Coming up with the perfect Facebook post can be challenging. You may require several Attempts. Still, even if you churn out dozens of variations, it’s tough to truly predict how your audience will respond to your content.
The only way to really know what your readers like is to, test all the options.
That’s where A/B testing posts comes into play. By providing your audience with two different types of posts, you can easily see which received the most engagement and reach. From there, simply cut the one that underperformed and keep the one that worked better.
So lets look at the Top 5 tips to A/B testing Facebook posts
Make small changes to the copy
You might want to test a few aspects of your post, such as your headline, description, caption, and image. The key here is to focus on one variable at a time, and avoid the temptation to cram all of your options into one test.
For example, say you want to test two different headlines. Posts A and B should have the same description, caption, and image; they should only differ by headline. If they differ in other ways, you won’t really know which aspect of the post people were responding to.
You can run other tests to fine tune other aspects. While testing copy try and use a format for example 5 top tips vs the best tips. This will give you directional input to craft future headlines.
Other tests that you can run are
- Picture post vs. video post
- Picture post vs. link post
- Picture A vs. Picture B
- Call to action A vs. call to Action B
- Copy A vs. Copy B
Don’t blow your budget
If anyone says you need to spend hundreds of dollars to A/B test your Facebook post, don’t listen to them. It’s easy to create effective Facebook Ads on a budget, and you should be able to do the same with your A/B tests.
Cast a wide net
When testing test in a large sample size so that you get a desired level of action. Use lookalike audiences to find a bigger sample size. A sample of men aged 35-40 who live within five miles of your business probably won’t provide a good indication of how your posts are performing—unless, of course, that’s your only demographic. If you really want to know what readers think of your posts, start by casting a wide net and gauging the reaction.
Find an Optimum Frequency for A/B Testing
You should keep the testing times of the two posts within the frequency of you posting your normal content. This will avoid viewer fatigue. There is no set frequency for this and it is more of a trial and error method to find the optimum frequency
Rinse and Repeat
An A/B tester’s work is never done. After all, audience preferences change over time, and you’ll want to keep your content fresh and engaging. Even if you land on a great format for your Facebook posts, you might want to stretch your creative muscles and try something new.