Multivariate Testing, A Work in Progress

I am very excited about google's web optimizer, which makes multivariate testing easy and manageable. I have run various A/B tests for the pursposes of website optimization in the past, but always with unweildy manual systems. the variables very quickly spun out of control, and the results had to be manually processed and interpreted.

I have struggled for the last few days to set up a multivariate test on a dynamically generated site, with limited success (server problems have meant limited ftp access to try out the quick/easy wordpress plugin that I found after a little searching. Its called Google Website Optimizer from Content.Robot.)

So, I thought I would set up the experiment here instead. Of course, I'll have to pay all of my friends and loved ones to come and visit the site achieve statistically significant volumes, but it will at least give me practise at setting up the process.

So, first I have to identify what action I want people to take. I'll start simple and just ask them to

click this link to participate in my multivariate test.

The variables I'll test will include

1. put the link in the middle of the page versus the top of the page
2. including an image or not
3. 2 alternate headlines

And I'll create a "conversion page", to use the google website optimizer lingo, thanking site visitors for playing.

p.s. clearly I should have posted my conversion page first, so they would appear in order