Execute A/B Split Tests Using the Scientific Approach

If you’ve invested time and resources into your brand’s email marketing program, you’re well aware of the disappointment of being unable to penetrate the audience. ISP algorithms and blacklisting are hurdles on their own, but if your audience doesn’t respond to your campaigns, then you’ve got poor email campaigns.

The email channel is unlike any other marketing channel. It is highly targeted and with easily traceable results. Innovation and experimentation are required by email marketers more so than any other channel. And there is no better tool at disposal than A/B split testing.

In a mailing list spanning from mere thousands to millions, developing solid interactions with customers is a daunting task. Each customer has their own unique profiles and interests can vary greatly. Preparing personalized content which has the ability to strike a chord with the audience is hard to come by; especially when you consider user preferences can change in a few hours. A/B split testing can help deliver real time results to propagate the best campaign across the audience.

Opens, clicks and web hit are be influenced by single or a combination of factors, each changing according to the subscriber. Testing the variables across a random sample provides a statistical vantage point to follow through a particular style of campaign. A/B split testing however has to be precise and well formulated to actually benefit your campaigns. Adopting the scientific method can help you develop A/B split tests with verifiable results to drive better engagement.

A/B split Testing using the Scientific Method

Science advances by delivering verifiable and reproducible results. The six steps of the scientific method are:

1. Ask a question: When targeting a vast audience, first determine the objective of your A/B test. Channeling your A/B tests in well-constructed manner allows one to innovate and prepare truthful customer profiles. Are your customers or the segment you target more inclined to a particular product, do they have preferences for the style of content, are they influenced by personalization and what type of subject lines prompt opens.
2. Do background research: Once you’ve formulated the objectives of your A/B test, check previous customer actions, purchase behavior and historic response to both regular promotions and A/B tests. Without proper research your A/B tests provide very rudimentary data, lacking accuracy and depth.
1. Construct the hypothesis: Prepare flowcharts to identify the key variables that can influence engagement. Scrutinize campaign elements responsible for initiating opens and clicks and formulate a testing hypothesis.
2. Test your hypothesis: Run A/B tests on your email marketing campaign and wait for results to pour in. Ensure sample sizes are large enough to draw statistically driven conclusions. Once you’ve run the first test campaigns, target the non-openers of one sample with the campaign targeted to a different sample.
3. Analyze and draw conclusion: Allow your email marketing service provider to gather reports. Don’t jump to a conclusion until sufficient time has passed. Often you may notice while one campaign performed better in the initial hours post testing, it was the other campaign that was successful in garnering more engagement. Most ESPs allow you to target the remaining chunk of the audience with the winning campaign automatically. Try this approach when the campaign is urgent or product stocks/offers are limited. Now that you’ve got your winning campaign target the remaining audience with the more appealing mailer.
4. Was your hypothesis correct: Once you’ve finished targeting the entire audience check if the winning campaign performed as expected when targeted to the remaining audience? If not, don’t worry you still got to learn more about your subscribers which is a win any day.

ICubes, is a dedicated Email Marketing solution provider that assists organizations with their email marketing requirements. Its services mainly include Email campaign management, lead generation, Email marketing consulting, trainings & workshops.