People can often view marketing as being a bad thing – designed to persuade people to do things they don’t really want to, in order for the company behind the marketing to make a profit.

But actually, good marketing is about highlighting the features and benefits of something in such a way that it encourages people to find out more for themselves.

When we look at marketing in the context of recruiting patients for clinical trials, I think a lot of people in the industry see it as simply a necessary evil that they’d really rather not have anything to do with.

And yet, when done well, patient recruitment marketing can both fulfill its primary purpose – attracting volunteers to participate in a trial. And also help increase awareness about clinical research in general – thus helping to raise the reputation of the industry in the minds of the public. Which I would suggest can only be beneficial.