{"id":21819,"date":"2019-07-30T11:05:43","date_gmt":"2019-07-30T15:05:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/strategies.ca\/relationship-marketing\/a-b-testing-how-to-implement-a-winning-strategyyes-we-can-learn-to-love-statistics-i-am-a-big-fan-of-optimization-testing-but-that-was-not-always-the-case-when-i-was-studying-for-my-mba\/"},"modified":"2019-09-03T11:39:49","modified_gmt":"2019-09-03T15:39:49","slug":"email-ab-testing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/strategies.ca\/en\/email-marketing\/email-ab-testing\/","title":{"rendered":"A\/B Testing \u2013 How to implement a winning strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yes, we can learn to love statistics and A\/B testing<\/h2>\n

I am a big fan of optimization and A\/B testing. But that was not always the case. When I was studying for my MBA at HEC in the 1980s, the most challenging courses I enrolled in was Statistics and Probabilities<\/i>. This course, loaded with obscure equations, was meaningless gibberish to me. And I couldn\u2019t see how it could be useful in real life except maybe for surveys.<\/p>\n

Ironically, a few years later, I found myself starting a career in direct marketing, an area where everything was based on statistical analysis, probabilities and confidence intervals.<\/p>\n

I quickly learned the value of optimization testing, as well as some of the pitfalls that novices face. Here are some tips to help you better implement a testing strategy. Never fear, we\u2019ll try not to bore you with statistical concepts and equations.<\/p>\n

Foster an optimization culture<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The most successful companies understand that small gains of a few percentage points can add up to big gains when compounded year after year.<\/p>\n

They also understand that the marketer\u2019s gut feel can only go so far. \u00a0And that our personal biases sometimes lead us to make the wrong decisions. After all, we are not representative of our customers. We must objectively validate our assumptions, through optimization testing. And to maximize our chances of success and growth, testing must become part of your DNA and your corporate culture.<\/p>\n

Give yourself the right to make mistakes<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The first step towards an optimization culture is to accept that some tests will give disappointing results. We must give ourselves the right to the error. We must also accept that our current practices may not be the best and that there is always room for improvement.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, do not excess by multiplying frivolous tests, because each underperforming test means that your sales will be impacted.<\/p>\n

Prioritize the A\/B testing that will have the greatest impact<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In this sense, we must test the hypotheses that are most likely to have a major impact on the commitment and sales. Among these, we can test:<\/p>\n