The question of whether one should run A/B tests (a.k.a online controlled experiments) using one-tailed versus two-tailed tests of significance was something I didn’t even consider important, as I thought the answer (one-tailed) was so self-evident that no discussion was necessary. However, while preparing for my course on “Statistics in A/B Testing” for the ConversionXL […] Read more…
In this article, I explore the concept of non-inferiority A/B tests and contrast it to the broadly accepted practice of running superiority tests. I explain where non-inferiority tests are necessary and how a CRO/LPO/UX testing specialist can make use of this new approach to A/B testing to run much faster tests, and to ultimately achieve […] Read more…
The concept of statistical significance is central to planning, executing and evaluating A/B (and multivariate) tests, but at the same time it is the most misunderstood and misused statistical tool in internet marketing, conversion optimization, landing page optimization, and user testing. This article attempts to lay it out in as plain English as possible: covering […] Read more…
Let’s get this out of the way from the very beginning: most “A/B tests” are in fact multivariate (MVT) tests, a.k.a. A/B/n tests. That is, most of the time when you read about “A/B testing” the term also encompasses multivariate testing. The only reason to specifically differentiate between A/B and MVT is when someone wants to […] Read more…
Can running multiple A/B tests at the same time lead to interferences that result in choosing inferior variants? Does running each A/B test in a silo improve or worsen the situation? If there is any danger, how great is it and how much should we be concerned about it? In this post, I’ll try to answer […] Read more…
A lot of businesses rely on Google Analytics to assess the performance of their online efforts with regards to online sales, marketing, support, or just providing users with information about a brand or a product. Any measurements and conclusions based on them, however, are only as good as the accuracy and reliability of the data […] Read more…
In this article we continue our examination of the AGILE statistical approach to AB testing with a more in-depth look into futility stopping, or stopping early for lack of positive effect (lack of superiority). We’ll cover why such rules are helpful and how they help boost the ROI of A/B testing, why a rigorous statistical rule […] Read more…
Don’t we all want to run tests as quickly as possible, reaching results as conclusive and as certain as possible? Don’t we all want to minimize the number of users we send to an inferior variant and to implement a variant with positive lift as quickly as possible? Don’t we all want to get rid of […] Read more…
After many months of statistical research and development we are happy to announce two major releases that we believe have the potential to reshape statistical practice in the area of A/B testing by substantially increasing the accuracy, efficiency and ultimately return on investment of all kinds of A/B testing efforts in online marketing: a free white […] Read more…
What is Statistical Power? In null-hypothesis statistical testing (NHST) – the procedure most commonly applied in A/B tests, there are two types of errors that practitioners should care about, type I and type II errors. Type I is the probability of the test procedure to falsely reject a true null hypothesis. Type II error is […] Read more…
As someone who spent a good deal of time on trying to figure out how to run A/B tests properly and efficiently, I was intrigued to find a slide from a presentation by VWO®’s data scientist Chris Stucchio, where he goes over the main reasons that caused him and the VWO® team to consider and […] Read more…
Now, this is not a new topic on this blog. I’ve discussed the issue of optional stopping based on “achieving” or “reaching” statistical significance in my Why Every Internet Marketer Should be a Statistician post more than two years ago and others have touched on it as well – both before and after me. However, the issue […] Read more…
Take your A/B testing program to the next level
Want to take your A/B tests to the next level?
If you enjoyed this article and want to read more great content like it make sure to check out the book “Statistical Methods in Online A/B Testing” by the author, Georgi Georgiev, and take your experimentation program to the next level.