Challenges faced by Retailers

Challenge 1 - Sorry, we don’t have any information on this product.
An average retailer comes across atleast ten new products everyday. They come to know a few from medical representatives, while most are from doctor prescriptions. They dispense the few that they know and can procure, while the rest of it is not honored. Probably, the customer who did not get his medicine may not walk in to the pharmacy again.
SOLUTION - Log onto www.pharmanetwork.in . In product enquiry, you can know the complete details of the product, manufacturer, MRP etc.
Challenge 2 - I know the product, but I do not know who the supplier is. I shall try and let you know the availability tomorrow.
The product has been identified through other sources or with the help of the doctor. There are so many suppliers, but we do not know who stocks this product. The retailer makes a few phone calls to locate the supplier or asks the salesman, when they come for orders the next day. Still, the customer is not guaranteed receipt of the product even after a day.
SOLUTION - Log onto www.pharmanetwork.in . In detailed product enquiry, select the product and the area to know the suppliers who stock these products in the area.
Challenge 3 - I do not have the time to enter the purchase invoices in the software. I do only billing through the software and I am unable to maintain stock.
Generally, the supplies from the distributors reach only in the evening. The retailer does almost 80% of his sales during this time. In such cases, the retailer only does billing through the software, and therefore does not realize the benefits of automation at all.
SOLUTION - Become a silver or a gold member in PharmaNetwork. You will be able to receive invoices from other PharmaNetwork members in an electronic format, which shall get automatically loaded into the software. You can verify and make minor changes (if any) and process the invoice. An invoice with 30 products, which would normally take 20 minutes would only take 2 minutes to update. You will know your margins and ensure better inventory control.
Challenge 4 - My operator, who enters the purchases, is on leave and therefore I will place orders manually.
When supplies come late, the retailer stays up till midnight to complete the entries, to generate orders from the software tomorrow. Or the retailer places the orders the next day, without knowledge of what has been supplied. This leads to inefficient ordering and therefore, unwanted stocks are dumped in many cases.
SOLUTION - As time consumed in entries is less, most invoices would be entered in the software. With sales being entered completely, it will be possible to maintain stocks using the software. With accuracy in stocks, auto generated ordering procedure of the software can ensure optimized inventory control. This will make ordering easy, and avoid non-moving/dead stocks in the future.
Challenge 5 - I am unable to serve my customers well, as I spend a lot of time in providing inputs to my software. How will I face the tough competition from chain stores?
Customer is king. Serve your customers with a smile. In order to be efficient in operations, the retailer ends spending quality time in manual entries, and therefore is not able to focus on the customer as he wants to.
SOLUTION - With lesser time spent on inputs to the software, more time can be spent on customer service. Good customer service is what can protect retailers’ business in the long run.