By Barb Gengler, client services representative, for the Resolutions for Independent Pharmacies blog series
We’re all busy, especially at work. What if I told you your wholesaler may have programs that could save you time and help increase sales and profitability?
How do you determine the most effective prices to charge for front-end products to maximize your profits? Have you considered subscribing to a managed pricing program? It could eliminate the frustration of trying to determine and manage pricing on your own, and it would also afford you the opportunity to spend more time servicing your customers.
Prices of front-end products communicate more to customers than what a product costs – they support your pharmacy’s image. A professional pricing philosophy will strengthen your customers’ perception that you offer the most popular brands at a good value. If your prices are inconsistent, customers may shop at one of your competitors who has a more predictable pricing strategy. A pricing program balances all the pricing variables to produce a strong overall profit while supporting your store image, competitive strategy, and profit goals.
When you participate in your wholesaler’s pricing program, it takes the guesswork out of how to price products. Once you choose a zone based on your market’s level of competition and profit goals, the pricing is automatically incorporated into your ordering system, and onto price stickers and signs.
Struggles maintaining your own prices are eliminated when you allow pricing professionals to do it for you. Parity is maintained, so your pricing makes sense for your customers. For instance, a 100 count bottle of aspirin will be less than two 50 count bottles. Your customers will also find consistent pricing for all products within a brand family where all scents of a particular brand of shampoo are priced the same.
Now that you’ve decided that a pricing program will bring value, how about adding an easy-to-implement merchandising program that will help manage your inventory, improve your in-stock conditions, and increase your transaction volume?
Category planograms contain products your customers will be looking for and appeal to shopping logic. Decisions are made objectively with your profitability in mind.
Planograms provide a visual guide to merchandising a featured department. The research behind the picture of the department identifies the optimal placement of products for maximum sales potential. An accompanying identification list provides a shelf-by-shelf, product-by-product list of all the items in the planogram. Your wholesaler’s item numbers are also included to more easily order the products you need.
Most categories are reviewed once a year, so once a department is set, only a little maintenance is required. You’ll want to make sure there aren’t any holes (out-of-stocks). Be sure to remove expired and discontinued items and add new items to make sure you are stocking the items that are being advertised.
Ready to get started? Call your wholesaler today to sign up for either or both of the programs.