or years—decades—A/B testing was an important method for analyzing digital marketing channels and ultimately optimizing them for a better conversion rate. But it’s not only websites, webshops, emails, ads & Co. that need continuous optimization; testing itself also needs a technological update. Artificial intelligence could make current methods obsolete in the near future, significantly speeding up your marketing once again and further personalizing your digital presences. Here we give you an outlook on AI vs. A/B testing.
As the name A/B testing already suggests, two versions of a digital offering are compared. And that alone is too limited in the technological age: Why only two versions? Don’t users have needs that are too different and individual for an A/B test to cover at all? Multivariate tests (MVT) usually achieve more precise results. With MVT, multiple changes are tested simultaneously to find the best combination. Instead of changing only the header image or the headline, you can test different combinations such as header image, CTA, and colors.
But both A/B tests and multivariate tests have other decisive disadvantages:
Time
You need a certain amount of time for the test and for the analysis – usually two to four weeks; an MVT usually takes even longer.
Volume
For valid results, you need a larger number of users, especially for MVT – and that’s not always available.
Loss of quality
You show many users (in an A/B test, after all, 50 percent!) a version that could potentially lead to fewer conversions.
A promising alternative to A/B testing is AI (Artificial Intelligence). AI software can not only automatically identify the actions of individual users, but also optimize the offering independently in real time.
Here’s how it works: AI shows visitors different A and B variants or C, D, E, or F combinations on digital channels, such as a headline in a certain color with an image, or a header with a CTA in the image. Machine learning algorithms then analyze user behavior and automatically deliver the best possible variant or combination to individual users in real time.
Thanks to the power of AI, you can optimize digital marketing activities by personalizing countless variants and combinations. Visitors are then shown only the version with the highest chance of conversion.
It’s not only the time saved through automated data analysis that makes the testing method easier for marketers. Other advantages of AI over A/B testing are:
AI delivers faster and more efficient results.
AI enables experimentation with infinitely many variables – not just two as in an A/B test or a handful as in MVT.
AI offers personalized optimization of the digital offering in real time.
AI makes the best possible decisions for individual users, based on demographic data, customer status, previous behavior, or other data.
Despite the advantages mentioned, AI (still?) has a few weaknesses that should not be underestimated:
No insights
The system optimizes, so to speak, “behind closed doors,” and in the end you don’t really know why this or that version works best—so you can’t apply that knowledge going forward.
Setup effort
AI can save you a lot of work, but before it can do that, you first have to put quite a bit of work into the system.
Don’t expect miracles
AI is only as good as the data the system is fed. You won’t get a flawlessly perfect website at the push of a button—you’ll need to keep optimizing continuously.
Price
Traditional A/B testing or MVT software is relatively inexpensive—compared to AI-based tools.
It remains exciting to see how the technology and the market will continue to develop—and whether AI will actually soon replace classic A/B testing and thus prompt us to upgrade our MarTech Stack. Because despite its weaknesses, it is an established and effective method. And systems based on AI are still rare and not without flaws …
You’re looking for a suitable testing tool, but don’t feel like combing through the usual lists and embarking on time-consuming research? Then simply start the matching process with the providers that are relevant to you—whether A/B testing, MVT, or other technologies.
Just use our form, enter “testing tool” at the top (and optionally a bit more information), and we’ll take care of the rest for you! Only a few minutes of your time to get much closer to your new tool. Let’s match!
Till Zier is CPO at Matchilla and, as a MarTech expert, reports in MatchZINE on news and trends in marketing, automation, analytics, and data.
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