This campaign of online videos ran fully as promoted posts on Facebook, Instragram and Youtube.

Cannabis sales in Canada have been legal for years. It's become as common as alcohol sales with literally stores on every corner. But cannabis advertising is highly regulated - to the point of being almost impossible.

While many use cannabis for recreational use, a significant amount of Canadians use it for health and wellness benefits to treat things like: chronic (back) pain, sleeping problems, anxiety, depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Whatever the use case, cannabis in Canada is widely accepted and completely legal.

First off, these are real businesses that are actually Next to Stok'd, and the real electrical company that did the wiring there.

Nail Salon -

The 'spokesperson' invites viewers to come visit her store while selling different types of nail experiences that parallel cannabis (e.g. 'chill vibe'/'blazing'). Then concludes by noting they are located next to the Stok'd Cannabis store.

Bookstore-

The 'spokesperson' invites viewers to come visit his store to escape with their minds and get inspiration, which parallels cannabis. Then concludes by noting they are located next to the Stok'd Cannabis store.

Electrician -

The 'electrician' gives us another level of advertising inside Stok'd stores in order to show his work - something that is specifically forbidden.

Situation:

Cannabis sales are legal in Canada and have been for years. Cannabis advertising? Not so much. In fact, the entire industry is highly regulated. Furthermore, social platforms (such as Meta and Google) and other media channels (OOH/radio) have sophisticated filters in place to screen out any advertising that promotes cannabis.

So how does a regional cannabis chain promote their stores?

Objective:

Drive traffic to the Stok'd site and in-store, as well as the neighbouring stores, and at the same time create a brand personality that connects with consumers to choose Stok'd over other cannabis retailers.

Impact:

The films were approved on every social platform. All without technically breaking any laws, as the ads were officially promoting the neighbouring stores.

Reach/Engagement:

Through geo-targeted (within 5km of each store), adult gated (21+) media, Stok'd reached 40,000+ viewers on social platforms.

Results: Definitely changed behaviour by getting new customers to try Stok'd -

Compared to the same period last year:

26% increase in-store customers

29% increase in new online customers

12% increase in revenue

Here are a few from top cannabis publications (who reached the target we were aiming for):

"The most creative marketing I've ever seen" - Cannabis Marketing

"Masterstroke Campaign" - Aggressive Organics

"Brilliant" - One World Cannabis

"Genius workaround" - Hobby Grower

"Unmatched ingenuity" - Joint Craft

"Revolutionizing Cannabis Marketing" - Business News Network

The campaign was geo-targeted to only consumers living within a 5km radius of Stok'd stores. The entire chain of 4 stores are in one small region, just outside of metropolitan Toronto.

Also, through the social platform consumer selection, we age-gated to 21+, and chose those who are open to and living a liberal lifestyle and have used products and services that were in line with this psychographic.