Why Walgreens Is Partnering With Postmates and Betting Big On Mobile

Walgreens recently announced that it would be partnering with on-demand delivery startup Postmates to create another channel for customers to buy its products. In advance of the TAP Conference on mobile commerce in New York City, LinkedIn's New Economy Editor, Caroline Fairchild, synced up with Walgreen's Director of Mobile Innovation Program, Joe Rago, to chat about how Walgreens is tackling the shift to mobile. 

Caroline Fairchild: Describe your job to someone who doesn't know a whole lot about mobile.  

Joe Rago: Walgreens designs its offerings to provide customers with ultimate access, choice and convenience. We’re a customer-led company that aims to help remove friction and make the experience as simple as possible, helping our customers manage their lives. Through an omni-channel approach, we want to be where are customers are, whether that’s in stores, online or via a device. In mobile, we’re reducing friction by using technology to simply actions such as refill a prescription or upload and print photos.

CF: What is the biggest challenge that comes with taking a brick and mortar retailer and making them accessible on mobile? 

JR: In regards to on demand delivery, we aim to ensure that the representation of the product category is reflective of the actual item.  We spend a lengthy amount of time finalizing the product description, so it’s an accurate reflection and the customer receives a physical product that matches the digital description.  

CF: Where are you seeing the most success?

JR: We’ve experienced great success within our mobile app and look forward to future innovation.  We recently relaunched it to be more utility –driven and efficient for the user. The most notable feature is the “intelligent messaging” that provides one-touch access for user’s to act upon whatever relevant “widget” message is displayed – e.g. prescription refill, prescription ready for pickup, pill reminder, Balance Rewards, etc. Another testament to its success is that Walgreens fills more than one prescription per second from a mobile device.  Also, more than 40 percent of digital print orders comes from mobile (less than 1 percent in 2010.) These examples are true to our approach to convenience and removing friction, making actions easier for customers.

CF: What are the goals with the new partnership with Postmates?

 JR: On-demand delivery services are another way we’re supporting customers’ ability to engage with us in a way that’s most convenient for them. We’re pleased to begin this relationship with Postmates, as we believe the convenience aspect is of value to our customers.

CF: What is the biggest lesson you have learned from working with  on-demand services like Postmates, Doordash etc?

JR: Flexibility and agility are some of the best assets for companies that have recently entered the marketplace. While these traits can deliver speed to market, organizations must carefully balance and evaluate potential trade-offs.  For us, customer experience is first and foremost. We examine details through this lens to ensure we’re comfortable with the end result prior to launch.

CF: What is the one app you can't live without right now?  

JR: I’m really enjoying Twitter and Spotify.

In this series, professionals attending the TAP conference share their insights on the mobile and on-demand economy. Read the posts here, then write your own. Use #TAPCON somewhere in the body of the post and @mention TAP conference panelists when sharing.