A/B testing, also known as split testing, is a powerful technique in digital marketing that allows you to optimize your website’s performance and improve your conversion rates. In this article, we will explore how to leverage the power of A/B testing in HubSpot CMS to achieve better results and create a more user-friendly and engaging online experience, ultimately converting visitors into customers.
What is A/B testing?
A/B testing is a method of comparing two versions of a webpage slovenia business email list or marketing asset to determine which one performs better. By presenting your audience with two versions (A and B) and measuring their response, you can make data-driven decisions to improve your site’s performance. This testing method is crucial to optimizing user experience, increasing conversions, and achieving your marketing goals.
Why use HubSpot for A/B testing?
The answer is pretty simple: starting with the Professional plan , HubSpot Content Hub has a built-in A/B testing feature for emails and pages, so proving any theory in practice won’t take much effort. Plus, HubSpot’s intuitive interface makes it easy to create and analyze A/B tests.
What should you do before A/B testing?
Before we delve into the practicalities of A/B testing, a few things need to be clarified:
Define your goals
Start by setting clear goals for your A/B testing. Answer the following questions:
What do you want to improve?
How to measure success?
How long should the test last?
Once you have identified your goals, you can move from the questions "what" and "how" to the question "which?"
Selecting items to test
Now you need to select the elements on your website that you want to test.
These may include:
headings (font, size, color);
call to action (CTA) buttons (here it can also be font, size, color, but also behavior - you can select several actions after clicking and check which action will provide a better conversion);
images (size and type, e.g. photos or icons; you can also try the version without images);
forms (here you can change not only the number of fields, but also the form elements or the full form design)
and much more...
Creating Variants
Now that you have defined your test goals and elements, you need to design two different versions of the element you want to test. This is where HubSpot CMS native can help us too.
How to enable A/B testing in HubSpot?
That was the theory, let's move on to practice. As I mentioned earlier, you need at least the Professional Plan to run an A/B test. Now all you need to do is select the website or landing page you want to run the test on and go to the "More" menu:
Adding A/B Testing in HubSpot
Then find and click "Run a test":
Run a new A/B test in HubSpot
You can also do this from the page editor – just find "Test" in the left menu and "Run A/B test":
Select A/B test:
Choose A/B test
Then just name the variants:
Name your A/B test variants
Now click "Create variation". The test has actually been created. Your task now is to change the content in variant "B". To switch between variants, you can use the menu next to the language switcher.
Now, after creating a variant and changing the content, you just need to wait for a while (according to your goals) and let your visitors choose which variant is better.
A/B Test Results Analysis
When we talk about performance analysis, we need to:
Understand the metrics you track, such as conversion rate, bounce rate, and click-through rate, to make informed decisions.
Ensure that the differences between variants are statistically significant to draw valid conclusions.
Apply the winning variation to your site based on the results. A/B testing is an iterative process, so experiment and refine your site to see better conversions over time.
