How NIH's All of Us Program Gained End-to-End Insight into Participant Engagement

The All of Us Research Program lacked a unified view of how outreach efforts—ranging from digital ads to local events—influenced participant enrollment. 

Problem Statement

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the All of Us Research Program needed greater transparency into how individuals became aware of the program and what touchpoints influenced their decision to sign up and participate. Without clear insights into the performance of awareness and acquisition channels—especially across a mix of digital and out-of-home (OOH) media—it was difficult to optimize outreach strategies, allocate budget effectively, and ensure a seamless participant journey from first contact through full program enrollment.

Situation

Driving participant enrollment is foundational to the success of the All of Us Research Program. While the program leveraged a wide range of outreach tactics—including digital media, out-of-home (OOH) placements, in-person events, email, and SMS—to reach diverse communities, there was no standardized system for tracking how these efforts influenced sign-ups and ongoing engagement. Campaign tagging was inconsistent, media performance was fragmented, and there was no unified view of the participant journey across channels.

To address this, we first needed to define the entire architecture, tools, and workflows that would support a compliant, scalable analytics framework. This included selecting the right platforms for tracking and segmentation, establishing how data would flow from awareness through HIPAA-protected enrollment, and designing processes that could be adopted by both national teams and local Provider Organizations. Without this foundational work, the program lacked the infrastructure to make data-informed decisions or optimize its outreach strategy effectively.

Summary

Marketing Science helped the NIH’s All of Us Research Program gain full visibility into how participants moved from initial awareness to full program enrollment. By implementing a compliant, scalable analytics infrastructure—including GA360, BigQuery, and Iterable—across digital, OOH, and in-person channels, the team enabled real-time insight into outreach effectiveness, improved enrollment targeting of diverse communities, and established sustainable data systems for long-term program impact.

Key Results

  • Full-funnel visibility established: Enabled end-to-end tracking of participant engagement from awareness through HIPAA-protected program participation across digital, OOH, and in-person channels.
  • Improved enrollment and targeting: through real-time insights and targeting of diverse audience segments (Latino, LGBTQ+, African American, female, etc.).
  • Scalable, compliant data infrastructure: Delivered a compliant analytics ecosystem built with GA360, BigQuery, and Iterable/PMT for scalable analytics and outreach.

Testimonial

 “Whenever I get stuck with an analytics issue, The Marketing Science Department is where I turn to for help. Their analysis is superb; they diagnose technical issues that stump others; they have often helped me and my teams fully understand the story in the data.”  – Director Communications, All of Us Program

Solution

Our approach unfolded in structured phases to address the fragmentation in tracking and measurement across the All of Us program’s media ecosystem:

  • Established Comprehensive Tracking Infrastructure: We implemented standardized tracking methodologies across all digital and out-of-home (OOH) media placements, enabling consistent attribution of campaign performance from awareness through enrollment.

  • Empowered Local Engagement with Training and Tools: We created and distributed customized online training for local Provider Organizations—such as UC San Diego and the University of Wisconsin—to equip them with the knowledge and tools to track engagement at community and campus events.

  • Collaborated to Align Calls to Action: Partnering with Wondros and Scripps, we ensured consistent use of clear and measurable calls to action (CTAs) across all outreach materials, both online and offline, to unify messaging and simplify participant pathways.

  • Integrated Analytics with Custom CMS: We developed a robust Google Analytics implementation tailored to their custom content management system, capturing granular data on all landing page and microsite interactions.

  • Built Segmentation and Journey Tracking in BigQuery: Using BigQuery, we designed custom segmentation models to monitor prospective participants’ journeys—from initial awareness through sign-up—enabling deeper behavioral insights.

  • Ensured Secure and Compliant Data Integration: We facilitated a compliant and secure data transfer process between BigQuery and the NIH’s Enterprise systems to support centralized reporting and long-term program analytics.

Results

Our work enabled the All of Us Research Program to establish a clear, compliant, and continuous view of participant engagement—from initial awareness through sign-up, onboarding, and ongoing participation. By implementing standardized tracking across digital media, OOH placements, local events, and 1:1 communications, we made it possible to monitor the entire funnel for a diverse range of target audiences—including Latino, LGBTQ+, African American, and female participants.

The integration of Google Analytics 360 and BigQuery allowed for detailed segmentation and funnel analysis while ensuring compliance with data privacy standards from non-HIPAA exposure through HIPAA-protected phases of participant engagement. This was critical to meeting the program’s legal and ethical obligations while still delivering actionable insights.

Dynamic Looker Studio dashboards tailored for different stakeholder groups—from NIH headquarters to local Health Provider Organizations (HPOs) like UCSD and UCI—made data accessible and decision-ready. Campaign and field teams could now evaluate and adjust strategies in real time based on localized engagement data and conversion performance.

We also successfully guided the organization through a CMS migration without disrupting ongoing data collection, ensuring continuity in participant journey tracking. Working closely with Wondros and Scripps, we established consistent CTAs and media tagging across all placements. In parallel, we provided technical support for Iterable and the All of Us PMT, enabling personalized email and SMS outreach that aligned with campaign segmentation and user behavior.

As a result, the program improved media efficiency, increased enrollment conversion rates, and established a sustainable, insight-driven communications and analytics infrastructure—laying the groundwork for long-term success and more inclusive participation in precision medicine research.

Maintain Data Compliance

Marketing Science helps clients maintain compliance by designing analytics solutions that align with data privacy regulations, including HIPAA and organizational security protocols. We ensure that data collection, storage, and integration are secure, auditable, and structured to support ethical use without compromising insight or performance.

End-to-End Automation

Marketing Science builds end-to-end marketing automation by integrating data across the full customer journey—from initial awareness to conversion and retention—into a unified, actionable system. We connect platforms like CRMs, analytics tools, email/SMS systems, and ad channels to enable personalized, trigger-based campaigns that scale with your audience and goals.