Distance Selling Pharmacy SEO

Pharmacy Website SEO

Pharmacy Web Publicizing Rules of the trade

To start we will take an example. Best to do it with www.douglaspharmacy.com

First type “douglas pharmacy” into google.

Find out what it is and understand it - What it is? Who are the clientele? What is the websites USP?

Douglas pharmacy specializes in travel medicine. So this differentiates the pharmacy on the web from people like Boots who offer mainly cosmetics and prescriptions in their locality.

You may have to go to page 1,2,3,4, within Google search, even further if necessary. Research is key, if you do not know what you are publicizing how would other people know?

Somethings you need to do...

The list below is prioritized meaning the first point is the most important, ie you should concentrate on this. The last point is the least important. The main principle ways of increasing page rank:

• Back link's
• Blog Commenting
• Forum Posting
• Social Bookmarking
• Directory Submission
• Adds Posting
• Ping Submission
• Youtube commenting

0.Select Your Keyword

Know your keyword(s). Its all well and true to say that you want to be higher on google for your site but you need to be specific. You need to select say 5 keywords which you want to rank higher for. The key to this is think of where the best opportunity is. There are parameters which can help KEI is pretty good in that it weighs up specific keywords in relation to how many rankings there are in google, but it doesn't take into account how competitive it is in the market. There could be multiple large reference sources on the web which will swallow the top 10 positions (your main target) quite easily. 

So it is imperative, that if you are in a competitive market to go for a niche of that market UNLESS you are in a newly established industry where you can become the front runner. So how do you tell if you are in a competitive industry? In this example type “Douglas Pharmacy” into Google, do you see many Google adverts? Do you see the site high in Google rankings (given that you are essentially typing the url into Google)? If not you are in a non-competitive market and high KEIs are a good place to start for keywords….

1.Google Listing

Google is the number one search engine in the world and will probably be so for generations to come, so its a good idea to think this is your main target for SEO. There are some basic things which you can do to get a good footing with Google:

• Google Plus: Although this is becoming less and less important, it is good to set up a gmail account for your business say smithpharmacy@gmail.com and use this to set up a corresponding Google Plus account page. This will then prompt you to make a business listing. It is a good idea to put in an address at this point so that Google can geolocate you if someone searches for "pharmacy" in your area.
• Submit your site to Google: this is an easy one and takes only a few minute. Just type "submit to google" into google or just use this link.

2. Create blogs

Blogger.com is quite a good place to start here. You can also easily link this to your new Gmail account.

Create a blog with the name of the pharmacy “douglas pharmacy” or something more niche like "homeopathy pharmacy delivery"

In the post it is best to right something original about the site, something like it stocks more African Hair care products and that there is a 10% deal right now.

The main purpose here is to firstly direct people to the site and secondly to make sure that the url is visible this will help with google ranking.

3. Content is King

Google thrives on new updated content.

If you have any info on new pharmacy products which would fit into the site as a web page that would be extremely useful.

Write only new unique content into your internal blog on the site, ideally this should sit on a sub domain such as blog.yourpharmacysite.com.

4. Link reciprocation

You find a website which is related to your pharmacy such as a GP in the UK, find their contact email and send them an email saying:

We run a site which is similar to your own. We would like to do a link reciprocation as to increase our and your google ranking. If you send us a banner we will post it up on our site and we will send you a similar one and you could do the same. Contact yourpharmacy@gmail.com

5. Youtube

What is the second most popular search engine on the web?

This is a bit of a tricky task but you have to make a submission to YouTube.

First if you don't have an account, in this example make "yourpharmacy" as the account name.

You need to submit a video about the site

There are many screen capture programs go to (http://download.cnet.com/) type in screen capture. You can use to do this but make sure it looks professional and is informative. A few examples of programs: CaptureWizPro, BSR Screen Recorder, Debut Video Recording Software Professional Version

A simple way to do this is to get a screen capture software and record you typing something interesting like:

"Do homeopathic remedies really work?"

"Where is the cheapest online pharmacy?"

"Where can I buy brewing equipment online?"

"How can I discreetly but incontinence pads?"

Make sure the screen capture movie has music so that people don't fall asleep! You could take this a step further with better video. Nearly everyone now has quite a good hi res camera on their phone you could use this on a tripod filming yourself answering general questions about pharmacy or medicine. Creating lots of content like this and then using Youtube's video transcribing service can create lots of text which you can embed on your site which Google will recognise as unique rich content and improve your SEO.

6. Directories

Many websites provide a directory service.

Yahoo when it was established was a directory service which categorised web sites on the WWW.

You could go to Yahoo and submit the site or search in google for “website directory”

Make a submission but make sure its in the right category

In this example you would go for “pharmacy, medicine, online doctor” or similar to what the have available. If you cannot find a precise category submit the closest as any submission is better than none.

7. Add robots.txt for the website.

If you do not know what this is type it into google. You will need to generate this file and upload it to your site via ftp.

Somethings to avoid...

Do not pay for Google advertising - this is a tricky area as Google historically doesn't like pharmacies advertising online, however it can be done. The issue is that its is an extremely competitive market and some big names are throwing lots of money at it. Unless you become extremely niche with your keywords like "discrete erectile dysfunction medicines Croydon" you will make a very tiny splash in an extremely large pool.

How to start an internet pharmacy UK

A question, we get time and time again is how to set up your own internet pharmacy within the UK. Well, first you need a premises, second, you need to apply to the GPhC for "distance pharmacy" license. During this process, you need online pharmacy clinical governance documentation which is somewhat different to a regular bricks and mortar pharmacy. Have a look at the following links for more information about "online pharmacy SOPs" or "SOPs for internet pharmacies" Once this is in place and the GPhC have inspected your business, you can get started...

The real question, is how to start up an internet pharmacy and make a success of it, here are our top tips:

• Target care homes - you will need to increase your Rx count pretty quickly to get within the PPA threshold. A quick way to get bulk prescriptions is from care homes. The majority of care homes are controlled by large pharmacy chains, these chains often offer impersonal service and do limited out of hours service, this may be a way to differentiate your service.
• Set up an online doctor service - use a service like PharmaDoctor to embed an online doctor. PharmaDoctor employs a GMC registered doctor who works online and can create private prescriptions for patients visiting your website, for you to dispense. One great thing about this service is if the patient orders between 9-5 on a weekday the Rx will be ready within 10-15 minutes, meaning you could courier medicines to people straight away and charge a premium for the service via low cost couriers such as Shutl.
• Get your clinical governance in order - there is a fantastic, free service called PharmacySOP.com it offers Standard Operating Procedures (Sops) for pharmacies, online pharmacy standard opertating procedures (needed for GPhC inspection) and a course on how to create an internet pharmacy.
• Differentiate - if you offer something on your website, make sure it is different from the plethora of other online pharmacies. You will not make money from "traditional" ecommerce, 90% of people on the web buy their usual sundries from Amazon or eBay, not a small, untrusted website which they have never heard of before. Why not specialise? Go into areas such as travel medicine (have a look at Douglas Pharmacy), African hair care, brewing equipment, homeopathic remedies or veterinary medicines... This may not have the mass appeal of offering everything, but will give you the edge in specific niches, which Google loves.
• Personal face to face relationships are the core of community pharmacy - this is one of the main excuses traditional community pharmacists have; saying that internet pharmacy will never succeed. Prove them wrong. The power of the internet can bring the traditional pharmacy model straight to the patients home. When setting up an internet pharmacy, ensure that you provide adequate support, why not include Skype pharmacist consultations with the ability to video chat? Why not embed Google Hangouts so that the patient can readily interact face to face with a suitably qualified pharmacist?
• NHS Commissioned Services - community pharmacy provided services, are becoming ever more important due to their low cost and accessibility. It is often said, that internet pharmacies cannot provide these services due to the service contract limitations. However, many of these services can be provided off site, meaning internet pharmacists can provide home visits for services such as influenza vaccinations and smoking cessation, providing they have local NHS approval. For more information about how to take advantage of these opportunities join our online pharmacy course.
• Get you Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) in order - read our article about "how to improve online pharmacy SEO UK". It is not as easy as it seems, do not fall into the trap of going on ODesk or Freelancer and hire a "SEO Agent" who can promise you a listing on the front page within a week. The key to SEO, is slow and steady, write blogs, get backlinks, but take your time, aim for the front page of Google by targeting long string keywords (e.g. homeopathic pharmacy stamford rd) opposed to short string keywords such as (chemist stamford rd). Find less competitive keywords with high search volume is the key. Use Google Keyword Planner for more info.

Lastly, have faith. Look at your local high street... Record stores, electronic stores are closing left right and centre, as they are selling products which can be easily found online at a cheaper price due to lower overheads. Take advantage of this, whilst offering excellent customer service and you will not go wrong.

How do UK pharmacies get paid

How do pharmacies get paid?

There are three main funding sources for community pharmacy:

1. PPA/PPD (National)
2. NHS England (National)
3. CCG (Local)
4. Clinics (Private)

The main funding comes from PPA/PPD (Prescription Pricing Authority/Department) - this is payment for services provided under the national NHS Pharmacy contract. This includes:

1) Payment for drugs given out via FP10/NHS Script - this is set out by the Drug Tariff (pharmacies make an extra profit from buying well from suppliers - about 5%). There are certain lines which make us more money such as:

• Specials (drugs which are not readily available ie. omeprazole solution)
• Stockings pharmacies get an extra payment for measuring and fitting
• Bandages
• High margin drugs like clopidogrel or olanzapine (this changes regularly, like the stock market)
• Controlled drugs like methadone administration

2) Dispensing, pharmacies get paid approx £1 for every item dispensed, this seems low however, it is estimated that each Rx a pharmacy does generates around £10, this is because pharmacies get an automatic payment as they provide an essential NHS service (dispensing medicines) which amounts to around £40k pa, depending on how many Rx are dispensed per month.

3) MURS - a service pharmacies can provide to patients who have more than 1 drug and have been with them for >3 months - max 400 pa. If the target is reached this amounts to around £10k pa.

4) Minor ailments - pharmacies get £5 every GP referral sheet they get. Profit can also be generated here by buying correctly in respects to the MA tariff price.

Another main source of funding is the CCG which commission services like Health Checks, existing ones include:

5) MDS - blister packaging for elderly / disabled - yearly fee of about £200 per patient, this scheme is currently been dramatically diminished by local authorities.

6) Smoking cessation - pharmacies get around £40 per patient they have.

7) EHC - pharmacies get about £25 for every patient they give it to.

Private services (i.e. not NHS funded)

Pharmacies also provide peripheral services:

8) OTC meds minimal can vary from £200 pd for a little shop to £3000 pd, in a large Boots like pharmacy.

Lastly the services that have a huge potential and can be pushed by a good pharmacist:

9) Care homes - these can be highly profitable, however they are high maintenance

10) Travel Clinic - pharmacies make a very nice margin out of private prescriptions which are generated by these - Rx for Malarone especially.

11) Importing exporting - due to the weak pound and government restrictions, lots of opportunity by high barrier to entry (over £2000 to get a license and get up and running)

12) Commissioned services - you can apply to the CCG, to have your own special service. For instance, if your area has a high prevalence of HIV, if you propose a business plan to the CCG to address the problem you could get funding to offer free HIV tests funded by the local authority.

13) "Renting" out the consultation room to other healthcare workers and micromanaging them - osteopaths, chiropodists, training.

14) Private prescriptions - pharmacies are now embedding private GMC registered doctors into their websites using services such as PharmaDoctor to maximise health care accessibility.

15) Renting medical devices - new UK digital health services such as doctorrealtime.co.uk are revolutionising UK healthcare by offering leasing agreements with patients who want to monitor their health in real time giving them direct feedback in to how their medicines are working and offering advice about how to make them even more effective.