Customer A/B test without risk for SEO: how content substitution works on a website
What is an A/B test of a website?
An A/B test (or a split test on a website) is a method of measuring the effectiveness of content by comparison. Users are randomly divided into groups: one sees the original option (A), the other sees the modified one (B). The purpose of the test is to determine which option leads to more requests, clicks, purchases, or other targeted actions.
Let's say you have doubts about which headline attracts the attention of visitors more effectively. You run an A/B test, where one user sees the headline "Up to 30% discount on everything", and the other "Have time to buy before Friday". After a while, you collect the data and see exactly which formulation worked best. You can do the same with images, buttons, shapes, texts, or even videos.
It is important to understand that the A/B test allows you to make a decision based on the behavior of real users. He changes guesses to confirmed figures and proves it in real traffic.
From a technical point of view, the A/B test is implemented in different ways, from replacing content on one page to creating two separate versions with different addresses. But in most cases, the option is used when the changes are loaded dynamically on the same page. It's easier, faster, and safer for SEO.
By using A/B testing regularly, companies improve conversion rates, optimize the user's path, and grow without increasing advertising costs.
How to conduct A/B tests on a website
Even small changes to the text, design, or structure can significantly affect the conversion rate.Imagine: you are launching paid traffic to the application form page. But the form is long, the title is not trustworthy, and the button calls for "Submit". How many users will just close the page? An A/B test helps to test a hypothesis: for example, replace the title, simplify the form, or rewrite the text of the button. The changes may seem insignificant, but in reality they can increase the number of applications by 15-30%, and this is confirmed by the figures.
A/B tests are important when the traffic is already there, but you want to increase the return on it. Instead of spending on additional advertising, you strengthen the existing channel and make it more effective. This is an option not only for a marketer, but also for entrepreneurs who want to grow wisely.
What exactly can be tested?
Almost everything: headlines, offers, banners, buttons, texts in blocks, fields in forms, the location of elements, images, reviews, and even the color or format of the video. You just need to have a hypothesis about what exactly you want to change and what result you expect. For example, an increase in clicks, an increase in time on the page, an increase in conversion to a request or order.
The process itself usually looks like this: you formulate a hypothesis, prepare two or more options, run a test and collect statistics. After analyzing the data, come to the conclusion that it works more productively.
You can conduct A/B tests manually, through the development of separate versions of pages and setting up analytics, or automated through special tools that make the process faster, more convenient and more accessible to the marketer without involving programmers.
How to run an A/B test without a programmer: the content substitution script from QForm
In practice, the launch of A/B tests is slowed down due to technical difficulties. To change the title or form on a website, you need to go into the code, ask for help from developers, coordinate changes with IT, and it takes days or even weeks.
That is why the QForm team has developed a simple and secure script for content substitution on the site. It allows you to run A/B tests directly in the user's browser, without interfering with the site code and without the risk of breaking something.
The principle of operation is as simple as possible:
- You connect the script to the website (just one line in HTML).
- Prepare a file with content options in JSON format (for example, two headlines, two banners, or different button texts).
- The script itself replaces the specified elements on the page, depending on which option is assigned to the user.
Substitution occurs only for a live user, after the page loads. At the same time, search engines see the original content, which makes the tool safe for SEO. All actions are recorded in Yandex.Metrica, and information about which option the user saw can be transmitted to forms and the CRM system.
It takes literally 10-15 minutes to set up, and you can immediately start testing hypotheses: titles, buttons, images, forms, videos. This is especially useful for marketers and SEO specialists who need to quickly test ideas without the involvement of a technical team.
For more information about how the script works, with examples, code, and recommendations, see a separate article about the substitution script from QForm.