Last week I heard Amazon advertising on the radio and saw Google ads on television. It was surprising to hear and see these tech giants investing outside of the digital world. While digital marketing has captured significant attention, this is proof that traditional advertising is still an effective method to promote your pharmacy.
Traditional advertising will continue to be a viable marketing opportunity for a few, important reasons.
- Local Visibility: For most pharmacies, your primary customers and prospects come from a limited radius around your business. Traditional advertising including direct mail, newspaper, and radio can help you effectively reach the local population. Plus, local advertising can support other local community businesses.
- Targeting a Specific Audience: Traditional advertising can be useful for targeting older individuals who are less digitally inclined. For example, Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM), through the U.S. Postal Service, allows you to select specific neighborhoods for post card mailings at a very reasonable postage rate.
- Establishing Trust: Traditional advertising helps build trust. Repetition builds awareness which creates familiarity which eventually becomes trust. Local advertising will help people feel more comfortable and confident about your business when they see your advertising on a regular basis. When people see your pharmacy’s logo, name, or tagline repeatedly, they are more likely to remember you when they need pharmacy services.
- Supplement to Digital Efforts: Traditional advertising doesn’t have to work in isolation. It can complement your pharmacy’s digital advertising efforts, generating a multi-media strategy that reaches a broader audience. While digital advertising is dominant, traditional methods still hold relevance in certain demographics and communities. Embracing a mix of both traditional and digital methods ensures that your pharmacy reaches a wider spectrum of potential customers.
Please know that it takes time for nearly any form of advertising to create the awareness needed to generate new customers and make it a positive investment. Quite often clients tell me they tried a form of advertising once, and it didn’t work. Success in nearly all forms of advertising requires repetition and time. When you hear or see an advertisement for McDonald’s you don’t immediately go there. But, when we think about getting a hamburger, many people think of McDonald’s.
If you’re not sure where to begin, I recommend holding a “media day.” First contact several of your local media. Ask to meet with their sales manager (this person can provide the best possible rates) and schedule all meetings back-to-back in one day. Provide each a brief written summary of your business and make it clear what you need from your advertising. After the meeting ask them to return with a series of 6-month proposals based upon a range of costs. This will provide you with the information needed to make well informed decisions.
In conclusion, traditional advertising can promote your community pharmacy by enhancing local visibility, fostering trust and building meaningful relationships within the community. A well-rounded marketing approach that includes both traditional and digital strategies is often the most effective way to grow your business.
“Everything Old is New Again” — Jonathan Swift
