Are you looking to maximize your Facebook Advertising ROI? If so, you’ve probably heard of A/B testing Facebook ads. But have you dived into the world of creative testing yet? In this blog post, we’ll take you through the essentials of creative testing in Facebook Ads, a technique that can dramatically boost your campaign performance.
First, let’s see what is A/B testing. So, A/B testing, also known as split testing, is an experimental approach to assess the impact of different variables on predetermined Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) like Click-Through Rate (CTR), Conversion Rate, and Return on Ad Spend (ROAS). The benefits include:
- Increased conversion rates
- Lower customer acquisition costs
- Enhanced user experience
- Improved ROI
A/B testing is rooted in the scientific method, involving hypothesis formulation, experimentation, and data analysis. It aims to achieve statistical significance, indicating that the results are unlikely to have occurred by chance.
What Elements Should You Prioritize in A/B Testing?
Now that we know what A/B testing is, let’s see which elements you should prioritize in A/B testing your Facebook ads. So, the elements you should prioritize in A/B testing are audience, landing pages, and images/videos.
A/B testing Audience
The first step in any A/B testing campaign should be audience segmentation. You can use different Facebook targeting options to A/B test what works the best, including:
- Lookalike audience
- Broad audience
- Interest-based audience
- Combining different age or gender groups
A/B testing Landing Pages
The next step is your landing page. After the customer clicks on your ad, the landing page is what he sees next. Focus on variables that are most likely to have a significant impact, such as A/B testing landing users on one of the:
- Product pages
- Collections pages
- Homepage
Different audience types, such as prospecting, retargeting, or video viewers, behave differently on different landing pages.
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A/B testing Images/Videos
And the last one A/B testing images and videos. When deciding whether to test images or videos in your Facebook ad campaigns, it’s important to consider the specific goals of your campaigns and your target audience.
Here’s a breakdown of what you can A/B test for image:
- Image content
- Colors and backgrounds
- Text overlays
- Image composition
- Image effects
If you have video ads, here on what you can focus on in your A/B testing:
- Video length
- Video content
- Call-to-action
- Narration vs. text
- Video thumbnail
- Video editings
- Video quality
- Background music or sound
What Should You Avoid in A/B Testing?
While it’s tempting to test every detail, focus on macro variables that are more likely to impact your KPIs significantly. Avoid getting lost in the weeds with micro variables like font styles or button shades.
What you should be focusing on are macro variables:
- Images vs. Videos: Visuals are the first point of contact between your ad and your audience. Should you use an eye-catching image or a compelling video? This is a high-impact variable worth testing.
- Long Ad Description vs. Short Ad Description: Does your audience appreciate detailed information, or do they prefer quick, digestible content?
- User Benefits vs. Brand Story vs. Product Line: What drives your audience to engage? Is it how the product benefits them, the ethos of your brand, or the uniqueness of your product line?
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Seasonality and A/B Testing
But, how does seasonality affect A/B testing? Well, external factors like seasonality or a site-wide sale can significantly skew your A/B testing data. Always account for these variables before drawing any conclusions. For example:
- Sales and Promotions: If there’s a site-wide sale happening, people might be more likely to convert, making your ad seem more effective than it usually would be.
- Seasonality: Holidays, seasons, and events can influence shopping behavior. Make sure you account for these in your A/B testing framework.
- Units availability: If you’re A/B testing images that showcase different products, and one is in stock, other out of stock, it can significantly impact your A/B testing results
A/B testing on Facebook ads
And, now the exciting part. How can you do an A/B test on your Facebook ads? To run a proper A/B test on Facebook Ads Manager, you need to do the following:
- Create New Campaign: Click on the green “+ Create” button to start a new campaign.
- Choose the Campaign Objective: A list of objectives will appear. If you’re a Shopify or WooCommerce merchant aiming for sales, select the “Conversions” objective. Set the Conversion Event to ‘Purchase’: Scroll down to where you can set the conversion event and select ‘Purchase’ from the list.
- Navigate to the Ad Set Level: After setting the campaign objective, you’ll automatically move to the Ad Set level.
- Create Two Ad Sets: Name them meaningfully to indicate the variable you are testing (e.g., “Ad Set – Image” and “Ad Set – Video”).
- Keep All Variables the Same, Except One: This is crucial for A/B testing. For example, if you’re testing an image against a video, make sure that all other variables like audience, placement, budget, etc., are identical.
- Navigate to the Ad Level: After creating the ad sets, move on to creating the individual ads within each set.
- Create One Ad per Ad Set: It’s essential to have only one ad within each ad set to ensure that the variable you’re testing is isolated.
- Let the Test Run: Allow enough time for the test to run so you can gather sufficient data. The time depends on your traffic and budget but aim for at least a week.
- Analyze the Results: Use the data to analyze which ad performed better in terms of the KPIs you are tracking (e.g., CTR, Conversion Rate, ROAS).
A/B Creative Testing
With so many elements at play, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Let’s break down the key components that you should be giving your attention to.
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Audience Segmentation: Who are Your Ideal Customers?
Audience segmentation is often the first step in creative testing. Make sure you’re reaching people who are interested in what you’re offering by testing different demographics and behavioral traits.
Experiment with various demographics, psychographics, and behavioral segments to understand who is genuinely interested in your products.
Landing Page/Offers: What Happens After the Click?
The moment a potential customer clicks your ad, they’re taken to your landing page. This is your opportunity to seal the deal.
Consider A/B testing your headlines, the Call to Action (CTA), and even the overall layout to optimize conversions. Remember, your landing page should be a continuation of the promise made in the ad.
Visuals: Are Images or Videos More Engaging?
First impressions are crucial in creative testing. Are your potential customers more captivated by images or videos? Visuals are often the first thing a user interacts with. Do they like video content more, or are they captivated by stunning imagery? Knowing the answer can drastically improve engagement rates.
Ad Copy and Headlines: How Do You Keep Them Reading?
The role of ad copy and headlines comes into play after the visuals have caught the user’s eye. What tone resonates with your audience? Should you keep it short and sweet or go into the nitty-gritty details? Testing these aspects can significantly increase your CTR and conversion rates.
Call to Action (CTA): What Drives the Final Click?
You’d be surprised how minor changes in your CTA can lead to massive shifts in conversion rates. Test out different action verbs, button colors, and placements to pinpoint what really pushes your users to take action.
For an eCommerce merchant, some things are already predetermined and well A/B tested. At Lebesgue, we’ve gathered a lot of knowledge by A/B testing different ad formats.
A/B Creative Testing Mistakes
While A/B testing is a mighty tool, certain traps could invalidate your efforts. Let’s look at what to sidestep:
- Testing Too Many Variables: Over-Complicating Creative Testing Keep your creative tests simple and straightforward. Testing too many variables simultaneously can dilute the insights you gain. You won’t know which variable caused the observed change. Stick to one variable per test to keep your data crystal clear.
- Inconclusive Time Frames: How Long Should I Run My Test? Run your creative tests for a duration that’s long enough to get statistically significant results. Too short or too long can compromise your creative testing process.
- Ignoring Mobile Experience: Is Mobile Really That Important? With more people shopping on their phones, ignoring the mobile user experience can be detrimental. Make sure to test how your ads and landing pages perform across different devices.
Secret to a Killer A/B Testing Facebook Ads
One of the most underrated strategies for setting up a successful test is knowing what’s working for your competitors. With Lebesgue: AI CMO’s Competitor Intelligence feature, spying on your competitors’ Facebook ads has never been easier.
Use Competitor Intelligence to Inform Your A/B Tests
The process is straightforward but powerful:
- Scan & Analyze: Use Lebesgue’s Competitor Intelligence to scan and analyze the Facebook ads your competitors are running. This includes ad creatives, headlines, CTAs, and even the landing pages they’re directing traffic to.
- Identify Best Practices: The tool will help you identify the best-performing ads based on various metrics like engagement rates, CTR, and conversion rates. Take note of common themes or practices that seem to resonate with your target audience.
- Formulate Your A/B Test: Armed with this data, create an A/B test where you pit your current best-performing ad against a new ad that incorporates these successful elements from your competitor’s campaigns.
- Adjust Your Variables: Whether it’s the visual elements, ad copy, or CTA, integrate the insights you’ve gathered into one of your ad sets. Remember, test only one variable at a time for the most accurate results.
- Run the Test: After setting up your ads, let them run for a statistically significant amount of time to gather actionable insights.
Your competitors have already done some of the legwork in figuring out what resonates with the audience you both share. With the Competitor Intelligence feature, you’re making calculated decisions based on proven strategies.
Summing up: A/B Testing Facebook Ads
We hope this blog post gives you all the answers you had about A/B testing Facebook ads. You can increase your advertising results when you know what works for your eCommerce and what does not. So, if you give A/B testing a chance let us know the results!
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