How to A/B test two SMS openings
Should a sale text lead with the discount or the deadline? Here’s how to give each opening a fair test before sending the offer to your full list.
Change just the opening line
Suppose a sale ends on Sunday. Write one text for shoppers who care about the saving and another for shoppers who need a reminder. Use the same sender, discount, landing page and deadline in both.
A · Discount first
Save 20% this weekend. Shop by Sunday with code WEEKEND20: {link}
B · Deadline first
Sale ends Sunday. Save 20% this weekend with code WEEKEND20: {link}
Add the texts as separate variations in the campaign editor. If you put both openings inside one rotation template, the report will group them under that template.
Set aside an audience for the test
For a list of 10,000, a 20% test sets aside 2,000 recipients for the first send and leaves 8,000 for later. With two equally weighted variations, plan for roughly 1,000 recipients per version.
Pick the measure before sending. Choose clicks if the goal is to get people to the offer. Choose leads if you want to compare tracked submissions or conversions. In either case, test the link and tracking on your phone first.
Leave time for the remaining send
If the first texts go out on Saturday morning, choose a test window that gives people time to act and still leaves the rest of the list time to use the offer. Once the window closes, SMS Studio compares the results for the measure you selected.
For example, if A earns 46 tracked clicks and B earns 31, a clicks-based test sends A to the remaining 8,000. If the top results tie, the tied versions share the remaining audience. These numbers illustrate the decision for this campaign.