Realizing your marketing influence, Part 2: marketing from the inside out

Do your key stakeholders (staff, physicians, and patients) consider your organization to be exceptional? Has your organization invested the resources necessary to support staff and physicians in delivering the high level of care they strive to give? An organization's managers who can enthusiastically answer "yes" to these questions are in a good position to promote its healthcare system aggressively. Managers who cannot answer affirmatively, in good conscience, must invest in creating a healthy environment for staff that is rich with the resources that will enable all employees to deliver optimal care and service. Until this is achieved, no amount of promotion will be enough to move a healthcare system to a market leadership position. This is the second in a series of three articles that moves readers from broad marketing strategy to specific applications. The first article laid the foundation for developing a market-driven strategic plan; the third will focus on using professional certification as a marketing tool.