Cannabis companies now have a new advertising opportunity available on Twitter. The social platform has recently updated its advertising policy to allow display of Twitter cannabis ads. No other social media platform allows advertisements for cannabis products at this time, so this is a big win for the marijuana industry.

Twenty-one states already have legalized recreational marijuana, with others allowing the products for medical reasons. The emerging marijuana marketplace has increased people’s interest in cannabis-related topics, which may have opened the door for this major advertising policy change.

“As the cannabis industry has expanded, so too has the conversation on Twitter,“ Alexa Alianiello and  Rohan Routroy reported on Twitter’s business website. “In the U.S.- one of the most influential markets for cannabis – it is larger than the conversation around topics such as pets, cooking, and golf, as well as food and beverage categories including fast food, coffee, and liquor.”

Previous Policy Allowed Only CBD Products

Twitter’s previous policy only allowed advertising for hemp-derived topical CBD products. With the policy update, cannabis companies can promote a wide range of items, including products for CBD, THC, and other products related to cannabis.

In order for companies to create Twitter cannabis ads, they still must meet certain conditions. This includes having a proper license, passing Twitter’s approval process and only targeting the ads in areas where they are legally able to operate a licensed cannabis business.

Additional restrictions are also in place in the updated policy. To make sure that advertisers will not target people who are younger than 21 years old, the ads can’t feature any athletes, characters, celebrities or other icons that might appeal to minors.

Minors are also not allowed to be featured in the ads. The ads also cannot show pregnant women or people smoking marijuana. Other restrictions include banning any mention of health benefits, or using any false or misleading claims about the products.

Twitter Cannabis Ads Help Companies Connect with Cannabis Conversation

According to Twitter’s blog, the social media platform is looking forward to “helping more customers unlock the power of Twitter Ads to connect with the cannabis conversation and drive their business forward.”

Cannabis companies have already started to take advantage of the new opportunities to promote their products on Twitter. For example, Trulieve Cannabis Corp has launched a Twitter advertising campaign across multiple U.S. states since the policy update.

Elon Musk, Twitter’s CEO, hasn’t been shy about his personal marijuana use, talking about it on Joe Rogan’s podcast. With Musk at the helm, it isn’t a big shock that Twitter is the first social platform to embrace marijuana advertising. Plus, the platform has lost advertisers in recent months, so the new revenue source is a win for them, as well.

As Twitter looks forward to creating opportunities for “responsible cannabis marketing,” it remains to be seen whether marijuana ads on other platforms might be on the horizon. Many cannabis companies are certainly hoping that the other popular social platforms will begin to update their own cannabis policies to allow marijuana ads in the future as well.

All of the details and rules about Twitter’s marijuana advertisement options can be found in the company’s Cannabis Ads policy.