Update 19th February 2010 
The marketing team have now held their second meeting, which concentrated on the results from our initial research. This feedback has provided a clear view of what you, our members and non-members, want from our organisation. A summary of the initial research is provided in this document and this will help us to produce a draft marketing plan. We will then consult widely on this plan at consultation events around the UK and on our web site. The research has left us under no illusions that you want certain aspects of the organisation to change and we are responding positively to your ideas and suggestions… keep them coming!
If you want to comment on the ideas in this document now, a new marketing forum has been opened on IMI Talk to let you do just that. Alternatively, you can email your comments to marketing@imi.org.uk
Update 23rd December 2009
The newly formed Marketing and Communication Group (M&CG) had its first meeting on Friday 29th November, after council agreed to commission Amanda Stearn, a marketing consultant of many years experience, to assist IMI with the task of reviewing how to make the Institute more appealing to a wider group of visual communicators in healthcare.This page is to provide IMI members with reports on the progress of the group and to encourage you all to become involved in this initiative. We want IMI to be responsive to what you, our members, want, and value and encourage your comments.
The marketing and communications team
The role of the marketing consultant
Amanda has been commissioned to work for IMI for 12 days over the next few months, her role being to provide guidance and to assist with the early stages of managing the project.
Objectives of the marketing exercise - 610 by 2010
- To increase the membership of IMI to 610 by the end of 2010 by attracting non-members, new entrants and corporate trade partners.
- To improve the benefits, products and services offered to existing members.
- To change the culture and brand of the Institute, so that it becomes more relevant, responsive, modern and dynamic.
- To improve our professional integrity by creating communication channels with affiliated organisations and political stakeholders.
First Steps
The first part of the project will be based on research. The team has been set the initial task of reviewing and updating IMI’s current database of known medical illustrators working in healthcare and the private sector, and will therefore be surveying all medical illustration departments to try and create an up to date and accurate view of workforce data across the UK. Not only will this provide us with potential recruits but it will also be of significant value when dealing with the Department of Health and Strategic Health Authorities. The survey will be dropping onto your desks early in the New Year, so please help us by responding quickly.
Once the database has been updated, the next task will be to identify and communicate with other healthcare professionals who regularly document clinical conditions using some form of visual communication tool.
During this time focus groups of medical illustrators, both members and non-members, from all parts of the profession – graphic designers, photographers, illustrators and video producers, will be invited to join focus groups and 1:1 interviews to find out what they really want from a professional organisation. These focus groups will be facilitated by Amanda in her role as external marketing professional (so that the process is as impartial as possible), and will provide Amanda with valuable insight into what current members and non-members like and dislike about IMI. The information will also highlight what could be improved to ensure that IMI is the preferred organisation for visual healthcare communicators, and become the foremost respected body to give advice on visual healthcare related issues.
To ensure that IMI funds are spent wisely, the people initially invited to meet Amanda will be selected from the West Midland’s area, where Amanda is based, and the interviews will take place in January 2010. Further visual communicators may be interviewed by telephone at a later date.
An additional task for the M&CG will be to research products and services from other membership organisations to decide what more we can offer to our members. To be able to provide a wider choice to IMI members, some additional funds need to be identified. The best way to do this will be to increase the number of IMI members and therefore the main objective from this exercise is to increase our membership to 610 by 2010
How can you help?
If you have ideas and comments about how IMI could be improved for the future, please contact anyone on the project team, who will be happy to talk to you. We have already received lots of great ideas and feedback, which have helped to formulate our objectives and initial actions. Alternatively, a discussion forum has been set up on IMI Talk, where you are welcome to discuss the future of YOUR IMI. |
