Marketing Firm Issues

The Marketing Council, being aware of the history of the relationship between HL7 and marketing firms, would like a prospective new marketing firm to be aware of, or to take care of, the following issues:

1. Global focus. Up to now any work done on a marketing plan, or branding has been focused on the US - the international focus of the organization does however require a global perspective (as well as a US perspective, see next item). As an example: healthcare is organized in different ways around the globe, ranging from a centralized/socialised structure (UK, Scandinavia), to a government hands-off structure (US, Germany), to fully private healthcare. The marketing efforts have to take such differences into account.
2. Coordinate with HL7 country organizations. Any materials or ideas should be re-usable (after adaption, localization, translation) within the individual country organizations. Given that there is no country organization in the US, HL7 itself will have to play that role.
3. Working with HL7-internal influencers (e.g. afiliates, marketing council). Prior marketing efforts were quite often done external to the HL7 organization without involvement of its internal influencers. Given the volunteer nature of the HL7 organization one has to engage key volunteers to ensure that the marketing ideas will "stick" and be accepted or executed by the volunteers.
4. Help progress the Organization's thinking on where it's significant opportunities lie. In particular by defining and segmenting HL7's markets, defining the needs of those markets, identifying the clients, customers and stakeholders within those markets, and specifying the HL7 products and services that could meet these needs. In each case, taking into account points 1-3 above.