Stop Split Testing and Try Something New

Message testing is the new, improved, and more powerful version of split testing. Like Captain America after he gets his powers.

What’s the difference? Split testing spits back data concerning the specific ad you’re trying to test, but message testing taps into your ideal market and turns your prime customers into die-hard fans of the brand.

Let me explain with an example.

Chris Stroud, champion of message testing and Chief Strategist at Harmon Brothers Consulting, worked with the amazing Owlet team (the inventors of a baby sock that monitors a baby’s heart rate and oxygen levels) back in the day.

Chris and his team loved the product and were ecstatic to help the Owlet founders reach their potential. Because at that time, Owlet had zero digital sales.

From the start, the founders were passionate about Owlet’s world-changing ability to save baby’s lives from sudden tragedies. And everyone assumed that was also the message that would resonate the most.

But that assumption turned out to be wrong. That messaging performed horribly in testing, and the comments turned into an online brawl.

Why? Because the baby monitor market positioning broke the customers expectations for a couple of key reasons:

Customers expected a “baby monitor” to cost less than the Owlet did.
Customers didn’t expect a baby monitor ad to scare them with warnings of death.

With more testing, they discovered the strongest market position had nothing to do with lifesaving technology.

The most impactful message showed the mother’s lifestyle with a simple, static image of a mom and dad peacefully sleeping—and not worrying about their baby.

Boom. In 6 months they shot upwards of 45 Million social media reactions with so many parents and grandparents commenting, “I want that peace of mind.”

With the right market position, Owlet found passionate customers willing to overcome the initial pricing sensitivity, which gave Owlet a push into their branding and overall success.

If this process sounds like it could be valuable to your company, today’s Raising Unicorns episode dives into the mechanics of how message testing works and how you can use it to find your ideal customers and turn them into ride-or-die fans of your brand. Click here to listen.

As always, if you have any questions about message testing or need help knowing where to start, just hit reply and I’m happy to make a quick intro to Chris and team.