Merry Jane

Overview

Rootstrap was involved with Merry Jane from the very beginning. Snoop Dogg’s vision was to create an all-encompassing cannabis platform.

He wanted to offer users an eCommerce store, dispensary discovery platform, and original content targeted at those who might not read a traditional weed blog.

This would require technical expertise to balance many disparate parts in a professional, easy-to-use platform.

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KEY OBJECTIVES:

• Create a sustainable revenue model
• Build the backend and frontend of the platform
• Develop iOS app and support Android development

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Because Merry Jane’s major value add was in showing cannabis products and store locations, which would commonly be searched for on mobile, the website needed to have a strong mobile presence that would draw attention to the main platform.

A unique issue Merry Jane faced was its revenue model. Because of the ambiguous regulations surrounding cannabis and the fact that Google and Bing don’t allow cannabis ads, the Merry Jane team would have to build their advertising network from the ground up.

Solutions

Much of the team’s energy was spent on the mobile platform, which both Merry Jane and Rootstrap agreed to be the most valuable. The iOS mobile website was designed by the Rootstrap team first, then adapted to Android by an outside developer.

Rootstrap developed a custom eCommerce platform and the frontend and backend support for all other content on the site. To monetize the site, Rootstrap supported Merry Jane in establishing its own ad network, identifying the only cannabis-specific network in the space and building relationships there.

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Being able to utilize a network -- versus selling ads through individual brands -- streamlined their processes and brought in more revenue for Merry Jane.

While Rootstrap was engaged primarily in developing the technology, the team also was involved in some content creation and strategizing. Rootstrap’s Uruguayan office proved to be of unique value to Merry Jane, as Uruguay was the first country to legalize marijuana fully.

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The Result

‍Merry Jane established itself as an authority in the cannabis space, receiving more than 650,000 visits per month to the website.

The mobile-friendly design made it easy for users to find products and dispensaries in their area no matter where they were.

Instead of trying to aggregate articles from other websites, Merry Jane chose to produce original content.

This became a huge selling point and traffic driver, especially due to the company’s celebrity tie-ins.