Turning “Cannot” into “Why Not” When it Comes to Mobile Pharmacy POS

Mobile point-of-sale for pharmacy can remove a lot of barriers. For institutions, the push for meds to beds programs is only getting stronger.  For community pharmacies, the emphasis is going to where their customer is, whether that would be in the aisle, at curbside, at the counseling area, or even at the patient’s front door.  In pharmacies big and small, mobile technology can help you handle increased customer volume, provide better service, and give you a competitive edge, just to name a few. 

But many businesses are still hesitant to take the next step and truly embrace the power of mobile solutions, letting a stack of uncertainties and misperceptions outweigh the benefits.  There’s absolutely no problem with giving credence to doubts. They exist for a reason and should be addressed.  The mistake isn’t having the doubts to begin with, but not moving beyond them when presented with resolution.  

The first step is identifying what your reservations are.  That should be pretty easy?  What’s your “why not”?  You may just have one, or you may have several.  From there, the hard work begins.  Can your concern be resolved?  Is there a solution to the problem you’ve identified? Most of the time you’ll find that you can easily move past doubts with a little extra information. 

Too difficult to use.  Mobile POS technology is relatively new, and to many, it represents an unknown.  This results in a fear that employees will find it difficult to adapt to, or that elderly customers will find it too intimidating.  But if your employees can master a traditional POS system, mobile POS shouldn’t be a big leap. That’s because in the case of the RMS EvolutionPOS V2 tablet, we’ve simply optimized the same application RMS customer’s use every day and applied it to a mobile, touch screen tablet.  There are no separate processes or new application’s to learn. 

Concerned about security.  With so much potentially sensitive information readily available, pharmacies have a lot to protect.  EvolutionPOS V2 requires a secure login and password for access, just like our traditional system.  And because the same powerful RMS application that runs on our traditional register systems runs on the tablet, you’ll find the application listed on the PCI Security Standards Councils list of certified payment applications.

Too fragile. Mobile technology has to be able to tolerate a lot of abuse.  While it’s difficult to imagine a traditional register accidentally falling off a counter, when you shrink that register down to a tablet form factor, it makes it much easier to envision that piece of hardware hitting the floor.  Using a hardened device, such as the device used by RMS for EvolutionPOS V2 means you can worry a lot less.  It won’t tolerate getting driven over by a vehicle, but a couple of drops shouldn’t do much damage (as our VP of Sales likes to demonstrate at tradeshows to my dismay!)  There’s also a strap on the back to make carrying the tablet easier. 

Do I really need it? Many still wonder if mobile point-of-sale is a passing fad or something that’s here to stay.  With 18 years and counting in the pharmacy POS industry, we at RMS think that mobile technology will continue to revolutionize the way pharmacies do business. Maybe you don’t need it in the strictest sense.  But if everyone around you is changing the game, can you afford not to?  Check out our ebook to the right to learn how mobile technology is impacting the pharmacy world!