Mark Smith
The NisonCo team is passionate about promoting a positive image of emerging industries with our public relations, marketing and SEO services.
I became involved in cannabis advocacy while the industry was still in its infancy. This advocacy work allowed our company to craft messaging that creates a compelling story about cannabis legalization and the services our clients are providing.
Tell us about yourself?
I have pursued advocacy work from the very start of my career. I was attracted to advocacy for stigmatized issues that needed the reframing of messaging.
As a teenager, I advocated for freedom of choice with end-of-life decisions. From a young age, I have a proven track record of crafting messaging that changes public opinion on taboo topics.
While in high school, I spearheaded a campaign to decriminalize cannabis in my hometown of East Brunswick, New Jersey.
I received law enforcement scrutiny while collecting signatures for the campaign. Even though it was unsuccessful, the campaign inspired me to continue cannabis advocacy after graduating high school and was an excellent learning experience.
I took a break from college and moved to California to work on the Prop 19 campaign to legalize cannabis sales.
I planned to staff the campaign over the summer and return to college during the fall semester. Instead, I decided to delay my return until the spring semester and continue working on the campaign’s college outreach efforts. I returned to the campaign after losing in an extremely tight race.
After returning to college, I was named the President of Ithaca College’s Students for Sensible Drug Policy chapter.
Upon graduation, I continued advocating for the decriminalization and legalization of drugs. My advocacy experiences put me on the path to establishing NisonCo.
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
The start of the Covid-19 pandemic was a rough transition for the NisonCo team. Our team was remote before the pandemic, and we were already accustomed to meeting virtually before the lockdown.
Even with that experience, I would have told myself to anticipate the strain the pandemic would put on our team. I would have planned to provide additional organizational support while employees grew accustomed to working with the added stressors of a global pandemic.
What problem does your business solve?
NisonCo is a full-service public relations, content marketing and SEO agency. Our company delivers strategy and content that allow clients to connect easily with new customers via search, print and social media.
Our services give customers the ability to identify our clients and engage with their services quickly.
What is the inspiration behind your business?
NisonCo is motivated to assist with identifying areas of opportunity to leverage PR, content creation and SEO to reach new customers. Our clients are often unaware of why their business needs the support provided by our services.
We help companies identify the shortcomings in their PR, marketing and SEO efforts. We are in the problem-finding and problem-solving business.
What is your magic sauce?
The NisonCo team is our company’s special sauce. Our team strives to work smarter and maximize efficiencies in every facet of our business.
I empower the team to provide feedback that enhances operations. NisonCo can maintain team agility and cohesion while working 100% remotely.
This effective team environment produces high-quality PR, marketing and SEO services that send a return on a client’s investment.
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
NisonCo has committed to advocating for the regulation of cannabis sales for the last decade. We strive to maintain our roots in cannabis advocacy. We believe no one should serve prison time while others profit off this beneficial plant.
As we continue thriving, NisonCo must maintain a position that allows us to provide pro bono services to disenfranchised communities. The plan for the next five years involves maintaining the growth of the business while cultivating our advocacy roots.
We cannot lose sight of the need to advocate for the decriminalization and legalization of cannabis.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
I was involved in NisonCo’s hiring process from the beginning. When I established the company, we hired from within my network.
As we grew, the company had to look outside my network, which presented a big challenge. How does the company properly vet new employees that will contribute to our thriving company culture?
NisonCo focused on building a remote culture where employees felt connected to co-workers and leadership.
We welcome new employees that want to maintain a company culture that promotes agility and unity. This culture has allowed our company to scale successfully and provide stellar services.
How do people get involved/buy into your vision?
We love working with professionals in emerging industries entering mainstream markets.
We have immense experience providing public relations, marketing and SEO services to industries like cannabis, psychedelics, green energy and plant-based foods.
We welcome various entrepreneurs who want to legitimize their profiles in emerging industries. Reach out at https://nisonco.com/contact for a free SEO audit, to chat about cannabis marketing strategy, or to simply connect.
