L-Soft's Lars Nordstrom presented and led a discussion of "A/B Split and Multivariate Testing for Email Marketing" at the Internet Marketing Conference in Stockholm, Sweden, November 29-30. The conference focused mainly on web analytics, email testing, website and marketing optimization, and email marketing analysis, featuring top speakers and experts from more than a dozen countries.

Photo by Lars Johansson

Lars reports that the main point of consensus during the two intensive days of presentations and panel discussions was the need today, more than ever, for marketers to quickly analyze the data generated by email campaigns and website visits, learn from the data, and use it to improve the next campaign. Here are some tips from the presentation that Nordstrom gave:

• Email marketers need to use a combination of A/B split testing and multivariate landing pages to ensure that each message they send is optimized for best results, whether it be in open-up and click-through rates, website visits, sales conversions or a combination of these areas. Providing messages that appeal to customers, in design and subject matter, is key to increasing response rates.

• Marketers are no longer competing with others within the industry but also vying for attention in recipient mailboxes. With a growing number of small businesses turning to email as a productive channel, marketers' messages will have to provide more value in order to stand out. Finding out exactly what customers value is key to future success.

• By continuously testing and analyzing different approaches, the customer experience can be enhanced dramatically, affecting conversion rates in an increasingly positive way. Streamlining and focusing on customer interests is much easier with the intuitive options available in today's marketing toolbox. There is no longer any reason to let the word "analytics" frighten us off from achieving greatness.

For more information about the conference, visit www.internetmarketingconference.com.