Your patients trust your pharmacy. They know they’ll be taken care of no matter if they’re picking up a prescription medication or searching the aisles for the right vitamins or cough syrup.
You take care of your patients’ medication needs day in and day out. But do you also help them understand how their medications might deplete essential nutrients? If not, it’s a good idea to start. Recommend supplements that will help fill in those gaps. Not only will you benefit your pharmacy, but also your patients.
To do this, you’ll need to make many changes in your pharmacy. And, you need to do more than just putting random supplements on your shelves. Here are some ideas you can use to get your nutrient depletion program started:
Make supplements a part of your workflow
Building them into your workflow is one of the smartest ways to recommend them to your patients. You’ll have to decide if you’ll use point-of-sale prompts or a company program. You should also have your entire pharmacy team educate patients on supplementation. Whatever you decide to do, be clear and consistent.
Teach your customers
Let them know that your nutrient depletion program is easy, informative, and they won’t be pressured. Talk to them about what a nutrient depletion program can do for them and why they’re important. By showing you care about their health, they’ll be more comfortable listening.
Offer the best choices
Recommend a solution you know will work best. Then, let the patient decide what they can afford. When they understand the value, they may decide the premium option is, indeed, what they want.
Know your products and how to upsell
When you’ve figured out your selling process, make sure the entire team is ready and comfortable with it. Upselling can be hard, and some of your staff may not feel confident with it. But if you give them the proper training and ongoing support, they will gain the much-needed confidence to start and hold a conversation with customers. Then, measure how many conversations your team is having each day. If conversations are happening on a consistent basis, sales will naturally follow.
Always be consistent
Your consistency will build trust, there’s no doubt about it. With every interaction with your pharmacy, your patients will know what to expect. They’ll be more comfortable engaging with staff members and purchasing what’s recommended. And they’ll become return customers.
Commit to your program
If you want to see results, you have to put in the effort every single day. No exceptions.
A Member-Owned Company Serving Independent Pharmacies
PBA Health is dedicated to helping independent pharmacies reach their full potential on the buy-side of their business. Founded and run by pharmacists, PBA Health serves independent pharmacies with group purchasing services, wholesaler contract negotiations, proprietary purchasing tools, and more.
An HDA member, PBA Health operates its own NABP-accredited warehouse with more than 6,000 SKUs, including brands, generics, narcotics CII-CV, cold-storage products, and over-the-counter (OTC) products — offering the lowest prices in the secondary market.
