Ad Tracking and Taguchi Testing

If you have any interest in doing split testing of your ads (and if you know anything about marketing you know it's a must) then Taguchi testing is the way to go.

Let me explain. Virtually everyone is familiar with A/B testing. You have two pages that are identical with the exception of one feature. For example, the only difference is the headline or the price or anything you can think of to test.

After a while, you determine that headline A outperformed headline B. So, then you drop headline B and try headline C. After a while you determine that headline C outperformed A and so you drop headline A.

Next you try different prices and go through the same elimination process. After that, it's different offers with with different bonuses.

Meanwhile, several months have gone by ad you're still trying to find the best combinations.

Taguchi and Multiple Variables

The value of doing Taguchi Testing is that you can test up to 12 different variables at one time. You can also test more than two values for the variables you're testing. For example, six different prices or three different headlines and so on. There are 30 different combinations and permutations you can set up.

All of this testing is being done at the same time. You wind up creating 18 different sales pages with a specific mix of the different variables on each page. The results are then run through a spreadsheet which analyzes the data and tells you what the ideal value for each of the variables is. By the way, some of the variable may NOT have an ideal value. Some of them may not make any difference what different values are. When you set up your pages using the Taguchi testing in 1CartPlus you can not only test your sales page, but you can also test out your checkout page and the whole process from beginning to end.

Now let me say that is not without some effort on your part. Setting up 18 different web pages can be a pain in the neck, but the results are definitely worth it. You'll find a spreadsheet here that you plug your results into and it will give you the answers you're looking for.

There is a simpler way available that used as well that is a php script you install on your server and it will allow you to set up your test pages more easily than building 18 different pages. I haven't used the latest version of this program because I have my pages set up using 1CartPlus but I understand from some of the emails I've received from the author that you have some flexibility that wasn't available in the original version. You can learn more about this one here.