DrugStore.com

• Great variety of products
• Easy to navigate
• Loyalty program

Great Variety of Products

DrugStore.com has a variety of products to choose from. They offer 11 categories of products that include: household, food & pets, medicine & health, personal care, beauty, baby & mom, vitamins, diet & fitness, sexual well-being, FSA, GNC, green & natural.

Easy to Navigate

The site is shared with another, Beauty.com. At the top of the page is a tab for DrugStore.com and Beauty.com. With one click, consumers can go between stores and see an even larger variety of products. At the bottom of the page, one of the options is to choose "our sites". This takes you to a page with links to 6 different stores. They have links to Drugstore.com, Beauty.com, VisionDirect.com, SkinStore.com and Walgreens. They also have a link to their partner site, HealthCare Clinic. This is an easy way for consumers to look between multiple stores and find exactly what they are looking for. DrugStore.com is easy to navigate. After placing the mouse over one of the main categories, a list of subcategories to choose from appears. You can then narrow the search by brand, or price. After selecting a product, the site provides a detailed description of that product and what it entails. They also include ingredients and reviews for each product. When an item is added to your bag for purchase you can easily choose to use the AutoRecorder right on the check-out page. An item can then be shipped to you every 30, 60, or 90 days with an email reminder so the purchase can be skipped or canceled at any time. This allows customers to not have to worry about reordering products they often require.

Loyalty Program

The loyalty program at DrugStore.com is different than most of the vitamin store industry. They offer 5% credit with every eligible purchase. The credit is accumulated during a three month period, then the consumer has one month to use the credit earned. The site sends reminders during that month to use the credit that was earned. The program is free and members are automatically enrolled without the need to sign up. This type of loyalty program guarantees its members at least some credit if they have shopped in the store whereas the point value loyalty program members have to spend a certain amount before they are awarded any credit. The site also offers a free shipping rate. Their customers receive free shipping when they spend $35 or more. They also offer free shipping on certain promotional items.

• Does Not Include Nutritional Label
• No Price Match
• No Background Information

Does Not Include Nutritional Label

While the products do have descriptions, they do not include the nutritional label like most sites we have seen. It shows the directions and ingredients for the products but does not show the complete nutritional label. This could leave consumers with questions regarding the product.

No Price Match

DrugStore.com also does not offer to price match competitors and will not accept returns that have been opened. They also only accept returns 30 days after the purchase date on the receipt, not the date it was shipped, as some sites offer.

The loyalty program, while for some may be considered better than earning points, others may not find it as rewarding. They can earn only a flat 5% on products whereas points can continually increase. Some customers may also not like that they only have one specific month to spend their earned credit. They need to earn the credit for the three month quarter and then wait for the month following that to spend it back in the store. If they do not spend it in that allotted time, they lose the credit that they built up and must start over. For those who shop infrequently on the site, this may not be the most rewarding loyalty program. 

No Background Information

DrugStore.com is a very to the point store. They don't have much going on the site besides their products. No background information or links to health related items. For those wanting to do more than just shop for specific products, DrugStore.com may be lacking for the extra information.