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Facebook, now known as Meta on top of being addicting and also incredibly annoying. It was pretty cool a decade ago when it was just your friends whereas now in addition to every member of your family using it, the constant addition of new features makes the user experience slow and clunky to say the least. Oh yeah, your boss and your way-too-conservative for their own good grandparents are on there too, so you should think twice before posting that picture of you doing keg stands at that house party last weekend. You can also forget about talking about cannabis brands, legalization, and how medical marijuana should be made legal worldwide, unless you want your entire family to know.
True story, last week I posted on Facebook a generic 4/20 greeting like, “Happy 20th day of April. There’s nothing special about this day whatsoever!” Those whom I work with in the cannabis industry liked the post and whatnot, then my extremely Catholic grandmother (she even plays piano at her church) commented “Must be a special day! Happy day!” Immediately my aunt who’s always acted condescending towards me since I can remember commented, “it’s a holiday for cannabis users.” So, yeah. That was awkward.
In this article we will explore cannabis-friendly social media platforms beyond Facebook (I refuse to call it Meta) where you can discuss your thc topics without scorn. There are plenty of cannabis friendly social media sites where you can make friends with like minded people, learn the latest news, learn about new product releases from dispensaries, and even get up to speed on the goings-on in your local cannabis community. Later in the article we will discuss wether or not Linkedin is cannabis friendly as well as their THC-friendly competitor Leafwire, and how you might be able to use them to find your dream job working for a cannabis business.
How Are Cannabis-Friendly social media platforms different than normal ones?
Certain social media platforms have strict rules and guidelines for posting about Cannabis. Users of such platforms often find themselves banned and their content removed just seconds after posting. In this piece we will touch on some well known platforms you might already use, but some of the others in addition to offering a stigma-free space provide users with unique and interesting tools that stoners 10 years ago would have loved to have access to. Let’s explore more shall we?
I know what you’re telling yourself “Isn’t Instagram owned by Facebook?” while this is indeed true, by making a few adjustments in the way you use the site can open up an image-centric digital space inhabited by cannabis enthusiasts and cannabis companies without having to leave the app store.
As Instagram has become more and more popular, it’s functionality has improved tremendously making it much more user-friendly. Now instead of having one account signed into the app you can manage up to 5 different accounts! This means you can manage your personal page you share with your friends, family, and co-workers (a public-face if you will) in addition to a completely anonymous account where you can learn about new cannabis strains, recipe videos for cool edibles you’ve never seen before, and posts from your local cannabis retailers so you never miss a drop of you favorite cannabis products.
On instagram there continues to be no shortage of cannabis consumers who are also influencers that you can get tips from, and even interact with in a limited fashion. Thanks to the apps use of hashtags you can find just the particular niche you love and even new ones you never thought of exploring. Since Instagram is an image-centric app it is the go-to platform for legendary growers and heady glass artists who due to Instagram’s attempts to limit this content from minors at the click of the button are able to post content freely without censoring as long as it’s marked for 18+ eyes only.
Text-based rather than imaged-based, Twitter still continues to provide a valuable platform for cannabis consumers, and business owners in the cannabis industry. With recent news circulating that Elon Musk (who once smoked a joint while guest starring on the Joe Rogan Experience) is looking to buy a controlling stake in the company in an effort to maintain the site’s reputation of being a place online for free-speech. Like Instagram, we recommend if making a second account geared towards cannabis related discussion and taking advantage of the app’s ability to manage multiple accounts to ensure your thoughts can be shared without worrying about those particular people in your life you’d rather not share this side of yourself with due to their lack of understanding and prejudice.
Chances are by know you’ve heard of Reddit and their reputation for being a digital environment free of social media marketing and promotions with the sharing of information at the forefront. Started in America, but now used world wide Reddit acts as a social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website. How it works is incredibly straight-forward: Registered members submit content to the site such as links, text posts, images, and videos, which are then voted up or down by other members.
Posts are organized by subject into user-created boards called "communities" or "subreddits". Submissions with more upvotes appear towards the top of their subreddit and, if they receive enough upvotes, ultimately on the site's front page. Reddit administrators moderate the communities. Moderation is also conducted by community-specific moderators, who are not Reddit employees.
There are a variety of subreddits offering a wide variety of cannabis content on a daily basis, here are just a few:
The go-to subreddit for anything and everything marijuana. From MMJ to munchies, from nugs to trending news, and everything between! The casual cannabis community.
An educational and informative subreddit for Marijuana, dedicated to policy news, advocacy, opinion, health, and discussion.
Cannabis news and information from around the world.
A subreddit dedicated to everything weed.
Dedicated to the cultivation of cannabis. We love pictures of your plants & harvest, discussing growing methods, and helping with grow problems.
This subreddit is dedicated to large scale grows of Cannabis; too large to consider ‘Micro’.
Business news, resources, and investment discussion for medical marijuana entrepreneurs and investors.
A place to learn about cannabis use and culture.
A place for stoners to share links and chat weed.
A subreddit to collect articles concerning production techniques and other information pertaining to cannabis (marijuana) extracts such as hashish (hash), hash oil, tinctures, canna rosin, honeycomb, shatter, ear wax, moon rocks and canna budder.
All things bongs. The main focus of many members is to show off their glass bongs that many consider art, as well as the functionality of their pieces.
This is a place open to all, ents or not. Post any good recipes that you have heard of, or have made first hand. Edibles, drinks, its all good! Remember, this is not a place to post good food to eat when your high, but a place to post good food to GET you high.
It’s time that this subject was given more internet exposure. We are here to discuss topics related to medical marijuana and our experiences using CBD.
Smoking tips and tricks.
Hello and welcome to the r/ArtOfRolling community! Rolling up is an art form, and we appreciate it. Please share pictures of your finest, or not so fine, hand rolled joints, blunts, cigarettes, leafs, or anything else. Even if you aren’t the best, every hand crafted roll is beautiful in its own way and we would love to see your progress.
This subreddit is for news, discussion and collaboration between current and future employees and entrepreneurs in the legal marijuana industry.
The subreddit for medical marijuana\cannabis information.
Need a marijuana myth busted? How about finding that perfect strain? Want advice on your next piece or vaporizer? Need a recipe or want to know what to do with your stems and trim? r/AskTrees is the place to get answers from fellow Ents.
A forum for sharing information about the cultivation of cannabis.
Ent product reviews. A place for ents to share cannabis strain and cannabis product reviews.
A place for ents to talk about anything related to cannabis vapor and vaporizers. Please enjoy your stay.
You give a few pot heads a bunch of weed and nothing to smoke out of and they suddenly become engineers. It’s amazing.
A sub for reviews and discussion of cannabis oil extract pens.
Post your pipe, bubbler, or bong and see what your fellow users are smoking out of
A place to post your daily smoke videos. Show us your daily driver! Or favorite method of smoking. Money shots of your current smoke are also very welcome! We want to see how you BLAZE daily!
A positive community for those interested in Hash Rosin and ooey-gooey pictures of buds being pressed with heat.
Grasscity Forums
Not to toot our own horn, but there is a reason why Grasscity Forums is the #1 rated online cannabis community. It might possibly be the best place to go to get answers to all questions related to cannabis. The forum has been around for more than a decade, so no matter how obscure you think your question might be, chances are it has been answered and discussed at length.
What our users love most about Grasscity Forums is the wide variety of topics you can discuss, and how each of them is given a dedicated space for that topic. Some particularly interesting ones are:
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High Ideas: Have you ever been smoking with friend and you think of something so funny you can’t stop laughing? Or maybe the next great product that will change the world? Here you can posts those thoughts and gauge their funniness or plausibility with stoners across the world. It’s also a great read even when you aren’t high!
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The Bookshelf: George R.R. Martin (creator of Game of Thrones) once wrote “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one...”. In this thread you can learn about fascinating books that you might never have heard of, which after a smoke session alone could transport you to realms beyond your imagination
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First Time Marijuana Growers: Talk to other newbie growers or share FAQ's and how-to tips! Afraid you don't have a green thumb? Here are the answers.
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Grasscity Contests: Contests by Official Grasscity/420Network partners. Promotional drawings in which prizes are given away. Win great stuff like Bongs and Smoking accessories, Grow Tools and Kits, Cannabis Seed Coupons and Vouchers!
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Smoking Accessories Q&A: Looking for advice on the best ways smoke? Want to evolve from making a pipe out of an old soda can or apple? Smoking Accessories 101 is now in session!
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Marijuana Stash Box: This forum is where you can discuss and post pictures of your current stash as well as specific strains. You can also post about where you smoke your stash, too.
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Medical Marijuana Uses & Applications: This is a helpful forum is for the discussion of Medical Marijuana and Cannabis for health and medicinal purposes. A great place if you’re looking to find content and discussion that focuses solely on using cannabis for medical reasons.
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Marijuana News: Marijuana News from around the world, check out this forum to be up to date about the latest Marijuana News.
Reading and Posting on our forums is a great way to learn more about your favorite plant, and can be done in conjunction with using any of the sites and apps mentioned in this article. Don’t hesitate and get your account today! ...after all you don’t want your go-to username to be taken!
Weedlife
Connect, learn, and share your knowledge with other cannabis enthusiast from around the world on the WeedLife Social Network.
Privacy is the number one concern on WeedLife, the app works vigilantly to ensure the following:
• Your posts and activity on WeedLife is not publicly shared, unless you choose to.
• You control the privacy of everything from picture, video, audio uploads and the sharing of articles and updates.
• Make your postings available to all members, or keep them private and share them with specific people, groups, or close friends only.
• You can connect with others, but just as easily block those who you do not want to connect with on WeedLife.
• You can not only block others, but report those members and social posts that offend you and/or violate network policies.
You can use Weedlife to stay up to date by friending and following industry brands, professionals, companies and groups who provide fantastic videos, podcasts and news articles that can help you become a cannabis industry expert.
Use WeedLife for things like:
• Share events or find great ones to go to in your area.
• Build yourself an online profile, fan page and post, learn, and interact with all of your network connections, everyday.
Or perhaps you are looking to get into the cannabis industry for the first time? You can tap into a network of thousands of local and international industry professionals that can help guide you through your new career. With millions of consumers and industry professionals from around the world, you'll find new people and industry information that will peak your interests every day.
WeedLife app features:
• Use the Activity Feed tab to quickly access recent posts from your friends, followers and pages that you like. Post your own photos, audio and video files, or links to online articles and websites, right from the top of your Activity Feed.
• Use the Messenger tab to instant message your contacts on WeedLife, either one-one-one or in a group chat.
• Use the Photos tab to build your own photo albums for activities that you want to share… or view your friends photo albums they have shared with you on WeedLife.
• Use the Friends tab to make new industry contacts, or stay connected with your existing friends and cfollowers.
• Use the Events tab to post an event or RSVP to an event you want to attend. With 100's of local, national and internationals events each year, you will always know what’s happening in your area.
• Use the Pages tab to follow your favorite industry influencers or showcase your own “Weed Life”.
• Use the Podcasts tab to listen to online shows and channels, or post your own so friends and followers can tune-in to your podcast.
• Use the Videos tab to upload videos right from your mobile phone, or watch others that have uploaded a huge assortment of videos, from industry interviews, to global industry updates.
Weedable
The fine folks Weedable.com based in Winter Park, Flordia believe the free market and consumers lead us and fuel social change, not politicians and big corporations. Their mission is to promote the legalization of medical marijuana across the globe through social dialogue by people just like you.
The quickly growing site allows users to post images and text on a wide variety of content surrounding cannabis, like reddit the top posts are aggregated to your news feed on the site’s home page. This unique social media network also has the ability to live stream, giving you a dedicated platform to discuss your thoughts, or simply some company for your next smoke session.
CannaSOS
CannaSOS, hopes to change the way the average cannabis enthusiasts interacts with their peers and businesses. Their proprietary OS enables users to do the following:
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Mingle and build connections
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Find and share marijuana-related information
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Search and review cannabis strains
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Connect with 420-related businesses nearby and worldwide
We found that the business register is very similar to weedmaps with the addition of a social function so you can review businesses and gain information before going to a new one which is very useful.
You can also buy smoking accessories or display your 420 products on the CannaSOS e-store:
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Use our dispensaries map to find cannabis businesses selling goods in your area
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Have products to sell? List your business and advertise locally or worldwide, communicate with buyers directly.
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Worried about anonymity? Use their cryptocurrency PerksCoin token along with our PTPWallet for all of your transactions within CannaSOS
BudHubz
BudHubz provides their own unique take on the cannabis social media network, and it’s certainly worth a look!
As their website’s homepage says, whether you’re looking for somewhere to stay, something to do, or someone to chill with - BudHubz has you covered!
This more travel-oriented OS allows you to pick a cannabis-friendly city, and from there learn about recommended accommodations, 420-travel itineraries, and (the social part) interact with people in those cities with the aim of meeting up for a smoke session. You can find a high concentration of content and uses in the following cities and countries:
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Colorado (USA)
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Portland, Oregon (USA)
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Alaska (USA)
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California (USA)
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Portugal
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Uruguay
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The Netherlands
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Germany
Is Linkedin Cannabis-Friendly?
Though metrics or methods to determine the most cannabis-friendly platform aren’t readily available, it appears LinkedIn is in fact a cannabis-friendly platform at the moment, according to anecdotal feedback from various sources.
Cannabis PR and social media professional Alice Moon said LinkedIn is great for connecting industry professionals.
“It’s more so for people and not brands, but it is a great place for brands to share their latest press coverage and news,” - Alice Moon, Cannabis PR and Social Media Professional
Others agreed. Karina Karassev, co-founder and COO of cannabis packaging brand Stori, said LinkedIn does a good job recognizing cannabis industry professionals.
“Linkedin does an excellent job removing negative stigmas surrounding the cannabis industry,” - Karina Karassev, Co-Founder & COO of Stori
Brooke Benavides, director of marketing for CMW Media, said the cannabis conversation is growing on LinkedIn. She reported that clients tell her that the platform is still taboo to non-industry members–with those connections rarely interacting with posts. Despite its shortcomings, she believes the professional-focused platform is the best today.
“LinkedIn remains one of the only platforms that allows for organic reach as it relates to cannabis content and groups, and industry pros and businesses don’t have to worry about potentially being penalized or ‘shadow banned’ from their networks,” - Brooke Benavides, Director of Marketing for CMW Media.
Is Leafwire a better platform?
From our time spent using the site in an attempt to learn more, we’ve found that Leafwire offers a lot of the same functionality as LinkedIn. But unlike LinkedIn the site is geared only for Cannabis Companies and Start-Ups in an attempt to mitigate situations where some people’s stigma around marijuana leads them to negatively judge others.
The site was built to provide a platform to allow people to connect, share information and collaborate to build their own successful businesses which leads to an industry that benefits the entire world. So beyond finding a job, it could help you build a company of your own!
Leafwire works to help cannabis businesses find investors, employees, partners, customers and more. With this said it might be the best cannabis business social network out there. Make an account today and see if it can help you find that job in the cannabis industry you’ve always dreamed of. We recommend using it in conjunction with LinkedIn so you can either cast a wider net, or keep your LinkedIn cannabis-free.
What happened to MassRoots?
As a closing thought, doing research for this article lead me to learning that a lot of previously well-known channels such as MassRoots. It turns out in 2021 MassRoots was “pleased to report it has closed and taken effective its acquisition of Empire Services, Inc. As a result of the Empire acquisition, the Company now operates 10 metal recycling facilities across Virginia and North Carolina and generates tens of millions of dollars in annual revenue.” ...talk about a sea change. With that being said it’s best to use all of these sites with the knowledge that there is no one place that’s perfect for everything, don’t be surprised if you find yourself taking using a select handful of the previously mentioned sites in your daily internet routine.