Posted by:
Julie McManus
November 30, 2007
Issue #295
Dear Business Builder,
Happy Friday and welcome back to In the ‘Net Trenches. Have you ever wondered why it is that seemingly similar situations can sometimes have such a tremendous difference in outcome?
Take for instance two men of similar background that attend the same university … both with the exact same major. Both graduate with the same GPA and go on to take the same position with the same Fortune 500 corporation. Over time, one of the men moves up the ranks eventually becoming the CEO. Yet the other man languishes in the same position year after year.
The man that becomes the CEO must have an edge over his counterpart. It’s likely you’ve immediately begun to think of the qualities that make one man succeed over another. Perhaps he is more confident, more driven, smarter, a better communicator, more relevant and more resonant.
On the surface these men appear to be nearly identical … but one ultimately pulls ahead.
What I’ve just described to you is the exact same scenario as a direct response A/B split test. Today’s issue is not about how to move up the corporate ladder. It’s about how to succeed in split testing your web campaigns so you’ll have accurate, measurable results every time.
Give me an A … A!
Give me a B … B!
What’s that spell? A/B!
To start in split testing your web campaigns, you must first understand the fundamentals of an A/B split test. An A/B split test simply takes one list and splits it in half into two test panels. But you don’t just split the list right down the middle.
Let’s take, for example, a list of 100 people. In order to do a proper A/B split, the first, third and fifth record (and so on) would go into list A. And then the second, fourth and sixth record (and so on) would go into list B. By splitting the list by every other record, you get a random sample of potential customers.
By doing that random sample, it cannot be argued that one segment of the list performed better than the other because of similarities in the list segments. So to give another example, in direct mail, lists are typically maintained in zip code order. By splitting the list into A/B segments, you’ll get two lists each with a random sample of people across a whole region. If you just split the list in half, you’d perhaps end up with a list of people living on the east coast of the U.S. and a second list of people living on the west coast.
In the above example, it could be argued that one list performed better than the other due to regional preferences or similarities. So, if you were ultimately testing two different headlines and you didn’t split your list into A/B segments, how could you possibly know whether it was the headline that improved response or a regional preference for your product? In this testing scenario, you’d have to throw the baby out with the bathwater … your test result would be invalid.
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Posted by:
MaryEllen Tribby
November 29, 2007
Issue #294
My son Connor turned seven years old a week ago Sunday. His birthday extravaganza started Friday at his school with a class party. Saturday, the festivities continued with 15 little boys at our local arcade. When he got home Saturday evening, he was surprised with an Xbox 360 from my husband and me. On Sunday, I took Connor down to the beach to experience his first sunrise, which was more of a present (and memory) for me. Later that day, we ended his birthday weekend with a family and friend gathering at our home.
As I tucked Connor in Sunday night, I asked him what his favorite part of his birthday celebration was. Expecting to hear rave reviews about the Xbox, I was astonished when he replied, "Going to the beach with you, Mom." As I held back my tears, I asked him why. His answer was simple and honest: "Because it was just you and me talking."
This got me thinking about all the partnerships and deal making I have done over the past 22 years. The best deals were not made sitting in a boardroom around a huge mahogany table with 10 or 12 people. They were done one-on-one over lunch or dinner with simple and honest communication leading to mutually beneficial agreements.
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Posted by:
Troy White
November 27, 2007
Issue #292
In this issue:
-
13 take-em-to-the-bank techniques to ensure your customers keep coming back to buy more …
-
The problem with the younger generation – and how it could kill your bottom line profits if you have them working for you …
-
North America’s BIGGEST business problem, and a few timely tips to help you work your way through it …
- 4 fast ways to show them you care …
- And Much More!
Fellow business builder,
I’ll warn you now … this is not going to be a pleasant article.
I try and give upbeat, positive tips and advice on improving your marketing and advertising.
This time I am going to rant and review.
A leading question for you … have you noticed that service SUCKS everywhere you go these days?
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Posted by:
John Newtson
November 24, 2007
Issue #290
See how legendary copywriters
write their sales letters
Dear Business Builder,
If you haven’t gotten over there, I’ve been posting fully scanned magalogs, space ads and direct mail at our Direct Response Marketing Forum.
It’s stuff from top copywriters, stuff I’ve gotten in the mail or found in magazines.
It’s a goldmine, really.
Because you get to see how the best in the business convince people to respond to an offer.
And I want to make sure you’re adding this stuff to your collection. Because these are some of the most valuable learning tools a copywriter or marketer can get his hands on.
Let’s start off with a bang …
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Posted by:
Julie McManus
November 23, 2007
Issue #289
Dear Business Builder,
Happy Black Friday … the day after Thanksgiving. Over the holiday, I was chatting with a friend about growing up with over-protective parents. She was telling me a story of when she was in her early twenties and looking for her first real job out of college, her father (a banker at the time) would run a Dunn and Bradstreet report on every prospective employer she was interested in. She’d come home all excited about this or that opportunity and her father would sit her down and say “well sweetie, look at this … I don’t think this is a good company for you … they just filed for bankruptcy (or whatever the case may be) and I don’t trust the CEO” … ultimately bursting her bubble. And so it went … her father finding a flaw with every potential employer.
I casually mentioned to her, “Thank goodness he didn’t have Google.” If he had access to Google in the mid 80s, I suspect she wouldn’t have had a job or a boyfriend!
With the advent of Google, social networking, blogs and the ease of publishing a website, we have the opportunity to leave footprints all over the web. And because of that, my conversation with my friend got me to thinking about quite a few different news stories I’ve read in recent weeks.
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