AB testing

Are you doing the proper AB testing for your business? In today’s episode, we discuss how to perform advanced AB testing while considering the original lead source and publisher. Today’s guest expert is the Chief Operating Officer at Phonexa, Jeff Schaffer.

Jeff’s career background: He has been in the sales and marketing industry for the past 2 decades. In the recent past, he worked with a digital ad company with a focus on e-commerce, site development, and performance marketing.

What is AB Testing: Jeff describes AB Testing as the effort to test multiple subject areas to figure out the most effective for a given target audience through email marketing. He further explains that the common metrics for AB Testing include open rate and click-through rate, which makes email unique in email testing. He observes that organizations with multiple traffic sources rarely note the actual publisher source of the leads. As a result, AB Testing is done to determine the most strategic approach for pushing subject lines and creative aspects to the ideal customer profile. Our guest expert says that email is key in AB Testing because it helps segment the audience to determine the publisher source of the leads. He further explains that an alternative AB Testing focuses less on the click-through rate and more on the call rates or the degree of intent for the response. It is essential to integrate email into the call tracking systems of the company to measure a customer’s intent during the initial call. Jeff decries that knowledge of the traffic source and customer journey still limits AB testing among many organizations. As such, he underscores the need to clearly understand the original source of traffic, which in turn helps to understand the customer journey.

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Elements for AB Testing in call tracking: Our guest expert emphasizes the importance of understanding the original lead source and customer journey to perform proper AB testing. In this regard, it is crucial to test the creative aspects, text density, gender, location, and subject line. Regarding call tracking, Jeff explains that AB testing helps determine if the caller results in conversion and takes action as desired by the marketer. Analysis reports from multiple data sources help to establish the original lead source and publisher for the successful conversion.

Most successful sources of generating conversion: Jeff says that the success of a source generating conversion varies depending on the industry. Generally, however, he mentions the prospect’s intention as the most important element. A high-intent consumer can be noted from various data sources, which gives knowledge of the customer journey and the required action on the marketer’s part. This knowledge of the original source of leads greatly helps the marketer formulate strategic approaches to convert prospects into conversion and paying customers. (It is time marketers stopped asking customers, “Where did you hear us from”? Instead, understand the original lead source).

Leveraging call-to-action messaging to generate leads: Our guest expert says it is important for a marketer to understand the profile of the potential caller on the other end of the line. As such, they should devise a varied call to action that results in a call from the lead while having visibility to the original source. (The closer you can mirror your message to the viewer, the higher the potential for conversion).

Challenges to scaling marketing efforts: Jeff observes that poor technological solutions present the biggest challenge for marketers in conducting AB Testing, engaging, and re-engaging leads. He recommends that an organization select the best solutions in each category, integrate them and apply them to evaluating new lead sources. Alternatively, they can utilize an all-encompassing solution to access all the data from a single point. He says it often requires investing heavily in new lead sources to gain a competitive advantage.

Role of artificial intelligence in marketing: Jeff says they deploy artificial marketing in most areas, including predictive modeling, to help make business decisions relating to customer targeting. He says that AI is most effective if all business fundamentals are in order.

Time Codes

• (0:08) Topic and guest expert introduction
• (0:54) Jeff’s career background
• (01:33) What is AB Testing
•  (08:26) Elements for AB Testing in call tracking
• (11:33) Most successful sources of generating conversion
•  (13:58) Leveraging call-to-action messaging to generate leads
• (17:00) Challenges to scaling marketing efforts
• (21:18) Role of artificial intelligence in marketing
• (24:20) Jeff’s contact information
• (25:03) Jeff’s choice of brand ambassador (Opportunities multiply as they are seized).