Run a Ganesh Chaturthi WhatsApp broadcast to drive pharmacy sales with Ferbz

Below is a step‑by‑step walk‑through of creating a Ganesh Chaturthi WhatsApp broadcast in Ferbz. Imagine Madhav’s Pharmacy in Kolhapur, a Tier‑2 city with an average daily turnover of ₹12,000 and a patient list of 1,850 chronic‑care customers.

1. Top up your wallet

   • From the Dashboard, click the Wallet icon on the top‑right.
   • Choose the ₹299 pack (350 credits) via Razorpay and complete the payment. Madhav now has 350 credits, enough for a 300‑patient broadcast plus a safety buffer.

2. Prepare the WhatsApp template

   • Navigate to Automation → Templates (templates are shared across Broadcasts and Automation).
   • Click New Template and select “WhatsApp Business API”.
   • Fill in the required fields:
     • Header – “🌺 Happy Ganesh Chaturthi, {{patient_name}}!”
     • Body – “Celebrate with a 10 % discount on your next purchase of {{medicine}}. Show this message at the counter before 30 Sept and enjoy free home‑delivery on orders above ₹500.”
     • Footer – “Madhav’s Pharmacy – Your health, our priority.”
   • Submit for WhatsApp approval (this takes a few minutes; Ferbz notifies you on the Notifications panel).

3. Create the patient filter

   • Go to Patients → Filters.
   • Click Add New Filter and name it “Ganesh Chaturthi – Diabetes & Hypertension”.
   • Set conditions:
     • Last Sale Date – within the past 90 days.
     • Medicine Category – contains “Metformin”, “Amlodipine”, or “Atorvastatin”.
   • The filter returns 312 patients, each with a verified mobile number.

4. Open the Broadcast builder

   • From the left‑hand menu select Broadcasts.
   • Click Create New Broadcast.

5. Configure broadcast details

   • Title – “Ganesh Chaturthi Diabetes Care Offer”.
   • Audience – choose the filter created in step 3. Ferbz shows a preview: 312 contacts, 312 credits will be reserved.
   • Template – pick the approved “Ganesh Chaturthi” template from step 2.
   • Schedule – set the date to 8 Sept 2026, time 08:00 AM (the typical time families check their phones after the morning pooja).

6. Personalise placeholders (optional)

   • Click Edit Variables.
   • For {{medicine}}, select “Metformin 500 mg” if the patient’s last purchase was Metformin, otherwise “Amlodipine 5 mg”. Ferbz pulls the most recent medicine from the patient’s sale history automatically.

7. Review cost and launch

   • The Cost Summary pane shows 312 credits will be deducted at send‑time.
   • Click Save Draft to keep the broadcast for later review, or Send Now to schedule immediately. Madhav clicks Send Now; the system locks the credits and moves the broadcast to the Scheduled tab.

8. Monitor delivery

   • After 08:00 AM, open Reminders board (still under the Broadcasts module).
   • Columns display: Sent (312), Delivered (298), Read (184), Failed (14).
   • Click the Failed tab to see which numbers were invalid – e.g., two patients had “+91‑XXXXXXXXXX” missing a digit. Madhav can edit those contacts directly from the Patients profile and re‑run the broadcast for the 14 missed messages by selecting them and clicking Resend (costs 14 additional credits).

9. Analyse impact

   • After the festive week, go to Reports → Messaging Effectiveness.
   • Set the date range 08 Sept – 15 Sept. The report shows:
     • Total messages sent: 312
     • Read rate: 59 % (184 reads)
     • Conversion: 27 patients presented the message at checkout, generating ₹8,940 in sales (average ₹331 per converted patient).
   • Cross‑reference with Billing → Sales to see that 12 of those sales were for insulin (0 % GST) and 15 for Metformin (12 % GST), confirming the promotional mix worked.

10. Close the loop

    • For each converted patient, Ferbz automatically creates a Sale entry, which in turn can trigger a Refill reminder automation (e.g., “30 days after this sale, send a refill reminder”). This ensures the festive boost feeds into the regular refill cycle, reducing future missed refills.

By following these steps, Madhav’s Pharmacy runs a targeted, compliant Ganesh Chaturthi WhatsApp broadcast, spends only the credits he pre‑purchased, and gets real‑time visibility into how many patients saw and acted on the offer.

Time saved – Before Ferbz, Madhav would have to export his patient list to Excel, copy‑paste 312 numbers into a phone, and manually type the same promotional text for each. Assuming 30 seconds per message, that equals ≈ 2.6 hours of repetitive work. With the broadcast builder, the entire setup (filter, template, schedule) takes under 15 minutes.

Revenue recovered – In the month before the broadcast, Madhav’s sales data showed 48 % of chronic‑care patients did not return for a refill within 30 days, resulting in an estimated loss of ₹22,560 (average ₹470 per missed refill). After the Ganesh Chaturthi push, 27 patients returned, contributing ₹8,940 in revenue that would otherwise have been lost. That is a 39.6 % recovery of the typical monthly churn loss for this segment.

Reduced manual errors – Manual WhatsApp blasts often generate invalid numbers, duplicated messages, or missing placeholders. Ferbz’s Patients filter guarantees only contacts with a verified mobile field are selected, and the template engine fills placeholders automatically from each patient’s sale history. In Madhav’s case, only 14 out of 312 messages failed (4.5 %), a rate far lower than the 12‑15 % error rate observed with manual copy‑pasting.

Clear cost control – Because Ferbz uses a prepaid credit wallet, Madhav knows exactly how many messages he can afford. The 312‑message broadcast cost 312 credits (₹299 for 350 credits). There is no surprise monthly fee; the cost is directly tied to the number of patients reached.

Integrated follow‑up – The broadcast does not exist in isolation. Each sale generated from the campaign automatically enrolls the patient into an existing Refill reminder automation (e.g., “30 days after sale, send reminder”). This creates a seamless pipeline from festive promotion to regular refill cycles, addressing the core pain point of chronic patients forgetting to return.

Overall, the Ganesh Chaturthi WhatsApp broadcast turns a seasonal cultural moment into a measurable sales driver, while cutting down on manual effort, limiting wasted credit on failed messages, and feeding directly into the pharmacy’s ongoing refill reminder system.

Ready to turn Ganesh Chaturthi into a sales boost for your pharmacy? Log in to the Ferbz dashboard, top up your wallet, and create your first festive broadcast in minutes. For a hands‑on walk‑through, visit https://dashboard.ferbz.com/ and explore the Broadcasts tab, or email our support team at support@ferbz.com for personalized assistance. Let Ferbz handle the messaging so you can focus on serving your patients.