characteristics of pharmacy services
TRANSCRIPT
Characteristics of SERVICES
David Holdford, RPh, MS, PhDProfessor, School of PharmacyVirginia Commonwealth University
That Make Them Difficult to Market
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Slides to Accompany Chapter 7 of “Marketing for Pharmacists”
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Learning ObjectivesDefine: services, value-added services, pure services, core services, facilitating services, and supporting services
Describe characteristics of services that differentiate them from products
Discuss how the characteristics of services make them difficult to market
Describe service categorization methods that can be used to develop strategic insights into the provision of pharmacist services
List marketing strategies for dealing with the unique characteristics of services
DEFINING SERVICES
SERVICES ARE…
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PERFORMANCES
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That may or may notaccompany a tangible
product
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Those that accompany a tangible product are called “value-added
services”
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Those that do not are called “pure services”
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Services Benefit CustomersCore services are those that are absolutely essential for the customer to receive a core benefit
Facilitating services are necessary for the use of core services
Supporting services are not essential but can increase the value of the core service and differentiate it from the services of competitors
LEVELS OF SERVICES
Service performances consist of collections of interactions that can be described on different levels
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LEVELS OF SERVICESService Acts: discrete interactions occurring between provider and customer (Touchpoints, Moments of Truth)
Service Episodes: series of acts over time between the provider and customer
Total Service Experience: series of episodes provided over time (often described as a customer's journey)
Service Relationships: Sum of acts, episodes, and experiences between businesses and customers
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Levels of Service PerformanceService Relationship
Service Experience (With MTM)
Service Episode
(Followup Visit)
Act
(Intervene
and/or
referral)
Act (Assess
Changes in
Health)
Act (Review
Changes in
Therapy)
Service Episode
(Initial Visit)
Act
(Intervene
and/or
Referral)
Act
(Develop
Personal
Med
Record)
Act (Med
Therapy
Review)
Service Experience (With Rx Dispensing)
Service Episode (Refill
Rx For Hypertensive
Drug)
Act
(Handling
Insurance
Issue)
Act (Pick
up)
Act
(Reminder
Call)
Service Episode (New
Rx For Oral Antibiotic)
Act (Pick Up
And
Counsel)
Act (Wait
For Rx To Be
Filled)
Act (Drop
Off Rx)
Touchpoints and Moments of Truth
CHARACTERISTICS UNIQUE TO SERVICES
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4 I’sIntangible
Inconsistent
Inventory
Inseparable
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Characteristic Challenge
IntangibilityService quality is difficult for customers to assessServices are difficult for marketers to display or describeAssigning value and pricing is difficult
Inconsistency Employee actions determine the quality of servicesService quality depends on many uncontrollable factorsThe actual service delivered often does not match what was planned and promoted
Inseparability Customers participate in and influence the service deliveredCustomers influence each others’ service experience
Inventory Many services cannot be stored for later useIt is hard to synchronize supply and demand with servicesSome services cannot be saved, returned, or resoldOnce some services are delivered, they are lost
Challenges in Marketing Services
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Classifying Pharmacy Services (traditional)Services Associated with a Tangible Producto Prescription v. Nonprescription medicationso New prescriptions v. Refillso Specialty medicine or Unique administration requirements (e.g., IV, IM)o Complementary and herbal medicineo Durable medical equipment, home testing equipment, and diagnostics
Services Provided to Specific Populationso Geriatric, Pediatrico Women’s healtho Disease-specific
Services Associated with a Practice Settingo Hospital: Centralized services v. Decentralized serviceso Independent v. Chain v. Mass merchandiser v. Grocery storeo Mail order or Interneto Long-term care, home health
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New Ways of Classifying Services
Classification Variables in Classification
Tangibility of Product/Service Mix Product or Service Orientation?
Focus of Services Directed at People or Things?
Need for Customer to be Physically Present Face-to-Face or Distance Service Delivery?
Need for Customer to be Mentally Present Engaged or Not Engaged?
Pharmacist/Patient Relationship Formal or Informal?
Nature of Service Provided Discrete or Continuous?
Room for Customization and Judgment Standardized or Customized?
Professionalism of Services Professional or Non-professional?
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Levels of Service Performance
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Pharmacist Services Classified by the Nature of the Service Act
Action Type Directed at People Directed at ThingsTangible Services directed at people’s
bodies- Vaccinations- Blood pressure monitoring- Cholesterol testing- Diabetes screening
Services directed at goods and other physical possessions- Drug dispensing- OTC counseling- Durable medical equipment- Herbal medicines- Veterinary medicine- Mail order pharmacy
Intangible Services directed atpeople’s minds- Patient education- Drug information services- Alternative medicine
Services directed at intangible assets- Drug insurance design- Pharmacy benefit management- Drug-use review
STRATEGIES FOR MARKETING SERVICES
Use tangible clues to the quality of your services
Lighting, cleanliness, neatness of pharmacy
Dress, appearance, & body language of pharmacist
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Provide something tangible
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Take advantage of word-of-mouth promotional communications
Ask customers to recommend
Use opinion leaders
Be so good that they want to recommend you
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Emphasize the professional nature of pharmacist services
Build and maintain trust in patients
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Establish and maintain a strong image in the mind of customers
Build & maintain strong relationships with customers
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SummaryThe pharmacy profession needs to look
beyond their current ways of practice and explore how other businesses serve customers.
Pharmacists can learn by emulating the best practices of businesses outside of Pharmacy
SEE ‘MARKETING FOR
PHARMACISTS FOR
MORE DETAILS
D HOLDFORD