Why should you hire an A/B testing specialist?

A/B testing takes the guesswork out of your website optimization efforts and enables you to make data-driven decisions. In A/B testing, A refers to the "control version" (the original one), while B is the "variation version" (a new version derived from the original one). If you want to test multiple variations, that's called multivariate testing. 

Either way, A/B testing is crucial to ensure your website is as effective and efficient as possible. By hiring an experienced A/B testing specialist, you can make sure your website or app reaches its maximum potential. Here are a few of the main benefits of hiring a conversion optimization specialist.

Increase revenue per visitor

When you A/B test different assets (emails, landing pages, product images, long-form content, ad copy, etc.), you have a better understanding of what works and what doesn't. Hence, you can double down on the assets that perform best and drop the ones that don't to increase your revenue per visitor (or email subscriber).

Monitor the results of your activities

You can't know if you're doing well if you don't measure your efforts -- and A/B testing helps you do that. Optimization specialists can set up, monitor, and analyze all your experiments so you can pinpoint which strategies are working best for your specific business and audience.

Make sure new developments don't impact the business negatively

A/B testing enables you to know right away if a new strategy or feature is successful or not -- instead of waiting for months and only then realizing the changes are having a negative impact on your results.

So many companies do a complete site redesign without looking at their site data and without knowing how their design choices are going to impact potential customers. Instead, brands should have an optimization roadmap and conduct quantitative analysis to figure out what works, what doesn't, and what should be changed.

Collect more data to help you make better decisions

Data means power. And with A/B testing, you can collect essential information about your customers and how they react to different tactics and strategies.

You can measure customer behavior and engagement on your website, track clicks, and see which areas of your website or campaigns need improvement. This can help you craft better, more effective strategies and maximize the ROI of your marketing efforts.

An A/B testing specialist can help you design tests that generate measurable results and gain valuable insights into customer behavior and preferences. With their expertise, you can validate or discard new strategies efficiently and quickly to take your business to the next level.

What does an A/B testing specialist do?

A split testing specialist designs, implements, and analyzes A/B tests to give you data-driven insights about what works for your business. They can help you identify areas for improvement and develop effective marketing campaigns.

A/B testing specialists typically work with clients to:

• Build a testing strategy by looking at Google Analytics, current conversion rates, and other data points
• Design and implement A/B testing programs to evaluate the impact of different assets (blog posts, email subject lines, product videos, landing pages)
• Analyze test results and provide actionable insights
• Help with conversion rate optimization
• Develop strategies based on customer data and insights to improve the customer experience

Here are some of the tasks an A/B tester can do for your business:

Creates and prioritizes A/B test hypotheses

This is the analysis stage in which your A/B tester can help you build and prioritize your A/B test hypotheses. They analyze data points and customer behavior to determine which changes have the best potential for success.

Then, in the planning stage, they document their hypotheses and create an A/B testing program or framework to validate or discard their ideas.

Implements A/B tests and measures results

An A/B testing specialist implements data-backed hypotheses and specific tests that need to be carried out. They develop a testing framework to measure the results of your operations and track how different elements affect customer behavior.

Suggests design changes

Next, study the test data from previous tests and suggest design changes based on their findings. They can help you identify areas where your website or app needs improvement. For example, they might find a CTA button in a different color helps your sign-up form convert better - and thus, suggest the change to your design team.

Technical implementation and support

A/B testing specialists can also carry out the technical implementation of your tests and provide ongoing support. They ensure that the tests are up and running, monitor the results, and ensure that there are no issues that could interfere with their accuracy.

Continuous coaching

An A/B tester's job is never done - they can provide you with continuous coaching to help you analyze the test data and plan for future tests. They can help you identify patterns in customer behavior and adjust your tests and strategies to maximize the results.

7 skills every A/B testing specialist needs to have

You don't want to hire just any A/B testing specialist -- you want to hire someone who will deliver results. Here are some of the skills and qualities you should look for in an A/B testing pro:

1. Testing platform expertise

Testing platform expertise is one of the most important skills for A/B testing experts. They need to be able to use different testing platforms and testing tools, such as Optimizely, VWO, Google Optimize. These tools allow marketers to run multivariate testing on websites and apps, measure the results of their tests, and document them for further tests.

2. User experience (UX) and design

UX and design are two key elements in any website or app. A/B testers need to understand how users interact with a particular page or feature, and how design decisions affect the customer journey. Solid UX and design skills will help your A/B testing specialist create optimized web and mobile experiences for your customers.

3. Graphic design chops

Although A/B testers are not designers, they need to understand graphic design and be able to work with designers to improve the conversion funnel.

A/B testers need to be able to create or modify design elements such as images, buttons, and colors. They should also be able to communicate with designers efficiently in a language that bridges the gap between marketing and design.

4. Project management

Some project management knowledge is also essential. Experts need to be able to plan, organize, and manage tests and keep track of the results. They should also have good communication skills to coordinate the efforts of different teams.

5. Familiarity with website analytics

Your A/B testing pro should know how to work with website analytics tools, like Google Analytics, heat mapping tools (Hotjar and Crazyegg), or session replays (FullStory). These tools allow testers to track user behavior, identify patterns in customer journeys, and measure the results of their tests.

Solid knowledge of these platforms will help your A/B testing specialist identify:

• Testing hypotheses
• What to test
• When to test it (and for how long)
• How to interpret the test data

6. Understanding of your customer persona

Your expert must understand customer personas to identify viable hypotheses and test variables. They should also be able to draw on the data they collect to understand who your customers are and how to match your marketing messaging to fit their needs.

7. Understanding of marketing best practices

Your A/B testing expert is part of your marketing team - or works closely with them. This means they have to understand the best practices of digital marketing and how to drive better conversion rates, engagement, and customer lifetime value. Although they may not specialize in other areas of marketing, A/B testers need to have a good understanding of the "bigger picture" of what marketing entails.

How much does it cost to hire an A/B testing specialist?

How much it costs to hire an A/B testing specialist depends on various factors, including the size of your website or project, the number of tests you need, and the level of experience you're looking for. Generally, though, an experienced A/B testing pro will cost around $150/hour, or $1500-$3000 per month.

X questions to ask your potential new hire: 

• Which testing tools do you have experience with (Google Optimize, Optimizely)? 
• What types of tests have you done in the past (multivariate testing, split testing, etc)
• Do you have any testing examples you can show us? 
• What does your testing process look like? 
• Have you seen improvement in conversion rates for similar brands?
• What would you do to improve our cart abandonment rate?
• Which approach would you recommend for our brand?