Prioritize Your Theories
Jul 6, 2018Prioritization is ranking theories in order so that you know what to test next. This will help keep the best theories in testing and make the most efficient use of your traffic. It will also help drive the greatest lift with your testing program.
1. Estimate Potential Impact
Estimate the potential impact that each theory may have on the growth of your business. I prefer to use a metric that is important to the business and easily understood by the marketing team. Often this is either lift to conversion rate or could also be a lift in actual sales. While this is a bit of a guess, you will find that when comparing one test against another, you will quickly see that some theories have more potential impact and lift than others. Writing down an impact score does not guarantee an outcome. It simply ranks theories against each other to help you determine which will have the greatest possible impact for the business and should be tested next.
2. Estimate Cost to Implement
Some test are going to be much more difficult and cost more to setup and implement than others. For each theory estimate how much time and how difficult it will be to set up. I prefer to score using a metric like hours. This often fits well with how the IT department estimates how long the work will take. Ideally though, you are doing your own setup and development within your team.
3. Sort Your Theories
Sort all your theories in order with the highest impact theories and tests at the top and the lowest ones at the bottom. Then make any needed adjustments based on the cost to implement. If something is simply too difficult or costly to implement, it should be moved down the list for something that is high impact and also easier to set up. You can still work on tests that are have a high cost but don’t let them take up so much time that they slow down your testing cycle. I would rather test 2-3 medium impact theories than spend a lot of time setting up 1 high impact. It very important that you move through tests.
4.Stick to the Prioritization List
Always work off the top of the list and make this a rule within your organization for everyone to follow. It will save you a lot of headache and keep you focused. When someone has a new theory (or great idea), prioritize it along with every other theory on the list. By working off the list, it makes sure that no ideas jumps to the front of the line just because someone thinks their idea is the best. And if its not at the top, then it doesn’t get tested right now. Regardless of who’s idea it is. That way you don’t have to say no to a senior exec or anyone else. You just point to the list and tell them you appreciate their ideas but you have other theories that have a higher potential impact that have priority.
5. Review Weekly
Review the prioritization list weekly. Make adjustments as necessary.