Every pharmacy sells the exact same thing. How will you stand out?

As a pharmacy owner, chances are good you don’t come from a robust marketing background. That’s why PDS is committed to providing our members the trainings they need to create realistic marketing campaigns with confidence.

One of the ways we turn pharmacy owners into marketing rock stars is through Pharmacy Marketing 360º. This training is comprehensive and will have a positive impact on your pharmacy’s future. Created with care and detail by PDS Chief Marketing Officer Samantha Timmermann, this two-day workshop with follow-up webinars could be the missing puzzle piece your pharmacy has been craving.

With a new session of Pharmacy Marketing 360º starting in June, now is the time to think about registering yourself along with your marketer. Some of you might have questionsabout the training and what better way to address them than by getting the scoop from Samantha herself. In the following interview Samantha discusses what marketing mistake you are likely making, why going after target niches means more business and how Pharmacy Marketing 360 can introduce you to like-minded peers.

PDS Marketing Department: What do you think is the biggest marketing mistake pharmacy owners make?
Samantha Timmermann: They are forgetting to market themselves. They are so busy just in the daily grind. That, or they market with just whoever comes to them. If the newspaper people approach you to do an advertisement, yes, that’s good. But no one is opening their newspaper thinking “I need to find a new pharmacy today.” But what if you switch around your message and talk about your awesome services like a diabetes education class? That might catch their eye.

You cover a lot of information about target audiences during the training. Why do you think that is so important for the pharmacy industry?

It’s important for every business but it’s especially important for independent pharmacies. When you ask a pharmacist or owner “Who is your target customer?”, they all say “Anyone and everyone who needs a prescription.” Well, that’s not quite true anymore. If you are just filling maintenance medications, that’s not going to take your pharmacy where you want it to go. If you can laser focus in on a target audience, you can have more fun with it. When you go for specific niches, that’s how you differentiate yourself from other pharmacies. It’s not just about target audiences, it’s about creating products that are truly remarkable.

Tell me about the experience of the training. What can PDS Members expect?
One of the big things we do here at PDS is help connect like-minded individuals who walk the same terrain and offer great emotional and collaborative support. That shows up not only at the conference and the message boards, but it shows up tremendously in the actual trainings. You are going to sit in a room with other pharmacy owners and pharmacy marketers and that is going to inspire you. That’s a really big part of it. On day two of the workshop, you are going to present your pharmacy marketing plan to the group and everyone is going to give you feedback and tell you what has worked and what hasn’t worked. You can talk to people who have already been there.

What do you want to tell a Pharmacy Owner that is considering registering but hasn’t quite decided yet?
This is where you and your marketer will be able to go and remove all of the distractions and focus on a niche idea instead of getting stuck in the whirlwind of filling prescriptions everyday. If you are wondering how to replace some of your customers that you are losing–the key is to identify something you might be passionate about and this is where you will learn how to launch it. Whether it’s a wellness niche or even vaccinations, this is where you can really focus on building a part of your company that you haven’t considered yet. Because when every pharmacy sells the exact same thing to the exact same people, what are you going to do to stick out?

Pharmacy Marketing 360º is Friday and Saturday, June 26-27 in Fort Lauderdale. Learnmore and register here. 

Want even more information on pharmacy marketing. Watch Samantha’s latest webinar ‘Attrating Your Most Profitable Customers’ right here!

About the Author: Dana Krangel is the Marketing Specialist for Member Services at Pharmacy Development Services and a regular blog contributor. Dana can be found on Google+LinkedIn