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From Denise's Desk: A Fresh Look at Marketing

Many in the home care and hospice industry have a tendency to reject the idea of marketing. And, it doesn't seem to matter much whether an organization is for-profit or not-for-profit, the words (and the actions) are generally treated with disdain.

Frequently referred to as "community outreach," or a variety of other names, the fact is, when you are promoting an idea, concept or product to a targeted group of consumers, you are marketing. And, I'll even take it a step further and admit that when we are really doing our jobs, we are... selling.

Take a moment and say those words to yourself. Let them roll of your tongue. Marketing. Advertising. Selling. Let go of your negative perceptions about these terms. Get used to the idea that these are valuable and necessary tools that, when embraced, can benefit and further your organization's success and mission.

Words like marketing and selling are work words. They embrace and even demand results. They force you to quantify, benchmark and measure results. When you're selling, for example, to increase physician referrals, you will be more inclined to identify the referrals you currently have and take the steps (develop the strategies and tasks) necessary to improve that number. And, the more comfortable we get with the idea of these words, the more likely we'll be to approach this effort as an investment (as in return on investment) rather than an expense that can and will yield considerable results.