Counter Talk

In the Bag

Using marketing to overcome patient resistance to adherence pouch packaging services

By Scott Miglin

Scott Miglin, board-certified ambulatory care pharmacist and service representative, Euclid Medical Products

Nearly 50% of patients do not take their medications correctly, which can lead to barriers in patient health. Adherence pouch packaging can help.

As a retail pharmacy, you must differentiate yourself from big chains or local competition to retain your current patients, obtain new ones and maximize your market share. Adherence pouch packaging machines not only benefit the health of your patients by helping them take medication correctly, but it can also help you gain large returns. How can you get the word out about this new service?

Older generations tend to be less inclined to try new methods, and this can be a major pain point for retail pharmacies looking to add more patients to their pouch packaging services. To entice current and potential patients to try pouch packaging, it’s important to communicate the many benefits these services offer.

Adherence Benefits

More than 50% of older patients take more than five medications a day, which can lead to timeconsuming pill sorting. Pouch packaging systems help patients take their medication as prescribed in a convenient detachable pouch that holds all of their medications and features information about the day and time to take each pill. Some key benefits to communicate include: • Eliminates task of sorting medication: Patients can eliminate the time-consuming task of pill sorting on Sunday nights. The machine does all the sorting so patients can take their medication correctly and efficiently;

• Simplifies vitamin and supplement combina-

tions: Not only can you package patients’ prescribed daily medications, but you can also include vitamins and supplements in each pouch;

• Reduces amount of trips to the pharmacy:

Prescriptions can be synchronized so patients can pick up their packaged medications at one time, once a month with only one predictable payment each month; and • Makes travel easy: Detachable pouches make traveling with medication easier than ever. Patients can tear off the number of pouches for the days they will be gone and can take their medication as they normally do.

Set Goals

Establishing goals along the way is the first step to nailing down your intentions to define your pharmacy’s success. Each goal depends on the size of your retail pharmacy, the time commitment you can set aside for marketing and your patient demographic. Some general examples include setting goals for the number of new patients you would like to gain per week or number of prescription refills. If you are conducting social media marketing, you can also set goals for posts per week, impressions and more. To continue momentum, it’s important to evaluate your progress and adjust your goals as needed.

Marketing Tactics for Results

Retail pharmacies have the ability to increase patient outcomes and gain higher ROI by promoting their services through marketing. Strategies can include in-store tactics, phone calls, online content and more. However, it’s important to understand which tactics will target your patients’ demographics the best.

For instance, before you jump into a complicated social media campaign, it’s vital to keep in mind that nearly 46% of Americans over 65 are on Facebook as opposed to other social media platforms. This can be a great place to start if you’re looking to do social media marketing with an older demographic.

There are also opportunities to market in store. Use word of mouth by including patient referral programs, utilizing your pharmacists, and connecting with local doctors’ offices to inform them of your new services and more. Try placing flyers, signage and coupons in your pharmacy surrounding your new adherence services. This can lead to organic conversations between staff and patients about how you can provide the best patient experience.

Making an investment on adherence packaging can be daunting, but having a marketing plan in place will offer significant benefits to your retail pharmacy and patients. Enhanced marketing is your ticket to success. dsn