Clearly defined testing programmes are the benchmark of accurate, finely-tuned email campaigns. They help improve the revenue you can generate from email marketing - and that's the ultimate aim after all.
These 10 handy tips will help you develop your testing programme effectively. Implement them into your testing activity and see the difference it makes...
1. Make use of your historical data
Increase your open rates by using historical data. For example, if you're trying to find out which days of the week have the most impact in terms of open rates, check your old data. Chances are you'll have already mailed out on 5 out of the 7 days and can judge when your next emails should go out to maximise impact.
2. Work out what you want to test - develop a hypothesis
Define what you are testing for. This could be:
- open rates
- click rates
- purchases
- revenue
- unsubscribers
Then decide the factors you want to know the impact of. These could be:
- day of the week the email is sent
- week of the month the email is sent
- subject line length
- common words in subject line
- types of content
- message frequency
3. Compare like for like...
Attribute differences to the specific factor you are testing by splitting your testing across multiple campaigns. Testing more than one factor on any one campaign will confuse results.
4. Take on common assumptions
There's plenty of material out there to tell you what factors are influential, including research, published articles and case studies. By all means review these, but try testing influential factors yourself.
No two brands have the same market, product offering and subscriber base, so don't miss out on genuine opportunities for improvement!
5. Segment your list into groups who behave in similar ways
While it would be easier and more profitable if your subscriber base had the same behaviour patterns for purchase and engagement in your activity, they simply don't.
You can analyse the size and value of subscriber groups and calculate the point where developing campaigns for new groups fails to generate a worthwhile return by breaking your mailing list down into groups - through interests, spending or interaction patterns.
6. See the campaign through and then analyse the results
We always recommend splitting your campaign into test cells, then analysing the results well after the activity has finished. Usually two weeks after is a good starting point, but a month is better, depending on your brand and subscriber purchasing patterns.
7. Include revenue results for a full, complete picture
Opens and clicks are very useful and provide a good level of guidance, but for most marketers the main objective is to generate sales. Make sure you include revenue in your test period analysis.
8. Don't expect quick wins
The best way to approach testing is with a long term focus. Make small, regular changes to your campaigns and then look at the improvements after a longer period. This will give you more reliable results. Don't start trying to double your revenue by tweaking your template!
9. Think outside the box (of your campaign)
Use factors outside the scope of your activity, like the impact of the position of your opt-in / subscription link.
10. One last thing... NEVER stop testing
It's a fact of life - things change over time. Your competitors, customers, general spending patterns and everything in between will alter and evolve. Even if you tested a certain factor a year ago, test it again to make sure it's still the right approach.
With these top 10 tips under your belt, you're all set to test effectively. Good luck!
