Simple A/B Tests Email Marketers Should Try ASAP

Despite how simple it is to implement A/B testing as a part of your email marketing checklist, only a small percentage of marketers actually do. They say A/B testing is intimidating, or they aren’t sure where to start.

But the truth is, A/B testing can help you optimize every single send so you see the best possible results. And A/B testing doesn’t have to be intimidating.

We’ve put together this infographic to show you where to start in order to see maximum results from your next email marketing campaign:

Simple A/B tests email marketers should try ASAP

A/B testing makes you more confident in your email marketing by proving what works and what doesn’t.

What is A/B testing?

Send a variation of an email to a subset of subscribers (A) and a different variation to another (B).

Compare the results to determine which variation garners the best results.

Why should marketers care?

After A/B testing, SitePoint designed a new email layout that generated 32% more conversions.

We tested our own emails and saw a 127% increase in click-throughs.

Testing personalized content can lead to a 15% increase in click-throughs.

A/B testing should improve your conversions 25% of the time.

61% of marketers use A/B testing to improve their conversion optimization.

Tips to run more effective A/B tests

1. Have a hypothesis

Understand why a particular variation might perform better than the other: Using a button will make the CTA stand out, getting more people to click-through.

2. Prioritize your A/B tests

To prioritize, use Sean Ellis’ ICE method:

• Impact: How big of an impact will changing this element have?
• Confidence: How confident are you that this change will have a positive impact?
• Ease: How easy is it to implement this A/B test?

3. Build on what you learn

Combine what you learn from multiple tests to design a killer email that converts.

What should marketers test?

Though this list isn’t exhaustive, here are some simple ideas:

Subject lines

Length: Test short subject lines vs. longer subject lines.

Topic: Test two topics in the subject line to see what content is of most interest to subscribers.

Promotion/Offer: See what kind of promotion works best by offering “Free Shipping” vs. “15% Off.” Using power words can increase conversion up to 14.68%.

Preheader

Inclusion: See if a version that includes a pre-header has a higher open rate. 32% of marketers use preheader text to optimize for mobile.

Content: Include two different pre-headers and see which your subscribers respond to most.

Day or time

Day: Test whether your subscribers engage more on weekends or weekdays.

Time: Target your audience whenever they’re most active, either morning, noon or night. 61% of adults check their phones within 5 minutes of waking up.

Calls to action

Button or link: See if a button or a simple hypertext link will receive more click-throughs.

Copy: Test generic copy like “Buy More” vs. specific copy like “Get My Flare Jean Now.” Benefit-focused copy can increase click-through rates by about 10%. That’s why personalized calls to action convert 42% better than generic ones.

Color: Test different contrasting colors to see which colors get the best response.

Content

Length: Test short form vs. long form content.

Specific or generic: Test dynamic content personalized for your segments vs. generic content.

Type: What’s your message’s focus? For instance, focusing on positivity increased our email conversion rate by 22%.

Wrap up

A/B testing doesn’t have to be intimidating.

Design your tests, gather your data, and use your new intel to design emails you know will convert.