A/B Test Campaigns

A/B Test Campaigns

A/B testing (also known as split testing) is a tool to help you compare two different versions of an email campaign. To run an A/B test, come up with two versions of an email, then assign equal traffic to both versions. Once the test period is over, you'll get to see which version had more opens and clicks.
Once you have the results, the winning version can be sent to the rest of recipients or go through further iterative experimentation to improve results. Keep in mind that the target audience is often based on demographics, geography, and behavior, so test results from one group may not reflect the reactions of another.

Create your first A/B test campaign

In an A/B test, you'll select and revise elements of your email campaign. This change can be anything from a slight tweak in your sender details and subject line to a complete redesign of the email content. Send the control (original version) to one half of the test group and the variant to the other half.

To set up an A/B test:

  1. Select Campaigns from the navigation bar and choose Advanced Campaigns.
  2. Click Create Campaign in the top-right corner of the screen.
  3. Hover over the A/B Testing category and click Create New.
  4. Enter a name for your A/B test campaign.
  5. Select the parameter of your email to experiment with. You have three options:
    1. Subject
    2. Sender Details
    3. Email Content
  6. Choose the proportion of recipients to receive each campaign.
  7. Decide how the winner will be selected from the following three options:
    1. Based on Open Rate - The version with highest open rate will be the winner.
    2. Based on Click Rate - The version with highest click-through rate will be the winner.
    3. Manually - Manually select the winning version from A/B test reports.
  8. Select the test duration.
  9. Click Next. The next steps will vary, depending on your previous selections.

Variants

Using subject or sender details as the test parameter:

  1. Enter the subject line or sender details for both versions, depending on the test element you selected in the setup page.
  2. Select a topic so that your email recipients know why they're receiving the email campaign.
  3. Select a sender email address from the dropdown list.
  4. Select a reply-to address for the contact to respond to.
  5. Click Next to proceed.

Using content as the test element

  1. Enter two different content versions in the text areas.
  2. Click Next to proceed.

Content Configuration

  1. In the Content page, select either HTML & Plain Text or HTML only as your email type.
  2. Choose a content option from the following selections:
    1. Templates - Design an HTML email using our template layouts.
    2. Import/Upload - Import an existing HTML email and images as a .zip file.
    3. HTML Editor- Design an HTML email using our HTML editor.
    4. Import from cloud - Import content from various cloud storage services.
  3. Click Next.

Choose Recipients

Finally, select a mailing list or segment to receive your campaign, and click Proceed . The A/B test campaign will now be sent for review. Once the review is complete, you can send the campaign.

A/B test reports

Once an A/B test campaign has been sent, the test group will be monitored for their opens and clicks. You can view the metrics for each version under A/B Test Reports . The winning version will be sent to the remaining contacts.
Note: If you chose Manual in the A/B test setup page, go to A/B test reports after the test is sent, and choose a winner.

To access A/B test reports:

  1. Select Reports from the navigation bar and choose Sent Campaigns.
  2. Select the A/B test campaign you wish to view.
  3. Click A/B test Reports.

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