A/B testing for SEO

Email testing fundamentals

Subject line testing

Subject line is everything in email. Visitors see subject before opening. Cannot click if they do not open.

Test subject line against current. Winning patterns for email: curiosity, urgency, personalization, specific benefit, question format.

"Urgent: Final reminder" works. "Ten percent off final sale" works. "Your personalized shopping guide" works. "Act now" does not work.

Send time and day testing

Email open rate varies by day and time. Tuesday nine AM might deliver thirty percent open rate. Wednesday eight PM might deliver fifteen percent.

Test send time. Wednesday AM versus Friday PM. Your audience has a best time. Test finds it.

Sample size for email: you need five hundred opens per variation minimum. If you send to fifty thousand emails, you hit five hundred opens easy. If you send to five thousand, test takes longer.

Preheader text and preview testing

Preheader is the tiny text after subject line. In inbox, visitors see: subject line then preheader. Both matter.

Good preheader expands on subject. Subject: "New product launch". Preheader: "Exclusive early access for you". Together they tell the story.

Test preheader text. Different preheader sometimes lifts open rate. Different preview of email content changes perception.

From name testing

From name affects open rate. Company name versus real person. "WEMASY" versus "Jessica from WEMASY".

Personal from name lifts open rate. Verify email addresses send from real address. Fake addresses get flagged.

Website testing at scale

Homepage headline and CTA testing

Website visitor has already arrived. Already decided to visit. Subject line job is done.

Website headline job is different. Keep them on page. Get them to scroll. Get them to read.

Email subject line patterns fail on website. "Urgent" creates anxiety. "Last chance" feels manipulative. Website visitors are skeptical of pressure.

Website headlines work better when specific. "Reduce your support costs by forty percent" beats "Save money now."

Navigation and menu testing

Website visitors navigate. Email recipients follow linear path through content.

Test navigation clarity. Test menu structure. Test finding key pages. Email has no navigation so you cannot test it.

Copy length and reading depth

Email copy is scannable. Visitors skim subject, preview, maybe read first sentence. Long email does not work.

Website copy can be longer. Visitors who click to your website are engaged. They read more. They want details.

Test long form versus short form on website. Long-form sales page often beats short. Email long-form never wins.

E-commerce testing specifics

Product page testing

E-commerce pages have high traffic. Tests finish fast.

Test product image. Main image on left versus right. Image zoom on hover versus no zoom. Different images win.

Test product description length. Long detailed description versus short punchy description. Test which sells more.

Test price display. Price at top versus price when you scroll. Surprising price low usually requires scrolling to justify. Surprising price high should be hidden at first.

Add-to-cart button testing

Button text: "Add to cart" versus "Buy now" versus "Add to bag." Different phrases work for different products.

Button color and size. Large obvious button versus small button. Large usually wins.

Button position. Sticky button following scroll versus button fixed position. Sticky wins for impulse buys. Fixed position wins for deliberate purchases.

Cart page and checkout testing

Offer coupon field versus hide coupon field. Showing coupon field creates expectation. Hides urgency. Hide coupons if you run full price tests.

Test one-page checkout versus multi-step checkout. High-value purchases use multi-step. Low-price impulse items use single page.

Test shipping information step. Ask shipping early versus ask shipping late. Early drop-off if shipping costs surprise. Late ask and you lose them after payment.

Post-purchase testing

Confirmation email thank you message. Confirm product ship timing. Suggest related products.

Test confirmation page copy. Upsell related products or deliver thank you. Sometimes upsell hurts satisfaction. Depends on product.

SMS and push notification testing

SMS message length and urgency

SMS has character limit. Messages must be short. Same as email subject line discipline.

Test message copy. Urgency works on SMS better than email. Directness works. "Flash sale. Twenty percent off. Ends tonight." works.

Send time for SMS

SMS gets opened much faster than email. Within minutes usually. Send time matters less. But test anyway. Daytime sends usually win over nighttime.

Opt-in and frequency testing

Test SMS opt-in messaging. How you describe SMS impact subscription. Test sending frequency. One SMS per week versus two SMS per week. More is not always better.

Cross-channel testing coordination

Run same test across channels

Test offer. Ten percent off versus money-back guarantee. Test offer on email. Test same offer on website. Same offer on SMS.

Results differ by channel. Email might show thirty percent lift. Website shows ten percent. Mobile shows no lift. That is normal. Document it.

Avoid testing same element simultaneously on different channels

You can test different elements in parallel. Email subject line test and website headline test at same time. Different elements.

Do not test same element simultaneously across channels. Do not run email offer test while running website offer test. Confuses results and learning.

Sequence tests by channel importance

Email delivers regular traffic. Website delivers browsing traffic. E-commerce delivers purchase traffic.

Test highest-value channel first. For e-commerce sites, test product pages first. For content sites, test website headlines first.

Frequently asked questions