If not for pervasive uncertainty about the incoming Trump Administration the cannabis industry would be on a hiring spree.

Election night 2016 will be remembered as a resounding success for those supporting medical and recreational cannabis legalization. Recreational use was legalized in California, Nevada, Massachusetts and Maine. Voters in Florida, North Dakota, and Arkansas all approved medical marijuana initiatives, and voters in Montana realigned the current laws to reflect the patient interests outlined in the original 2004 medical marijuana law.

Privateer Holdings led 2016 deals with a $40M convertible note round, followed by Syqe Medical and MedMen.

As more states have loosened or abolished restrictions on cannabis over the past few years, global equity funding to private cannabis-focused startups has skyrocketed, with 2014 and 2015 seeing a surge in investment. However, in 2016, deals and dollars began to level off, with funding coming in slightly below 2015′s level. With 8 states and Washington D.C. approving some form of marijuana legalization late last year, though, Q4’16 did see a big uptick in funding dollars and a slight rebound in deals as well.

Content marketing is how we think about marketing. Back in the day it was hit them over the head over and over until they buy from you. It’s different today. The cannabis industry is new and it’s getting smarter. Content has to have value, period. It has to provide engaging and entertaining information, which is totally different than the hit them over the head strategy.

Think of it like this: a fish is not aware of the water. This is how content must be… like air. You just have to be there, surrounding who wants to engage.

“Dispensaries have always been operating in a legal gray area, so they are comfortable taking a risk”

Recreational marijuana has been legal in California for two months, and although individuals are allowed to grow up to six plants or possess an ounce of weed, it is not yet legal for businesses to sell recreational pot. Prop. 64, which passed on November 8th, postponed the start date for legal marijuana sales until January 1st of next year, giving the state time to establish a licensing system.  Selling marijuana without a license is still illegal, although the crime has been downgraded from a felony to a misdemeanor.

Cannabis grows are getting more advanced thanks to these forward-thinking companies.

Many companies are expanding their reach into cultivation technology. The better the growing conditions, the better the cannabis. The major area of focus, however, is sustainability, making it a priority to help farmers save on electricity and water in order to reduce operating expenses and protect profit margin. Here are a few companies that are making a splash on the cultivation side of the industry.

It’s been less than one month since Marc Emery, the man known as the Prince of Pot, came to Montreal to open cannabis dispensaries.

Another man is now on a mission to make his mark in the medical marijuana world by opening three cannabis clinics in the Montreal area.

But it’s an operation the Quebec College of Physicians is calling illegal.

“They call themselves clinics but it’s not really a medical clinic, it’s a providing centre to cannabis,” Dr. Yves Robert from the Quebec College of Physicians said.

But the man behind the new cannabis clinics insists he has nothing to hide.

The Vancouver-based biotech company has the upper hand in research and development in cannabis that is otherwise not permitted legally without a license.

With the federal government on the verge of legalising marijuana, high-value strategic assets in the cannabis sector are becoming valuable.

That is how Ottawa-based cannabis firm CannaRoyalty Corp. explained its interest in buying a 20% stake in Vancouver’s Anandia Laboratories.

The companies announced January 9 that they have signed a letter of intent for CannaRoyalty (CSE:CRZ) to acquire that 20% stake in Anandia for C$4 million (US$3,029,041).

A “targeted” cyber attack on a marijuana software company triggered an outage that hobbled point-of-sales and inventory systems for dispensaries scattered across the United States.

Denver-based MJ Freeway on Sunday morning tweeted it was experiencing an outage of its inventory system and was unable to process transactions. The cause of the “system interruption” was believed to be a cyber attack on its main databases and back-ups, officials told Marijuana Business Daily, which first reported on the outage:

In the last few years, attitudes to marijuana in the U.S. appeared to be easing.

And in many ways, they have. Four states have fully legalized recreational cannabis, and four more voted to follow them in November.

But the same election that doubled the number of pot-tolerant states brought Donald Trump into the White House. With him come people in key cabinet positions who loathe marijuana and have at least some power to act on it. Marijuana is still illegal under U.S. federal law.

The likely consequence: an end to the easygoing attitude that the Obama administration brought to states that chose legalization.

As the cannabis industry continues to expand, new opportunities continue to emerge.

From private placements to publicly traded companies, there are a number of avenues available for potential and current cannabis investors. Given the nature of the industry, though, many or do not understand or are aware of these opportunities.

The quickest and easiest way to invest in a cannabis company is through the stock market. An investor can invest as much or as little as they want and the cost per transaction is usually less than $10. There is no required hold period for the investment and the market to sell it on typically has high liquidity.