If you want to be a marketing superstar, you need to be A/B testing! A/B testing is a way to test two versions of something—often a landing page or email subject line—to determine which performs better. When it comes to inbound marketing, it is all about the best conversion rate and testing will help you boost yours. You can test virtually anything that affects potential customer behavior, but here are five inbound activities that you should be A/B testing.
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Email Subject Lines
Want to know what makes more people open an email? A/B test subject lines to see which one resonates more with readers. Often a small shift in language or tone can make a big difference. To ensure you are properly testing the subject line, use the same language in the email and send to a similar target audience, based on buyer personas. Once you determine the best open rates, use that subject line for a larger audience.
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Landing Pages
So, once you get people to click through, what type of landing page will wow them? Landing pages must successfully combine language and visual appeal to intrigue readers—so play with headlines, fonts, images, and general layout to draw the most interest. Be sure to keep a “control” page and only make one major change at a time while testing.
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Calls to Action
We spend a lot of time talking and thinking about CTAs, but we should really be spending more time A/B testing them for success. The call to action is a critical step to conversion, so you must know what is and is not working. Action-oriented language, placement, and button design are the biggest factors of concern when testing CTAs.
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Images
Using images to support your content is imperative when it comes to inbound marketing, particularly when it comes to landing and web pages. Since images resonate with people differently than words, you may find that changing imagery has a greater impact than headlines or content. Images often conjure up a stronger emotional response than words alone.
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Forms and Form Fields
When creating forms, it’s critical to distinguish wants and needs and find an appropriate balance of the two. A/B testing is a simple way to determine which forms are working and which are not—are they too long, too short, too detailed, not detailed enough? You may discover longer forms are just as effective as shorter ones as long as you are asking the right questions.
In addition to these five fundamentals, here are some other items and activities that you should consider A/B testing: your website, word count, content length, color choices, mobile use, and video engagement. Testing will illuminate for you what your readers and prospects respond to and increase your conversion rate. While you may think you know what you customers want, people are fickle and measuring results is the only way to know for sure what elicits the best response.
If you are thinking about A/B testing your website, get a head start with the top 25 must-haves to increase visibility and leads.
