Journey in Uniting the Pharmacy World
Some of you may know that I’ve recently started a company that encourages pharmacy students and pharmacists to use their full scope of practice. My network has grown tremendously since the launch , so much so that I’ve decided to cultivate a community out of it. The goal of this venture is to help unite the pharmacy world as we’ve traditionally been segregated and recluded. I’ll be documenting the journey here.
Week 1
The Beginning
This week was incredibly exciting. Starting up another website is always fun. I had decided to host it on an interactive platform which aligned with my belief in social media and it’s power to unite people across the world.
If Facebook had a child with LinkedIn in a pharmacy, it would have been this monster.
It’s interface definitely has form and function. I take none of the credit, though. This was mostly built into the hosting platform. I am repeatedly amazed at how easy it is to start a website nowadays.
The struggles
The next step was much harder. How do I populate a site? I chose to do it slowly — no marketing or anything. I started messaging people from my own network one by one. I asked for a lot of feedback and a lot, I got. I spent the next couple days implementing everyone’s suggestions as best I could. While growing the community, I realized I needed content and activity. I started asking pharmacists that I knew to simply repost interesting content. That proved to be mission impossible. If reposting was asking for too much, you could imagine my success in asking some to post original content.
The mistakes
I wasn’t clear with my intentions, purpose, or mission. Why did I need content? Why did I need activity? Why did the site exist? I also didn’t consider that people didn’t want to have their name or work put out there. The recognition and network opportunity was not everyone’s priority.
The corrections
I was more clear. I told new members exactly what this was — an effort to unite the pharmacy world. I also started reaching out to pharmacists who were already putting out content instead of making people create their first piece for me. Using this method, it was so much easier to get content creators. Not only were they already inclined to create, they had the additional benefit of expanding their viewership on this platform. Yeses everywhere.
The current
I’m currently piecing together a committee to run the site. This committee will help create new content, filter submitted content, and grow the community. As of this morning, I’ve enlisted the founder of a prominent volunteer organization to help recruit. I will also be on the lookout for strong prospects. I’ve also been stocking up on content to release once I begin marketing the community.
The future
In the next two weeks, I’ll be sifting through resumes and applications. Building a good committee is my highest priority for the community. Once that is in place, I can feel comfortable marketing and sharing the platform.
Call to Action
I’ll be posting my progress every week or two, but feel free to join me in real-time here. Oh — If you’re interested in contributing or know someone who would be, contact me at rogerma@clinalleve.com. Thanks!
