CSSi Blogs

Eight-Step Guide to a Strong Clinical Trial Website

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 05-Feb-2019

images of responsive design with websites

There are about 93 million Americans searching online for information related to a health-related topic, with 63% of those individuals looking up a specific disease or medical problem. In fact, looking for health or medical information comes high on the list as one of the most popular activities people do when they are online.1

Your clinical trial website could be one of their next searches. But once you get them to the site, what will make them convert?

It is important to make sure your study website has all the important elements it needs to educate your visitors, keep them engaged, and make them feel comfortable enough to find out more information.

Following this eight-step guideline will make your study website strong:

  1. Make the language reader-friendly
    Protocol language can be difficult for the average person to understand. It is important to put the study information into simple terms. Remember your target audience and adapt the copy you use in your website to their level of education. The last thing you want to do is get someone to your website, but then have them click off because they feel overwhelmed.
  2. Create the website for your target audience
    The clinical trial you are enrolling is targeting a very specific patient population. Your website should reflect that. Show them you understand their background, symptoms, and emotions. If you can connect with them on a deeper level, you'll keep them interested in what you have to say.
  3. Provide relevant and informative details about the trial
    Use your website as a tool for giving your visitors what they need in order to make an informed decision.
  4. Give your most important information on the home page
    The home page of your website should show the key pieces of information you tell throughout the rest of your website. If someone only visits the home page without going to any other page, they have what they need to decide their next step – to request more information or to see if they pre-qualify.
  5. Explain why clinical trials are so important
    While we understand how important clinical trials are to medical discoveries and new treatment options, they can seem frightening to some patients. Ease their fears by explaining how clinical trials make a difference, and how they could make a difference by participating.
  6. Capture patient information with forms
    Include a form on your website to capture the information of the patients who are interested in your study. This will make it easier to follow-up with those you feel would be eligible.
  7. Have a strong call to action
    Include a call out on each page that directs patients to some action: filling out the form, calling a site near them, or requesting someone contact them about the study. Place this call to action on the top half of the web-page, so it is always front and center for the website visitor.
  8. Make your site responsive
    Mobile devices are increasingly becoming the way most people search online for information. While it is still important to have a desktop version of your website, it is even more important to make sure the website is responsive to cellphones and tablets.

If you are interested in building a well-designed and strong study website for your clinical trials, we are ready to help! Contact CSSi to get started today.

Follow us!

 

CSSi, Patient Recruitment For Novel Therapies

Patient Recruitment For Novel Therapies

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 26-Mar-2023

Gene and cellular therapy are novel treatment methods that are avidly being studied in a realm of different indications including oncology, neurology, rheumatology, pediatrics, and more. As of 2023, there are over 1,500 gene/cellular therapy trials actively enrolling with a majority being in Phase 1 and Phase 2 stages.

Read More
CSSi, Improving Patient Recruitment within the LGBTQIA+ Community

Improving Patient Recruitment within the LGBTQIA+ Community

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 17-Mar-2023

LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersexual, Asexual/Agender, + Additional Sexualities and Identities) make up a significant portion of the population: around 8% of the total United States population and an estimated 10% of the global population.1,2 Trends show an increased likelihood of identifying as LGBTQA+ in younger generations such as millennials and Gen Z.

Read More
Image of the New Generations: Gen Z and “Zillennials” recruitment solutions

Recruiting the New Generations: Gen Z and “Zillennials”

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 5-Oct-2022

Now that we have a flood of new adults entering the scene, they are eligible to participate in many clinical trials. These new adults aren’t their Millennial elders and are far removed from Gen X and the Baby Boomer generations, so new recruitment tactics and strategies need to be implemented to gain their interest.

Read More
Image of telemedicine used for patient clinical study recruitment solutions

A Brave New World: Recruiting Patients for DCTs and Hybrid Trials

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 27-Jul-2022

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many clinical trials were halted or stopped altogether due to the inability to recruit and screen patients. Much of this was due to a centralized study set up, where patients were required to appear in person for screening and secondary study visit activities. As the pandemic progressed...

Read More
Image of patient discussing research study requirements with study coordinators.

The Magic of Marketing: Creating the Perfect Patient Recruitment Solution

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 13-Oct-2021

Marketing and advertising are an art form. And as is true of all art, it evolves and adapts to the world around it (And enter the famous question: Does art imitate life or does life imitate art?). Reaching patients for clinical trials is quite a task. Creating awareness, providing education, and garnering true interest is a multi-pronged approach that requires an in-depth understanding of the needs and communication...

Read More
Image of diversity in our general population in America today.

Rebuilding Trust in Clinical Trials: Diverse Patient Recruitment

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 03-Aug-2021

The health and well-being of all persons regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender is integral to public health. As a nation, the United States is slowly improving and becoming self-aware of the maladaptive behavior towards its minority citizens both past and present.

Read More
Image of Study Coordinator and Patient reviewing considerations for study trial.

Post-COVID-19 Patient Recruitment: Dealing with the Aftermath

  • By Myra Zerr-Korolev
  • 02-Jun-2021

Clinical trial recruitment has been understandingly difficult for the past fifteen months. Isolation and quarantine have kept patients (not to mention site and trial staff) from being able to undergo appropriate screening and enrollment measures. Because of this immense issue, many trials have been paused (or worse, stopped all together).

Read More
image of doctors office nurse performing a telephone chart review.

The 24-Hour Window: Responding to Your Referrals Before They Lose Interest

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 03-Sep-2020

Patient recruitment is often a time-consuming and high-cost step in completing your clinical trials. Your marketing team will have to develop the correct study message and a strong call-to-action to get people motivated to see if they prequalify. You must strategically target your patient population and generate interest in participation among this audience.

Read More
image of LES performing a telephone chart review.

Recruiting for Trials During a Global Pandemic

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 16-Apr-2020

The COVID-19 virus has significantly changed the way the world operates. It has caused unprecedented interruptions to many industries and businesses around the globe, and clinical trials are no exception. New guidelines have been issued by the FDA regarding clinical trials, which could have a significant impact on study enrollment and patient retention.

Read More
image of plnning for Multichannel Marketing

Don’t Put All Your Recruitment Eggs in One Basket

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 12-Mar-2020

As you begin the patient recruitment process for your study, it can be tempting to put all of your money towards one method. You place all bets on digital advertising because that generated the most referrals during your last study. What happens if digital doesn’t perform for you this time? It’s best to spread your advertising budget out over a number of recruitment methods. This gives you the ability to truly test what is most effective.

Read More
image of divers people

Answering the Lack of Diversity in Clinical Trials

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 15-Nov-2019

Identifying and implementing ways to increase diversity in clinical trials is a growing topic in the industry. Almost 40 percent of Americans belong to a racial or ethnic minority, but roughly 80-90 percent of participants in clinical trials for new drugs are still disproportionately Caucasian.1

In order to make sure drugs and treatments are safe and reliable to all people, there needs to be a better representation

Read More
image of a woman comparing streaming app on her phone and computer

New Advertising Options for Patient Recruitment: Are they on your radar?

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 29-Aug-2019

We all see others do it, and we probably experience it ourselves it every day.
Watching videos and tv shows on devices other than the TV in the family room, catching up on your favorite sitcom on-demand because you weren't home to watch it at 8pm when it originally aired, or streaming videos on YouTube to pass time. As the years go by, technology and media are changing – and so is how we are using them.

Read More
image of a woman reviewing app on her phone

Understanding & Removing the Barriers to Patient Retention

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 14-Aug-2019

Each year, $1.89 billion is spent on patient recruitment for clinical trials.1 With a 30% average dropout rate across all clinical trials, many pharmaceutical companies are spending a large amount of money to recruit patients who aren't staying enrolled in their trials.

Needed study data for regulatory submission and the overall success of a clinical trial depend largely on study participants fulfilling their roles...

Read More
images of 14 Years in Service

CSSi Celebrates 14 Years as a Full-Service Patient Recruitment Agency

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 11-Apr-2019

As a sponsor, CRO or site, there are a surplus of patient recruitment companies you can turn to when you need help finding patients for your studies, and that number grows higher every day. Most of these companies offer a niche service, but very few are a full-service, global recruitment agency like ours.

Read More
images of digital advertizing

Traditional Advertising Is Still Alive

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 01-Apr-2019

We've all heard it before: "traditional advertising is dead." But if that were true, why are we still seeing commercials on TV, hearing ads on the radio, and seeing billboards on the highway during our morning commute?

Because it's not true! Traditional advertising is still very much alive and used by some of the largest companies worldwide.

Read More
images of responsive design with websites

Eight-Step Guide to a Strong Clinical Trial Website

  • By Gabrielle St Remy
  • 05-Feb-2019

There are about 93 million Americans searching online for information related to a health-related topic, with 63% of those individuals looking up a specific disease or medical problem. In fact, looking for health or medical information comes high on the list as one of the most popular activities people do when they are online.

Read More
person working on logo design

Clinical Trial Branding: Why is it so Important?

  • By Clara Hughes, Creative Director
  • 25-Jan-2019

Let's imagine two different scenarios:
A: You're sitting in a doctor's office, and you see a poster for ACN-053-2414, a clinical trial testing medication for acne in adults.
B: You're sitting in a doctor's office, and you see a poster for the Face It Acne Research Study, a clinical trial testing medication for acne in adults.

Read More