October 2025 Monthly Mastermind – Backpack & Free Vitamin Program
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Lisa Faast discussed strategies for growing pharmacy profitability through free vitamin and backpack programs. She emphasized launching the free vitamin program at the beginning of the year to capitalize on New Year’s resolutions and the free backpack program during back-to-school seasons. Lisa highlighted the importance of targeting families with younger kids, as they are more likely to pay for their children’s health. She suggested involving local businesses as sponsors to share the cost and promoting the programs through media and community events. Lisa also recommended using drawstring bags for backpacks and including essential supplies and pharmacy information.
Action Items
- Research the local schools, their supply requirements, and gauge interest from school administrators in supporting the free backpack program.
- Explore getting sponsors for the free backpack program, such as local businesses that cater to families and children. Determine sponsorship levels and benefits.
- Order the backpacks, supplies, and any branded/customized items for the free backpack program.
- Promote the free backpack program through various channels, including media partners, social media, email, and community outreach. Set up a structured pickup plan for distributing the backpacks.
- Determine the age ranges, vitamin types (OTC vs. prescription), and distribution process for the free vitamin program.
- Order the vitamins and inventory for the free vitamin program.
- Promote the free vitamin program through local media, social media, email, in-store signage, and community partnerships.
Outline
Backpack and Free Vitamin Program Overview
- Lisa Faast introduces the meeting, focusing on tactics to grow pharmacy profitably, specifically discussing the backpack and free vitamin programs.
- The backpack program is recommended for back-to-school seasons, while the free vitamin program is suggested for New Year’s resolutions.
- Lisa emphasizes the importance of planning ahead for these programs, especially if aiming for a fully developed and well-executed campaign.
- Members are advised to purchase summit tickets through the membership link to benefit from member discounts.
Support and Office Hours
- Lisa reiterates the support available to members, including office hours on Tuesdays at 10am Central and daily calls with Mike on Mondays through Fridays at 2pm Central.
- The support is designed to help pharmacies, employees, and staff with various programs, including bonus and referral programs, and Christmas marketing.
- The patient life cycle is discussed, highlighting the backpack and free vitamin programs as awareness campaigns to build community relationships and attract families with younger kids.
- Lisa shares her personal experience as a mom and pharmacy owner, emphasizing the value of targeting younger families and the benefits of community support and goodwill.
Implementation and Benefits of Backpack Program
- Lisa explains the benefits of the backpack program, including attracting families with younger kids and building a good reputation in the community.
- The program helps in networking with young families and communities, leading to increased word-of-mouth marketing and referral marketing.
- Lisa shares her experience of using the program to get into local schools and collaborate with teachers and school districts.
- The program is cost-effective, requiring low investment and attracting new customers without heavy advertising.
Research and Planning for Backpack Program
- Lisa advises researching the target audience, including the type of schools and supplies required for different age groups.
- She suggests having conversations with school boards and principals to get their support and help with supply lists.
- Lisa recommends exploring sponsorships from local businesses to share the burden of costs and logistics.
- Different levels of sponsorship can be created to attract various levels of support, including marketing sponsors and printing sponsors.
Ordering Supplies and Promoting the Program
- Lisa discusses the importance of ordering supplies strategically, including generic or branded items, and using local companies for donations.
- She emphasizes the need for press releases, sign-up forms, and other promotional materials to support the program.
- The distribution schedule should be set, with schools, media partners, and other organizations helping to promote the program.
- Lisa advises starting with a smaller number of backpacks to manage logistics and gradually increasing the number as the program grows.
Distribution and Engagement
- Lisa explains the logistics of distributing the backpacks, including creating a pickup plan and involving media for coverage of the packing party.
- She suggests using pre-registration forms to collect contact information and promote the program through social media and emails.
- During the distribution, pharmacies should engage with families, offering new patient transfer paperwork and other OTC products.
- Lisa highlights the importance of having a phone number on the backpacks to make it easy for families to contact the pharmacy.
Free Vitamin Program Overview
- Lisa introduces the free vitamin program, recommending it for the beginning of the year when people are focused on health and wellness.
- The program can target different age groups, including babies, kids, teens, and prenatal vitamins.
- Lisa discusses the decision of using OTC or RX vitamins, and the process of labeling and filling the prescriptions.
- The program should be integrated into the pharmacy’s workflow, with patients enrolled in text and phone reminders to enhance their experience.
Ordering and Promoting Vitamin Program
- Lisa advises ordering inventory for the vitamin program, including big bottles of OTC vitamins and exploring private labeling options.
- The program should be promoted through local media, press releases, and store signage.
- Lisa emphasizes the importance of including current patients in the promotion to leverage their sphere of influence.
- Bounce-back coupons can be used to promote the program and attract new customers, especially at family-friendly places like pediatricians and dentists.