As a B2B company, you need to learn how to properly market your brand to the right audience. That's because your target market doesn't consume content the same way as the average consumer does. Following the habits and trends of a typical consumer won't help you. This is especially important for businesses operating as B2B as well as B2C companies. You need to be able to segment your content for each audience. If your company is strictly a B2B operation, the content creation process should be even easier for you. You won't have to worry about consumer content at all. But regardless of your situation, to do this effectively, you need to understand how B2B audiences engage with content. Then, you can adjust your B2B marketing strategy accordingly to reach these people. The majority of B2B marketers believe that their content marketing strategy is still in the early stages. Further, 91% of B2B companies use content marketing to promote their brands and reach their audiences. But as you can see from the metrics above, the maturity levels of their marketing efforts are all over the board. Unless you're in that top 9% who believe their strategies are sophisticated, it's safe to say you could use some improvement. That's why I created this guide. I'll tell you exactly how B2B audiences engage with content. Then you can take this information to tailor your content strategy accordingly. As a result, you'll be able to generate more leads for your B2B company. Here's what you need to know. Focus on technology advancementsYour company needs to create business content that's related to technology. The best way to approach this is by discussing and showcasing new technological advancements your company has to offer. Whether it's new software, hardware, or other equipment, you'll be able to offer exactly what your audience is looking for. In fact, research shows that technology is the most popular business topic consumed by B2B audiences online. This makes sense. Just think about it. What is your B2B audience trying to accomplish? Just like you, they want to improve their businesses. They'll be researching the latest and greatest technology. Even if your company hasn't released new technology, you can still create content on the subject. Discuss industry updates and other advancements you're anticipating. Maybe you are developing something. You don't need to wait until it's released to share that information. Learn how to build hype for a new product launch before the release. Blog contentYou know you need to create content focusing on new technology. But how do you distribute it? You need to put lots of effort into your blogging strategy. We know that 76% of B2B marketers publish blog posts. And 73% publish case studies. You should do the same or risk falling behind your competitors. B2B marketing is a competitive field. Once a client builds a relationship with another company, it could be difficult for you to get their business. But running a credible, informative, and resourceful blog will give you an edge. That's because 96% of B2B buyers say they want to consume content from industry leaders. You can become that industry leader. Just make sure you publish content frequently to establish credibility. This will make it easier for you to get your target audience to engage with your content. Plus, blogging is one of the best types of content that gets your audience into the conversion funnel. If they're reading your blog, it means they are on your website. And that means they are more likely to convert, especially if you offer them actionable content. After all, you've become an industry leader. The people reading your blog will be more inclined to use your products and services. Furthermore, the publishing frequency of blog posts has a direct impact on website traffic. This statement holds true for both B2B and B2C companies. Simply put, the more blog posts you publish, the more inbound leads you'll get. Blogging will help improve your SEO strategy, which will result in expanding your reach through organic traffic. InfographicsRight now, your content might be good. But who wants to be good? That just isn't enough. You need to find ways to make your content great. Figure out how to stand out and speak to your B2B audience in ways they understand. Learn how to enhance your content by building infographics. Your brain processes images 60,000 times faster than words alone. Plus, 90% of information transmitted to your brain is visual. And 65% of people are visual learners. That's why infographics are so powerful, especially for B2B audiences. As you can see from this data, 76% of B2B buyers said that infographics were a valuable part of the buying process. This ranked higher than any other type of content from each buying stage. As a B2B marketer, you need to create infographics to cater to your audience's needs. This can work in conjunction with your blogging strategy, discussed previously. To make your posts more appealing, add custom infographics to them. As you can see from reading my content, I use images, graphs, and infographics in my blog posts all the time. I believe in this strategy, and you should as well if you want to reach your B2B target market effectively. Make it easy to find solutionsYour B2B company needs to offer solutions to your target audience. For example, let's say you manufacture goods. Once an order is placed, you promise to ship within three business days. That could be the differentiating factor giving you a competitive edge over companies that may not ship for two weeks. If a prospective B2B client is searching for a manufacturer that can deliver goods faster than their current supplier, your company would be a viable option. However, you won't be able to acquire these customers if it's too difficult for them to find solutions on your website. Keep these questions in mind when you're designing your site: Prospective clients need to find solutions to their problems. If you can create content that shows your qualifications, they'll be more likely to use your services. In addition to displaying information properly on your website, you need to take this strategy to the next level. Share content on social media, which I'll discuss in greater detail shortly. You also need to offer excellent customer service. Make it easy for people to contact you online, over the phone, through email, or potentially in person. Consider implementing live chat to provide better customer service as well. This will make it much easier for your audience to find solutions when they're consuming your content. Social mediaAs I just said, you need to market your company through distribution channels outside of your website. Social media is a must. Your B2B audience is active on social media. Just like you, they probably have profiles on these platforms to promote their own businesses as well. But they don't consume content the same way as B2C consumers do. You can't expect them to scroll mindlessly through Instagram to engage with business-related content. Instead, B2B marketers have greater success on other platforms. LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube are the three most popular platforms for consuming B2B content online. Your company needs to have an active presence on all three of these if you want to be successful. Am I saying you don't need Facebook? Absolutely not. You should definitely have a Facebook page for your B2B company. It just shouldn't take priority over your LinkedIn strategy. Don't waste your marketing dollars on Facebook ads that won't get seen by your audience. Know your audience's business hoursIf you're going to use social media to attract B2B audiences, which you should, you need to understand when these people are active. Post content during the hours when they're online. This is different from targeting a B2C audience. As a business owner, your company is on your mind 24/7. But that's not always the case with your B2B audiences. Your audience may not necessarily be other business owners. The people who have the buying power for other businesses could be managers or employees who get paid hourly or receive a salary. When they go home after work, they aren't thinking about their jobs. Don't share content on a Saturday afternoon when these people are not at work. They don't consume business-related content when they're not on the clock. Email communicationEmail marketing is another effective way to reach your B2B target market. In one day, the average office worker receives 121 emails. Your content needs to be impressive to stand out from the other hundred messages in their inbox. Otherwise, your message could go straight to the trash folder. Although office workers get many emails, 77% of B2B consumers still say they prefer to have business communication through email. That's why B2B marketers name email as the most effective tactic for generating new leads. Since you know this is how your audience is engaging with content, and it's how they want to consume it, you need to focus on building quality email lists. This will be different from a B2C email list building strategy. When targeting consumers directly, you'll have much larger email lists. Yes, obviously it's better if those email addresses are qualified, but you won't be as picky. But with B2B email lists, qualified leads are an absolute necessity. In addition to sending out newsletters and content, your B2B email strategy might require a bit more work. You may want to consider sending individual messages to your current and prospective clients as opposed to using email software for mass distribution. Depending on the size of your company, this won't be unreasonable. Some of you may have only a dozen clients or so. This strategy is unrealistic for B2C brands with thousands of subscribers on their email lists. Prioritize organic searchI briefly mentioned SEO when I discussed your blogging strategy. But it's worth talking about in greater detail. If you want to successfully reach your B2B audience, your SEO strategy needs to be a priority. Think about the way you personally consume content. You are not only a B2B marketer but also a B2B consumer. Your habits should be similar to the habits of your target audience. When you're looking for information online, I bet you start with a Google search. In fact, 81% of B2B purchases start with search. As you can see, B2B audiences want to get to know companies from articles instead of paid ads. That's why your blogging strategy is so important. Not only will it help you with SEO, but it will also give your audience content they want to consume. I'm not saying you shouldn't pay for ads or run PPC campaigns. You can still generate leads from those. But as you can see from those numbers above, organic traffic is more important. Optimize content for mobile devicesOne area where B2B audiences and B2C audiences have similarities is with the devices they use. The days of business content being consumed only on desktop computers in the office are over. Smartphones and tablets have penetrated the workplace. Companies are getting more relaxed. They are not forcing their employees to sit in a cubicle for 40 hours a week. With mobile devices, people can be productive on the go. They can work from homes, coffee shops, or even public transit. People will work anywhere where they can be productive. If they finish their work for the day, they'll be able to go home. That's probably why we're seeing such a major growth in smartphone usage throughout the B2B buying process. At the very least, your website needs to be optimized for mobile devices. But you can take that strategy one step further. Your email content should be mobile-friendly as well. Depending on the size of your company, you may even want to consider building a mobile app to reach your B2B target audience. Industry trendsB2B audiences need to stay up to date with the latest industry news and trends. In fact, 45% of B2B audiences read business content online to stay informed about industry trends. You can become a resource for that information. Consider using this topic to your advantage with your blogging and email strategies. Publish blog posts about what to expect in your industry. Send out email newsletters with breaking news stories. If you can master this strategy, you can become the primary resource of industry information for your target audience. ConclusionB2B audiences don't consume content online the same way as B2C consumers do. You need to recognize this and adjust your content strategy accordingly. Publish content about technological advancements. Keep your audience informed on industry news and trends. Establish yourself as a credible resource through your blogging strategy. Enhance your content with infographics. Build a quality email list. Personalize your messages. Stay active on social media. Just make sure you're prioritizing the right distribution channels. Know the days and times when your B2B audience is consuming content. Recognize the devices people are using to engage with content. Make sure your website is optimized for mobile searches. Once you understand how your target audience consumes business content online, you'll be able to improve your overall B2B marketing strategy. What type of online content is your company producing to reach prospective B2B clients?
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Did you know that I've failed at SEO before? No, I'm not talking about when I first started my career. This was when I knew SEO like the back of my hand. I'm talking about when I was good enough to get sites ranked on page 1… that's when I really failed at SEO. And boy was it was heartbreaking! Let's just say this: I was able to rank a site on page 1 of Google for the term “online poker” and then my rankings tank. Not because of a Google penalty but from something I never expected. But before I go into what I learned, let's first go over how it all started… Online Poker LowdownBack in 2010, I bought an old poker site that was never really updated. It was called Online Poker Lowdown. Funny enough, the site is still up today even though I don't own it. The reason I bought it was because it ranked in the top 1,000 for the term “online poker.” The site just needed some updating. If you are wondering how I found it, I was Googling for the term “online poker,” and I hit up a dozen or so sites who were ranking between page 30 and 100 for the term and bought the cheapest one. And the reason I went after the poker industry was that back then a lot of us thought it was going to be legalized in the United States. So, if I could rank at the top, I would have a site that would eventually be worth a lot of money… assuming I was patient. My first blog postI published my first blog back in November 2010. It was called, the top 5 poker mistakes you'll make. The blog post wasn't the standard 2,000 plus words that I write these days, but it was long enough for 2010. Keep in mind, there weren't as many blogs back then so it wasn't as competitive. But this blog post did well, there were 31 comments: And over time, the blog continually grew as I published more content. My path to growing Online Poker LowdownI wish I had the analytics for the site still, but I don't. If my memory serves me correctly (and usually it does), the site capped out at roughly 41,000 unique visitors a month all from 104 blog posts. And at one point I even ranked number 7 on page 1 for the term “online poker.” The best part of all, it didn't even take me a year to achieve those results. Keep in mind that back then you could get rankings much faster than you can now. But still, it was pretty fast even for 2010/2011. So how did I get my rankings and traffic so high in such a competitive space? It wasn't the content, it was the backlinks. Google's algorithm was much easier to predict back then and links impacted rankings more than anything else. Now you are wondering how I got all of these people to link to me. Like today, no one wanted to link to poker sites… even back in 2011. It was from writing posts like this. By creating list-based posts of the top blogs within the poker industry, it was easy for me to get them to link back to me. If you want to do something similar, it's not as simple as writing a blog that includes the top 30 or even 100 blogs within your industry.
Once you publish your list-based post you'll need to drive a ton of traffic to it within 7 days of it being published. Back in the day, I drove traffic to the Online Poker Lowdown top 30 poker blogs post by paying for StumbleUpon ads. But that is no longer an option as StumbleUpon doesn't exist anymore. You can still drive traffic through Reddit ads, Quora ads, Twitter ads, and Facebook Ads though. These options are technically better than StumbleUpon as they have better targeting options. Even if your blog is popular, I would still recommend that you pay for ads… even if it is just 50 dollars. By paying for ads, it ensures your blog post gets read by hopefully a few thousand new people if not more. You don't need the highest quality traffic either, you just need visitors who are somewhat interested in your content. The more people that read your post, the more will click through to one of the top blogs you mentioned. And the more people that click through to their site, the more of them will notice your blog when they analyze their referral traffic. In other words, when they see a spike in their Google Analytics account, they'll notice that the extra traffic came from your blog. This will put your blog on their radar! Now, on the 7th day of your blog post being live, you'll want to email each website that you included. The email should go something like this…
You're going to have to customize the email and then, of course, make a badge that looks much nicer and is smaller. But you get the point. This one strategy really boosted my backlink count and skyrocketed me to the top. It still works today, but if you are going to leverage it there are a few things you should know:
By combing those two emails with the promotions steps I break down in this blog post, you'll notice that you'll generate backlinks and social shares. That's how I was able to rank on page 1 for one of the most competitive terms. So why was Online Poker Lowdown a failure?I broke down how I climbed to the page 1 of Google for “online poker” and as you can see from some of the posts people were engaging with the content. So why did Online Poker Lowdown fail from an SEO standpoint? It's because I didn't know what I was talking about. See, I know very little about poker, and I hired mediocre writers to help me out. Although I got the content to rank, my user signals were terrible. When people landed on the site, many of them would hit the back button, so they could go back to Google and find a better site. Just think of it this way: If your site has a terrible bounce rate, this tells Google that people don't care for your site. Although you may have “optimized” your site for search engines, it doesn't really matter because people don't care for your content, and this tells Google that your site isn't as good as the competition. Once my rankings started to drop I panicked, and I immediately reached out to a few poker players and I got their feedback. They all told me the same thing… the content wasn't great and if they were looking to learn poker all over again, the blog posts aren't actionable enough to make someone a decent poker player. They even broke down how I needed to teach scenarios within my content and tell people what they should do when they are dealt with specific hands like what to do you do if you were starting off with a pair of 2s. For someone not knowing much about poker and because I wasn't passionate about the topic, I threw in the towel and I sold the blog for a few thousand dollars. The big lesson I learned was that knowing SEO isn't enough. Even if you can build links, write content, and climb to the top of Google fast, you won't stay if people hate your content (or product/service). Google cares what people think first and foremost. So, if you can't create something people will love, your bounce rate is going to be high and you'll find that it will be hard to get steady organic traffic. ConclusionThis was my worst SEO failure. When I started Online Poker Lowdown, I was good at SEO and I was a bit too arrogant. I never expected that not being a subject matter expert would really hurt me. I know there were other solutions that I could have taken, such as partnering up with someone who knew poker (which I tried), but I quickly learned that if people aren't passionate about the topic it won't work. People can tell by your content. You never want to put out stuff that people think is crap. It will just make you look bad. Plus, when you are passionate about a topic, the writing is different. From the way you'll tell stories to how you break down actionable steps or how you mix in life experiences… it's hard to do these things when you aren't an expert. Don't do what I did by popping up sites to make a quick buck. Build something real that you can be proud of. So, what do you think of my SEO failure? Did you expect it to end this way? The post My Failed Attempt at SEO (And What I've Learned) appeared first on Neil Patel.
Your business needs to have an active presence on Instagram. With more than 1 billion active monthly users, Instagram is officially the fastest growing social media network. According to Sprout Social, 71% of businesses in the United States are using Instagram for marketing. By now, I hope you have your profile set up and are taking steps to get more followers. Once you've done that, you can convert your social media followers into customers. You need to prioritize conversions. But to do this, you need to find the best ways to improve your engagement rates on your Instagram posts. You have to understand how users consume content on this platform. They're scrolling through their news feeds. Each day, 95 million pictures and videos are shared on Instagram. If your posts aren't jumping out at your followers, they will scroll right past them. You won't be able to get conversions this way. It's tough to stand out from the crowd when everyone using the platform has the same features available at their fingertips. Here's what I mean. If you are using only the filters and effects offered directly on Instagram, your content will look strikingly similar to that of the other billion users on the platform. After all, the number of these editing options and types of posts is limited. However, if you want to gain a competitive edge and really make your content stand out, you need to take advantage of other tools. By enhancing your posts, you'll be able to increase your conversions. Here are the top 10 tools I recommend for improving the quality of your Instagram posts. 1. GIPHY CamWith the growing popularity of GIFs, GIPHY Cam is a top option for you to consider. This app is available for both iOS and Android devices. Your entire social media marketing team can take advantage of this tool, regardless of the platform they're using. The concept of this app is very simple. The software allows you to create your own GIFs by recording content directly through the app. Once your GIF is recorded, you can add effects and other elements to enhance the posts. This is a great way to make your content stand out from the typical pictures and videos uploaded to Instagram. Since GIF creation isn't a feature offered on Instagram, these posts will give you a competitive advantage over content from other profiles. GIPHY has other apps to help you with your GIF needs:
In addition to GIPHY Cam, you can check these out to help you use visual elements to improve your marketing strategy. 2. Perfect VideoIf you are not tech-savvy, Perfect Video is extremely user-friendly. It's great for anyone who doesn't have a background in video editing and is intimidated by fancy or expensive software. None of that is necessary when it comes to uploading videos to Instagram if you use this app. Yes, Instagram has editing tools built directly into its platform, but those features limit your ability to make your content great. With Perfect Video, you can trim clips and merge multiple videos into one file. Add subtitles to your videos to appeal to people consuming content without their volume on. You can even add watermarks to your videos as a branding strategy, in case someone wants to repurpose your content. The software also has tons of transitions to choose from when you cut from clip to clip. Take advantage of the ability to add music to your videos as well. It's really easy to export your videos directly to Instagram. Perfect Video is great for creating slideshows too. This app is free to download. However, there are some in-app purchases for some features. 3. All HashtagYour Instagram posts don't live and die by the visual content alone. You need to learn how to write Instagram captions that drive engagement. Hashtags are part of these captions. That's why you need to take advantage of tools such as All Hashtag. This resource will help you generate hashtags to complete your posts. Just type in words related to your brand, products, and campaigns. All Hashtag will take care of the rest. In addition to generating hashtags for your posts, you'll also be able to discover the top hashtags being used right now. The app displays the top trending hashtags for each day, week, month, and all time. Analyze hashtags through this tool. Learn the probability of ranking and getting hits with the hashtags you're planning to use. It will save you time and money. While we're on the subject, you can also review my favorite time-saving social media marketing tools. 4. QuikQuik is another app available on both iOS and Android devices. What makes this tool unique is that it was developed by GoPro. If you're using a GoPro to film content for your Instagram page, this is the perfect tool for you. The app makes it really easy to import videos. You can do this from your phone gallery, Dropbox, or Google Photos. Quik also lets you import content from GoPro Plus and GoPro Quik Key. One of the top features of Quik is the ability to analyze your video clips to make smart cuts automatically. Further, this tool can detect faces. All images, clips, and videos will get framed perfectly. If you don't want to take advantage of that feature, you can crop your content manually. Quik comes with more than 100 free songs to add to your videos. If those songs aren't what you're looking for, you can import your own music. This tool makes it easy for you to sync video transitions based on the beat of the music playing. 5. AutoHashCan't think of a hashtag? No problem. AutoHash has a unique way of helping you generate hashtags specifically for each photo you're planning to share on Instagram. This tool scans the image and then, as the name implies, automatically generates a hashtag. If you upload a picture of a dog, you'll get hashtags related to dogs. In addition to coming up with relevant hashtags, the app will sorted them by popularity in different niche categories. This will make sure that your post gets the widest possible exposure. You can save your favorite hashtags to use them again in future posts. Post your content directly on Instagram from the AutoHash platform, without wasting your time copying and pasting. AutoHash has a feature for location-based hashtags as well. Simply enable your GPS location settings, and the software will produce hashtags relevant to your location. 6. Rookie CamRookie Cam offers a more advanced version of the camera already built into your smartphone. But it's just as easy to use. This app also has more filters than the options available on Instagram, including a live filter function. You can view filters and other effects in real time while you're taking a picture or video. This will give you a better understanding of what the image will look like for the final product. Rookie Cam allows you to create collages. You won't need to download another app for that specific feature alone. These collages can have up to nine images in one frame. Select different image sizes, and create different filters and edits for each photo within the collage. Rookie Cam has awesome design editing elements as well. You can add text to images with tons of different fonts. Add badges, stickers, and unique frames to your content. 7. Ask LisaWith Instagram, we all know the image that ultimately gets posted is one of potentially dozens of options. If you can't decide what photos are worth sharing, Ask Lisa can help you make an informed decision. The Ask Lisa tool uses AI photo recognition software. Technology like this is one of the top ways machine learning is reshaping marketing. You can compare between two and five photos on this platform. In addition to helping you determine which photo will perform the best, Ask Lisa will also help you generate hashtags based on the images. 8. HashtagifyLike some of the other tools on this list, Hashtagify helps you find the best hashtags for your posts. But Hashtagify has some features that make this platform unique. You can explore hashtags related to current trends and specific categories. This tool also helps you with analytics components. Monitor how well your current hashtags are performing. Determine the best time to post, and analyze your marketing strategy based on this research and information. Hashtagify helps you discover influencers using similar hashtags. You can reach out to them to help you expand your reach and get more visibility. Then use the top platforms for effectively managing social influencers to your advantage as well. Export PDF reports and download CSV files. These reports make it easy for you to share information with your entire marketing team. 9. MIKUWhen it comes to editing your Instagram photos, some of you may be overwhelmed with all the options. Some of the tools on our list give you even more filters and editing choices to choose from. But which ones are the best? It's hard to say for certain unless you experiment with them. When you're running a business, you may not have time to do this yourself. Wouldn't it be great if someone else could do it for you? Instead of assigning these tasks to a social media manager, try using MIKU. All you have to do is upload your photo to the platform with a brief explanation of what you want to be edited, and a professional will take care of everything else for you. The average response time is 30 minutes, but you'll get your photo back within two hours. Pricing for this service is based on volume. You can pay per photo or pay a set rate based on a monthly allowance. For example, you can subscribe for $19.99 per month, which gives you a chance to get 20 pictures edited during that time frame. This ends up being $1 per photo instead of the standard rate of $3.99 per photo. It's a good deal if you use this tool frequently. 10. StoreoStoreo is a tool that helps you enhance the content of your Instagram story. How many of you have encountered this scenario before? You were recording something to post on your story directly from the Instagram platform, and then the time ran out. As a result, you missed what you were trying to record. This ultimately hurts the overall quality of your video. Even if you record content from your phone before you upload to your story, Instagram doesn't allow you to upload story clips longer than 15 seconds. You have to manually cut longer videos and add each one individually to your story. This is a pain and leaves much room for error. Storeo eliminates this problem. This tool allows you to record a long video without having to hold down the record button either. Then, it automatically exports the video to your Instagram story in 15-second intervals. When users watch your story, it plays as one long video. ConclusionIf you want to boost engagement on your Instagram posts and ultimately get more conversions, you need to enhance your content. Sometimes, the editing options offered directly from the Instagram platform aren't enough to make your post stand out. Take advantage of the tools I've covered on this list. There are plenty of options for everyone, based on your needs. Some of these tools are made for enhancing images, videos, and GIFs. While others are designed for hashtags, captions, or your Instagram story. Use whichever ones will help you improve your Instagram marketing strategy the most. What tools is your company using to improve conversions on your Instagram posts?
To have a successful website, you need to find ways to maximize your conversions. Right now, you might think the layout of your site has an optimal design, but how can you know for sure? The only way to figure this out is to test it. This isn't something you just do once and forget about it. You need to learn how to use continuous A/B testing to increase your conversions. These tests are a great opportunity for you to make design choices that ultimately result in revenue. Subtle changes, e.g., moving your CTA button or changing the color scheme on your site, can make a huge difference. In the past, I've explained everything you need to know before you start A/B testing. But now I want to take that concept one step further. I'll show you the best tools for you to use for A/B testing. That's because these tests are not created equally. Depending on the size of your business, marketing goals, and technical experience, some tools will be more beneficial for you compared to others. Regardless of your situation, I suggest you review my list of the top 13 tools for A/B testing. I'm confident you'll find a solution in this guide that will benefit your business. 1. Google OptimizeIt's tough to put out a list of software solutions like this without starting with Google. All of its tools are great for business owners who manage websites on their own. Google Optimize is no different. This tool should be a top choice for you to consider because it has native integration functionality with your Google Analytics profile. This gives you an edge because you already have information on record about how visitors behave on your website. Using this data will make it easier for you to prioritize what needs to be tested first. Another benefit of Google Optimize is it's free. The visual editor is simple for anyone to figure out, regardless of their technical experience. In addition to Google Analytics, this tool can also be integrated with Google AdWords and Firebase. You can test mobile features and optimize your mobile website for Google searches. 2. OptimizelyOptimizely is one of the most popular options. They are definitely a market leader when it comes to A/B testing software. The tools on this platform let you run lots of different experiments on your website. These experiments allow you to focus on A/B testing and personalization. One of the highlights that makes Optimizely stand out in the crowd is its ability to run A/B tests on multiple pages and platforms simultaneously. For example, you can run tests on your homepage and contact page while also testing the shopping cart on your mobile site on Android and iOS devices. Unlike other tools, Optimizely generates results that are easy to read and comprehend so you can make decisions based on the outcome. With Optimizely, you can run A/B tests on a number of factors outside of obvious components, like a CTA button. You can run tests on:
All of this information will give you a competitive advantage and maximize your conversion rates. 3. ApptimizeJust as the name suggests, Apptimize is made for running A/B tests on mobile apps. This is the ultimate tool if you want to improve the profitability of your small business mobile app. All too often I see businesses ignoring mobile users. You were one of the smart ones that catered to their needs and developed a mobile app. But the development process isn't over when your app launches. It's imperative that you always strive to make improvements on your platform. Mobile app conversions are just as important as those from your desktop and mobile sites. With Apptimize, you can run tests on all three of these. The software also supports different code blocks:
You can run tests on your app regardless of the code used for development. 4. AB TastyAB Tasty is a great option for businesses just starting to run A/B tests and focusing on conversion rate optimization (CRO). Since it's designed for beginners, the pricing options are really affordable. AB Tasty offers different options for testing. You can test two or more variations of a single element on your site, such as CTA placement, images, or colors. You can also do split testing. This feature lets you build two separate landing pages to see which one converts more. Its multivariate option allows users to run combinations of tests simultaneously. You can also take advantage of the funnel testing feature. This lets you test changes of the user experience as visitors navigate through each step of the conversion funnel on your site. 5. ConvertIf you have a small or medium sized business, Convert has great A/B testing solutions for you. It's meant for people focusing on optimizing their websites in-house. It's ideal for these types of business owners because it's easy to use. Part of what makes the navigation so simple is the drag and drop features. You can use Convert's software for A/B tests, multivariate tests, and split tests as well. They make it easy for you to integrate and onboard your content management system and Google analytics data. This allows you to focus on personalization. You can build customer profiles by using this software. Another reason why Convert is so popular is because it has an outstanding customer support team to help you answer any questions if you're having trouble with the software. It's easy to reach a representative through the platform's live chat option. 6. Adobe TargetAnother one of my favorite options is Adobe Target. When you use this platform, you'll go through a workflow process that has three steps. First, you'll determine the variation you want to test. Next, you'll decide how you're going to segment that variation with your visitors. The final step is to customize all your settings and set a goal for the experiment. Automated personalization is one of the top features available on Adobe Target. This tool has an algorithm that automatically makes changes based on visitor behavior to optimize your results. It will help you increase sales by personalizing the customer experience. You can run tests based on how different visitors experience your site. 7. KameleoonKameleoon uses artificial intelligence to power its personalization tools. The AI makes it an advanced platform. I wouldn't recommend it if you are just starting A/B testing on your website. It's better for those looking to test deeper elements of their sites. The reports generate user insights with the navigation analysis tool. Kameleoon lets you test multiple user segments with more than 40 different benchmarks for targeting, such as:
These are all examples of experiments you can run with Kameleoon's advanced software. All of the data is updated in real time. There's no need for you to wait for a report to get generated to see your results. 8. ConductricsConductrics is another great tool designed for business owners who want to focus on their mobile sites. In addition to your mobile site, you can also test features on your mobile app. Conductrics lets you focus on things, such as:
You can use this platform in different ways. It offers Conductrics Express, designed for the everyday user, without a technology background. No coding is required to use Conductrics Express. You can change elements of your site with a visual tool directly on your pages. But it also offers a more advanced option made for developers. This makes it easy for developers to integrate tests with apps, websites, and processes. The developer option uses AI machine learning to set parameters and conduct an in-depth analysis. 9. SiteSpectSiteSpect is another tool designed for people who are more technologically advanced. If you're a beginner, I wouldn't start with this software. This platform gives you the option to edit the HTML before it departs from the server. The ability to do this makes SiteSpect a popular choice for brands that self-host their websites. It's also great for businesses that prioritize security. SiteSpect has a visual editing tool. This is a common option for A/B testing as you've seen so far. However, the biggest difference between this tool and others is the ability for you to access your website from both the client and server sides, which ultimately gives you a better understanding of the user experience. 10. Oracle MaxymiserOracle Maxymiser has a visual editor-similarly to other options I've talked about. Use this software to set up variations and run basic tests. In addition to the simple functions of this software, it also has coding features for more advanced testing. These functions are ideal for targeting and personalization tests. You can target your most profitable customer segments, and the Oracle Maxymiser tool will automatically build a customer profile. The profiles are based on data and behavior from each unique visitor who navigates to your website. 11. SiteGainerIn addition to standard A/B testing, SiteGainer gives you other options to help you with conversion rate optimization. Some of its other tools include:
These can help you improve your website, especially when you use A/B tests to maximize its efficiency. It's easy for anyone to use SiteGainer, regardless of their experience level. Another benefit of this software is that it offers a free trial, so you can try it before committing. Instead of flat rates, it offers prices based on things such as your monthly traffic and how often you want to pay, so you'll have options for your budget. Basically, you only pay for what you use. 12. Sentient AscendIf you're looking for something different, consider Sentient Ascend. It's different because it uses conversion optimization paired with algorithms for machine learning. I know this sounds a bit complex, but let me explain how it works. Basically, these algorithms are written to find the most optimal combination of design elements on your website. The tool allows you to test multiple variants at the same time to see which performs the best. As a result, you'll learn the best way to design your pages for conversions. 13. MonetateLast, but certainly not least, is Monetate. In addition to A/B testing, Monetate offers multivariate tests, segmenting tools, and personalization tools. The software adjusts how your site traffic is allocated to maximize the return on your investment. One of my favorite features of this tool is that it helps you determine what needs to be tested on your website based on your goals. The results help limit false positives so you can know for sure the reasoning for your changes was accurate. ConclusionA/B testing is a great way to maximize conversions on your website. I highly recommend every website to take advantage of this strategy. That said, you need to make sure you find a tool that's best for your business and your individual circumstances. Are you looking only to run A/B tests? There are certain platforms for you. If features like split tests, multivariate tests, funnel tests, and simultaneous testing are important to you, you must find software that has these options. If you want to test your mobile site and mobile app as well, look for those specific tools I highlighted above. Certain tools are for beginners, while others are designed for developers and users with a technical background and coding experience. No matter what your circumstances are, if you use this guide as a reference, I'm sure you'll be able to find a tool for A/B testing that works for you. What types of A/B tests are you running on your website to increase conversions?
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June 2019
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