Proposal of using social networks to gain competitive advantage in pharmacy

This diploma thesis deals with the possibilities of using social networks for gaining competitive advantage and is focused on pharmacy. The aim is to analyse the use of social networks by large pharmacy networks and, based on the analyses, propose appropriate communication for local independent pharmacies. They often do not have the bargaining ability with vendors like large chains and therefore lose their competitiveness, which could be aided by the right choice of communication on social networks.The first part of the thesis deals with the theoretical basis, the definition of which is necessary to continue with the thesis. There is a general description of on-line marketing with emphasis on social marketing and possibilities of promotion of individual social networks. Next part is devoted to explanation of Competitive Intelligence and theoretical description of competitive analysis.The main content of the work is its practical part, which first introduces suitable tools for social network analysis and describes the competitive environment, in this case the pharmacy market. Subsequently, Facebook and Instagram profiles of large pharmacy networks and the largest pharmacy internet shops are analysed using selected tools, and the sentiment that occurs around these subjects on the Internet is also monitored. In the final part, based on findings, a suitable strategy for a local pharmacy to enter social networks is proposed and a proposal of a communication strategy for the Facebook social network is presented, which also includes the application of recommendations in the form of specific posts.