoes. What info would be useful? What tone would be appreciated? What imagery would help them understand better?
If you’ve been in the industry for a while, it’s easy to forget or overlook this stuff, but clarity, empathy, and just a little bit of understanding go a long way in making for a better article.
Rule Two: Be Useful
Core to our content strategy is utility. The reader should leave more effective at their job than they came.
So while thought pieces are interesting, we need to consistently ask ourselves, “so what?”
In fact, a great thought framework to walk through when you’re writing a post or making a point is:
- What?
- So what?
- Now what?
Essentially, let’s be useful to the reader. Provide tools, tips, tricks, tactics, and be spare on the exposition or opinionated rants.
Great examples of very *useful* blogs are:
- https://www.shopify.com/blog
While these blogs are entertaining as well, they are first and foremost purposeful and useful for the readers.
Rule Three: Be Data Driven
The world is filled with misleading headlines, PR fluff, and opinionated garbage. Thing is, there are a lot of fantastic writers that advance misleading opinions due to lack of research. They write persuasively and don’t do the world a damn bit of good.
We do research here.
The rule of thumb: when it comes to empirical statements (especially regarding laws or advice), no opinions unchecked. Back up everything with data/research.
Rule Four: Be Casual
Despite our respect for and reliance on research and data, we’re not scientists here and neither is our audience (for the most part). Write like you’re talking to a friend, a trusted friend. Someone you care about and are comfortable with. Someone you respect, but you’re not afraid to crack a joke here or there.
Rule Five: Be thorough
If you make a point, flesh it out fully. The reader shouldn’t leave confused. Everything should be cleared up by the end of the post, at which point the reader can then go on and put into action what we’ve written about.
If you can’t fully explain a concept, make sure you link out to a resource that can.
In general, opt for thoroughness over brevity. We want to be useful and clear, but we also want to make sure the point is understood. We love long form, so feel no pressure to wrap up in like 800 words, you’ve got the space to breathe here and fully explore your thoughts.
Rule Six: Be original
Don’t plagiarize; that’s obvious.
But also, don’t pitch “me-too-content.” If it’s just the same garbage rehashed that every other blogger is writing about, how can we stand out? How are we contributing?
We don’t want to be the noise. We want to be the signal.
Be original. It’s more fun. It’s more effective.
Here’s a great example of a piece we’ve published where the author wrote something no one else could because it’s so original and has her own experience in it: https://everythingbuttheplant.com/blogs/blog/how-to-start-a-marijuana-business-a-comprehensive-guide
Rule Seven: Be engaging
We’re storytellers writing to an audience of interesting and thoughtful people (who are busy), so use your words and images carefully to draw people into a narrative that is interesting and engaging. People shouldn’t want to skim or bounce, they should be drawn to each and every subsequent sentence. Craft your content usefully, but also artfully.