I need help split testing a subscribe action in my sidebar

Discussion in 'HTML & Website Design' started by Hudsonkraft, Feb 10, 2014.

  1. #1
    I have a subscribe field in the sidebar of my wordpress site which I want to A/B test. Whats the normal way of doing this?

    I'd assume I'd need two versions to 'rotate' and have something track each but how?
     
    Hudsonkraft, Feb 10, 2014 IP
  2. deathshadow

    deathshadow Acclaimed Member

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    #2
    Define "A/B Test"? You're comparing what exactly?
     
    deathshadow, Feb 10, 2014 IP
  3. Hudsonkraft

    Hudsonkraft Member

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    #3
    Yeah I may be using the term wrong. I want to experiment with two different types of opt-in/subscribe boxes, with subtle differences such as title or box text. I want each version to be tracked in terms of engagement (user clicking subscribe button) to determine the best version.

    I use the sidebar in wordpress for the location. I could duplicate the sidebar and split test that - if i knew how to do it.

    Does this make sense?
     
    Hudsonkraft, Feb 10, 2014 IP
  4. deathshadow

    deathshadow Acclaimed Member

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    #4
    Well, apart from getting deep enough into turdpress to go "wow, this is insecure buggy poorly written ****", it's not my area of expertise, but the general process I'd use would be to have a PHP routine that randomly chose one or the other... you store the choice in a cookie so that each user isn't tracked more than once, and likewise track it in a database. When they submit one or the other you need a hidden input containing which version of the form it is (assuming they both return the same basic info for the same 'send' script). In your form handler you then would set "subscribed" in that database for that user based on the form choice.

    So to choose the form: (assumes $db is a connected PDO object, even though turdpress still has it's head up 2004's backside with mysql_functions)

    That would give you how many have seen each version of the form, how many times they've seen each version, and how many used which version...

    You might want to ask in the programming section to see if any WP experts can chime in on how/where to implement that... that's more of a PHP/mysql/TP question than a HTML/CSS one. I could write up PHP to do that, but no guarantees it would be compatible with the steaming train wreck of idiocy known as turdpress.

    Can you tell I'm a fan?
     
    deathshadow, Feb 10, 2014 IP