Be The Cure Case Study

What We Did

Creative, Marketing, Web

The Client

The Northern Alberta Clinical Trials and Research Centre (NACTRC) is a collaborative initiative between Alberta Health Services and the University of Alberta. It supports sponsors and researchers in the healthcare sector by facilitating the design and execution of clinical studies, while actively positioning Edmonton as a premier destination for health research. Through strategic partnerships with leading research organizations, NACTRC is advancing medical innovation and improving outcomes for patients.

The Project

Albertans—and Canadians more broadly—recognize the vital role health research plays in shaping our society. In fact, 70% of Canadians view health research as an integral part of our national identity and express a desire to be involved.

Despite this enthusiasm, many clinical studies continue to face challenges in recruiting participants. This gap isn’t due to a lack of willingness, but rather a lack of awareness—people simply don’t know what research is underway or how to get involved.

NACTRC set out to bridge this gap by raising public awareness around the value of clinical research and encouraging participation. At the same time, they aimed to position Alberta as a premier destination for clinical trials—demonstrating the province’s readiness to host high-quality studies and attract greater investment from the research community.

Goal

The campaign aimed to raise awareness about the importance of health research in Alberta, educate the public on how to get involved, and encourage participation. It also focused on building a list of interested individuals for future studies and driving traffic from BeTheCure.ca to AB4HR, with the goal of increasing research sign-ups.

Campaign Creative & Messaging

To support the national expansion of the Be The Cure campaign, ACT developed a compelling bilingual creative concept centered on the message: “You’re the missing piece.” Visually, the campaign depicted a diverse group of individuals arranged like a puzzle, with one crucial piece missing — symbolizing the public’s vital role in advancing health research. This imagery, combined with clear and inclusive messaging in both English and French, emphasized the importance of individual participation in clinical trials. Building on momentum from its success in Alberta, the national rollout aimed to raise awareness and increase trial participation across Canada by showing that every person has the power to contribute to life-saving discoveries.

Marketing

To maximize reach and engagement, Habit executed a bilingual, multi-channel marketing strategy for the Be The Cure campaign. Recognizing the importance of meeting Canadians where they are, Habit leveraged a mix of digital and traditional platforms — including the campaign website, social media, newsletters, online ads, sponsored content, and print collateral. To ensure consistency and accessibility across all touchpoints, Habit developed both English and French creative toolkits. These included a partner kit, fact sheet, logos, newsletter graphics, social media content, ad creatives, posters, postcards, and roll-up banners — all designed to promote national awareness and participation in clinical trials.

Website

To support the national scope of the Be The Cure campaign, Habit made strategic updates to the website to ensure pan-Canadian relevance and accessibility. Originally designed for an Alberta audience, the homepage and content were revised to reflect a broader national focus, with inclusive messaging and visuals representing Canada's diverse population. Updates included clearer distinction between information for researchers and the public, bilingual content throughout, and a province-selection feature to tailor regional information. Enhancements also included refreshed creative assets, new story filters by province/territory, and calls-to-action encouraging Canadians to share their experiences with clinical trials.

The Results

Results

The Be The Cure national campaign generated strong results across multiple platforms, significantly expanding its reach and engagement. The campaign delivered over 22 million impressions across channels and drove 135,992 website sessions, with 118,879 unique visitors to the main site and 13,115 to the studies section. Users exploring clinical trials viewed an average of 6.29 pages per session and spent 4 minutes and 33 seconds on-site — indicating strong engagement. Additionally, the campaign generated 26,341 study searches, 2,824 TV and radio placements, and a 22% increase in social media followers. Newsletter subscriptions also grew by 33%, with 1,637 total sign-ups, highlighting the campaign’s success in both awareness and audience action.

Creative

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Web

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Marketing

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