How To(s) relating to Research, Measurement & Database Marketing

Summary: Sometimes your team can agree that a website needs changes, but how it should be changed is a different story. If team members have different thoughts on the right direction, it's time run tests and dig into the data -- because no one can argue with metrics.

See the top three tests an international roommate-finding service ran to circumvent office conflict and redesign key pages. You'll find before-and-after images of all three tests, which increased memberships 8% and paid conversions 3%. continue...

Summary: Your team is launching a new product that's going to expose your company to a new type of customer. But is the product right for your brand?

Find out why one brand consultant says it's often smarter to create a new brand when broadening your product mix -- and how you should go about it. Also learn why she says advertising should not be part of your launch strategy. continue...

Summary: Fostering social change is not a common goal for brands. But if your audience is ready to discuss taboo subjects, your marketing can be a rallying point that dispels myths while boosting reputation and sales.

See how Kotex determined that its customers were ready for frank messages about women's bodies and health. The team radically repositioned its marketing and has boosted Kotex's market share. Includes tips on conducting customer research and creating content that encourages discussion. continue...

Summary: Before you conduct your next email test, make sure you're not falling into a trap that can muddy your results or limit the gains you might otherwise achieve.

We spoke with an email testing expert from our sister company, MarketingExperiments, to uncover common mistakes marketers make when running email tests. Read why good analytics and segmentation are crucial forerunners to testing, and why a blockbuster discovery from one test actually can be a risky thing for a marketing team. continue...

Summary: We all want to find a change that will turn a lackluster landing page into a monster. Will it require a bigger button? Or perhaps a different image?

Find out how to pick the right tests to improve your landing pages from an expert with years of experience. See why the most obvious test is not always the best to try. continue...

Summary: Social media can improve website traffic, lead generation and sales -- but by how much? And how can you improve those results?

The solution is through careful measurement of social media's contribution to your marketing goals. We spoke with an expert in social marketing analysis to uncover five tactics that can help you measure which online social interactions drive business results. continue...

Summary: Launching new products and designing marketing campaigns that stand out would be much easier if you knew your competitors’ plans. While they are unlikely to send you a blueprint, there are ways you can gain insight.

Check out these five tactics we gleaned from a competitive intelligence expert with more than 15 years of experience. We include tactics for interviewing customers, listening at industry conferences, and monitoring public information. We also explain why you should keep your strategy honest. continue...

Summary: When used properly, multivariate testing can be one of the most valuable tools in your marketing skill set.

Read seven key lessons that Avis Budget car rentals learned through years of multivariate testing. See which tests had an impact, and how they used testing to defuse tricky office battles. continue...

Summary: When your customers’ buying habits shift, you have to respond or risk losing those customers for good. But it’s vital to adapt without compromising your brand.

Read how a healthy-living retailer responded to growing price sensitivity among its customer base by increasing the number of low-cost products they offered. We outline the four tactics they used to make the change, which helped boost their site conversion rate 11%. continue...

Summary: Although the industry has made vast improvements in attribution, it’s hard to know the impact of every marketing dollar. Thankfully, database analysis techniques are giving some marketers more insight than ever.

We spoke with an expert in marketing attribution to learn how he uncovers the marketing impact of murky channels. Take a look to gain insight, but be prepared: This will not be easy. continue...