Greenbits to Dutchie: Best Practices For Distributing Employee Cannabis Samples

0:00 Hello, and welcome! Today we're talking about the best practices when it comes to distributing samples of cannabis products to employees in states that allow this practice.

0:10 In many states, there are often laws stating cannabis products cannot be given away for free and must be sold for a minimum of one penny.

0:19 To ensure this important compliance requirement is not missed, it's important to first check your state and local regulations. A great starting point to review this information is by checking out the state guides on business Find your state from the drop-down list or simply click it on the interactive

0:38 map. Once the laws for your state have been reviewed, if you're in a state that requires cannabis to be sold for a minimum of one penny, like Massachusetts, then begin by navigating to Dutchie Backoffice, select Settings, then select Location.

0:52 Look for the bold point of sale header and the checkbox next to the feature called only discount cannabis items to a minimum of one cent.

1:00 Save changes once done. If your store uses robust reporting endpoints in the Dutchie system, you also might consider creating separate catalog entries with the word sample in the title for enhanced reporting purposes.

1:13 This can be done quickly and easily by copying existing catalog entries and adding the word sample clearly in the name.

1:19 Simply navigate to products, then select catalog. Here you can create a new entry or find an existing entry, select it, and select Actions and Copy.

1:30 Now you have a brand new product listing separate from the catalog item you were just viewing. A best practice recommendation here is to first adjust the title and then adjust the price to one cent or the price you plan to distribute these items at.

1:43 Next, you can indicate if this item is taxable or not and fill out all of the required fields. Then, select the online details tab at the top of the page and ensure this is not listed as available for sale online.

1:55 This is a crucial step in the process as this toggle is what allows the product to be visible on your online menu or not.

2:01 In the case of employee samples, it's important to ensure that they go to the employees directly and are not snagged by a savvy customer looking for a great deal.

2:10 Although, it's important to note, the Dutchie Ecommerce system has a $0.05 product minimum for items to display for sale to customers, so there are still safeguards in place to prevent this from happening.

2:21 However, these safeguards all depend on the price you're distributing the sample items at. Now, there are two ways to perform this action.

2:30 The first way is to navigate to the sample item listing in your received inventory by selecting products and then inventory.

2:37 Then, select the checkboxes next to multiple items or the three dots to the right of a single item and select a adjust.

2:44 The options are for an incremental or absolute adjustment. Incremental adjustments are generally recommended for folks in metric states and absolute adjustments are generally best for states without traceability requirements.

2:57 However, always check your state regulations before making adjustments. For incremental adjustments, indicate the amount being removed from the current total with a negative integer.

3:07 If you're performing an absolute adjustment, you can simply type the new quantity of each product that will remain after the sample distribution.

3:14 Then, in the note field, include the name of the employee receiving the sample and, if applicable, their state issued cannabis handler or agent badge number and their employee number for tracking purposes.

3:26 While this method is the quickest way to distribute employee samples, the best practice recommendation for distribution is actually to create an employee sample room to hold these items in until you're ready to distribute them to employees via the POS.

3:38 This is not necessarily a compliance requirement, but it can help avoid user error like misplacing the products or selling the products to the incorrect end customer.

3:48 To do this, navigate to settings and select rooms. Add a room called employee samples or any name or inventory coordinators or employees will recognize.

3:58 Then, ensure the checkbox for inventory room is selected and save changes. This will allow you to move samples into this room until they're ready to be sold and will prevent them from being sold in error on the POS.

4:09 Now navigate to products and then select inventory. Once your samples have been received into the system, you can add them into the employee sample room at the time of receiving.

4:19 If you've previously received the sample items before this room existed, you can select the relevant item check boxes and then select move from the bulk action dropdown.

4:28 Here, you can select the employee sample room from the list and select move to finalize the changes. Now, you will not see these items listed as available on the point of sale.

4:37 When you're ready to distribute these to your employees, you can move them back to your sales floor room and properly complete the sale of the sample items on the affiliated employees' profiles for tracking and compliance purposes.

4:49 A best practice recommendation is to have the shift lead or manager process these sales on each employee's profile in the point of sale.

4:56 Many states strongly recommend employees do not ring out their own sales, so please be mindful of who is logged into the register at the time of distribution.

5:05 A best practice recommendation is to perform this distribution of samples either before your business opens or after it closes for the day.

5:13 That's it! You've just successfully distributed employee samples on the Duchie system in two different ways. If you have additional questions, our Help Thunder is a great first place to check.

5:23 If you're still in the implementation and onboarding process, please reach out to your dedicated implementation strategist. If you are live and transacting with customers, please reach out to our amazing support team via phone, live chat, or email.

5:36 Happy learning and we'll see you next time.