There’s a lot of room for interpretation in digital marketing, but there’s one thing you absolutely cannot and should not leave out of your strategy: A/B split testing.
A/B testing is the answer to all of your marketing woes and can quickly and effectively transform everything from content creation to web design.
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The Value of A/B Testing
While you’ve certainly heard the term dozens of times, don’t be ashamed if you find yourself asking, “What is A/B testing?”.
If you’ve never done split testing on your own, then you may be intimidated by the idea. However, with the right tools and understanding the fundamental concepts, it’s actually quite easy.
Savvy marketers commonly quip that A/B testing stands for “Always Be Testing”. And while this isn’t true, it certainly should be. A/B testing isn’t something that you should only be doing in an isolated situation or case study. It needs to become a habitual aspect of digital marketing.
Here are a handful of reasons why:
1. Helps to Define Goals
It’s easy to make assumptions about a group of customers from the comforts of an office or boardroom. With some basic demographic information, industry trends, and first-hand experience, marketing goals tend to develop rather quickly. The problem is that customers don’t fit into a specific mold or box. Every business discovers this sooner or later. You can fall on the “sooner” side of the spectrum by investing in A/B testing.
When you set up some basic A/B tests at the beginning of a campaign, you get to see how customers actually interact with your landing pages, product descriptions, layouts, and copy in real-time. This assists you in defining concrete goals moving forward.
2. Helps You Understand Your Audience
Successful businesses understand that marketing isn’t about pushing products on people.
You may be able to fool customers for a period of time and get them to buy items that they don’t need, but they’ll eventually realise what’s happening. If you want to grow a brand and create a loyal audience that continually comes back for more, you must understand who your audience is and what they really want.
A/B testing is like a window into the heart of your customers. You get to see how they interact with your brand when they don’t think anyone is watching. It’s an incredibly valuable opportunity that shouldn’t be squandered.
3. Maximises Sales and Conversions
“You can be the guru of design or the master of marketing, but, in the end, all that matters is conversions,” says marketing expert Matt Lee. “You need to know what design strategy leads to the most conversions. The only true way to do that is with an A/B multi-variant test.”
As marketers, we’re often hesitant to admit we’re wrong. But the great thing about A/B testing is that there’s no room for interpretation. The data clearly shows what does and doesn’t work. This removes emotions and biases from the equation and allows you to focus on the singular goal of maximising conversions.
4. Collect Usable Data
At the end of the day, you may not feel that the information you’re gathering from your day-to- day A/B tests are providing you with much value, but hang on to it. You’re slowly gathering massive amounts of usable data that can be leveraged in the future. When it comes time to launch a new product or start a new campaign, this information can serve as a stable foundation for future decisions.
A/B Test Everything
At the end of the day, you should be A/B testing every aspect of your digital marketing that customers experience. If you aren’t diligent about split testing, you’ll never know how much influence a small detail can have on the overall big picture.
Featured image: Joe the Goat Farmer
