A/B testing might sound complicated and time-consuming, but we promise you, it’s actually not! Most email marketing software today is equipped with A/B testing tools that simplify your life, and it’s as simple as customizing an email template or scheduling your next email campaign.
While there are several parameters for A/B testing, also called split testing, we will focus on tweaking what reaches your customers’ inboxes. This blog helps you understand the fundamentals of A/B email test marketing by breaking down the test elements, explaining the benefits of email split testing, and sharing the best practices.
What is A/B Testing and Why Should You Care?
Email A/B testing is a performance audit that helps identify factors influencing the success rate of email marketing campaigns. The idea is pretty simple. You send two versions of an email to two different groups of recipients. The email that gets a better response (higher open rates, interactions, etc.) will be broadcast to your mailing list.
The complexity of email split testing campaigns can vary greatly. Simple tests include sending two different email subject lines to see which one is opened more frequently. Advanced tests involve using two different email templates, body copies, visual elements, and more. A/B testing is one of the most important email marketing strategies. Efficient testing can boost the performance of your email campaigns.
Professional email marketers use it to determine the following:
- Which subject line generates higher open rates
- Whether recipients enjoy emojis in the email body
- Which CTA convinces people to follow through with the intended action
- Which visual elements improve the conversion rates
- Which preheader text boosts click-through rates
What are the Benefits of A/B Testing?
A/B testing helps identify the elements influencing the performance of your email campaigns. You can use the test results to optimize specific aspects for driving engagement. Consider this:
- If you change different elements across multiple emails, you can’t identify the factors influencing your email campaigns for better or worse.
- If you change one element but don’t test it against a control group, you won’t know whether the change in performance is due to your recent change.
Email A/B testing allows you to identify specific improvements so you can apply them, learn from them, and tweak future campaigns based on accurate results. The benefits include higher open rates, greater audience insights, and increased conversion rates.
10 Components for A/B Email Testing
If you take a moment to gist the elements responsible for an email’s performance, you will realize there are indefinite testing opportunities. Here are the ten most vital components to test before emailing subscribers:
From Name
The From Name or Sender Name is the first component the recipient sees when they come across your email in their inbox. Hence, you must ensure they know whom it is from. While you can experiment with this, don’t get so creative that it feels spammy.
Subject Line
Short and catchy email subject lines increase open rates. You can experiment with different versions of the exact text, use different styles, fonts, and lengths, or try various tones to see what works best. The message must be long enough to cover the subject but short enough to create interest.
You can check the following elements in your subject line:
- Relevant Question
- Use of Numerics
- Use of Emojis
- Capitalization
- Ambiguous versus specific subject
- First-person versus second-person
- Message Personalization
- Text Length
- Sense of Urgency
Preview Text
Preview texts are a vital part of any email marketing campaign. You can copy the first line from the email body, write a summary, or include a call to action element. A/B testing this snippet might be a little cumbersome as you have to manually alter this text. However, it’s well worth the effort.
HTML vs. Plain Text
If you mostly send either HTML or plain text emails, it might be worth exploring the other option. While simplicity is sometimes refreshing, you never know when you might find greater success through a flashy, overdesigned marketing email. A/B testing is the only way to be certain!
Message Length
In addition to email content and design, you can experiment with message length. Just ask yourself these three questions:
- Do subscribers want more text in the email content, or just enough to grab their attention?
- What is the ideal subject line length for different devices?
- Do all subscribers respond to the same message length?
Message Personalization
Addressing the recipient by their first name is one of the best strategies in email marketing history. It’s the most common method for personalizing emails and has a proven track record for increasing open rates. Other components to test for include the following:
- Subscribers’ customer status
- Their purchase history
- Emails they might have interacted with in the past
Email Automation
While testing what you send to subscribers is important, you should also test when to send it. For example, you can play with how long to wait before sending potential customers a reminder after they abandon their cart. You can also test the ideal number of emails to send in a triggered sequence.
Body Copy
The tone, length, and message of your email content determine how a recipient interacts with your business correspondence. Test the email body copy, word order, subject lines, and CTA buttons, and use the winning version in your marketing emails.
Images
If you’re using stylized images in your email campaign, it’s wise to A/B test your visuals. Do different hero images influence customer behavior? Can you use GIFs in longer emails to increase click-through rates? Does including an infographic make people forward your emails? Run tests to make informed decisions.
Automated vs. Transactional Emails
This one is more of a category and reminder than a marketing email component. Most marketers only test broadcast emails and ignore transactional and automated emails. However, the latter performs all the heavy lifting for your business and must be tested frequently.
How Do You Set Up A/B Test Email Campaigns?
Setting up A/B test email campaigns is crucial if you want statistically significant results. While it may seem straightforward on paper, it comprises several variables that seem unimportant and are easily overlooked. Here is how to gather data and select the winning variant for your email campaign:
Choose an Objective
To get the most accurate results, you must set up the campaign with the goal in mind. Determine an objective, your preferred email marketing tools, and what you want to learn from the test results. You can use A/B testing to determine open, conversion, and click-through rates. Since subject lines set expectations for the email content, their influence extends far beyond the inbox.
Pick One Variable
Upon establishing the objective, it’s time to pick one variable for testing. Testing too many variables simultaneously will generate inconsistent results, as you won’t discover what exactly influenced the test results. Isolating variables for each test version might seem slower, but you get statistically significant outcomes.
Establish Testing Parameters
This is the most crucial step in the process since it involves making several decisions. Your decisions include:
- How long will you run each test?
- Which subscribers should you email?
- Which metrics will you test?
Make a note of other confounding variables, like holidays and other events, that might influence the test results but can’t be controlled.
Run the Tests
The two most common ways of split testing are as follows:
- Set up the A/B test in your ESP to run automatically. This is better suited for simple tests with surface-level objectives, such as increasing the click-through rate.
- Set up two test groups and email clients manually. This is more inconvenient but can provide greater insights into email deliverability.
Analyze Test Results
Every moment that you spend planning meticulously pays off at this stage. You know what to look for since you’ve worked according to a plan. Compare the test results and note your findings to make informed decisions when creating your next email marketing campaign.
10 Email A/B Testing Best Practices
A/B testing marketing emails can take a lot of time when done correctly. Here are ten A/B email testing best practices to streamline your endeavor.
Isolate the Test Variables
To complete an A/B test, it’s better to test one variable simultaneously. This is the only way to determine the variable’s effectiveness. For example, let’s say you want to increase the click-through rate. You can create a test group with different versions of the subject line, body content, CTA, and images. Even if you succeed in getting more clicks, how will you determine what brought about the change? To know what influenced the results, you must isolate variables for every test email.
Use a Control Version to Test Again
A control version is the original message you would send subscribers if you were not testing. This provides a reliable baseline to analyze the results. Using a control version is crucial since there will always be confounding variables that cannot be controlled directly. For example, one of your recipients may be on vacation and not have internet access. By testing against a control, you are cutting down on the maximum number of confounding variables.
Test Simultaneously
Timing is crucial in modern-day marketing. Retailers experience high and low seasons throughout the year. To account for seasonal changes in the audience’s preferences, it’s best to test multiple variables simultaneously. This saves time and generates statistically significant answers. Email Industries will schedule simultaneous tests for your business by randomly splitting your mailing lists for efficient analysis.
Check Results for Statistical Significance
Before implementing any changes to your marketing campaign, it’s crucial to ensure the results mean something. This is where statistical significance plays a crucial role. To calculate the statistical significance of test results, marketers use the p-value. A p-value of 5% or lower is considered statistically significant. Depending on the sample size and email frequency, achieving a p-value of 5% or lower will take a few weeks.
Keep Testing Different Versions
Every element of an email campaign can be tested and optimized. Get creative with your variables and test as many versions as possible. For example, you can test two different subject lines, body content, multiple images, CTA, message length, and automation schedule. Remember, trends and customer behavior are always changing. Hence, you need to constantly discover, evolve, and fine-tune your marketing strategies.
Test Across Multiple Email Lists
Send a test email to yourself and your clients using different devices and browsers. This process can be a little tedious since it involves manual intervention. Email Industries lets you preview and test campaign functionalities. Preview campaigns on other devices and operating systems to see exactly what your clients will see. If you’re using emojis, choose the popular ones because their inbox rendering support may be broader since they’re used frequently.
Define the Target Audience
Make a list of which clients should receive what emails, and split the list randomly. Behavioral data is crucial for choosing the target audience and helps you create useful test parameters. The more specific you are during audience segmentation, the more statistically accurate the results will be.
Identify Your Goals
When A/B testing marketing email campaigns, one set of audiences may receive less effective emails than the other group. Therefore, you should identify your goals to define success. Establishing your preferred metrics will help you monitor progress. Additionally, it’s essential to have evidence from statistical data to support your belief that each change will improve email performance. A/B testing shouldn’t be done just for the sake of it!
Manage Your Data
You must back all your marketing decisions with data. Unfortunately, you lose some data daily when dealing with a large sample size. Hence, it’s crucial that the marketing platform you’re using can streamline the workload. Fortunately, we at Email Industries manage your data efficiently and keep it safe for future campaigns.
Be Patient
You will be tempted to implement the results prematurely. But remember, that defeats the entire purpose. You must let the tests run completely to get accurate results. Never edit live test parameters, as it will hamper the results. Let all the data accumulate before starting to analyze the information.
Top 5 Email A/B Testing Tools
You must consider several factors while choosing an A/B email testing tool. Compare the metrics, features & usability, and check whether the tool provides multivariate testing—the ability to test multiple variants simultaneously. Here are our five favorite email A/B testing tools, in no specific order:
MailChimp
A globally trusted email marketing platform with advanced A/B testing features, MailChimp provides a diverse range of customization options. From testing single versus multiple images text and two different subject lines to sender name optimization and subscriber list segmenting, MailChimp does it all with ease. You can schedule emails conveniently or test a specific element within email campaigns. This range of features makes MailChimp our top choice for streamlining your email campaigns.
ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign is a popular email marketing platform that offers A/B testing services like customizing the subject line, content designing for up to five variable versions, and testing sender details. While the tool doesn’t support A/B testing for audience segmentation or time, it makes up for it with extensive marketing integration and automation. ActiveCampaign is ideal for serving specific audience groups.
GetResponse
An excellent A/B testing tool, GetResponse provides several fantastic features besides the standard range of services. You can customize the subject line, optimize CTAs, body copy, and from name. You can also experiment with diverse styles, fonts, designs, and other elements. Furthermore, GetResponse allows email list segmentation for targeting specific subscriber groups and strategic automation & scheduling based on optimal times.
Benchmark
Perfectly tailored for a small sample size, Benchmark provides several A/B testing features, like a campaign monitor, subject line optimization, and result comparison. Apart from the standard features, Benchmark offers additional options like Google Analytics integration, RSS email campaigns, optimal email delivery time determination, and sign-up form creation.
Constant Contact
One of the best A/B testing tools primarily for subject line optimization, Constant Contact recommends a sample size of 1,000 recipients for reliable results. Despite the limited split test capabilities, the tool compensates with intuitive features like in-depth analysis, drag-and-drop builder, and live training. This makes Constant Contact the ideal A/B testing tool for small businesses seeking simple and effective solutions.
Start A/B Testing Your Email Campaigns Today!
A/B email testing is an indispensable email marketing tool in this day and age. It provides invaluable insights for optimizing the performance of your email campaigns. You can significantly boost your email marketing strategy by testing different variables, learning from the results, and emailing clients with the winning variant.
With the help of A/B test email marketing, you can achieve higher open, click-through, and conversion rates. If performed correctly, A/B testing isn’t complicated or challenging. With Email Industries’ intuitive A/B testing solution, setting up your test schedule is super easy.
A/B testing can be the difference between success and failure in the modern data-driven era. The list of A/B testing variables and the knowledge you can gain from them is infinite. By including split testing in your marketing strategy, you can ensure sustained growth and success for your business. Remember, testing is a continuous process. What works today might be ineffective tomorrow.
Every email you send is a fresh opportunity to convert leads into customers. Feel free to book a discovery call today to learn how our expertise can boost your brand’s email deliverability and customer engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the advantages of A/B testing in a nutshell?
A/B testing optimizes your email marketing strategy by delivering statistically relevant answers related to the performance of your marketing campaigns. By testing different components and variations of your marketing emails, you can isolate factors influencing the audience’s reaction to your messages.
What are the downsides of A/B testing?
Without the right A/B testing tools, the process can be confusing and cumbersome. If you lack a large enough sample size or don’t have the time to go through with the tests until completion, the results may be inconclusive or inaccurate. The aim is to find statistically significant answers without getting distracted by the little things.
How accurate is A/B testing?
A/B email testing is pretty accurate when performed correctly. However, the accuracy of the test results depends on several factors, such as sample size, consistent data, and test duration. Marketers often get impatient, change variables midway, and stop the tests before gathering the data. This creates inaccurate and inconsistent test results. For the best results, it’s vital to let each test cycle run its course.
Is A/B testing worth it?
A/B testing isn’t the be-all and end-all of email marketing. However, it resolves several problems, such as low engagement rates, lack of personal connection with subscribers, insufficient data for future email strategies, and uncertain campaign performance.
Head of Growth at Email Industries