It’s not just what’s in the prescription bag that matters. How it looks matters, too. If you’re handing a generic prescription bag to patients, what does that say about your business?
Custom prescription bags are a supplementary way to enhance your brand, increase your bottom line and market your other pharmacy services,” said Derek Jensen, vice president of sales at Rx Systems, a full-service provider of pharmacy packaging and supplies.
“Promoting the pharmacy name and logo can attract new customers, plus it can help drive customers to the pharmacy’s website, which not only allows for easy refills, but also provides in-depth information regarding alternative services they may offer,” he said.
Generic bags versus custom
Many pharmacies purchase generic prescription bags in bulk simply out of convenience. But just changing what’s on the front of your bag—to showcase your pharmacy—can make your business stand out to patients.
Custom prescription bags offer multiple benefits for pharmacies. They promote your pharmacy’s name and brand, drive patients to your website and help attract new referrals due to an emphasis of the business’s logo, Jensen said.
“Bags can also provide more information about other services the pharmacy offers, including vaccinations, durable medical equipment (DME), compounding, over- the-counter (OTC) products and medication therapy management (MTM),” he said.
Must-have features
For a customized prescription bag to work to a pharmacy’s advantage, it needs to include several fundamental features.
Jensen said the pharmacy’s logo, phone number and website should always go on a custom prescription bag. But don’t clutter the front of the bag with too much extra information, Jensen advises. Use the back of the bag to list alternate services.
“This maximizes the real estate on the bag while getting a clear message to the customer,” he said.
Additional costs
Independent community pharmacies run on tight budgets. But customizing your prescription bag doesn’t add significant costs compared to using a generic version, Jensen said.
“The average pharmacy uses 25,000 bags per year,” he said. “Over a 12-month timeframe, they will only spend an extra $10 per month to upgrade from a generic stock bag to a custom format.”
Streamlining your bag sizes can also help decrease costs. Many pharmacies use five to six different bag sizes when they only need three to four, Jensen said. “Most pharmacies can use one size bag (5”x 2”x10”) for 80 percent of their business,” he said. “We recommend customizing just one to two sizes to start, and using stock for the lower volume sizes.”
The bag for you
Rx Systems, a full-service provider of pharmacy packaging and supplies, offers a feature on its website that lets you generate a custom prescription bag proof and submit it for a quote. Just insert the following information to find out how much your custom design will cost:
• Pharmacy logo
• Pharmacy name
• Location
• Phone and fax numbers
• Website
