Split testing, also called A/B testing, happens all the time in social media and the world of online advertisement. It’s a term and concept you should know if you are even just beginning to experiment with social media.
On the most basic level, A/B testing is when you take a piece of content with two variations, call them “A” and “B,” and then show “A” to fifty percent of your audience and “B” to the remaining fifty percent.
*Example of a Split Test where the image has been slightly altered.
By doing this, your goal is to determine which piece of content leads to more conversions. Find out which piece had a higher click–through rate or resulted in more conversions. Then learn from the test and use that knowledge to change how you are posting or creating your call-to-action statements.
Here are a few things that are useful to consider when A/B testing:
- Time of post
- Text in description of post
- Imagery
- Audiences
Remember the most important rule of social media: always be testing!
