Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations

What Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations does

Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations (ISHMPR) is a non-profit professional membership association founded in 1973 as a steering committee of the Illinois Hospital Association (IHA), headquartered at 1151 East Warrenville Road, P.O. Box 3015, Naperville, Illinois. The organization serves healthcare marketing, communications, and public relations professionals employed at hospitals, health systems, and healthcare organizations across Illinois, as well as affiliated vendor agencies and students in marketing/communications degree programs. Its core offering is an annual membership program (tiered by organization size and member type) that bundles networking, education, recognition, and access to a private member portal.

ISHMPR monetizes membership through annual dues ($275 for organizations under 999 employees up to $899 for organizations with 2,000+ employees), affiliate tiers for vendors ($299 Bronze, $399 Silver, $499 Gold), Pinnacle Award entry fees ($85 per submission), and non-member job posting fees ($250). It operates two flagship in-person events annually — a Spring Workshop tailored to small and rural hospitals and a multi-day Fall Conference (2026 venue: Embassy Suites Rockford, October 6-8) — supplemented by regional networking meet-ups, a webinar series, and an Ambassador Program pairing new members with veterans. Annual Pinnacle Awards span 19 categories plus an Individual Achievement Award; the 2025 Best In Show was won by Cook County Health and Res Publica Group for the "Total Health Talks" podcast. The society maintains a formal affiliate relationship with the Illinois Hospital Association and a chapter relationship with the national Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD), through which members gain access to the SHSMD Resource Library.

Go-to-market is community-led: ISHMPR recruits and retains members through its website, a private Facebook group, public social channels (Facebook, X/Twitter), email newsletters, and event-driven engagement with no paid acquisition channels. Core technology is the Wild Apricot membership management platform, which handles registration, event sign-up, award submissions, and the member portal; the public website is designed and maintained by Cork Tree Creative, whose owner Laura Reed serves as ISHMPR President. The organization has over 100 members, is governed by an elected board of directors with a designated IHA liaison, and operates with no external venture or private equity funding, sustaining itself entirely through dues, conference fees, and affiliate revenue.

Name

Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations

Legal name

Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations

Website

https://ishmpr.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

ISHMPR is a 50+ year-old non-profit Illinois membership association serving healthcare marketing and PR professionals through annual dues, two flagship conferences, regional meet-ups, webinars, awards programs, and an IHA-affiliated resource library, headquartered in Naperville, Illinois with 100+ members.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Marketing Professional Association

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAHACAA

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies)

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Professional Conference Organizers (PCOs) & Meeting Planners

Keywords

• Professional association services
• Healthcare marketing membership
• Industry conferences events
• Marketing awards program
• Professional development networking

Headquarters

HQ city

Naperville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues paid by healthcare organizations, agencies, and individuals. Memberships run from January 1 to December 31. Tiered pricing based on organization size and membership type (active, associate, student, courtesy). Group memberships allow up to 30 members per organization.
2. Pinnacle Award Entry Fees: Healthcare organizations and agencies submit award entries for the annual Pinnacle Awards competition. Entry fee is $85 per submission with early bird discount of $10 off for submissions before June 29.
3. Job Posting Fees: Non-member healthcare organizations pay $250 to post job openings on the ISHMPR website. ISHMPR members may post job openings for free.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ISHMPR is a non-profit professional membership association serving healthcare marketing, communications, and public relations professionals across Illinois. It offers tiered organizational membership, two annual conferences (Spring Workshop and Fall Conference), regional networking meet-ups, webinars, the Pinnacle Awards recognition program, the Individual Achievement Award, a job board, access to the SHSMD Resource Library, a members-only portal, and an Ambassador mentorship program for new members.

Product overview

ISHMPR is a premier professional association for healthcare marketing and public relations professionals in Illinois, operating as a single unified membership organization rather than a technology platform. The organization offers a portfolio of services including annual conferences (Spring Workshop and Fall Conference), regional networking meet-ups, a webinar series, and recognition programs (Pinnacle Awards and Individual Achievement Award). Additional member services include a job board, access to the SHSMD Resource Library, and a members-only portal with a private discussion forum. The association also provides an Ambassador Program for new member onboarding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ISHMPR Membership

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Illinois Hospital Association (IHA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerISHMPR is an official affiliate group of the Illinois Hospital Association. The IHA provides designated staff liaison support, access to IHA Daily Briefing for board members, Annual IHA Resource Directory, web link from IHA website, and various support services. ISHMPR's President maintains liaison with national SHSMD as a Chapter Member.
• Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational professional organization and personal membership group of the American Hospital Association. ISHMPR maintains chapter membership with SHSMD. ISHMPR provides access to SHSMD Resource Library for members. SHSMD serves over 4,000 members nationwide including hospitals, health systems, consulting firms, and agencies.
• Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations & Marketing Society (WHPRMS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint Bi-State Conference partnership with Wisconsin healthcare marketing society. 2026 ISHMPR/WHPRMS Bi-State Conference scheduled October 6-8 in Rockford, Illinois, bringing together healthcare marketing professionals from Illinois, Wisconsin, and beyond.
• Cork Tree CreativeminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerWeb design and development firm responsible for ISHMPR website design and development. The company is also a Gold Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Laura Reed, Owner/Public Relations Director at Cork Tree Creative, serves as ISHMPR President.
• McDaniels MarketingminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGold Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Randy McDaniels serves as At Large board member. Provides healthcare marketing services including digital marketing, SEO, social media, and content management systems for hospitals.
• Chartwell Agency (CWA Healthcare Marketing)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerGold Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Emily Hartzog serves as Communications Chair on ISHMPR board. CWA Healthcare Marketing provides integrated marketing solutions for hospitals and healthcare organizations.
• SOURCE 309minorGTM or Marketing PartnerGold Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Craig Stewart serves as Membership Chair on ISHMPR board. Preferred supplier network for promotional products and apparel with healthcare organization focus.
• O'Brien CorporationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGold Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Provides promotional products, custom apparel, and integrated company stores for healthcare organizations.
• Premier Print GroupminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGold Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Provides commercial printing, direct mail, fulfillment, and custom finishing services.
• Springboard Brand & Creative StrategyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSilver Affiliate member of ISHMPR. Brand and marketing consultancy serving health systems, hospitals, medical associations, and B2B healthcare brands.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• American Hospital Association (AHA): National hospital industry association that houses SHSMD as a personal membership group. Serves the same hospital marketing ecosystem at a national level and is the ultimate parent of ISHMPR's national counterpart.
• American Marketing Association (AMA): National professional marketing association with healthcare-interest programming. Targets the same marketing professional persona as ISHMPR but offers broader industry scope, larger events, and substantial content resources.
• Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD): National personal membership group of the American Hospital Association serving 4,000+ healthcare strategy, marketing, and communications professionals. ISHMPR is itself a chapter member, and SHSMD offers the national-scale equivalent of ISHMPR's mission.
• Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) — Health Academy: Largest U.S. professional PR association, with a dedicated Health Academy section for healthcare communicators. Competes for the same individual members ISHMPR serves but at national scale with paid staff and broader programming.

Direct peers

• Texas Society for Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing (TSHPRM): Texas state-level society for healthcare marketing and communications professionals, providing conferences, awards, and networking. Same association model as ISHMPR with a larger potential member base in a single state.
• Wisconsin Healthcare Public Relations & Marketing Society (WHPRMS): State-level professional association for healthcare marketing and PR professionals in Wisconsin. Most directly comparable peer — same model, same membership dues structure, and existing bi-state conference partner.
• New England Society for Healthcare Communications (NESHCo): Regional professional society serving healthcare communicators across the New England states. Closely comparable in mission, structure, and programming (annual conference, awards, networking) to ISHMPR but at a multi-state regional level.
• Carolinas Healthcare Public Relations & Marketing Society (CHPRMS): State/regional society for healthcare marketing and PR professionals in the Carolinas. Direct parallel to ISHMPR in scope, with annual conference, awards, and membership dues — comparable structural model in a different geography.
• Florida Society for Healthcare Public Relations and Marketing (FSHPRM): Florida state society for healthcare marketing and PR practitioners. Operates the same kind of membership-conference-awards model as ISHMPR and competes for the same category of vendor sponsors and members.

Others

• Illinois Hospital Association (IHA): ISHMPR's parent/affiliate organization. While not a direct competitor, IHA provides the institutional infrastructure, hospital network access, and staff liaison that underpin ISHMPR's value proposition.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ishmpr
• Facebookfacebook.com/ISHMPR
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ishmpr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations