Hit identification aims to find a drug or molecule that can interact with the drug target. Scientists have  advanced (high-throughput) drug screening facilities with large compound libraries and various screening techniques are available to test different assays with new compounds. An alternative is to test whether old compounds or existing drugs, that have already gone through the development process, are effective in treating a new condition (this is known as drug repurposing). Always work with drug screening and drug discovery experts (that can inform you on the possibilities and limitations of your drug target, (phenotypic) screening assay and required infrastructure) when developing a screening strategy.