Using Technology To Get A Superior Pharmacy Experience

How a technology startup is reinventing the local pharmacy experience – customers get to enjoy the convenience that they’re used to when booking a flight, hotel or car rental.

Going to the pharmacy is not fun. Customers use several outlets, including blogs to gripe about their service experience at retail pharmacies. A Facebook page dedicated to ranting about CVS, a major retail pharmacy chain also exists.

The common thread on these various forums is that customers feel they have little to no control over the service they receive from their local pharmacy. All the power seems to reside with the pharmacies, while customers simply accept what is offered. Although a customer could easily choose to go to another pharmacy if dissatisfied with the one she is currently using, it takes time and effort to transfer basic customer health information from one pharmacy to another. Also, customers generally believe that the service quality is not likely to vary much from one drugstore to another. The net result is that most customers feel that the effort and time it takes to switch may not be worth it and they just “grin and bear it.”

A technology startup, ZipcodeMeds is tackling these issues with the basic premise that if customers are armed with reliable real-time information, they will regain some of the power in putting pharmacies on the defensive. Pharmacies will be forced to try harder to satisfy a customer who finds it much easier than before to simply go elsewhere. ZipcodeMeds utilizes its technology platform to quickly match customers with the local pharmacy that is best able to meet their unique needs at that particular time. Such needs could be quick service time, same day delivery, consultation services, ensuring that a medication is in stock before heading to the pharmacy, compounding services etc. It is also able to pre-send the required customer information to the pharmacy selected by the customer so that certain aspects of the order fulfillment process are completed or begun before the customer steps into the pharmacy. Customers with health conditions like diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure and other chronic conditions where delaying treatment is not an option will be able to access faster, more efficient care.

Different pharmacies have different areas of strengths. Some of these strengths vary on a daily basis. For example, a pharmacy might be running low on inventory of Ventolin inhalers---this would result in a major quality of service issue for a customer who has asthma. A pharmacy could also be experiencing long service times due to a backlog of prescription orders ---this would lead to a very frustrating experience for a customer who walks into the store with a doctor’s prescription expecting prompt service. ZipcodeMeds makes it possible for the customer to choose the best neighborhood pharmacy every single time based on the pharmacy’s unique strengths and circumstances. At the same time, ZipcodeMeds allows pharmacies to attract the right customer---it’s a two-way system that benefits the customer either way.

In addition to solving major service issues that customers face at the local pharmacy, ZipcodeMeds also makes it possible for customers to get price quotes from multiple local pharmacies with the click of a button. Prices can vary tremendously even within the same ZIP code, so uninsured customers would be wise to get a comprehensive price picture before selecting a pharmacy each time they have a prescription. ZipcodeMeds makes this easier than ever before.

Eric Basmajian is the author of this article on Compare Drug Prices. Find more information on Find Local Pharmacies here.