How to Conduct a Direct Marketing Campaign Test

A/B split marketing tests in direct mail are a technique to determine the most effective sales message for generating customer response. This type of message testing when mailing split runs is a key tool in developing successful direct marketing campaigns. With effective planning, it the technique can also be used in print, broadcast and internet advertising. Although it has been a basic marketing tool for decades, it is still commonly misapplied in the marketplace. This article explains basic implementation for direct mail message testing.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Creative messaging components for a consumer sales message.

1. 

   The most important rule in effective split run testing is that a A/B split run contains only two variables. A single message (or creative) variable for run "A" and a different single message (or creative) variable for run "B". When additional variables are added such as different colors, images, text, fonts, etc. are added, the test becomes muddled. Multiple variables make actionable customer insights difficult or impossible. The first step for a successful direct marketing test is to test only two variables..

2. Newspapers and print provide the best medium for message testing. Newspapers can alternate can alternate ad messages from copy to copy, ensuring even and random geographical distribution. However, the demographics of newspaper subscribers are rapidly changing as newspapers shrink in circulation numbers nationwide.

3. Direct mail is also a good vehicle for split run testing. Modern direct mail techniques also drive prospects to customized web sites for further testing of sales messages. A good test will use the a customized web site to provide additional information on how and why customers responded to the test. Many tests fall apart during this process because as soon as a customer responds to the test message, the focus changes to closing a sale. Making the sale is important, but from a research standpoint, it is just as vital to understand why the customer abandoned the sale process after responding.

4. Television advertising, which is associated with a changing direct response web site are also great mechanisms for tracking sales messages. Perhaps you've seen TV spots for products that ask you to visit a Website titled something like www.greatidea6.com. The number on the address allows the marketing to know when you saw the ad. For example www.greatidea6 is a morning ad and www.greatidea7 is an evening ad.
   Knowing what time of day your customers watch TV is a market test all by itself!

5. The challenge in creating an effective market test is to keep it simple. Too many tests are ruin by ambitious marketers trying to test too many things in a single test. You can't test an ad for time of day, media, lead sales message, and creative in a single test. Multiple tests comparing two changing variables will (slowly but also surely) help you understand how to craft a message that will resonate with your customers.

6. If you're a small business, I've included a link to a discount, online printer. They allow small business to add their jobs to longer corporate runs. The link is in the Resources section below.

Tips & Warnings

• Only test two message variables at a time, that's why they call it a A/B split run.
• Continue to test your most successful direct mail, you can always gain new insights.

Resources

• Online Discount Printer for Small Business

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on 11/3/2008 Very useful information.
Thanks a lot.