Split testing is both an underutilized tool and an overvalued commodity in the online marketing world. Split testing refers to the act of testing out different types of content on the same page, using a script that randomly selects a piece of content so that you can judge click through rates and sales outcomes.
Essentially, split testing is designed to compare and contrast different types of content and web design in order to maximize conversions. Split testing measures things like:
- Bounce rate
- Click through rate
- Sales/conversion rate
It’s used by internet marketers, businesses – even bloggers. The goal is to make sure that every page you have and every piece of content you use is as effective as possible at earning you the revenue you need.
How to Split Test
Split testing generally involves some type of randomization script. There are several WordPress Plugins that provide split testing, and software for those that don’t use WordPress. Companies hire a content writer to write several pieces of content, usually based on varying parameters. A few are usually hard sells, some are soft sells. Then, when one appears more effective than others, a content writer will write variations of that content using various themes, and testing will continue.
Split testing is an outstanding way to maximize conversions, but some companies over-split test, essentially testing everything they can until they achieve desired results. There are times that split testing is valuable, and times when split testing is much less important.
When to Split Test
Split testing is best when your website already has some success, but a poor conversion rate. It is best on sales pages and product pages – pages that are expected to turn directly into sales, when you can genuinely find out whether or not the new page is working. It’s also only best when you are still experiencing a high degree of conversions (or click throughs, or whatever your end goal is).
That’s roughly it. Split testing is not ideal for the following:
- Low Conversion Websites – Imagine an enterprise software company. This is the type of company that makes maybe one sale every week, but that sale is thousands upon thousands of dollars. With such a low conversion or click through rate, it’s nearly impossible to know if your website is successful. You could consider split testing for bounce rate, but beyond that it is very difficult to test the differences between content. For these types of websites, it may be best to simply ask others to judge your content based on their knowledge and expertise.
- Low Hit Websites – Similarly, it is nearly impossible to accurately test content if your website is new, or doesn’t get enough hits. You need a way to control for unexpected variables. You can’t do this if you spread out testing over weeks or months simply because you do not get enough hits to make an accurate sample. Once again, it’s best to pay someone with expertise to write the content and use your best judgment.
- Article and Content Pages – Finally, there is little reason to split test anything that is not expected to lead to an immediate sale. Informative content that is added to websites to improve their search engine rank benefit less from testing because the pages are designed to get hits, but not immediately convert. The goal of those types of pages are simply to build content and get hits that will then drive people to a sales page (that you may have split test), and it’s better two separate well written pages than one well researched page.
Split testing is an incredibly valuable tool, but it’s not a one-size-fits-all tool, and may be a waste of your investment. In many cases, it makes more sense to simply build your website’s depth and add more pages of content, and test when your website is already achieving success.