Ideas can Spring from the Unlikeliest of Sources

Sometimes ideas can come from the unlikeliest of source material. I’ve spoken previously about free writing and how I use that to come up with ‘brain dump’ style ideas without filtering them, and how ideas can take a while to percolate in the brain – a technique used by Stephen King and John Cleese, among others.

Another opportunity for getting ideas is in seeing connections where you wouldn’t expect them.

For example, I was recently reviewing my collection of ties and wondering if I should organize them into a more structured order, such as by color and pattern, than the haphazard way they are currently strewn over my tie hanger.

That’s when it occurred to me that this kind of pattern recognition is probably quite a subjective thing. Not everyone will see colors, patterns etc. the same way as me – which is something to keep in mind when creating anything we’re expecting other people to be able to understand.

Co-Creation is a Great Way for All the Stakeholders in Patient Recruitment to Work Effectively

Looking more into the idea of co-creation by the key stakeholders for patient recruitment and retention, it’s obvious that different organizations will have different viewpoints and types of experience they can bring to the party.

Outside of the obvious underlying desire to help bring treatments to patients, each stakeholder will also have different motivations underpinning what they contribute.

Sponsors, for example, will be the one most concerned with achieving regulatory approval and maximizing the revenue available from the potential treatment. Patients and patient groups will be those most interested in ensuring the patient burden is kept to a minimum.

What the true spirit of co-creation enables among these different contributors, is that they can bring their own perspectives and motivations to the table, without having to continually fight their corner and feel like they’re in a battle to achieve their goals.

Which surely seems like the way we should be going about things?

Co-Creation of Content is a Technique that can be Echoed in Patient Recruitment Campaigns

I’ve been creating a lot of content this year – including a book, articles, posts, videos, website copy, as well as reviews and strategies for projects I’m involved with.

And one of the things that has been most enjoyable is when I’ve collaborated with other people. For example, with a co-written article, or refining a framework of questions to ask for optimizing outsourcing projects.

I have several other content pieces lined-up over the coming months where I’ll be working with another person to put them together.

And I believe the different viewpoints and experiences that come into play during that process of working together can very much lead to the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.

Which is something I wholeheartedly recommend for organizations who are responsible for developing patient recruitment and retention campaigns.

All the stakeholders working together to co-create the strategy should help deliver the best results.

Utilizing Different Media for Clinical Trial Information can Help with Better Patient Engagement

While reviewing the content on my website recently, I realized I’ve been concentrating so much on daily videos I’ve not put any new written content together for a while.

In fairness, I have written a new book this year, which is obviously made up of quite a lot of writing.

But I am keen to write more articles alongside the videos – one of the main reasons being that I myself tend to prefer a reading experience for learning, rather than a visual one.

Which certainly underlines the fact that to provide a better customer experience, we should be providing information about trial participation in multiple formats – written documents, videos, audio clips etc. – so people can decide for themselves how they learn the relevant details.

The popularity of podcasts in recent years has certainly shown that lots of people like to absorb information through listening to it, so utilizing multiple formats can only be a good thing.

My Website Recently had a Redesign and Now Includes all My Daily Videos

I’ve recently updated my website with a new design, plus it now hosts all the short vids I’ve been making over the last few months. Previously I’d only been uploading them to various platforms, such as YouTube and LinkedIn. But from now they also have their home on my website at RossJackson.com.

This is the 137th video, and the overwhelming majority of them are about topics related to patient recruitment and clinical trials, so they make up a fair amount of content between them. And as well as posting the actual videos, I’ve also uploaded the transcripts from them for people who prefer to get their information through reading.

I’ve also got my blog posts and articles on there, along with an overview of the services I offer – such as consultancy and advice for sponsor organizations and others in the industry, as well as oversight of vendors and solutions providers, patient recruitment coaching etc.

Copying and Pasting Eligibility Criteria from Previous Protocols can lead to Poor Recruitment

It was Guy Fawkes’ Night in the UK here yesterday, 05 November – commonly known as Bonfire Night. Which reminded me of a phrase used by a colleague in the industry last week when we were discussing trial protocols – that there should be a bonfire of eligibility criteria to enable a much wider audience to participate in trials.

The sentiment stems from the fact we’ve both seen protocols that have simply been copied and pasted from earlier protocols for trials in the same therapy area.

Leading to the sometimes ludicrous requirement for such things as a patient needing to have a low Body Mass Index – when the condition in question has a side effect of obesity.

Reviewing a protocol’s eligibility criteria against the specific outcomes you want to measure for your current trial can help remove these unnecessary elements, expanding the target audience and improving your recruitment efforts.

Does Everyone Have a Rare Disease?

Does everyone have a rare disease? At a recent meeting of the Rare Disease Research Network it was suggested that if you slice things thinly enough, every person has a rare disease. The idea being that we all have specific genetic and physiological mutations compared to everyone else – though the overwhelming majority of these don’t result in the kind of effects that warrant treatment.

This is certainly an intriguing idea – possibly a fact – and one that is certainly worth thinking about.

‘There but for the grace of God’ is a phrase people may be familiar with – implying that it’s only through chance and circumstance that one individual is not in the same situation as another.

So when we combine the idea that everyone has a rare disease of some sort with the fact that everyone is a patient in some regard, it helps underline how we all benefit from the healthcare advances that come from clinical research.

When Writing a Book Make Sure you Give it Your Best Effort to Improve it

I spent quite a lot of time earlier this year writing my latest book – The Patient Recruitment Conundrum. At several points, I found myself becoming somewhat weary of the process, ending the day thinking what I’d written would be good enough, and wouldn’t need revising.

And, indeed, that’s partially the basis for the approach I’ve taken with these videos – not allowing the perfect to be the enemy of the good, and simply putting them out there on a daily basis without worrying too much about the perfect lighting or sound quality etc.

Which is something I’m happy to do for short videos, as it’s the message that is the key.

With the book, though, I realized I wanted to create something of lasting value, so made sure I put in the extra effort to improve it, even when I may not have felt like doing so.

Which is something I recommend to anyone else engaged in a similar endeavor.

Targeted Advertising Functionality isn’t Unique to the Digital Realm

In the world of digital marketing, people are very familiar with the idea of targeted advertising. What they mean by it is usually a set of options that enables you to show your ads only to people who fit certain demographic characteristics – such as age and location – as well as potentially certain interests the person has displayed while browsing online.

Outside of this digital realm, it’s also possible to target people based on their behaviors – through such methods as placing adverts in particular publications. Anyone reading a magazine such as Golf Monthly, for example, is likely to be interested in golf.

Similarly, people reading a baby magazine or website, are quite likely to be expectant or new parents (or be their relatives or friends).

When you’re thinking about targeting an audience for a clinical trial, then, it can pay dividends to look at traditional, as well as digital, methods of reaching potential participants.

Revising Your Creative can Help Your Ads Stand out Against Christmas-Themed Ads

Further to what I said in the last vid about increased digital ads competition in the lead-in to Christmas, there are other things you can do to try to mitigate against the potential higher ad costs.

One of which is to look into the creative elements you’re using in your ads. Standing out against Christmas-themed imagery and wording can be difficult when people are feeling more disposed towards holiday festivities, rather than thinking about potential treatments for conditions they’re living with.

I’m not suggesting you include pictures of Santa Claus in your ads – which would almost certainly be frowned-on by any ethics review anyway.

But perhaps incorporating visual and text cues of a different kind – that either echo or contrast with the types of Christmas-related elements other advertisers are likely to be using – could help your patient recruitment adverts to generate more interest and engagement from your target audience as the year draws to a close.