Case Study: Turning consumer insight into immediate, measurable growth

Proving advertisings role in pharmacy growth at CVS

Challenge

CVS’s pharmacy business had historically grown through acquisitions of local pharmacies and regional chains. But as the U.S. market consolidated around three players—CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid—that growth strategy was reaching its limits.

At the same time, CVS’s marketing toolkit was dated. Growth efforts relied on store signage, weekly print circulars, and the ExtraCare program. The marketing team had little experience using modern advertising channels to attract new customers.

The challenge was to design a series of small, ROI-positive tests that could prove advertising’s role in driving prescription growth, and then use those wins to justify a much larger budget the following year.

Solution

CVS already had a strong in-house research team with deep consumer insights on pharmacy choice and brand affinity. But what was missing was an understanding of the exact steps consumers took when choosing a pharmacy at the moment of need.

Through path-to-purchase research, we uncovered a critical insight: during doctor visits, patients are often asked to provide pharmacy details on intake forms before a prescription is even written. To complete those forms, patients pulled out their phones to look up pharmacy locations.

We shifted investment into mobile search and location-targeted ads, ensuring CVS appeared in front of consumers at this pivotal decision point. By intercepting them at the moment of choice, we were able to influence pharmacy selection directly.

Results

Delivered $12 in annual prescription margin for every $1 in marketing spend
Validated the business case for mobile-first, location-based strategies
Helped CVS scale a performance-driven media model nationally