Simple AB Tests You Can Use Today

This article was written by Ted Dhanik.

AB testing is easy to use, but difficult to master. Google includes a utility in its Analytics program that will match two pages head to head, but knowing what to change in an AB test is the hard part. Once you’ve gotten your page planned out, you can use this tool to send equal traffic to both Web pages. Find an existing page that is performing at a less than stellar capacity and try some of these tests to improve conversions in your display advertising.

Call to Action

The actual call to action is one of the most important parts of your ad. Exclude this and you risk alienating your audience, or worse: spending money on idle clicks. Testing your call to action should involve some competitive research and critical thinking about your audience. Start with basic questions:

• Does your audience want to buy, or are they looking for information?
• Is a soft call that gets them clicking worth more than a “Buy Now” button?

You might want to utilize multiple sales pages, or long form copy.

Colors

You’ve heard the advice that photos with people in them have a better chance of converting, but you’ve also heard that colors are crucial to conversions. Which is right? The solution is AB testing. First, try to test simple reds and greens to see if your conversions go up. Then, retool your banner advertising according to pictures. Remember that if you can get real people wearing your products, you stand to gain the most benefit from the pictures on your site.

Ted Dhanik, provider of display advertising and high performance marketing solutions. Ted Dhanik is the CEO of marketing company engage:BDR. Ted Dhanik mentors business owners interested in start-ups.