Split testing is a process used to optimize conversion rate. The term conversion rate refers to the percentage of visitors who take a particular action. If we are talking about an email newsletter opt-in page, then an opt-in is a conversion. If instead, we are talking about a sales letter, then each and every sale is a conversion.

Split testing comes in two basic flavors. The first is the relatively simple, yet effective A/B split testing. In this type of testing the idea is to test only two options against each other while trying to keep all other factors constant. The second family of split testing is the possibly more effective, yet significantly more complicated, multi-variant split testing. In this post we will examine only A/B split testing.

Now that we know what split testing is, let’s consider some of the situations that we can use split testing in. We can split test different layout versions for an e-commerce site. We could test different versions of a sales letter. Alternatively we could split test various attributes of an email opt-in, name squeeze page.

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The following post on Internet Marketing Essentials was submitted by Marsello Oentoro.

For those out there who are not yet familiar with the subject of Internet Marketing, trying to understand the subject can seem quite daunting. Recently I’ve received lots of questions about what Internet Marketing is all about and how someone without any knowledge or experience should start. I would suggest that you start by studying some of the basic elements of internet marketing.

1. Content – this could consist of an article, blog post, video, or audio which you’ve developed or paid someone to create for you.
2. Traffic – amount of visitors who frequent your site during a given time period.
3. Brand – your reputation as an expert in your field and the degree in which people trust your advice.
4. Affiliates – affiliate promote other people’s products usually on a per-sale commission bases.
5. Opt-In Email Newsletter Subscribers – if you collect emails from visitors and have a mailing list, this could be the most valuable asset you have in terms of creating a following and distributing your message.
6. Incoming links – are a major “off page” factor in determining your site’s rank in various search engines such as Google and Yahoo. These ranking effect the amount of traffic your site receives from these engines.
7. Split Testing – helps you compare alternative content or designs to determine which option is more effective. For example you might split test the placement of Google AdSense ads on your site to determine which layout produces the most income.

The above list was designed to provide a basic introduction to some of the core concepts of Internet Marketing. For more of the basics of internet marketing feel free to check out the articles available on the left hand side of this site. If you have any questions feel free to ask us here at Feedback Secrets either by leaving a comment or sending us an email.