Winner of the Best Tests of 2009

January 4, 2010Ken Colburn

Blast Advanced Media received the 2009 Silver Ribbon Award in Which Test Won’sBest Tests of 2009 for the Best B2C Lead Generation Tests.

A/B Split Test

Blast used Google Website Optmizer to conducted an A/B split test on Audio Editions‘ Free Audiobook Catalog Request Form to determine which version would receive more sign ups.

Blast simplified the various aspects of the page to reduce distractions for the customer with the goal of leading them to fill out the form. The following strategies were implemented:

• Fewer number of form fields to make it shorter
• A larger catalog image
• Emphasized that the user was requesting a “free” catalog
• Removal of sidebar elements

Versions A & B of the website optimization test are shown below.

Test Result

The A/B split test resulted in an increased number of catalog requests by 42%. The changes were simple, and further changes have resulted in continued improvements.

Read more about this Google Website Optimizer Test Case Study. As noted in the case study, you must always start out with a hypothesis.

Our Experiment Hypothesis
You must always start any test out with a hypothesis. The hypothesis process is key in determining whether or not this is a test that should even be run. In this case study, our hypothesis was that we could gain at least a 25% increase in conversion with the new variation that will remove the apparent obstacles.

Which Test Won said,

“This test should inspire every designer who ever worried about page clutter. Perhaps you should try radical simplification?”

Best Tests Award Judges

The judges for the 2009 awards included Avinash Kaushik (Author & Google’s Analytics Evangelist), Bob Bly (Copywritings Guru), Scott Miller (CEO of Verster) and Anne Holland (Publisher of Which Test Won and founder of MarketingSherpa).

A personal thank you to each of the judges and to Which Test Won. We are proud recipients of your 2009 Silver Ribbon Award!

About the Author

Ken Colburn

Ken is the Director of SEO at Blast Analytics & Marketing. He has in in-depth understanding of SEO and digital marketing and uses his knowledge to help client websites see their full potential.

Ken Colburn has written 7 posts on the Blast Digital Customer Experience and Analytics Blog.