If you have been following this blog for a while, you probably know how strong an advocate I am for testing all the time. The concept of “always be testing” is not something new but a lot of companies cut corners when it comes to setting up sophisticated tests for their online campaigns. Don’t get me wrong. You can get lucky and make a lot of profit from a campaign that is not fully optimized, but you are leaving money on the table if you don’t test often. Worse, your luck will run out eventually, and you’ll be left with campaigns that are not optimized, and you may lose a lot of money in the process as well. It’s OK to be skeptic about the whole testing process, but once you start giving it a try, you are going to realize why testing is important.

Always Be Testing is a super book that shows you why you should be testing all the time, and how to go about doing it. It’s one thing to know the importance of testing your campaigns. It’s a whole other thing to know how to go about doing it. The book is very well written and designed for anyone interested in the science and art sides of online marketing. It shows you how to define objectives for your campaigns, what metrics you need to pay attention to, and how to meet your goals with your online campaigns. Some people like to pay more attention to CTR while others focus more on EPC or ROI. There are advantages and disadvantage for each of these approaches and not every business works the same. But reading this book will let you know what you should keep an eye out for and what metrics apply the best to your business model.

So what is testing really? It’s more than a word. It’s about honing every aspect of your campaign and optimizing your landing pages in a way that let you convert the most. It’s not just about how your landing page is designed. It’s about layout, colors, fonts, and even the copy on your landing page. You should test everything. One way or another your tests will tell you if the changes you are making are working in your favor.

Here are the must-read topics covered in this book:

• Framework: setting up a framework for your testing process is very important. This book shows you how to go about doing it.
• Call to Action: find out where and how to implement your call to action.
• Copy: your copy is one of the more important aspects of your landing page. Learn how to write copy the right way.
• Testing methods: there is no one way of going about testing in your online campaigns. This book shows which test applies to what situations.
• Business Models: my favorite topic. Knowing what you need to test in different business models helps you develop better tests for your campaigns in a more effective fashion. You can’t apply the same test concepts a retailer uses to a non-profit organization’s landing pages. This book shows you what you need to pay attention to in various situations so you’ll never be lost.

There is a lot more covered in this book (including 250 testing ideas you can use in your campaigns). If you are a skeptic about testing or looking to take your testing game to the next level, you must read Always Be Testing. It’s well written and to the point. And it doesn’t try to go over your head. Testing is an art and science. Make sure you know all the sides.