Chapter 22. Marketing Applications

Mr. Teeter is a graduate student in the Department of Pharmacy Care Systems at Auburn University's Harrison School of Pharmacy. He received a B.S. in Public Health from Indiana University and is currently working toward his Ph.D. in Pharmacy Care Systems. His teaching interests include pharmacy management, managing organizational change, and the US health care system. His main research interests include quality improvement in community pharmacy, adoption, implementation, and sustainability of innovations, and how community pharmacies adopt and market patient care services to their clients.

Dr. Westrick is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacy Care Systems at Harrison School of Pharmacy, Auburn University. She received her B.S. in Pharmacy from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, M.S. in Industrial Technology from Illinois State University, and Ph.D. in Social and Administrative Sciences in Pharmacy from University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her primary research interests are innovation adoption and program evaluation in community pharmacies.

After completing this chapter, readers should be able to

1. Describe the role of marketing and its importance in the practice of pharmacy.

2. Describe the essential steps when preparing to market goods or services in a pharmacy.

3. Distinguish between the micro- and macroenvironment of an organization.

4. Conduct a situation analysis for a given organization.

5. Differentiate between mass marketing and market segmentation.

6. Analyze a target market.

7. Apply marketing-mix components to various scenarios.

8. Describe the importance of marketing control.

Murray Rockefeller earned a Pharm.D. degree 7 years ago. Upon graduation he was presented with the opportunity to become a junior partner of Community Care Pharmacy in Weagle, AL. This pharmacy fills prescriptions, provides compounding services, offers a full line of durable medical equipment, and prepares unit dose blister packages of medications for residents of a local nursing home. For the first 5 years of Dr. Rockefeller's employment, he worked closely with the senior partner and learned about running a pharmacy business. Working side by side with the senior partner ensured the smooth transition of the pharmacy ownership when Dr. Rockefeller became the sole owner of Community Care Pharmacy 2 years ago. Since Dr. Rockefeller assumed ownership of the pharmacy, he has reflected that much of his effort has been focused on maintaining existing services provided by the pharmacy rather than planning for goods and services they might offer in the future.

During the past year, Dr. Rockefeller has realized a significant increase in competition from community pharmacies in the area, as well as lower profit margins from dispensing prescriptions. He knows that he must investigate options to seek additional revenue sources for his pharmacy. These options include offering new goods, as well as developing new services that are needed and wanted by his patients. He also knows that before launching any new good or service he must do extensive planning and evaluate marketing options to ensure success.

1. Why is it important that the goods and services a pharmacy provides be consistent ...