Experiments in Business

For this blog post, I had to read two articles on experiments and how they should be conducted in a business setting. I also watched a brief video explaining the benefits and disadvantages of a scientific study, more specifically it discussed the differences between randomized clinical trial and an epidemiological study. Essentially, a randomized clinical trial is not always possible due to many factors, such as potential dangers to people's health, so epidemiological studies are conducted to search for correlation between two things, such as smoking and cancer.

The first reading, "Finally, A Majority of Executives Embrace Experimentation" (2010) by H. James Wilson and Kevin Desousa, discussed differences between experimentation styles: prototyping, simulation and test groups & A/B testing. It was interesting to consider what types of experiments would be the most useful for different business ideas. I found it interesting that there is a difference between prototyping and simulation, and that prototyping could be done quickly without wasting much time on trying to come up with features that might not work. The second reading, "How to Design Smart Business Experiments" (2009) by Thomas H. Davenport, explained a general way to conduct an experiment for a business idea, starting with how, what, when and why to do experimentation.

I learned that simulation works best with big projects, such as cars, and it enables many people to participate in data gathering. Prototyping works best when there is the possibility to recreate the product again after certain tests, and it is fairly easy to modify. I also learned the steps that should be included in an experiment: creating a hypothesis, designing the test, conducting the test, analyzing the test and acting according to the results.

My question is that why so many companies have not engaged more in experimentation? The piece by Wilson & Desousa claims that in 2010, around 51% of surveyed executives claim experiments are their preferred research method. I find that percentage to be quite low, even though I understand that some business ideas are harder to experiment with. I personally find experiments a great way to study how people see different products and how they work in different situations.

For the Google Online Marketing Challenge, an experiment I would conduct is to see whether our client gets more click-throughs from an ad using the words "gift registry", rather than "wish list". This would be a sort of a A/B test, and it would benefit our client by establishing an AdWords ad that provides a better click-through rate, and which could be showed more often to potential visitors.

Post for missing class on 2/11 & 2/13

Recently we have discussed Google Analytics in our class, and it is a major component of the Google Online Marketing Challenge. In fact, we have spent a good amount of time on Analytics both in and out of class. Our guest speaker on January 26, Chris Vella from LunaMetrics, discussed Analytics briefly as it relates to Search Engine Optimization. Also Tim James from Pittsburgh's Google office mentioned Analytics and how important they are. Both emphasized that you should learn how to use the Analytics tools to their best capability, as they are a great help when trying to get as many visitors on your site as possible.

As we are moving forward with our GOMC pre-campaign proposal, we have had to pay special attention to Analytics. Right now, we are creating keywords for our AdWords, and trying to find proper metrics and key performance indicators for our client. Engaging the client in this process is important as they are the ultimate benefactors from this campaign and we should consider their goals for this project. Also, they should have some knowledge already of Analytics, and they might be able to guide us to the most useful metrics and sites on Analytics.

I have learned many new skills, but the most important one might be the basic metrics of Analytics, and when to apply each of them. Our textbook does a good job explaining which metrics & key performance indicators might be useful different websites, and as my team's client's website has elements from both social media and affiliate marketing sites, it is great to have guidance as to what we should pay special attention to when doing our campaign.

What baffles me the most about Google Analytics is just the sheer size of it. There are tons of metrics and things you can collect data on, and it is difficult to comprehend everything without being able to actually see it. My team does not have the access to our client's Analytics page, as we have not needed it yet, but we will most likely request it sooner or later. However, I don't fully understand how Analytics manages to collect so much data, but luckily this is a marketing course, and not computer science.

PS. Here are some good pictures of really simple Analytics pages.