In today’s environment, we are all experiencing increased pressures on revenue expansion, while holding expense budgets steady. This often means we don’t have the luxury of rework or second attempts.  One way to make sure your marketing in on target is with testing. Testing can help hone your efforts so they can be effective, and reduce your waste.

Testing applies to a variety of marketing aspects. The purpose of testing is to take measures to help improve the quality, performance, or reliability of  something  BEFORE implementing it into widespread practice. The concept makes sense whether you’re testing a product, a market, copy, channels, survey instruments, or new processes.

Four Elements To Test

You don’t want to become so bogged down in testing and analysis that you become stuck.  We recommend you focus on these four elements when it comes to your testing.

1. Test your lists. You may not be able to test everything but when it comes to research and direct and email marketing, your list is critical. Contact lists expire quickly. Whether you buy or build your lists, test your list regularly.  Keep your lists as current as possible; purging and updating as much as possible in real time.
2. Test your channel. You have increased competition for your audience’s attention every day. People are constantly bombarded with surveys? They are regularly sent emails, intercepted on websites, and contacted by phone  asking them to buy, visit, talk, attend, download, etc?  The more you understand your audience’s channel and touch point preferences the better. Is email, postal, telemarketing or a combination better? Will a short email or video yield better response. Will a priority-mailing envelope have a different outcome than a three-dimension mailing. Testing which medium is best for the target can improve results.
3. Test your message and offer. Use tools to create your subject/headlines and your copy and then apply A/B testing. Whether its an offer for participating in research or an event, or an offer to engage in a demo, what you’re offering needs to be compelling to you audience. It needs to move hem to act. Some offers increase the engagement rate over others. Sometimes its the offer of speed in response that increases engagement. Do you know if either matters? You won’t if you haven’t done a test. Also, is what you’re offering too big of a leap in the sales process? You may be trying to sell the product instead of the next step in the sales process. When you know your customer journey and the stage your audience is in in the map you can craft your offer to move them to the next stage.
4. Test your timing. Are certain times of the year better than others? Programs aimed at accounting firms are going to have less of a response rate during tax season than other times. The end of the year and the first part of the year may be a bad time if you’re targeting retailers. What about key trade shows or industry events your customer and prospects attend that require their attention, meaning they have less time to attend to your message. Does the day of the week or time of day matter? Timing is everything. Test the time in between efforts. Does it matter in terms of response rates if you follow up one week after the drop vs. two weeks? It might.

Purchase Your Assessment

Testing provides valuable data and insights to inform market, customer and product strategy and tactics. When done well it can improve customer engagement and experience across the entire customer life cycle.

FAQ: The Importance of Testing in Marketing

1. Lists: Regularly test and update your contact lists for accuracy and relevance. Outdated lists quickly lose value and effectiveness.
2. Channels: Test different channels (email, postal, telemarketing, video, etc.) to identify which best engages your customers and prospects.
3. Message and Offer: Use A/B testing for subject lines, copy, and offers. Align offers with the customer journey stage to maximize engagement and move prospects forward.
4. Timing: Test timing for outreach—consider industry cycles, events, and optimal days/times. Timing can significantly impact response rates and engagement.

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