Patients leave pharmacies quietly. They do not complain; they simply nominate somewhere else after a delivery that never came, a prescription they had to chase, or a service they never heard about. Most of that drift is avoidable with a small number of well-timed messages. This guide covers what to tell patients, when, through which channel, and how to do it within the rules on consent and marketing — from the perspective of a community pharmacy that has to fit it around dispensing.
Two kinds of message
It helps to separate service messages — things the patient needs to know about a transaction they started (“your prescription is ready”, “your delivery is on its way”, “your appointment is tomorrow”) — from marketing messages (“flu clinic now open”, “we now offer ear microsuction”). The first kind needs no marketing consent and patients want it. The second kind is direct marketing under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations and needs consent (or, for existing customers and similar services, the “soft opt-in” with an opt-out on every message). Getting the distinction right lets you send the service messages freely and the marketing ones responsibly.
The service messages that stop the drift
“We’ve got your request”
An on-screen confirmation the moment a repeat or nomination request is submitted, and an email or text shortly after. It removes the “did it go through?” call and sets the expectation for what happens next.
“Your prescription is ready”
The single highest-value message a pharmacy sends. It removes the largest category of inbound calls and the wasted visits when an item is owed. Send it when the bag is on the shelf, with the pharmacy name and hours.
“We’re requesting it from your GP” / “there’s a delay”
When a repeat request is with the surgery or an item is out of stock, say so before the patient asks. Patients tolerate delays they have been told about and resent ones they discover.
“Your delivery is on its way” and “delivered”
For delivery patients these two messages are the service. They cut failed drops (the patient is in), cut “where is it” calls, and give a record. See proof of delivery for pharmacies.
“Your appointment is tomorrow”
A reminder the day before a booked service, with a way to cancel, halves no-shows in most pharmacies that introduce it.
“You’re now nominated with us”
When a nomination is set, tell the patient it worked and show them how to order repeats through the site or app. This one message turns a nomination into a habit; how to increase EPS nominations explains why.
The marketing messages worth sending
A few a year, to patients who have opted in, each with a clear reason:
- Seasonal services opening: flu and travel clinics, six weeks ahead
- A genuinely new service
- Changed opening hours or a bank holiday schedule (arguably service, and always welcome)
- A review request after a good interaction — the same link to everyone, no gating
Never name prescription-only medicines in a marketing message; describe the service. Never send health-specific marketing that reveals a condition (a message about a weight-management clinic to someone identified from their medication is both a marketing and a data-protection problem). Keep it to what the patient told you they want to hear about.
Channels
- Text (SMS) — highest read rate, best for service messages, costs per message.
- Email — free, good for confirmations and seasonal marketing, lower read rate.
- Push notification from a pharmacy app — free, immediate, only for patients who installed the app; the natural home for “ready” and “on its way”. The White Label App sends these under the pharmacy’s own name.
- The website itself — hours, bank holidays, service availability: the message that answers before anyone has to ask.
- The counter and the bag — still the best place for the nomination ask and the review card.
Whatever the channel, the messages should come from the pharmacy’s name and in one consistent tone; branding basics covers why.
Consent, records and the rules
- Record how each patient wants to be contacted, and for what, when they first give you a number or email.
- Service messages about a transaction the patient initiated do not need marketing consent, but the patient should know they will receive them.
- Marketing by text or email needs consent under PECR, or the soft opt-in for existing customers about similar services, with an easy opt-out every time. The ICO’s direct marketing guidance is the reference.
- Keep messages minimal in content: a “ready to collect” text should not list the medicines.
- Your privacy notice should describe the messages and the channels.
Making it happen without a communications manager
The reason most pharmacies do not send these messages is time. The fix is to attach the message to the workflow so it happens as a side-effect of work the team already does: marking a request “ready” in the dashboard sends the text; the driver tapping “set off” sends “on its way”; the booking confirmation and reminder are automatic. On a PharmGrowth website the status change in the admin dashboard is the trigger; with Routly the driver’s round is. Nobody writes a message; the system sends the right one.
What to measure
Inbound calls per day (should fall), failed deliveries (should fall), no-shows (should fall), and nominations retained month on month (should hold). If you measure nothing else, count the calls for a week before and a month after switching on “ready” messages.
Sources
- Information Commissioner’s Office — Direct marketing guidance; The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003, reg. 22 (electronic mail and the soft opt-in)
- MHRA Blue Guide — advertising of prescription-only medicines to the public