{"id":4536,"date":"2021-04-11T11:59:01","date_gmt":"2021-04-11T11:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/?p=4536"},"modified":"2024-08-19T22:11:09","modified_gmt":"2024-08-19T22:11:09","slug":"how-to-write-a-hypothesis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/","title":{"rendered":"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"c-post-content\" data-ref=\"case-content\">\n\t<div class=\"post-content\">\n\t\t<div class=\"post-content__container container container--medium\">\n\t\t\t<aside class=\"post-content__sidebar post-content__sidebar--links\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"sticky-menu\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"sticky-menu__title\">Contents<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"sticky-menu\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                            \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sticky-menu__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"sticky-menu__item-link  active\" href=\"#creatingyourstrongestmarketinghypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"arrow\"><svg viewBox=\"0 0 16 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M10.6875 9.34375V7.34375L13.3438 10L10.6875 12.6562V10.6562H2.65625V9.34375H10.6875Z\" fill=\"#F6876F\"\/><\/svg><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sticky-menu__item-text\">Creating your strongest marketing hypothesis<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                            \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sticky-menu__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"sticky-menu__item-link \" href=\"#thebasicsthecorrectmarketinghypothesisformat\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"arrow\"><svg viewBox=\"0 0 16 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M10.6875 9.34375V7.34375L13.3438 10L10.6875 12.6562V10.6562H2.65625V9.34375H10.6875Z\" fill=\"#F6876F\"\/><\/svg><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sticky-menu__item-text\">The basics: The correct marketing hypothesis format<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                            \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sticky-menu__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"sticky-menu__item-link \" href=\"#levelupmovingfromagoodtogreathypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"arrow\"><svg viewBox=\"0 0 16 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M10.6875 9.34375V7.34375L13.3438 10L10.6875 12.6562V10.6562H2.65625V9.34375H10.6875Z\" fill=\"#F6876F\"\/><\/svg><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sticky-menu__item-text\">Level up: Moving from a good to great hypothesis<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                            \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sticky-menu__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"sticky-menu__item-link \" href=\"#itsbasedonascience\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"arrow\"><svg viewBox=\"0 0 16 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M10.6875 9.34375V7.34375L13.3438 10L10.6875 12.6562V10.6562H2.65625V9.34375H10.6875Z\" fill=\"#F6876F\"\/><\/svg><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sticky-menu__item-text\">It\u2019s based on a science<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                            \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sticky-menu__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"sticky-menu__item-link \" href=\"#buildingmarketinghypothesestocreateinsights\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"arrow\"><svg viewBox=\"0 0 16 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M10.6875 9.34375V7.34375L13.3438 10L10.6875 12.6562V10.6562H2.65625V9.34375H10.6875Z\" fill=\"#F6876F\"\/><\/svg><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sticky-menu__item-text\">Building marketing hypotheses to create insights<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                            \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"sticky-menu__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"sticky-menu__item-link \" href=\"#whatmakesagreathypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"arrow\"><svg viewBox=\"0 0 16 20\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M10.6875 9.34375V7.34375L13.3438 10L10.6875 12.6562V10.6562H2.65625V9.34375H10.6875Z\" fill=\"#F6876F\"\/><\/svg><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sticky-menu__item-text\">What makes a great hypothesis?<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/aside>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"post-content__sections\">\n\t\t\t\t\t                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__section\" id=\"creatingyourstrongestmarketinghypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"post-content__section-title\">Creating your strongest marketing hypothesis<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__section-content\"><div class=\"single-blog__main-content\">\n<p>The potential for your marketing improvement depends on the strength of your testing hypotheses.<\/p>\n<p>But where are you getting your test ideas from? Have you been scouring competitor sites, or perhaps pulling from previous designs on your site? The web is full of ideas and you\u2019re full of ideas \u2013 there is no shortage of inspiration, that\u2019s for sure.<\/p>\n<p>Coming up with something you\u00a0<i>want<\/i>\u00a0to test isn\u2019t hard to do.<br \/>\nComing up with something you\u00a0<i>should<\/i>\u00a0test can be hard to do.<\/p>\n<p>Hard \u2013 yes. Impossible? No. Which is good news, because if you can\u2019t create hypotheses for things that should be tested, your test results won\u2019t mean mean much, and you probably shouldn\u2019t be spending your time testing.<\/p>\n<p>Taking the time to write your hypotheses correctly will help you structure your ideas, get better results, and avoid wasting traffic on\u00a0poor test designs.<\/p>\n<p>With this post, we\u2019re getting advanced with marketing hypotheses, showing you how to write and structure your hypotheses to gain both business results and marketing insights!<\/p>\n<p>By the time you finish reading, you\u2019ll be able to:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Distinguish a solid hypothesis from a time-waster, and<\/li>\n<li>Structure your solid hypothesis to get results\u00a0<i>and<\/i>\u00a0insights<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>To make this whole experience a bit more tangible, let\u2019s track a sample idea from\u2026well\u2026idea to hypothesis.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s say you identified a call-to-action (CTA)* while browsing the web, and you were inspired to test something similar on your own lead generation landing page. You think it might work for your users! Your idea is:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy page needs a new CTA.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><i>*A call-to-action is the point where you, as a marketer, ask your prospect to do something on your page. It often includes a button or link to an action like \u201cBuy\u201d, \u201cSign up\u201d, or \u201cRequest a quote\u201d.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__index\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"post-content__index-title\">Contents<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"post-content__index-links\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__index-link\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#creatingyourstrongestmarketinghypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCreating your strongest marketing hypothesis\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__index-link\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#thebasicsthecorrectmarketinghypothesisformat\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe basics: The correct marketing hypothesis format\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__index-link\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#levelupmovingfromagoodtogreathypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLevel up: Moving from a good to great hypothesis\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__index-link\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#itsbasedonascience\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s based on a science\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__index-link\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#buildingmarketinghypothesestocreateinsights\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBuilding marketing hypotheses to create insights\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__index-link\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#whatmakesagreathypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-menu-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhat makes a great hypothesis?\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__section\" id=\"thebasicsthecorrectmarketinghypothesisformat\" data-ref=\"case-content-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"post-content__section-title\">The basics: The correct marketing hypothesis format<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__section-content\"><p>A well-structured hypothesis provides insights whether it is proved, disproved, or results are inconclusive.<\/p>\n<p>You should never phrase a marketing hypothesis as a question. It should be written as a statement that can be rejected or confirmed.<\/p>\n<p>Further, it should be a statement geared toward revealing insights \u2013 with this in mind, it helps to imagine each statement followed by a\u00a0<i>reason<\/i>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Changing _______ into ______ will increase [conversion goal], because:<\/li>\n<li>Changing _______ into ______ will decrease [conversion goal], because:<\/li>\n<li>Changing _______ into ______ will not affect [conversion goal], because:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Each of the above sentences ends with \u2018because\u2019 to set the expectation that there will be an explanation behind the results of whatever you\u2019re testing.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s important to remember to plan ahead when you create a test, and think about explaining why the test turned out the way it did when the results come in.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__section\" id=\"levelupmovingfromagoodtogreathypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"post-content__section-title\">Level up: Moving from a good to great hypothesis<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__section-content\"><p>Understanding what makes an idea worth testing is necessary for your optimization team.<\/p>\n<p>If your tests are based on random ideas you googled or were suggested by a consultant, your testing process still has its training wheels on. Great hypotheses aren\u2019t random. They\u2019re based on rationale and aim for learning.<\/p>\n<p>Hypotheses should be based on themes and analysis that show potential conversion barriers.<\/p>\n<p>At Conversion, we call this investigation phase the \u201cExplore Phase\u201d where we use frameworks like the LIFT Model\u00a0to understand the prospect\u2019s unique perspective. (You can read more on the\u00a0the full optimization process here).<\/p>\n<p><b>A well-founded marketing hypothesis should also provide you with new, testable clues about your users regardless of whether or not the test wins, loses or yields inconclusive results.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>These new insights should inform future testing: a solid hypothesis can help you quickly separate worthwhile ideas from the rest when planning follow-up tests.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cUltimately, what matters most is that you have a hypothesis going into each experiment and you design each experiment to address that hypothesis.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u2013 Nick So, VP of Delivery<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><b>Here\u2019s a quick tip<\/b>:<\/p>\n<p><b>If you\u2019re about to run a test that isn\u2019t going to tell you anything new about your users and their motivations, it\u2019s probably not worth investing your time in.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s take this opportunity to refer back to your original idea:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy page needs a new CTA.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ok, but\u00a0<i>what now<\/i>? To get actionable insights from \u2018a new CTA\u2019, you need to know why it behaved the way it did. You need to ask the right question.<\/p>\n<p>To test the waters, maybe you changed the copy of the CTA button on your lead generation form from \u201cSubmit\u201d to \u201cSend demo request\u201d. If this change leads to an increase in conversions, it could mean that your users require more clarity about what their information is being used for.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s a potential insight.<\/p>\n<p>Based on this insight, you could follow up with another test that adds copy around the CTA about next steps: what the user should anticipate after they have submitted their information.<\/p>\n<p>For example, will they be speaking to a specialist via email? Will something be waiting for them the next time they visit your site? You can test providing more information, and see if your users are interested in knowing it!<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s the cool thing about a good hypothesis: the results of the test, while important (of course) aren\u2019t the only component driving your\u00a0future test ideas. The insights gleaned lead to further hypotheses and insights in a virtuous cycle.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t                            <div data-target=\"post-newsletter-anchor\" data-device=\"mobile\"><\/div>\n                        \t\t\t\t\t                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__section\" id=\"itsbasedonascience\" data-ref=\"case-content-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"post-content__section-title\">It\u2019s based on a science<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__section-content\"><p>The term \u201chypothesis\u201d probably isn\u2019t foreign to you. In fact, it may bring up memories of grade-school science class; it\u2019s a critical part of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Scientific_method\">scientific method<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The scientific method in testing follows a systematic routine that sets ideation up to predict the results of experiments via:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Collecting data and information through observation<\/li>\n<li>Creating tentative descriptions of what is being observed<\/li>\n<li>Forming\u00a0<b>hypotheses<\/b>\u00a0that predict different outcomes based on these observations<\/li>\n<li>Testing your\u00a0<b>hypotheses<\/b><\/li>\n<li>Analyzing the data, drawing conclusions and insights from the results<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Don\u2019t worry! Hypothesizing may seem \u2018sciency\u2019, but it doesn\u2019t have to be complicated in practice.<\/p>\n<p>Hypothesizing simply helps ensure the results from your tests are quantifiable, and is necessary if you want to understand how the results reflect the change made in your test.<\/p>\n<p>A strong marketing hypothesis allows testers to use a structured approach in order to discover what works, why it works, how it works, where it works, and who it works on.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy page needs a new CTA.\u201d Is this idea in its current state clear enough to help you understand what works? Maybe. Why it works? No. Where it works? Maybe. Who it works on? No.<\/p>\n<p>Your idea needs refining.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s pull back and take a broader look at the lead generation landing page we want to test.<\/p>\n<p>Imagine the situation: you\u2019ve been diligent in your data collection and you notice several recurrences of Clarity pain points \u2013 meaning that there are many unclear instances throughout the page\u2019s messaging.<\/p>\n<p><i>Rather than focusing on the CTA right off the bat, it may be more beneficial to deal with the bigger clarity issue.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Now you\u2019re starting to think about solving your prospects conversion barriers rather than just testing random ideas!<\/p>\n<p>If you believe the overall page is unclear, your overarching theme of inquiry might be positioned as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cImproving the clarity of the page will reduce confusion and improve [conversion goal].\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>By testing a hypothesis that supports this clarity theme, you can gain confidence in the validity of it as an actionable marketing insight over time.<\/p>\n<p><b>If the test results are negative<\/b>: It may not be worth investigating this motivational barrier any further on this page. In this case, you could return to the data and look at the other motivational barriers that might be affecting user behavior.<\/p>\n<p><b>If the test results are positive<\/b>: You might want to continue to refine the clarity of the page\u2019s message with further testing.<\/p>\n<p>Typically, a test will start with a broad idea \u2014 you identify the changes to make, predict how those changes will impact your conversion goal, and write it out as a broad theme as shown above. Then, repeated tests aimed at that theme will confirm or undermine the strength of the underlying insight.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__section\" id=\"buildingmarketinghypothesestocreateinsights\" data-ref=\"case-content-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"post-content__section-title\">Building marketing hypotheses to create insights<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__section-content\"><p>You believe you\u2019ve identified an overall problem on your landing page (there\u2019s a problem with clarity). Now you want to understand how individual elements contribute to the problem, and the effect these individual elements have on your users.<\/p>\n<p><b>It\u2019s game time<\/b>\u00a0\u2013 now you can start designing a hypothesis that will generate insights.<\/p>\n<p>You believe your users need more clarity. You\u2019re ready to dig deeper to find out if that\u2019s true!<\/p>\n<p>If a specific question needs answering, you should structure your test to make a single change. This isolation might ask: \u201cWhat element are users most sensitive to when it comes to the lack of clarity?\u201d and \u201cWhat changes do I believe will support increasing clarity?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At this point, you\u2019ll want to boil down your overarching theme\u2026<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Improving the clarity of the page will reduce confusion and improve [conversion goal].<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u2026into a quantifiable hypothesis that isolates key sections:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Changing the wording of this CTA to set expectations for users (from \u201csubmit\u201d to \u201csend demo request\u201d) will reduce confusion about the next steps in the funnel and improve order completions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Does this answer what works? Yes: changing the wording on your CTA.<\/p>\n<p>Does this answer why it works? Yes: reducing confusion about the next steps in the funnel.<\/p>\n<p>Does this answer where it works? Yes: on this page, before the user enters this theoretical funnel.<\/p>\n<p>Does this answer who it works on? No, this question demands another isolation. You might structure your hypothesis more like this:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Changing the wording of the CTA to set expectations for users (from \u201csubmit\u201d to \u201csend demo request\u201d) will reduce confusion\u00a0<b>for visitors coming from my email campaign<\/b>\u00a0about the next steps in the funnel and improve order completions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now we\u2019ve got a clear hypothesis. And one worth testing!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t                        \t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-content__section\" id=\"whatmakesagreathypothesis\" data-ref=\"case-content-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"post-content__section-title\">What makes a great hypothesis?<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"post-content__section-content\"><p><strong>1. It\u2019s testable.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>2. It addresses conversion barriers.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>3. It aims at gaining marketing insights.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s compare:<\/p>\n<p><b>The original idea<\/b>: \u201cMy page needs a new CTA.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b>Following the hypothesis structure<\/b>: \u201cA new CTA on my page will increase [conversion goal]\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b>The first test implied a problem with clarity, provides a potential theme<\/b>: \u201cImproving the clarity of the page will reduce confusion and improve [conversion goal].\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b>The potential clarity theme leads to a new hypothesis<\/b>: \u201cChanging the wording of the CTA to set expectations for users (from \u201csubmit\u201d to \u201csend demo request\u201d) will reduce confusion about the next steps in the funnel and improve order completions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b>Final refined hypothesis<\/b>: \u201cChanging the wording of the CTA to set expectations for users (from \u201csubmit\u201d to \u201csend demo request\u201d) will reduce confusion for visitors coming from my email campaign about the next steps in the funnel and improve order completions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Which test would you rather your team invest in?<\/p>\n<p>Before you start your next test, take the time to do a proper analysis of the page you want to focus on. Do preliminary testing to define bigger issues, and use that information to refine and pinpoint your marketing hypothesis to give you forward-looking insights.<\/p>\n<p>Doing this will help you avoid time-wasting tests, and enable you to start getting some insights for your team to keep testing!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t                            <div data-target=\"post-newsletter-anchor\" data-device=\"mobile\"><\/div>\n                        \t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t<aside class=\"post-content__sidebar post-content__sidebar--form\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"sticky-newsletter\" data-target=\"post-newsletter-anchor\" data-device=\"desktop\">\n                \t<div class=\"post-newsletter\" data-target=\"post-newsletter\">\n    <h4 class=\"post-newsletter__title\">Real-world growth experiments. In your inbox. Every week. <\/h4>\n            <div class=\"post-newsletter__form post-newsletter__form--world kam-world\">\n        <script charset=\"utf-8\" type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"\/\/js.hsforms.net\/forms\/embed\/v2.js\"><\/script> <script>   hbspt.forms.create({     region: \"na1\",     portalId: \"9358319\",     formId: \"4e927e03-4f90-466a-8646-7f94947f860c\"   }); <\/script>\n    <\/div>\n            <div class=\"post-newsletter__form post-newsletter__form--uk-us kam-uk-us\">\n            <script charset=\"utf-8\" type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"\/\/js.hsforms.net\/forms\/embed\/v2.js\"><\/script><script>hbspt.forms.create({ region: \"na1\", portalId: \"9358319\", formId: \"03e799e7-ee63-4857-9182-cb3a687dba40\" });<\/script>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"post-newsletter__terms\"><p>Join 5,000+ optimizers who subscribe to our content<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n            <\/aside>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":4537,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation | Conversion<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Conversion gives you tactical examples that walk you through how to properly structure a marketing hypothesis to ensure usable results\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation | Conversion\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Conversion gives you tactical examples that walk you through how to properly structure a marketing hypothesis to ensure usable results\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Conversion\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-04-11T11:59:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-08-19T22:11:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis_blog_1600x1000_COMPRESSED-1.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Alex Mason\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis_blog_1600x1000_COMPRESSED-1.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Alex Mason\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Alex Mason\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/person\/19aedcc4b62190a83e1b0e8779026b5f\"},\"headline\":\"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-04-11T11:59:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-19T22:11:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\"},\"wordCount\":8,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Conversion Optimization\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\",\"name\":\"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation | Conversion\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2021-04-11T11:59:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-19T22:11:09+00:00\",\"description\":\"Conversion gives you tactical examples that walk you through how to properly structure a marketing hypothesis to ensure usable results\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to write a hypothesis for &hellip;\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/\",\"name\":\"Conversion\",\"description\":\"Better results with evidence\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Conversion\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Colour-Logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Colour-Logo.png\",\"width\":1821,\"height\":193,\"caption\":\"Conversion\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/person\/19aedcc4b62190a83e1b0e8779026b5f\",\"name\":\"Alex Mason\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ebb50c87d02df406ac04ead6097abee6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ebb50c87d02df406ac04ead6097abee6?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Alex Mason\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/author\/alexander-mason\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation | Conversion","description":"Conversion gives you tactical examples that walk you through how to properly structure a marketing hypothesis to ensure usable results","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation | Conversion","og_description":"Conversion gives you tactical examples that walk you through how to properly structure a marketing hypothesis to ensure usable results","og_url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/","og_site_name":"Conversion","article_published_time":"2021-04-11T11:59:01+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-08-19T22:11:09+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":1000,"url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis_blog_1600x1000_COMPRESSED-1.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Alex Mason","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_image":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis_blog_1600x1000_COMPRESSED-1.png","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Alex Mason"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/"},"author":{"name":"Alex Mason","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/person\/19aedcc4b62190a83e1b0e8779026b5f"},"headline":"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation","datePublished":"2021-04-11T11:59:01+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-19T22:11:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/"},"wordCount":8,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Conversion Optimization"],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/","url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/","name":"How to write a hypothesis for marketing experimentation | Conversion","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2021-04-11T11:59:01+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-19T22:11:09+00:00","description":"Conversion gives you tactical examples that walk you through how to properly structure a marketing hypothesis to ensure usable results","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/how-to-write-a-hypothesis\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to write a hypothesis for &hellip;"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/","name":"Conversion","description":"Better results with evidence","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#organization","name":"Conversion","url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Colour-Logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Colour-Logo.png","width":1821,"height":193,"caption":"Conversion"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/person\/19aedcc4b62190a83e1b0e8779026b5f","name":"Alex Mason","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ebb50c87d02df406ac04ead6097abee6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ebb50c87d02df406ac04ead6097abee6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Alex Mason"},"url":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/blog\/author\/alexander-mason\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4536"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4536"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7258,"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4536\/revisions\/7258"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conversion.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}