Inside: Don’t let your pharmacy Facebook page get stale. Use these fun ideas to keep your Facebook page fresh.
Trendy social media platforms like Instagram and SnapChat are all the rage. But for small businesses like independent community pharmacies, Facebook still matters.
“It’s important for pharmacies to use Facebook because that’s where their customers are,” said Andrew Schutt, Owner, Elevated Web Marketing, a digital marketing agency. “Over 80 percent of the adult population uses Facebook. So, if you’re not on Facebook, you’re leaving the door open for your competitors to move in and own that market share.”
If you want to stay relevant and keep fans coming back, you have to manage and update your pharmacy Facebook page regularly. But don’t worry. You don’t need to pay for ads.
“The most common misconception I see with businesses using Facebook Pages is the belief that content must be boosted (paid for) in order to increase reach and get engagement,” said Rebecca Viner, Founder and Director of Sparked Passion, an agency that helps businesses improve consistency, visibility, and engagement through community management and communications.
What matters is learning to use Facebook to the best of your ability to reach your current fans and new people.
Factors that affect how many views Facebook posts receive:
- Timing (posting when your audience is online)
- Optimizing your posts for Facebook (image size, character count, using hashtags, which aren’t effective on Facebook)
- How frequently your business page engages with people (independent pharmacies should prioritize community management and respond to all non-spam engagements)
- Using click-bait (it’s a bad idea to use false headlines and calls-to-action like ‘tag a friend if…’)
- Linking to other websites (Facebook’s new algorithm update encourages business pages to keep users on Facebook rather than sending them to visit an external website)
“When you consider each of these factors, it is absolutely possible to maintain an active, engaged Facebook Page with little-to-no paid spend,” Viner said.
Don’t Know What to Post on Facebook? Try These 11 Ideas.
At a loss for what to post on your pharmacy Facebook page? These ideas will give you some social media inspiration.
1. Share fun facts about your staff
Facebook is a form of social media. So, socialize with your fans. Use Facebook to let people get to know your pharmacy.
Schutt suggests doing a Meet the Team Monday post every Monday. Feature one of your employees and share more about who they are as a person.
Other ideas to help people get to know your pharmacy include:
- Post fun facts about your pharmacy’s owners and staff
- Introduce new employees
- Upload photo albums from pharmacy holidays and events
- Note employee birthdays and anniversaries with the business
- Post about certificates and extra training your staff achieves
2. Post general health tips
As their hometown pharmacy, patients look to you for medication and health information.
Use Facebook to share tips for preventing colds and flu, diabetes warning symptoms, information on teen health issues, and more.
Remember to always keep your specific patients in mind. Do you have a good chunk of patients who are new parents? Then share health tips for babies and toddlers. Have you noticed patients asking questions about a specific issue? Give them more details through your Facebook page.
3. Share press attention
Were you interviewed for a story in the local newspaper? Then, share the article. Did a T.V. station feature your pharmacy in a segment? Link to the video. Did the local university name you as the “Best Pharmacy in Town?” Promote it.
You’ll boost the attention your pharmacy is already getting by sharing those articles or videos on your pharmacy Facebook page.
4. Clarify safety warnings and recalls
Use your Facebook page to clear up confusion related to medication warnings and recalls.
Share the link to official information about the warning or recall from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s website. But also explain what’s happening in easy-to-understand terms.
Or, go above and beyond and write a blog post on your pharmacy’s website about the warning or recall and link to it on your Facebook page.
5. Let your fans know about events your pharmacy will participate in
If your pharmacy plans to participate in community events, post about it on your Facebook page well ahead of the big day. Get your Facebook fans excited by offering exclusive deals or freebies only for them.
Events could include:
- 5ks
- Block parties
- Charities
- Fundraisers
- Health fairs
- Health workshops
- And more!
And, if you do volunteer work, post about it. “People love to see others doing good, especially locally,” Schutt said. “So, don’t be afraid to show it off. Plus, you might get some extra publicity from other organizations involved as well.”
6. Offer contests and promotions
Everyone loves free stuff. Engage with your Facebook fans by holding occasional contests and promotions.
Post a status such as, “What vitamins do you take regularly? The first five responses win a $10 gift certificate.” Or, “Mention this post when you stop by our pharmacy and earn a $5 gift coupon.”
7. Highlight front-end products
Looking to boost your front-end sales?
Use Facebook to gather responses to retail items you’re considering offering. Ask Facebook fans about their favorite products and what they’d like to see at your pharmacy.
Then, stock those items. Any feedback will help you. And, asking people’s opinions will make them feel like a part of the pharmacy.
Also, build excitement by letting your Facebook fans be the first to know about exclusive sales and new products.
8. Showcase new front-end products
Share the new products your pharmacy stocks by posting photos on your pharmacy Facebook page.
“We are a nation of shoppers ready to ‘fix’ or ‘improve’ ourselves and we love seeing what is new to the market,” Viner said.
And, if you have an e-commerce website, people can ‘shop’ directly from your Facebook page, which can boost sales.
9. Use Facebook Notes as a mini blog
You’ve probably never noticed Facebook’s Notes feature. Basically, it allows you to write a longer post, known as a Note.
“Facebook Notes are incredibly under-utilized and could be the perfect opportunity to create microblog posts directly on the page as a means to share the latest local/industry news, inspiring stories, and customer feedback in the pharmacy’s own words,” Viner said.
10. Show what’s happening behind-the-scenes
Post a behind-the-scenes video of your pharmacy to show Facebook fans something they didn’t know.
You can use the live feature on Facebook. Or, record the video on your phone and upload it to your pharmacy Facebook page later.
For example, demonstrate how you compound a medication. Or, show how your pharmacy robot works.
People will get excited to see things they didn’t realize your pharmacy did or that they otherwise wouldn’t have known about.
11. Live Q&As with experts
Your pharmacy is full of health experts.
Use the live video feature to do a live Q&A with your pharmacists or pharmacy technicians on Facebook.
Options for live videos include:
- Discuss a health topic
- Invite local experts or providers to answer questions
- Do a tutorial
- Promote front-end products you recommend
Whenever you get stuck, use this list of ideas to keep your pharmacy Facebook page updated and fun.
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 owned 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 secondary wholesaler 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.
