Techno S a v v y

Companies have been forced to keep up with technology to both entertain and inform customers by using new media, such as, blogs, videos, webisodes, webinars, and more. Consumers are in the driver seat and they're asking top companies, what can your website do for me? Web producers are expected to come up with creative ways to encourage customers to visit their website, remain there as long as possible, and return back regularly.

People are going to the Walgreens website to check out weekly ads, print out coupons, refill prescriptions, get info about diseases and conditions from the 'Health Library'. There is an animated feature where people can view animated videos of liposuction, cosmetic surgery, the effect of tobacco use on arteries and many more.




More things the site is useful for is finding the closest Walgreens, checking for the product you've been meaning to pick up or find a recipe for dinner tonight. There is plenty to learn when searching through this site. There's health calculators, contests, promotions, recall info, and photo



'Health Corner' TV is where walgreeners can watch several short informative health segments. If you have a child on the way or you're looking for guidance with children, take a minute to look at 'Moms Who Blog: Kids Corner' where mothers can get tips on things from keeping children safe in the summer to the proper dosage of certain medicines. Pssst... Walgreens -- You might want to put a link to this blog on your home page instead of counting on people to type 'blog' into the search box. It's a great idea, flaunt it! While you're at it, what about blogs for young professionals, seniors, or photo help for the digitally challenged? Speeches by CEO, Jeffrey A. Reins, should be put online for investors, employees, customers to hear.

The Walgreens P.R. team seems to be on top of the new media developments. I think they should engage their CEO more, by putting a blog video on the site. Their 'Halloween Headquarters' page was a little disappointing. I expected a more fun, interactive, and costume filled page, but instead its a little boy in a pirate costume and picture prices. Holidays are a perfect opportunity to be creative. They could link to a Halloween game and have a little more fun with it. I love the Halloween photo contest idea, but there should be a link on the home page for this to get more people involved. It's not even October yet, there's still time!

It's a challenge, but techno s a v v y companies are increasing customer satisfaction, bettering their reputation, and gaining more consumers in the process. It's P.R. utopia! Business is no longer: hello, purchase, goodbye. The corporation-customer relationship is more important than ever and new media is raising the communication bar.

Walgreens!!

My name is Rachel, lets talk about what's up with Walgreens: the good, the bad and it might even get ugly.

I chose Walgreens as my company to blog about because they're a well-known, trusted corporation who stands by and follows through with their mission. Walgreens has a website, that's jam-packed with information; they seem to get that a company's website can make or break their ability to reach and keep customers happy. The site is easy to maneuver and almost anything you want to know about their products and the services they offer can be found with a only a few clicks.

A significant amount of money is donated by Walgreens to different charities and overall they have a positive reputation in the community. One common complaint about Walgreens is they charge a substantial amount more than Costco and Sam's Club for the same prescription. It's true, Walgreens and CVS both charge more, but you get what you pay for. Walgreens is a trusted company and people are paying their prices because they have other advantages such as drive-through and some 24 hour a day pharmacies. Also, some of their generics are covered by insurance. One thing that Walgreens has that Costco and Sam's Club fail to provide, is the sense of a tight-knit community pharmacy like 'Cheers' where everyone knows your name. It's hard to feel good about getting pharmaceuticals at a large warehouse.

Walgreens offers coupons every week and gives customers a chance to get great deals. I came across a blog by a woman, who bought a decent amount of products from Walgreens for a low cost by using the savings Walgreens has to offer. Their reputation for having good deals only gets better with blogs like these circulating throughout the Internet. It proves they really are trying to do business in the best interest of their customers.

The PR department at Walgreens is doing a great job at minimizing negatives, but they need to work on really maximizing their positives. The Walgreens Outreach program's main purpose is to hire people with disabilities and to help incorporate them into the work world of society. This is a positive and touching thing they're doing for people with disabilities. However, if I didn't search their website I wouldn't have known about it. They could play this up a little more. A woman blogged about how touching this program was so people are noticing and the image of Walgreens is getting better and better.

Walgreens PR seems to have it together and the employees seem to be happy. One thing their team could do is link the profile of their CEO, Jeffrey A. Rein, on the home page of their website because customers may not think to look under 'Press' for his biography. Rein could even have his own blog where he addresses recent topics related to Walgreens as a way for customers to get a chance to know him.

One More Thing...

ATTENTION WALGREENS CUSTOMERS:
On Wednesday September 12, 2007 Walgreens is filling up INKJET printer ink cartridges for FREE at more than 3,000 locations. Check out if your local Walgreens is participating in this. If so.... go fill up!! Good Job Walgreens for giving back to your customers!