Every marketer’s goal is to create the perfect marketing campaign that will result in more conversions and higher ROI. To do this, many marketers use A/B testing to split-test different elements of their campaigns to see which version performs better.

The higher your ROI, the more successful your marketing campaign will be

What is A/B testing?

A/B testing, also known as split testing, compares two marketing campaign versions to see which performs better. Marketers use A/B testing to test everything from email subject lines to call-to-action buttons. By testing different campaign elements, you can determine which version is more effective in driving conversions.

How does A/B testing work?

A/B testing works by randomly splitting your audience into two groups. Group A will see version A of your campaign, while group B will see version B. The goal is to then see which version performs better in terms of driving conversions.

There are a few different ways to split your audience into two groups. The most common method is to use a tool like Google Analytics to create two separate audiences. Another method is to use a tool like Optimizely to create two separate versions of your website.

Once you have your two groups, you need to track your conversions. This can be done by setting up goals in Google Analytics or using a tool like Optimizely that automatically tracks conversions.

Once you have your data, you can analyze it to see which version performed better

What are the benefits of A/B testing?

A/B testing provides several benefits that can help you improve your marketing campaigns.

1. A/B testing allows you to test different elements of your campaign to see which one is more effective.

This is beneficial because it allows you to focus on the elements of your campaign that are driving results. This information can then be used to improve future campaigns.

2. A/B testing provides data-driven insights.

A/B testing is all about data. By using data to drive your decisions, you can be sure that you are making changes that will improve your campaign’s performance.

3. A/B testing can help you increase your ROI.

The goal of any marketer is to create a campaign that has a high ROI. A/B testing can help you achieve this by testing different elements of your campaign to see which one drives the most conversions.

4. A/B testing can be used to test a variety of marketing campaigns.

A/B testing is not just limited to email subject lines or call-to-action buttons. A/B testing can be used to test a variety of marketing campaigns, such as social media ads, landing pages, and even website designs.

5. A/B testing is easy to set up and use.

There are several tools that make it easy to set up and use A/B testing. This means that you can start using A/B testing to improve your campaigns without a lot of hassle.

What are the steps for the perfect split test?

If you want to use A/B testing to improve your marketing campaigns, there are a few steps that you need to follow.

Choose the element that you want to test.

The first step is to choose the element that you want to test. Most of you reading this will choose to split-test landing pages, but you can really test anything.

Create two versions of your campaign.

Once you know what element you want to test, you must create two versions of your campaign. For example, if you are testing a landing page, you would create two different versions of the page.

Split your audience into two groups.

It’s important to note that you can split your audience into more than two groups. You could split your audience into four different groups and test four different versions of your campaign. However, for the sake of simplicity, we will just focus on two groups.

Test your campaign and collect data.

Now it’s time to actually test your campaign. This is where you will send out your campaign to your two groups and track the results.

Analyze your data and make changes.

Once you have collected your data, it’s time to analyze it and see which version performed better. From there, you can make changes to your campaign based on the results of your test.

Rinse and repeat.

The beauty of A/B testing is that it’s an ongoing process. You can continue to test different elements of your campaigns and make changes based on the results.

What are some of the most common split testing mistakes?

As with anything, no one is perfect regarding A/B testing. There are bound to be some mistakes made along the way.

Here are some of the most common A/B testing mistakes:

1. Not having a goal.

The first mistake is not having a goal. Before starting your A/B test, you need to have a clear goal. Otherwise, you won’t be able to measure the success of your test properly.

You can’t just say, “I want to increase my conversion rate.” Instead, you need to be more specific. For example, “I want to increase my conversion rate by 2%.”

2. Not split testing enough.

The second mistake is not split testing enough. A/B testing is an ongoing process. You should constantly test different marketing elements to see what works and what doesn’t.

The amount of traffic you send to each version will determine the validity of your results. You need a sizeable amount of traffic in order to get accurate results.

3. Not making enough changes.

You might be surprised to learn that something as small as the color of the “buy now” button can greatly impact your conversion rate.

The key is to make enough changes to see a significant difference in the results. If you only make one or two small changes, the results might not be significant enough to matter.

Does red work better than green? Constantly be curious and test different elements to see what works best.

4. Not analyzing your data.

You need to dig deep into your data to see what’s really going on. A/B testing is all about making changes based on data.

Leave no stone unturned. Look at every single metric that you can think of. What’s the click-through rate? What’s the bounce rate? How long are people staying on the page?

All of these metrics can give you valuable insights into what’s working and what’s not.

Let’s touch a little on heatmaps and how you can use them

Not enough marketers talk about or even know what a heatmap is. Let’s take a dive into this rabbit hole and discover how heatmaps can improve your conversions.

What is a heatmap?

A heatmap is a visual representation of data. It’s a way to see where people click on your page and how they interact with your content.

There are different types of heatmaps, but the most common type is a click heatmap. This type of heatmap shows you where people are clicking on your page.

However, some heatmaps also track mouse movements, scrolling, and even attention.

Why are heatmaps important?

Heatmaps are vital because they give you insights that you wouldn’t be able to get from traditional analytics.

For example, let’s say you have a high bounce rate on your landing page. You might be tempted to think that people are leaving because your offer isn’t good enough.

But when you look at a heatmap, you might see that people are clicking on the “buy now” button. In other words, they’re interested in your offer, but something stops them from completing the purchase.

This is valuable information that you can use to improve your conversion rate.

How to use heatmaps to improve your conversions

Now that you know what a heatmap is and why they’re important, let’s talk about how you can use heatmaps to improve conversions.

1. Use heatmaps to find out what’s working (and what’s not)

The first way to use heatmaps is to find out what’s working and what’s not.

For example, let’s say you have a landing page with two call-to-action buttons. One button is above the fold, and the other is below the fold.

If you see people clicking on the button below the fold more than the button above the fold, that’s a good sign that you should move the button above the fold.

2. Use heatmaps to find out what’s confusing people

The second way to use heatmaps is to find out what’s confusing people.

A good example would be a landing page with a form. If you see people clicking on the form fields but not filling out the form, that’s a sign that the form is too long or confusing.

3. Use heatmaps to find out what people are ignoring

The third way to use heatmaps is to find what people ignore.

Yes, people are going to ignore some things on your page. But if you see that people are ignoring a call-to-action button or an important piece of information, that’s a problem.

4. A heatmap can show you what’s working

Lastly, you can easily see what works well using a heatmap.

What you’re watching for is a high concentration of clicks in a certain area. This is important because you can use this information to create similar content or designs that are more likely to convert.

Conclusion

As you can see, split testing is vital to your success as an online marketer. By constantly testing and tweaking your campaigns, you can ensure that you are always ahead of the competition and generating the most conversions possible.

With that said, split testing can be a daunting task if you don’t know where to start. But thankfully, this guide has given you all the information you need to get started.

Hopefully, now you feel confident enough to go out and start your own split tests. Remember, the key is to start small and gradually increase the scope of your tests as you become more comfortable with the process.