Halfway through the year, is your online pharmacy performing the way you wanted? If the answer is “not really” — or even “I’m not sure” — a mid-year check-in is the perfect time to review and adjust. The fixes are often simpler than you’d expect.
Make it easy for clients to find your online store — and keep it top of mind
If they don’t know about it, they can’t use it. According to a 2024 study, 75% of practices say they have an online store — but more than half of pet owners say they aren’t aware of it.
Adding a “Shop Now” button to your website’s homepage as well as a link to your online store in the navigation bar is one of the simplest, highest-impact changes you can make. It gives your clients a clear path to make a purchase and your staff an easy way to direct clients to your online store.
Now that your online store is easier for clients to find, make sure they keep encountering it. Mentions on invoices, hold messages, voicemail, and in-practice signage create multiple touch points that keep your online pharmacy top of mind. Posting any promotions at the front desk and in exam rooms gives clients a timely reason to shop.
When the environment does the promoting, your team just has to be ready to say “yes, here’s the link” — without feeling like they’re hard selling to clients.
Use social media to stay visible between visits
Social media is one of the most cost-effective ways to stay visible between visits, and it’s an underused channel for promoting your online pharmacy. The challenge for most practices isn’t knowing they should post — it’s staying consistent. A few approaches can help:
- Start with what you already have. Platforms like Vetsource offer ready-made social media graphics and email templates you can customize and send, no design skills required.
- Build a simple content calendar. Even a plan as simple as one post per week, rotating between product or promotion highlights, seasonal reminders, and client education — creates enough structure to stay consistent.
- Let AI do the writing. AI writing assistants can generate captions, promotional copy, and email content in seconds. Most have free tiers that are plenty for small practices. Just be sure to review everything before it goes out to make sure it still sounds like your practice.
- Schedule in advance. Use a social media scheduling tool to batch an entire month’s worth of posts at once, saving time and ensuring your content is consistent.
The goal is simple: make sure clients regularly see a reminder that your online pharmacy exists and is easy to use.
Use video to improve compliance and capture more online store revenue
Clients often leave your practice with good intentions but forget to refill, reorder, or follow through. Short, branded videos explaining how easy it is to get medications and preventatives delivered to their door can make a meaningful difference — and when that education happens outside the exam room, you’re not relying on a five-minute conversation to carry all that weight.
A lobby loop with a QR code is also a great, low-effort way to reinforce your messaging before the appointment even starts. By the time a client gets into the exam room, they may already be primed to ask about home delivery or have your online store pulled up on their phone.
Make sure your team is ready to have the conversation
Your team is one of the most effective ways to drive awareness of your online pharmacy, but only if they feel confident talking about it. A quick refresher doesn’t have to be complicated: a simple cheat sheet at each workstation covering common tasks, FAQs, and key talking points can help everyone stay aligned.
Because many online shoppers are price-conscious, staff should also be prepared to discuss your pharmacy’s pricing and the convenience of home delivery. Many practices are surprised to find their prices are already competitive — but if staff don’t know that, they can’t communicate it.
A mid-year check-in is also a great opportunity to review pricing across your pharmacy and practice. Updating outdated pricing and identifying missed revenue opportunities now can help set your practice up for a stronger second half of the year.
Get more from your online store in the second half of the year
A mid-year check-in is the perfect time to put a few of these pieces in place. The practices seeing the most online store revenue and increases in compliance aren’t doing anything complicated. They’re focused on two simple things: helping clients discover their online store and making it easy to use.
If you’re a Vetsource customer, your Practice Toolkit includes the resources mentioned above to help you promote your online store and drive engagement. You can also connect with your account representative to review your pricing strategy, identify potential opportunities, and make sure you’re getting the most out of your online store.
