Achieving Person-Centricity In Clinical Trial Recruitment: Insights From The Consumer Technology Industry

Clinical trial enrollment remains a major bottleneck in drug development, with up to 80% of studies failing to meet enrollment targets. As digital channels become central to participant outreach, clinical operations leaders can look to consumer technology for strategies to improve recruitment outcomes. This piece explores how consumer-centric innovations—from eCommerce, job recruiting, and online dating—can enhance every stage of clinical trial enrollment.

Key challenges in recruitment include identifying qualified, interested participants; assessing their eligibility accurately; managing their data efficiently; and keeping them engaged. Digital marketing tools can help target outreach and find new participants. Inspired by job platforms and dating apps, a more dynamic and personalized matching process can reduce unnecessary disqualifications, incorporating real-world data and flexible inclusion criteria. To improve participant retention and experience, transparent progress trackers—similar to those used by delivery and project management platforms—can keep individuals informed of their status and next steps. By borrowing proven strategies from consumer tech, clinical trials can modernize recruitment and accelerate the delivery of new therapies to patients.