Full Report: Q4 2024

Quarter 4 2024 Key Findings

1. Reviewer Dynamics:
   • A small group of "Power Users" (2% of reviewers) contributed 21% of all product reviews, with "Theflowerrman" leading in volume.
   • "Casual Contributors" (74% of reviewers) posted fewer than three reviews each but collectively covered 36% of products.
   • "Core Contributors" (3% of reviewers) posted 11-20 reviews, accounting for 21% of products reviewed.
2. Sentiment Analysis:
   • Positive reviews dominated, comprising 83% of all reviews, with high engagement from frequent reviewers.
   • Neutral reviews (6%) often came from less frequent reviewers, indicating a balanced evaluation style.
   • Negative reviews, though less common, had the highest average trend score, suggesting high community value for critical feedback.
3. Brand Engagement:
   • Top brands like Sixty Seven Sins and Woody Nelson showed high engagement and positive sentiment.
   • Brand performance varied significantly, with frequent shifts in weekly rankings and sentiment scores.
   • Consistent community engagement and product quality were key to maintaining high sentiment and brand presence.
4. Market Trends:
   • The market showed high volatility, with frequent changes in brand rankings and sentiment.
   • Established brands often maintained strong engagement, but emerging brands could quickly gain traction with positive sentiment.
   • Consumer sentiment was dynamic, highlighting the importance of quality and community interaction.
5. Product Type Sentiment:
   • Flower products were the most reviewed, with generally positive sentiment.
   • Vapes and edibles showed polarized sentiment, with strong positive or negative reactions.
   • Extracts and other products had varied sentiment, often influenced by product type and consumer expectations.

The report highlights a dynamic and competitive Canadian cannabis market, where both established and emerging brands can succeed through strategic engagement and consistent product quality. 

Understanding consumer sentiment and preferences is crucial for brands to navigate this evolving landscape effectively. The analysis provides valuable insights into reviewer behaviour, brand performance, and consumer perceptions, offering guidance for future market strategies.

Report Methodology

This report provides an in-depth analysis of the Canadian cannabis market for Q4 2024, focusing on brand engagement, reviewer activity, and consumer sentiment. Our methodology involved several key steps to ensure comprehensive and accurate insights:

1. Data Collection: We gathered data from six major cannabis-focused subreddits, including r/TheOCS, r/CanadianCannabisLPs, r/canadients, r/sqdc, r/TheBCCS, and r/CanadianCannabisClub. This data spanned a 90-day period from September to December 2024, capturing a wide range of user-generated content.

2. Reviewer Analysis: We tracked and categorized 468 unique authors who reviewed 1,056 distinct retail products, resulting in 1,356 total reviews. Reviewers were classified based on their posting frequency into categories such as Power Users, Core Contributors, and Casual Contributors.

3. Sentiment Analysis: We conducted a sentiment analysis of the reviews, categorizing them into positive, neutral, and negative sentiments. This involved identifying 26 common sentiment keywords and analyzing their frequency and positivity rates across different product types.

4. Brand Engagement Metrics: We evaluated brand performance using metrics such as Trend Score, which combines upvotes, downvotes, and comments to measure community engagement. We also assessed brand activity levels based on unique post counts and author diversity.

5. Data Aggregation and Visualization: The collected data was aggregated into approximately 35,000 rows across 28 fields, which were refined to 3,000 rows over 27 fields for detailed analysis. Visualizations were created to illustrate key findings, such as brand rankings and sentiment distributions.

6. Qualitative Insights: In addition to quantitative data, we explored qualitative aspects of consumer reviews to understand the language and sentiments expressed towards different brands and product types.

By employing this comprehensive methodology, we aimed to provide a holistic view of the Canadian cannabis market, offering valuable insights into brand performance, consumer preferences, and market dynamics.

Who's Who in Canadian Cannabis Reviews: Q4 2024 Analysis

As we begin 2025, we're taking a comprehensive look at our Q4 2024 data. We've organized our findings into three distinct categories: reviewer metrics, product performance, and qualitative sensory insights. In this first instalment, we'll focus on our review data, examining submission patterns over the past 90 days and identifying key contributors.

Our analysis will explore several crucial aspects: the volume of reviews submitted, our most active reviewers and their product coverage, the impact of their contributions (measured through our engagement-based trend score), and the quarter's top-performing posts along with their authors.

Let's begin by examining review frequencies, submission rates, and how our reviewers cluster based on their activity levels.

Introduction

In our ongoing mission to understand the dynamics of cannabis discussions across Canada's online communities, we've conducted a comprehensive analysis of reviewer activity across six major cannabis subreddits during Q4 2024 (September to December). This analysis reveals fascinating patterns about who's creating content and shaping discussions in the Canadian cannabis community.

Methodology

We tracked and analyzed every review posted across r/TheOCS, r/CanadianCannabisLPs, r/canadients, r/sqdc, r/TheBCCS, and r/CanadianCannabisClub over a 90-day period. We categorized reviewers based on their posting frequency and mapped their contributions against the total number of retail products discussed. Our analysis covered 468 unique authors reviewing 1,056 distinct retail products, resulting in 1,356 total reviews.

Key Findings

The Power Users

Perhaps most striking is that just 2% of reviewers (9 individuals) are responsible for reviewing 21% of all products discussed across these communities. Leading this group is Theflowerrman, who contributed an impressive 39 reviews during the period.

The Casual Contributors

At the other end of the spectrum, 347 reviewers (74% of all authors) posted fewer than 3 reviews each during the quarter. While individually modest, this group collectively reviewed 382 retail products, representing 36% of all products discussed.

The Core Contributors

A small but significant group of 15 reviewers (3% of total) each posted between 11-20 reviews, accounting for 21% of all products reviewed.

The Content Drivers

When we combine the 15 reviewers in "The Core Contributors" with our most active reviewers (The Power Users), we find that just 5% of reviewers (24 accounts) generate approximately 40% of all content across these communities.

Next, we'll dive deeper into the impact these reviewers have on the community. We'll analyze which reviewers achieved the highest trend scores overall, examine average trend scores per product reviewed, and break down their reviews into positive, neutral, and negative sentiment. 

We've identified the key players in terms of review volume, but does quantity translate to influence? Which reviewers truly moved the needle in the Canadian cannabis conversation during Q4 2024?

Having explored the sheer volume of reviews contributed by different user groups, we now turn our attention to the impact of those reviews. This next section looks into the performance of individual reviewers, measured by our proprietary "trend score," which reflects community engagement with their posts. Does a higher volume of reviews necessarily correlate with a higher trend score? Let's find out.

 Who's Who in Canadian Cannabis Reviews: Q4 Top Reviewers

When examining reviewer performance over the past 90 days, we uncovered fascinating patterns in both total trend scores and average trend scores per product reviewed. The data reveals that quantity doesn't always correlate directly with impact.

Among the most prolific reviewers (those with 21+ reviews), we see dominant performance in total trend scores, with modernmanehh leading the pack at nearly 13,000 points, followed closely by p1ngman, and theflowerrman in third place. This concentration of high trend scores among frequent reviewers suggests that consistent contributions often translates to higher cumulative impact.

However, the story becomes more nuanced when we look at effectiveness per review. The average trend score per product (indicated by the vertical line at 290) serves as a benchmark for reviewer impact over a single product. Several reviewers significantly exceeded this average, regardless of their review frequency. Notably, users like melikadachaha, SelectAd2840, and bugattiboy2323 demonstrated exceptional impact per review, with their averages extending well beyond the mean.

This analysis suggests that while frequent reviewers accumulate higher total trend scores, impactful reviews can come from contributors at any activity level. The data demonstrates that quality and influence aren't exclusively tied to quantity, as evidenced by several reviewers achieving outstanding average trend scores despite fewer total reviews.

Review Frequency Patterns:

• 21+ Reviews (Red, The Power Users): Dominates overall trend scores and consistently appears in top rankings.
• 11-20 Reviews (Orange, The Core Contributors): Shows strong presence with regular top 10 appearances.
• 5-10 Reviews (Blue, The Regular Reviewers): Demonstrates notable impact, regularly breaking into top 10.
• <5 Reviews (Green, The Occasional Reviewers): While generally outside top 10 overall, makes significant appearances in negative sentiment rankings.

Sentiment Distribution Impact:

• Consistent Excellence: p1ngman maintains a position in the top 5 across all sentiment categories (positive, neutral, and negative).
• Negative Review Impact: Despite being less common, negative reviews achieve the highest average trend score (305).
• Total Score Context: While negative reviews show high per-post impact, their lower frequency results in smaller total trend scores.

Frequency vs. Impact Relationship:

• High-Frequency Leaders: Most frequent reviewers (21+ reviews) accumulate the highest total trend scores.
• Mid-Frequency Success: Contributors posting 5-10 reviews regularly achieve top 10 positions.
• Low-Frequency Influence: While reviewers posting <5 reviews typically fall outside the overall top 10, they show significant presence in negative sentiment rankings.

Positive Sentiment Analysis: The Dominant Voice in Product Reviews

When we filter our trend score analysis to focus solely on positive sentiment reviews, which comprise a substantial 83% of all reviews in our 90-day period, we observe patterns that largely mirror our overall analysis, with some notable nuances.

The upper echelon of trend scores remains consistently dominated by our most frequent reviewers, with modernmanehh, theflowerrman, and p1ngman maintaining their strong positions. This stability in the rankings suggests that these prolific reviewers tend to approach their reviews with a predominantly positive perspective, which aligns with the general nature of product reviews - users typically purchase items with positive expectations and share their satisfactory experiences.

The average trend score for positive reviews (282) serves as a benchmark that closely tracks with our overall average, reinforcing that positive sentiment drives the majority of review engagement. High-impact reviewers like bugattiboy2323 and SelectAd2840 continue to demonstrate exceptional per-review performance even when isolating positive sentiment.

This predominance of positive reviews (83%) provides important context for our analysis, suggesting that while reviewers maintain their critical faculties, they generally approach products with an optimistic outlook. This sets up an interesting framework for examining the remaining 17% of reviews split between neutral and negative sentiments, which we'll explore next.

The consistency between this positive sentiment analysis and our overall trend scores indicates that success in product reviewing isn't just about frequency or positivity in isolation, but rather about providing valuable insights regardless of sentiment orientation.

Neutral Sentiment Analysis: A Different Pattern Emerges

Shifting our focus to neutral sentiment reviews, which represent just 6% of the total data, we observe a notably different distribution pattern from our positive sentiment analysis. This smaller but significant segment reveals interesting insights about reviewer behavior and impact.

While p1ngman maintains a leading position in trend scores among frequent reviewers (21+ reviews), one of the most striking differences in this neutral sentiment analysis is the increased presence of less frequent reviewers. The graph shows a substantial representation of contributors who post fewer than two reviews over the 90-day period (indicated in turquoise), suggesting that occasional reviewers are more likely to express neutral viewpoints.

Familiar names like theflowerrman appear in this neutral sentiment category as well, which adds credibility to their overall review portfolio. This balanced approach to reviewing - including neutral perspectives alongside positive ones - suggests a more nuanced and authentic evaluation style. It indicates that these reviewers aren't simply offering blanket praise but are providing measured, objective assessments when warranted.

The average trend score for neutral reviews (166.6) is notably lower than the positive sentiment average, reflecting different engagement patterns with neutral content. However, several reviewers significantly exceed this benchmark, with standout performances from contributors like Rough-Contact-4712 and SelectAd2840.

This distribution pattern suggests that while neutral reviews are less common, they play an important role in establishing reviewer credibility and providing balanced product assessments. The presence of both frequent and infrequent reviewers in this category indicates that thoughtful, measured feedback can come from contributors at any activity level.

Negative Sentiment Analysis: Infrequent Reviewers Take Center Stage

In examining the negative sentiment reviews, which represent the smallest segment of our data, we uncover a distinctly different pattern of contributor behavior. Most notably, the distribution shifts dramatically toward infrequent reviewers, with authors posting fewer than three reviews during the 90-day period claiming many of the top positions.

Leading this category is melikadachaha, followed by p1ngman and C-man_13. While p1ngman (21+ reviews) and ocvxn_ (11-20 reviews) maintain strong positions, they are exceptions to the general trend. The prevalence of infrequent reviewers at the top of this list suggests that negative reviews often come from users who feel compelled to share specifically disappointing experiences rather than from regular reviewers.

Particularly interesting is the average trend score for negative reviews at 305, which surpasses both positive (282) and neutral (166.6) sentiment averages. This higher engagement rate with negative content might indicate that the community places particular value on well-articulated critical feedback, perhaps viewing it as especially helpful for making informed purchasing decisions.

The distribution pattern reveals that while our most active reviewers maintain a presence across all sentiment categories, negative reviews are more likely to originate from occasional contributors. This could suggest that negative experiences are often the primary motivator for less frequent reviewers to share their thoughts.

This concludes our sentiment analysis across positive, neutral, and negative reviews.

Next, we'll explore specific top-performing posts within various subreddits, connecting these trend patterns to actual content from our most impactful reviewers.

How does this activity translate to engagement with specific brands? Our next section shifts focus from individual reviewers to the brands themselves, exploring which brands generated the most buzz within these online communities.

Having examined individual reviewer contributions and the impact of sentiment, we now broaden our perspective to analyze brand-level engagement. This section explores how different cannabis brands fared in terms of discussion volume and author diversity within the Reddit communities we tracked.

Q4 2024 Cannabis Brand Engagement Analysis: Reddit Community Activity Patterns

Our Q4 2024 analysis examines engagement patterns across six major cannabis subreddits, with a combined subscriber base of 215,000 members. We tracked 375 distinct brands across 33 different cannabis product types in the Canadian market, with a notable bias toward flower. 

Q4 2024 Performance Metrics

During this three-month period, we observed:

• Average of 3 unique authors per brand (roughly 1 per month)
• Average of 4 posts per brand
• Highest engagement: 40 unique posts (achieved by both Tribal and Sixty Seven Sins)
• Most diverse authorship: 31 unique reviewers (Woody Nelson)

Brand Categories by Activity Level

Based on Q4 2024 posting frequency and author diversity, brands clustered into five distinct groups:

Top Tier (2.7% of brands)

• Minimum 22 unique posts
• Minimum 20 unique authors

Upper Crust (3.5% of brands)

• Minimum 11 unique posts
• Minimum 10 unique authors

Elite Mainstream (3.2% of brands)

• Minimum 7 unique posts
• Minimum 6 unique authors

Emerging (43.5% of brands)

• Minimum 2 unique posts
• Minimum 1 unique author

Baseline (47.2% of brands)

• Minimum 1 unique post
• Minimum 1 unique author

Distribution Overview

Approximately 90% of brands fall within Baseline and Emerging categories, while the remaining 10% distribute across Top Tier, Upper Crust, and Elite Mainstream segments. Each of these top three segments contains 10-13 brands.

Lessons for Brand Engagement

For cannabis brands looking to maximize their Reddit presence across our tracked communities, Q4 2024 data suggests these clear benchmarks:

• To exceed market average: Secure at least 3 unique reviewers posting once per month
• To reach top 10%: Aim for 3-4 review posts monthly
• For category leadership: Target 6-8 unique posts monthly (double the top 10% threshold)

What's Next

In our next analysis, we'll examine our Trend Score metric for Q4 2024, which measures audience engagement through upvotes, downvotes, and comments. This will shift our focus from reviewer activity to audience reception, providing additional insights into brand performance across these cannabis communities. By understanding how the audience reacts to brand mentions, we can gain a deeper understanding of true brand impact and resonance within the online cannabis community.

We've established benchmarks for brand engagement based on post frequency and author diversity. Now, we'll delve into the crucial aspect of audience reception. How did users react to these brand mentions? Which brands truly captured the community's attention? Let's explore the data through the lens of our Trend Score metric.

Q4 2024: Cannabis Brand Performance Analysis

Measuring Brand Impact Through Reddit Users' Votes, Comments & Sentiment

Building on our previous analysis of author engagement patterns, we now examine reader activity through our Trend Score metric, which combines upvotes, downvotes, and comments. This provides a comprehensive view of how brands resonate within our tracked Reddit community of 215,000 subscribers across six cannabis-focused subreddits.

Top 5 Performers by Trend Score (Q4 2024)

1. Sixty Seven Sins (Top Tier)

• 40 unique posts
• 88.2% positive sentiment
• 26 unique authors
• Highest overall Trend Score
  

2. Woody Nelson (Top Tier)

• 35 unique posts
• 86.3% positive sentiment
• Leading author diversity (31 unique)
• Second-highest Trend Score
  

3. Carmel Cannabis (Top Tier)

• 31 unique posts
• 58.4% positive sentiment
• 30 unique authors
• Notable engagement despite lower positive sentiment
  

4. Tribal (Top Tier)

• 40 unique posts
• Outstanding 97.7% positive sentiment
• 28 unique authors
• Highest post volume tied with Sixty Seven Sins
  

5. 1964 (Top Tier)

• 34 unique posts
• 96.4% positive sentiment
• 30 unique authors
• Consistently high engagement and sentiment

Key Insights

The data reveals interesting patterns across our brand segments:

• Top Tier brands dominate the highest Trend Scores
• High post volume doesn't always correlate with positive sentiment (see Carmel Cannabis)
• Some brands achieve remarkable sentiment scores (Back Forty: 99.2% positive)

Post volume and author count (discussed previously) are important metrics, but reader engagement and sentiment provide crucial additional context for understanding brand performance in the cannabis community. Now, let's shift our focus from overall quarterly performance to a more granular, week-by-week view of brand momentum.

While we've gained valuable insights from examining the overall Q4 2024 performance, understanding the ebb and flow of brand buzz requires a closer look. This section provides a week-by-week analysis of the top 10 brands based on Trend Score, revealing which brands consistently held the community's attention and which experienced bursts of popularity. This dynamic perspective will complement our previous analyses, offering a more nuanced understanding of brand performance throughout the quarter.

Q4 2024 Weekly Top 10 Brand Analysis: Tracking Momentum in the Cannabis Community

While our previous posts examined quarterly totals for brand engagement and Trend Scores, this analysis takes a different approach. Every Friday throughout Q4 2024, we captured a snapshot of the week's hottest brands based on their Trend Score performance across our tracked Reddit communities (215,000 subscribers across six subreddits).

These weekly rankings offer unique insights that quarterly aggregates might miss:

• Which brands consistently maintain community interest
• Breakthrough moments for emerging brands
• Impact of new product launches
• Weekly competitive dynamics
• Seasonal trends and patterns

Think of this as a week-by-week replay of Q4, showing which brands generated the most buzz heading into each weekend. Rather than reproducing our weekly "What's Hot" posts in full, we'll focus on identifying patterns in brand performance and highlighting notable movements within the top 10 rankings.

Let's dive into the weekly data and see which brands showed staying power and which ones had their moment in the spotlight…

Starting our weekly analysis with September 29, 2024:

The final week of September saw Sixty Seven Sins claim the top spot, setting the stage for what we'll later see was a strong Q4 performance (as shown in our previous trend score analysis). Simply Bare secured second place, while Amani Craft made an impressive debut at #3.

1964, which we know becomes a consistent performer through Q4, landed at #4, with BLKMKT rounding out the top 5. Ono Cannabis, despite being classified in our emerging brands category, managed to secure the #6 position. Woody Nelson and Tribal, both powerhouses in our overall Q4 analysis, appeared at #7 and #8 respectively. Northern Canna took #9, while Space Race closed out the top 10.

This week serves as our baseline for tracking movement in subsequent weeks. We'll pay particular attention to whether brands like Sixty Seven Sins can maintain their momentum, and if emerging players like Ono Cannabis can consistently compete with the established Top Tier brands.

Week of October 6, 2024:

Sixty Seven Sins maintained its #1 position for a second consecutive week, though with a notably specific 80.4% positive sentiment. 1964 made a strong move from #4 to #2, achieving a perfect 100% positive rating. Carmel Cannabis made its first appearance in our top 10, debuting impressively at #3 with a near-perfect 99.3% sentiment.

MTL and Simply Bare (dropping from #2 to #5) both showed strong positive sentiment, with MTL achieving 100% positive reviews in its first appearance. Northern Canna held onto a top 10 position, sliding from #9 to #6, while maintaining a solid 80.6% positive rating.

New entries this week included:

• Kolab at #7 (62.8% positive - the lowest sentiment in this week's top 10)
• Kwall at #8 (perfect 100% sentiment)
• HighXotic at #9 (another perfect score)
• Woody Nelson slipped to #10 from #7 last week, despite 100% positive reviews

Notable exits from last week's top 10:

• Amani Craft (previously #3)
• BLKMKT (previously #5)
• Ono Cannabis (previously #6)
• Tribal (previously #8)
• Space Race (previously #10)

This week showed remarkably high sentiment scores, with five brands achieving 100% positive reviews.

Week of October 13, 2024:

Sixty Seven Sins continues its dominance, securing the #1 spot for a third straight week, though its positive sentiment declined slightly to 74.2%. Carmel Cannabis moved up from #3 to #2, despite a drop in positive sentiment to 73.7%. Simply Bare showed staying power, moving up to #3 with an impressive 99.7% positive rating.

HighXotic maintained its presence in the top 10, climbing from #9 to #4 while keeping its perfect 100% sentiment score. EastCann made its first appearance at #5 with 75.9% positive reviews.

Tribal returned to the top 10 at #6 after a one-week absence, posting a perfect sentiment score. Woody Nelson held relatively steady, moving from #10 to #7, maintaining its 100% positive rating.

New entries this week:

• Tuck Shop debuting at #8 (62.4% positive - this week's lowest sentiment)
• Clem & Co at #9 (100% positive)
• Pistol and Paris at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• 1964 (previously #2)
• MTL (previously #4)
• Northern Canna (previously #6)
• Kolab (previously #7)
• Kwall (previously #8)

Streak Watch:

• Sixty Seven Sins: 3 weeks at #1
• Simply Bare: 3 consecutive weeks in top 10
• Woody Nelson: 3 consecutive weeks in top 10

This week featured six brands with 100% positive sentiment, showing strong product satisfaction across multiple entries.

Week of October 20, 2024:

Sixty Seven Sins extends its remarkable run at #1 to four consecutive weeks, though showing a continued gradual decline in positive sentiment (now 71.7%). Carmel Cannabis maintained its #2 position but experienced a dramatic drop in positive sentiment from 73.7% to 40.5%.

1964 made a strong return to the top 10, landing at #3 with a perfect 100% positive rating. Tuck Shop showed impressive momentum, climbing from #8 to #4 with improved sentiment of 94.7%. Tribal slipped slightly from #6 to #5, with sentiment holding relatively steady at 75.1%.

New entries this week:

• Cookies debuting at #6 (notably low 9.1% positive sentiment)
• Fleur De Lise at #7 (perfect 100% sentiment)
• FIGR at #8 (72.2% positive)
• Frost Cannabis at #9 (concerning 36% positive)
• Magi Cannabis at #10 (perfect 100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Simply Bare (breaking a 3-week streak)
• HighXotic
• EastCann
• Woody Nelson (breaking a 3-week streak)
• Clem & Co
• Pistol and Paris

Streak Watch:

• Sixty Seven Sins: 4 weeks at #1
• Carmel Cannabis: 2 weeks in top 2
• Tuck Shop: 2 consecutive weeks in top 10
• Tribal: 2 consecutive weeks in top 10

This week showed the widest sentiment range yet, from Cookies' 9.1% to perfect 100% scores from three brands. The volatility in sentiment scores and significant turnover in the top 10 suggests an interesting week in the cannabis community.

Week of October 27, 2024:

A major shakeup this week as 1964 claims the top spot, ending Sixty Seven Sins' impressive four-week reign at #1. 1964 returns with 83.2% positive sentiment, while Sixty Seven Sins drops to #10 (81.5% positive), marking its fifth consecutive week in the top 10 but first time outside the top spot.

HighXotic makes a strong return at #2 with a perfect 100% sentiment, and BLKMKT resurfaces in the top 10 at #3, also with 100% positive reviews. Kwall returns at #4 with a strong 84.9% positive rating.

Tuck Shop continues its top 10 streak for a third week, sliding to #5 with sentiment dropping to 50.4%. Carmel Cannabis sees another significant decline, dropping to #6 with concerning 15.3% positive sentiment - a dramatic fall from its recent #2 position and 40.5% rating last week.

New entries this week:

• MTL returns at #7 (perfect 100% sentiment)
• Next Friday debuts at #8 (41.7% positive)
• Nugz debuts at #9 (strong 91% positive)

Notable exits:

• Tribal (breaking 2-week streak)
• Cookies
• Fleur De Lise
• FIGR
• Frost Cannabis
• Magi Cannabis

Streak Watch:

• Sixty Seven Sins: 5 consecutive weeks in top 10 (though reign at #1 ends)
• Tuck Shop: 3 consecutive weeks
• Carmel Cannabis: 3 consecutive weeks (with declining sentiment)

This week shows significant volatility in both rankings and sentiment, with three brands achieving perfect scores while others struggle with sub-50% ratings. The contrast between top performers and those with declining sentiment continues to widen.

Week of November 3, 2024:

Another major shakeup as Homestead claims #1 with 83.1% positive sentiment, while last week's leader 1964 exits the top 10 entirely. Volo debuts impressively at #2 with a perfect 100% rating. Tribal makes a strong return at #3 with near-perfect 99.3% positive sentiment.

BLKMKT maintains its presence in the top 10, moving from #3 to #5 while keeping its perfect 100% sentiment. Similarly, HighXotic stays in the rankings but slides from #2 to #6, maintaining its 100% positive rating.

Tuck Shop continues its remarkable streak for a fourth consecutive week, though dropping to #8 with a concerning decline in sentiment to 24.3% (down from 50.4% last week).

New entries this week:

• Northern Canna returns at #4 (100% positive)
• Pure Trichomes debuts at #7 (100% positive)
• DLYS debuts at #9 (100% positive)
• Jbuds Craft Cannabis debuts at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Sixty Seven Sins (ending 5-week streak)
• Carmel Cannabis (ending 3-week streak)
• MTL
• Next Friday
• Nugz
• Kwall

Streak Watch:

• Tuck Shop: 4 consecutive weeks (though with declining sentiment)
• BLKMKT: 2 consecutive weeks at 100% positive
• HighXotic: 2 consecutive weeks at 100% positive

This week sets a new record with eight brands achieving 100% positive sentiment. However, the stark contrast between these perfect scores and Tuck Shop's 24.3% highlights the volatility in consumer satisfaction.

Week of November 10, 2024:

Northern Canna makes a power move from #4 to #1, though with a decreased sentiment of 62.4% (down from last week's perfect score). Carmel Cannabis makes a dramatic return to the top 10 at #2, rebounding with a perfect 100% positive rating - a remarkable turnaround from its previous 15.3% sentiment two weeks ago.

Simply Bare returns to the rankings at #3 with 88.5% positive sentiment. Last week's #1, Homestead, drops to #4 but maintains a perfect 100% rating. Tribal holds strong for a second consecutive week, moving from #3 to #5 while maintaining 100% positive sentiment.

New entries this week:

• Pure SunFarms debuts at #6 (100% positive)
• Flowr debuts at #7 (100% positive)
• Kokotte debuts at #8 (57.2% positive)
• Back Forty debuts at #9 (100% positive)
• Pura Vida debuts at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Volo (after strong #2 debut)
• BLKMKT (ending 2-week streak)
• HighXotic (ending 2-week streak)
• Pure Trichomes
• Tuck Shop (ending 4-week streak)
• DLYS
• Jbuds Craft Cannabis

Streak Watch:

• Tribal: 2 consecutive weeks
• Northern Canna: 2 consecutive weeks
• Homestead: 2 consecutive weeks

This week continues the trend of multiple perfect scores, with seven brands achieving 100% positive sentiment. The significant turnover in the top 10 (7 new entries) suggests high competition and volatility in the market.

Week of November 17, 2024:

Tribal continues its impressive run, climbing from #5 to claim the #1 spot while maintaining its perfect 100% sentiment for a third straight week. Back Forty moves up from #9 to #2, keeping its 100% positive rating. 1964 makes a strong return to the top 10 at #3, also with perfect sentiment.

This week sets a new record with nine out of ten brands achieving 100% positive sentiment. The only exception is Carmel Cannabis at #9, which sees another dramatic sentiment drop to 18.8% (down from 100% last week).

New entries this week:

• EastCann debuts at #4 (100% positive)
• BIG debuts at #5 (100% positive)
• Rocket Factory debuts at #6 (100% positive)
• Ono Cannabis returns at #8 (100% positive)
• Cheers Cannabis debuts at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Northern Canna (ending 2-week streak, last week's #1)
• Simply Bare
• Homestead (ending 2-week streak)
• Pure SunFarms
• Kokotte
• Pura Vida

Streak Watch:

• Tribal: 3 consecutive weeks
• Back Forty: 2 consecutive weeks
• Flowr: 2 consecutive weeks (holding at #7)
• Carmel Cannabis: 2 consecutive weeks (with volatile sentiment)

This week shows remarkable consistency in sentiment scores, though the continued volatility in Carmel Cannabis's performance and significant turnover in the top 10 (6 new entries) demonstrates the dynamic nature of brand performance.

Week of November 24, 2024:

Tribal maintains its dominance at #1 for a second consecutive week, extending its streak to four weeks in the top 10 with consistent 100% positive sentiment. Woody Nelson makes a strong return at #2 (100% positive), having been absent since October 20th. Kwall also returns at #3 with perfect sentiment.

Carmel Cannabis achieves a remarkable turnaround, maintaining its top 10 position but jumping to #4 with 100% positive sentiment - a dramatic improvement from last week's 18.8%. Tuck Shop makes a return at #5 with 74.6% positive sentiment after a two-week absence.

1964 slips from #3 to #6 but maintains its perfect sentiment score. Sixty Seven Sins returns at #9 with 100% positive sentiment, making its first appearance since ending its initial 5-week streak.

New entries this week:

• Jonny Chronic debuts at #7 (100% positive)
• Volo returns at #8 (concerning 8.9% positive)
• Sugr debuts at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Back Forty (ending 2-week streak)
• EastCann
• BIG
• Rocket Factory
• Flowr (ending 2-week streak)
• Ono Cannabis
• Cheers Cannabis

Streak Watch:

• Tribal: 4 consecutive weeks (2 weeks at #1)
• Carmel Cannabis: 3 consecutive weeks (with highly volatile sentiment)
• 1964: 2 consecutive weeks at 100% positive

This week features eight brands with 100% positive sentiment, but also shows extreme contrasts with Volo's 8.9% - the second-lowest sentiment score we've seen this quarter. The return of several previously successful brands (Woody Nelson, Sixty Seven Sins) adds an interesting dynamic to the rankings.

Week of December 1, 2024:

Tribal continues its remarkable run, holding #1 for a third straight week and extending its streak to five consecutive weeks in the top 10, maintaining perfect 100% sentiment. Woody Nelson stays strong at #2 for a second week, also keeping its 100% positive rating.

Sixty Seven Sins moves up from #9 to #3, maintaining perfect sentiment, while 1964 drops slightly from #6 to #4 but keeps its 100% positive streak alive for a third week. BLKMKT returns to the top 10 at #5 with 83.6% positive sentiment.

New entries this week:

• Dealr debuts at #6 (0% positive - the lowest sentiment score this quarter)
• Cultures Chloris debuts at #7 (100% positive)
• New Nugz debuts at #8 (100% positive)
• Pure SunFarms returns at #9 (100% positive)
• Victoria Cannabis Co debuts at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Carmel Cannabis (ending 3-week streak)
• Tuck Shop
• Jonny Chronic
• Volo
• Sugr

Streak Watch:

• Tribal: 5 consecutive weeks (3 weeks at #1)
• Woody Nelson: 2 consecutive weeks at #2
• Sixty Seven Sins: 2 consecutive weeks
• 1964: 3 consecutive weeks

This week presents another strong showing of perfect sentiment scores, with eight brands at 100% positive. However, the stark contrast of Dealr's 0% positive rating represents the lowest sentiment score we've seen this quarter. The top 4 positions show remarkable stability with established brands, while the lower ranks continue to see significant turnover.

Week of December 8, 2024:

Woody Nelson claims the top spot, moving up from #2 and maintaining its perfect sentiment for a third consecutive week. Volo makes another volatile return at #2 with 47.4% positive sentiment - a significant improvement from its recent 8.9% but still well below the week's average.

Sixty Seven Sins holds steady at #3 for a third consecutive week with 100% positive sentiment. Tribal's three-week reign at #1 ends as it moves to #4, though it maintains both its perfect sentiment and its impressive streak of six consecutive weeks in the top 10.

Northern Canna returns at #5 with 100% positive sentiment, its first appearance since leading the rankings in mid-November.

New entries this week:

• Kolab returns at #6 (100% positive)
• Cheers Cannabis returns at #7 (100% positive)
• Seaweed debuts at #8 (100% positive)
• EastCann returns at #9 (98.7% positive)
• Keff debuts at #10 (concerning 4.9% positive)

Notable exits:

• 1964 (ending 3-week streak)
• BLKMKT
• Dealr
• Cultures Chloris
• New Nugz
• Pure SunFarms
• Victoria Cannabis Co

Streak Watch:

• Tribal: 6 consecutive weeks
• Woody Nelson: 3 consecutive weeks
• Sixty Seven Sins: 3 consecutive weeks

This week maintains the pattern of predominantly high sentiment scores, with seven brands achieving 100% positive ratings. However, the inclusion of two brands below 50% positive (Volo and Keff) continues to demonstrate the volatility in consumer satisfaction.

Week of December 15, 2024:

Woody Nelson maintains its #1 position for a second straight week, though its perfect streak ends with a slight dip to 90.3% positive sentiment. Sixty Seven Sins moves up one spot to #2, maintaining its perfect 100% rating for a fourth consecutive week.

Volo continues its volatile journey, climbing from #2 to #3 with a dramatic improvement to 100% positive sentiment (up from 47.4% last week). Tuck Shop returns to the top 10 at #4 with a perfect score, showing strong recovery from its previous appearances.

New entries this week:

• LoFi debuts at #5 (100% positive)
• Nugz returns at #6 (100% positive)
• 1964 returns at #7 (84.7% positive)
• BLKMKT returns at #8 (100% positive)
• FIGR returns at #9 (49.4% positive)
• Jonny Chronic returns at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Tribal (ending impressive 6-week streak)
• Northern Canna
• Kolab
• Cheers Cannabis
• Seaweed
• EastCann
• Keff

Streak Watch:

• Woody Nelson: 4 consecutive weeks (2 weeks at #1)
• Sixty Seven Sins: 4 consecutive weeks
• Volo: 2 consecutive weeks (with dramatically improved sentiment)

This week shows strong overall sentiment with seven brands achieving 100% positive ratings. The exit of long-running streak holder Tribal marks a significant change in the rankings. The continued presence of lower sentiment scores (FIGR at 49.4%) maintains the pattern of varied consumer satisfaction we've seen throughout Q4.

Week of December 22, 2024:

Woody Nelson achieves a remarkable feat, holding #1 for a third consecutive week despite a significant drop in sentiment to 62.2% (down from 90.3%). This marks its fifth straight week in the top 10. BLKMKT moves up from #8 to #2 with perfect sentiment, while Volo maintains its position at #3, keeping its 100% positive rating for a third consecutive week.

1964 climbs from #7 to #4, returning to perfect sentiment at 100% positive. Nugz holds steady at #6, maintaining its perfect score from last week.

New entries this week:

• Jeeter debuts at #5 (100% positive)
• Antidote debuts at #7 (100% positive)
• Lune Rise Farms debuts at #8 (100% positive)
• Simply Bare returns at #9 (75.3% positive)
• Pure SunFarms returns at #10 (concerning 32.4% positive)

Notable exits:

• Sixty Seven Sins (ending impressive 4-week streak)
• Tuck Shop
• LoFi
• FIGR
• Jonny Chronic

Streak Watch:

• Woody Nelson: 5 consecutive weeks (3 weeks at #1)
• Volo: 3 consecutive weeks
• BLKMKT: 2 consecutive weeks
• 1964: 2 consecutive weeks
• Nugz: 2 consecutive weeks

This week continues the trend of predominantly high sentiment scores, with seven brands achieving 100% positive ratings. However, Pure SunFarms' 32.4% represents one of the lower scores we've seen this quarter. The consistent presence of Woody Nelson at #1, despite varying sentiment scores, suggests strong overall brand performance beyond just positive ratings.

Week of December 29, 2024 - Final Week of Q4:

The quarter ends with a dramatic shift as Purple Hills claims #1 with a perfect 100% sentiment score. BLKMKT maintains its high position, moving from #2 to #3 while keeping its perfect rating for a third consecutive week. Lune Rise Farms makes an impressive climb from #8 to #3, maintaining 100% positive sentiment.

1964 holds in the top 5 at #4 with 84.9% positive sentiment, while Woody Nelson's reign at #1 ends as it drops to #5 with a further decline in sentiment to 5.4% - a dramatic fall from its earlier performance.

Simply Bare improves from #9 to #6, achieving perfect sentiment (up from 75.3%). Volo slips to #8 but maintains its perfect rating for a fourth consecutive week.

New entries this week:

• Cannabis Cartel debuts at #9 (100% positive)
• Pistol and Paris returns at #10 (100% positive)

Notable exits:

• Jeeter
• Nugz (ending 2-week streak)
• Pure SunFarms

Final Streak Watch:

• BLKMKT: 3 consecutive weeks
• Volo: 4 consecutive weeks
• 1964: 3 consecutive weeks
• Woody Nelson: ends Q4 with 6 consecutive weeks in top 10
• Lune Rise Farms: 2 consecutive weeks

The quarter ends with remarkable sentiment performance: nine out of ten brands achieving 100% positive ratings, with only Woody Nelson (5.4%) and 1964 (84.9%) falling short of perfect scores. This final week showcases the volatile nature of brand performance we've seen throughout Q4, with even established leaders like Woody Nelson experiencing significant sentiment swings.

Q4 2024 Cannabis Brand Performance - Key Trends and Patterns

Notable Streaks & Consistency

• Sixty Seven Sins: Started Q4 with an impressive 4-week run at #1, followed by another strong 4-week streak later
• Tribal: Achieved the quarter's longest consistent run with 6 consecutive weeks in top 10, including 3 weeks at #1
• Woody Nelson: Closed Q4 with 6 consecutive weeks in top 10, including 3 weeks at #1, though with volatile sentiment
• Most brands struggled to maintain presence for more than 2-3 consecutive weeks

Sentiment Volatility

• Several brands showed dramatic week-to-week swings:
  • Carmel Cannabis: Ranged from 15.3% to 100%
  • Volo: Fluctuated between 8.9% and 100%
  • Woody Nelson: Final weeks saw decline from 100% to 5.4%
• Perfect scores (100%) were common but rarely sustained
• Lowest sentiment scores: Dealr (0%), Cookies (9.1%), Volo (8.9%)

Brand Tier Movement

• Top performers frequently moved between tiers
• Few brands maintained consistent tier positioning
• Weekly rankings showed high turnover (averaging 5-7 new entries per week)

Market Dynamics

• Strong competition at the top with frequent leadership changes
• Brand performance often independent of size/market presence
• Consumer sentiment proved highly dynamic and unpredictable
• Perfect sentiment scores didn't guarantee continued top 10 presence

Key Success Patterns

• Brands achieving extended stays in top 10 typically showed:
  • Initial strong sentiment scores
  • Consistent product quality
  • Regular community engagement
  • Ability to recover from occasional sentiment dips

This analysis suggests a highly competitive market where maintaining consistent performance is challenging, and consumer sentiment can shift rapidly. Success requires both quality products and sustained community engagement. Our quantitative analysis has revealed important trends in brand performance. But what are consumers actually saying about these products? Let's delve into the qualitative side of the data to uncover the nuances of consumer experience.

Our exploration of brand performance through quantitative data has provided a valuable overview of the Canadian cannabis market in Q4 2024. However, numbers alone can't tell the whole story. To truly understand consumer perceptions, we need to listen to their voices. This series of posts will dive into the qualitative aspects of consumer reviews, exploring the language used to describe cannabis products and the sentiments expressed towards different brands.

Exploring Sentiment in Canadian Cannabis Reviews

Introduction

In the rapidly evolving world of cannabis, understanding consumer sentiment is crucial for brands and producers. At Bud Trendz, we’ve harnessed the power of data from Reddit to provide insights into the Canadian cannabis market. This article is the first in a series of three, focusing on the qualitative aspects of consumer reviews.

Data Methodology and Key Findings

Our Q4 2024 database consists of approximately 35,000 rows of data across 28 fields, sourced from Canadian cannabis reviews on Reddit. After aggregation, we have about 10,000 rows over 31 fields. For this analysis, we focused on sensory and sentimental data, refining it to 3,000 rows over 27 fields. This includes product type, terpene information, sensory measures, effects, and sentiment summaries.

We identified 26 common keywords within these reviews, analyzing their prevalence and positivity rates. Our goal is to determine which keywords are most frequently used and whether they elicit positive or negative responses.

Sentiment Keywords Analysis

The chart below illustrates the 26 sentiment keywords, their frequency in reviews, and their positivity rates. For example, "satisfied" appears frequently and has a high positivity rate, while "garbage" is less common and has a near-zero positivity rate.

• Positive Sentiment Dominance: Keywords such as "appreciated," "loved," and "pleased" are frequently mentioned and have high positivity rates, indicating overall consumer satisfaction with many products.
• Negative Sentiment Indicators: Words like "disappointed," "garbage," and "upset" are less frequent but carry significant negative sentiment, highlighting areas where products may not meet consumer expectations.
• Neutral and Mixed Reactions: Terms like "decent" and "neutral" suggest ambivalence, with moderate positivity rates, indicating that some products meet basic expectations without exceeding them.
• High Positivity Keywords: "Highly recommend," "enthusiastic," and "thrilled" have 100% positivity rates, suggesting strong consumer endorsement when these terms are used.

We've identified the key sentiment keywords used in online cannabis reviews. But how do these sentiments differ across various product types? Our next article will explore this question, providing a deeper understanding of consumer preferences and perceptions within specific segments of the cannabis market.

Having explored the overall sentiment expressed in Canadian cannabis reviews, we now delve into how these sentiments are distributed across different product categories. Understanding these nuances can provide valuable insights for brands seeking to tailor their offerings to specific consumer preferences.

Exploring Sentiment Across Cannabis Product Types

Introduction

In our ongoing analysis of Canadian cannabis reviews, we now turn our attention to how sentiment keywords vary across different product types. By examining these patterns, we aim to provide insights into consumer preferences and perceptions for each category.

Data Methodology and Key Findings

Our analysis focuses on the distribution of sentiment keywords across various cannabis product types, with a particular emphasis on flower products, the most reviewed category on Reddit. We then expand our scope to include other product types, identifying patterns and anomalies in sentiment expression.

Product Category Groupings

We've grouped individual product types into broader categories to streamline our analysis. While we understand not everyone may agree with these groupings, here's our logic:

• Flower Products: Includes milled, whole, and rolled flower products.
• Edibles and Beverages: Shown separately to highlight distinct consumer experiences.
• Extracts: Includes products processed with solvents.
• Hash and Kief: Grouped together, though some may consider rosin under this umbrella. We've categorized rosin separately due to its unique heat and mechanical separation process.

We hope this categorization satisfies readers, though we acknowledge it may spark some debate.

Sentiment Keywords - Flower Only

Flower product types include milled flower, whole bud, and pre-rolled products. Flower is the most prominent category, representing 74% of all rows in our Q4 2024 database, so we have provided a flower-only chart up front. 

Sentiment Keywords by All Product Categories

1. Flower Products:

• Positive Sentiment: Keywords like "appreciated," "satisfied," and "pleased" dominate, with high positivity rates.

• Negative Sentiment: "Disappointed" is the most common negative keyword, appearing frequently with a significant negative sentiment.

2. Vapes and 510 Carts:

• Polarized Sentiment: Reviews are either highly positive or negative, with little middle ground. Keywords like "appreciated" and "disappointed" reflect this divide.

• Negative Keywords: Terms like "garbage" and "upset" are less frequent but strongly negative.

3. Beverages and Edibles:

• High Positivity: Beverages show a 100% positivity rate across all keywords, while edibles have a few inconsistencies, such as "disappointed" with a 50% positivity rate.

• Price Perception: "Overpriced" appears less frequently than you might expect but is mostly positive, suggesting value perception varies from the more overt complaints.

4. Extracts and Other Products:

• Varied Sentiment: Keywords like "decent" and "cheap" have different connotations across product types, often leaning negative in vapes but positive in flower products.

Conclusion and Next Steps

Thank you for exploring this segment of our analysis. We've seen how sentiment varies across product types, providing valuable insight into consumer preferences. In our final instalment, we'll connect these sentiment keywords to specific brands, revealing which brands are resonating most strongly with consumers and which are facing challenges.

Having examined sentiment across different product categories, we now complete our qualitative analysis by exploring how these sentiments are associated with specific cannabis brands. This final piece of the puzzle will provide a comprehensive understanding of consumer perceptions and preferences in the Canadian cannabis market.

Brands by Popular Sentiment Keywords

In this final section of our sentiment analysis, we explore popular brands on Reddit and the most commonly used keywords in their reviews.

Due to space constraints, we couldn't include all brands. This dataset covers 191 brands, 324 product names, and reviews by 164 authors across 15 product types. Contact us if your brand isn't featured or if you need more detailed data.

Brand Insights

Brand preference in the Canadian cannabis industry is subjective, especially for processor brands releasing varied flower products under the same label, like Tuck Shop. 

• Market Mainstays: Brands like Simply Bare, Tribal, and Woody Nelson generally receive positive reviews, though some negativity is inevitable with a large review base.
• Reputation Shifts: Some brands, like Tweed, are regaining positive reviews despite past declines, while others, like Good Supply, continue to have a low reputation.
• Flagship vs. Value Brands: Flagship brands tend to have more positive sentiment and a wider distribution of positive reviews compared to their value counterparts, such as Simply Bare vs. 1967 and Tribal vs. Nugz.

Conclusion and Next Steps

Thank you for following our comprehensive analysis of the Canadian cannabis market in Q4 2024. From individual reviewer behaviour and sentiment to brand performance and weekly trends, we've explored the data from multiple angles to provide a holistic view of this dynamic landscape.

Our findings reveal a market characterized by passionate consumers, active online communities, and a constantly shifting competitive field. While established brands often dominate in terms of overall engagement, emerging players can quickly gain traction through positive sentiment and strategic community engagement. The volatility of consumer sentiment underscores the importance of consistent product quality, responsive customer service, and ongoing community interaction.

By understanding the nuances of consumer preferences, brands can better position themselves for success in this evolving market. We hope these insights gleaned from Reddit data provide valuable guidance for navigating the complexities of the Canadian cannabis industry.