Hello everybody and welcome to #DigitalMarketingScript! I’m Carl Britton Jr, and today I am with David George and we are in a real pharmacy, with real people, with real pharmacists. Today we are talking about digital marketing.
David George, is the owner of two pharmacies, Creative Care Pharmacy and Hutton Pharmacy. Him and Phong Hoang, they co-own these things. This one they started from the ground up, bare bones and all. They contacted me and we worked together, from the very start. We built a website, built their Facebook and their twitter, and all these different social media platforms and we’ve done their SEO and we’ve helped them out. David George and Phong Hoang are innovators in the pharmacy world and they are always on the leading edge of technology.
David, what makes you want to get on social media or online, why do you think it’s important?
David George
I think it’s important because we started from nothing and we got to somehow get people in the door. By having that presence online is huge for us, and we’re hoping to get that extra bang for our buck. With SEO, Facebook and twitter, this will attract those new people to the pharmacy.
Carl Britton Jr
You also recently purchased your second location, which was an established location. Why do you think it’s important at that location, which is a completely different ball game, then starting out fresh?
David George
That location is unique because it’s been around a long time, but they have no social media presence. It would be a huge benefit for us to be getting new clientele in to the pharmacy, maybe the younger crowd, and that will help sustain the business in the long term.
Carl Britton Jr
Where do you think social media is going in the pharmacy world? Do you think they need to stay on Facebook and make an Instagram, or what about Snapchat? Do you think that could be a potential?
David George
I think social media is always changing, so we have to be willing to adapt. People like information, but they also like to have fun. So seeing a picture of Phong or somebody in the lab doing compounding, is huge because they can see we’re at work and they can see our faces. Compared to a little bit of information on high blood pressure. So again it’s more fun and social media allows that interaction. Absolutely with our customers and our patients.
Carl Britton Jr
One of the cool things that I like about the interaction is that it allows for pharmacies, is that it’s just not the hours that you’re open. People may comment on your Facebook and ask questions about hey are you going open on memorial day weekend, are you going to have the sale, is it still going on on your supplements and things like that. So it allows you to have that customer interaction, even beyond your business hours. Do you think that is beneficial for pharmacy?
David George
Yes that’s huge. We’ve had patients contact us through, whether it’s our website or Facebook or by direct message, asking if they could have a prescription ready by tomorrow or they’re going to be in on Saturday, can you make sure that you have it ordered? So when I come in it’s ready for me. So that communication is now a two way street, instead of waiting for them to show up in the pharmacy for that interaction to start.
Carl Britton Jr
David, you’ve started a pharmacy from the ground up and you have also purchased an established pharmacy. The folks that are coming out of college, that are wanting to get in the independent area, what do you think is some advice for them? What are some of a few things you think they need to know?
David George
First off, I think finding a mentor is huge. Someone that can advise you and direct you to make the right decisions. Also if I had to do things over again, maybe it wouldn’t be exactly the way I did it. I would consider acquiring a pharmacy first, before starting one up from scratch. A lot of success from owning an independent pharmacy comes from having buying power. When you start up from scratch, you have absolutely none of that, and that’s something to consider. You also need to spend the money on marketing. For some it’s social media, for some it’s direct detailing to doctors, but use that money wisely because that’s how you’re going to get new people in the door.
I have a question for you, Carl! What’s your favorite part about working with pharmacies?
Carl Britton Jr
It’s a wonderful question. I’m extremely passionate about marketing. I love what I do. I love to help businesses grow. I love working with independent pharmacists because they are passionate about their patients. Independents have this unreal passion for what they do and making sure their patients get the top level of service. Making sure that there’s no interactions and taking that extra step and I think that aligns perfectly with how I run my business, because we are super passionate at In Their Face Marketing. We are always looking for that next thing to help pharmacists that are growing and are developing their online and digital. I think our services are different but our thoughts and our emotions in to what we are doing are exactly the same. I love working with independents, that’s very, very passionate for me.
David George
Okay a random question, but what kind of magic, or what faeries come work you over in the morning to make your beard look so good?
Carl Britton Jr
Well this beard does take a lot of attention. As you can tell, the beard gets all of my attention. I am a proud member of the Dollar Beard Club. They send me their beard oil once a month for a dollar. When yours grows out a little bit more, let’s throw some oil on it and get majestic, just like me!
All right thank you so much for joining us today on the #DigitalMarketingScript! Thank you so much to David George, to Phong Hoang, to Creative Care Pharmacy, for allowing us to visit them here today.
We appreciate it, come back next time!
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