In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world faced an onslaught of challenges. With the global population prioritizing health and safety, making regular trips to pharmacies or grocery stories became an unfavorable option for most.
In a matter of days, people started panic-buying; stocking their shelves with immunity boosters, OTCs, sanitizers, and other essential goods. To add to this, the subsequent lockdown orders in countries across the globe, led people to be bound to their homes.
An amalgamation of resultant factors made an ‘online pharmacy platform’ the need of the hour. With the majority of the global population browsing online, the e-pharmacy business model became rapidly widespread and popular during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The market for medicine delivery is expanding swiftly. This is because many tech-enthusiasts in the healthcare and medical sector have started to heavily fund the e-pharmacy business model to best serve consumers and healthcare providers.
A variety of elements have led to this breakthrough, including a rapidly growing age of the global population, rising internet access around the globe, advancements in the healthcare sector, an increased understanding of e-commerce, and lastly, the COVID-19 pandemic. The ease of buying from the comfort of home is also another major factor behind the growth of medicine delivery platforms.
The Impact of the E-Pharmacy Business Model on The Healthcare Industry:
With bottlenecks disrupting efficiency and years of inadequate innovation backtracking the healthcare industry, we’re finally starting to see progress towards reimagined delivery models and valuable healthcare technology.
The world as we know it has become comfortable with integrating technology in each facet of their lives, whether it is for buying groceries or purchasing medicines.
Now, with just a few taps, customers can easily order medicines from anywhere at any time. Moreover, advanced technology has enabled automated handling of medication, tracking of patient records, and assessment of electronic prescriptions. Hence, if you’re a pharmacy business owner, consider giving your business the traction it needs by harnessing the e-pharmacy business model.
The Benefits of a Streamlined, Efficient Online Pharmacy Platform:
The healthcare sector is undergoing a monumental shift. In current times, the online pharmacy platform model has become a go-to option for customers. There are a wide variety of benefits that the online medicine delivery platforms offer, such as the following:
One of the biggest advantages of the medicine delivery method is that it offers ease. Using a medicine delivery app, consumers can get healthcare products and drugs delivered within a minimal delivery time.
With a steadily growing population of working professionals, continuous refilling of prescriptions for elderly care, and long-term disease management burdening people, regularly purchasing medication can become a monotonous task. Hence, customers get to avoid waiting in long queues within hospitals or pharmacies by opting for the e-pharmacy option. Moreover, ordering medicine online is a helpful option for people with disabilities.
It all eventually boils down to the customer’s satisfaction. Through using an online pharmacy, customers can choose the specific products they’d like to get delivered and choose a preferred time for delivery -whether they need it immediately or at a later time. Customers can also avail attractive discounts, loyalty points, rewards, and other promotions that aren’t available at brick-and-mortar pharmacies.
A majority of the customers shop online to save their time and money. People prefer to have the ability to shop for their favorite products at their convenience. This demand has only grown considerably since the pandemic, as COVID restrictions have made online shopping the safest available option.
Another benefit of online pharmacies is that they keep their consumers informed about their purchases. Important information about the medication like chemicals/ salts present in it, variants and alternatives, side-effects, symptoms/disease to which the drug reacts, etc. facilitates consumers to understand their medication and therefore purchase accordingly. This dissemination of information isn’t typically possible in physical pharmacies, as too few representatives are available to assist too many customers.
Unknown to most, brick-and-mortar pharmacies generally have limited storage space. This leads to fewer medications being available for purchase. An e-pharmacy business model, on the other hand, operates out of larger storage space, meaning that there is a higher chance your specific medication will be in stock and ready to be shipped the moment you place an order.
Defining Features of the E-Pharmacy Business Model
It is no exaggeration that government regulations, such as social distancing, lockdowns & self-isolation are fueling the growth of the e-pharmacy business model. An e-pharmacy marketplace has to, however, follow certain rules to operate an online pharmacy, including the following:
Building an Online Portal by Hiring A Web & Mobile App Development Team
The features of an online pharmacy platform can be categorized into four feature categories listed below:
With these four elements being critical to the success of an e-pharmacy business model, a professional app development team can help in building a responsive, seamless medicine delivery application. Currently, two e-pharmacy models exist in the market, which is as follows:
Multi-Vendor E-Pharmacies
In this particular case, there are multiple vendors involved. Using this model, the owner of the online pharmacy business collaborates with various offline pharmacy stores situated in different locations. Once partnered, the brick-and-mortar pharmacies get listed on the website, which the customer can then order from.
Single-Vendor Pharmacies
In this particular case, the admin handles both the inventory and delivery (in certain scenarios, the vendor hires a third party for making deliveries). The administrative and other additional costs are typically lower in this type of business model.
Do You Want to Build an On-Demand Pharma Delivery App?
An e-pharmacy business model can successfully address multiple issues that healthcare consumers face. With an experience of over a decade, Bongo Technology Ltd. is well-versed in building medicine delivery apps. Our on-demand platform features a real-time tracking system for customers and administration and route optimization for service providers. The solution comprises a service provider app, an admin panel, and a web-based provider panel. A consumer can specify their required healthcare service; get a prescription delivered at home, pay through multiple payment methods, and provide a rating. Know more.
So, whether you need a custom dashboard to monitor orders, offer new deals for retaining old customers, or wish to have multiple payment options for quick, hassle-free payment, our team of professionals can help you build a customized medicine delivery app. Get in touch with us to help your pharmacy business grow with real-time analytics and a custom app.
