Think for a few seconds about a page or email you manage. How many columns does it have? Do you know whether that is the optimal number? If you do know, have you tested it? What if you could improve the performance of the piece by adding or removing columns? In our next clinic we’ll be drawing on about 15 years of research on optimizing columns and layout for the web to help you discover the best way to layout your page or email. Some of the questions we are planning on answering are: • What is the optimal number of columns for a page? • How should I weight columns on the page? • Which is better, a right sidebar or left sidebar?

1. How Many Columns Should I Use?
How using the best page layout led to a 681% relative
increase

2. We’re sharing on Twitter!
#WebClinic

3. Today’s speakers
Jon Powell
Senior Manager
Research and Strategy
MECLABS
@jonpowell31 Marketing research practitioner with 7 years of hands-on experience gained through
managing hundreds of A/B and multivariate tests for e-commerce, health care,
financial and education Research Partners.

4. Today’s topic
A
?
B
C
D
Given a choice between these particular page templates, which
would you choose for your offer pages? Why?

5. Today’s topic
?
What is the highest performing layout
(number of columns) for my webpages?
How do I know which one to choose?

6. Experiment 1: Background
Experiment ID: TP1736a
Record Location: MECLABS Research Library
Research Partner: [Protected]
Background: A large technology company selling software to small businesses.
Goal: To significantly increase the number of software purchases from paid search
traffic (branded terms).
Research Question: Which column layout will generate the highest rate of software
purchases?
Test Design: A/B multifactor split test

7. Experiment 1: Control
2-Column Layout
COLUMN #1
COLUMN #2

8. Experiment 1: Treatment
1-Column Layout
COLUMN #1

9. Experiment 1: Side-by-side
2-Column Layout
COLUMN #1
COLUMN #2
1-Column Layout
COLUMN #1

10. Experiment 1: Results
681% Relative Increase in Orders
The one-column treatment design increased branded search orders by 680.6% and revenue
per visit by 606.7% when tested against the two-column control design.
Design
Order Rate
Revenue/Visit
Control – 2 Columns
0.20%*
$0.50*
Treatment – 1 Column
1.58%*
$3.56*
680.6%
606.7%
% Relative Change:
*Absolute performance rates and numbers have been anonymized

11. Audience question
2-Column Layout
?
1-Column Layout
Why did the single-column page layout have a significant
increase in results?

12. Experiment: Results
From the Test Protocol:
“The eye path of the page is
confusing to users … ”
“ … by providing a linear eye
path, distractions will be
removed and will cause an
increase in conversion.”
*Certain sections of content have been anonymized for the Partner

13. Similar findings
Protocol IDs: TP1306
Example: Main offer page
2-Column Layout
1-Column Layout
266%
In Clicks

14. Similar findings
Protocol IDs: TP1356, TP1407
Example: Transaction page
2-Column Layout
1-Column Layout
22%
In Completed Orders

15. ?
Is there an underlying theory for choosing
the highest performing page layout?

16. Experiment 2: Background
Experiment ID: TP1736b
Record Location: MECLABS Research Library
Research Partner: [Protected]
Background: A large technology company selling software to small businesses.
Goal: To significantly increase the number of software purchases from paid search
traffic (non-branded terms).
Research Question: Which column layout will generate the highest rate of software
purchases?
Test Design: A/B multifactor split test

17. Experiment 2: Side-by-side
2-Column Layout
COLUMN #1
COLUMN #2
1-Column Layout
COLUMN #1

18. Experiment 2: Results
85% Relative Decrease in Orders
The one-column treatment design decreased non-branded search orders by 84.9% and
revenue per visit by 67% when tested against the two-column control design.
Design
Order Rate
Revenue/Visit
Control – 2 Columns
5.69%*
$19.78*
Treatment – 1 Column
0.86%*
$6.53*
-84.9%
-67.0%
% Relative Change:
*Absolute performance rates and numbers have been anonymized

19. Experiment 2: Results
?
Why did the winning page layout suddenly
underperform in the same channel?

20. To help answer this
question, we accessed
our library of case
studies for a deeper
study and isolated tests
where page layout was
a primary variable.

21. TP1460
We then conducted a
meta-analysis of those Test
Protocols to uncover
patterns in performance.
TP1457
TP1621
TP1746
TP1306
TP1356
TP1560
TP1633
TP1267
TP1315
TP1639
TP1268
TP1499
TP1658
TP1636
TP1203
TP1635
TP1498
TP1165
TP1475
TP1192
TP1182
TP1469
TP1091
TP1460
TP1585
TP1214
TP1503
TP1422
TP1500
TP1488
TP1616
TP1511
Plus many more Protocols …

22. Initial findings
!
There appeared to be performance patterns for each page in the conversion path …

23. Initial findings
!
However, the patterns were not clear due to numerous outliers.

24. Outlier
Protocol IDs: TP1268
Example: Transaction page
3 Columns
2 Columns
54%
15%
In Revenue per Order
In Revenue per Order
Homepage traffic
Shopping cart traffic

25. Outlier
Protocol IDs: TP1457
Example: Main offer page
2-Column Layout
60%
In Conversions
1-Column Layout

26. Outlier
Protocol IDs: TP1165, TP1182
Example: Directory page
3 Columns
1 Column
5.8%
7.5%
Everyday Traffic
Holiday Traffic
In Searches
In Searches

27. Back to the original question
?
Is there an underlying theory for choosing
the highest performing page layout?

28. Experiment: Analysis
When we took a closer
look at TP1737a-b, each
winning page is
essentially in the same
position in the
conversion funnel.
Main Offer
Page
Channel
Directory Pages
Homepage
Category
Page
Checkout
Path
Thank You
Page

29. Experiment: Analysis
(Ma)YES
They are NOT,
however, in the
same position in
the customer
funnel.
Y
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
A Web search
using brand
language indicates
prior knowledge
of the value
proposition.
A generic Web
search does not,
requiring more
clarity of value.
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
Branded Winner
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
Non-Branded Winner
Value Proposition
(Mi)YES

30. Meta-analysis results
(Ma)YES
Y
(Mi)YES
We recategorized each Test Protocol
in the analysis according to its stage
in the customer thought sequence
(as opposed to the conversion path).
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
In doing this, we discovered a single
pattern that encompassed all Test
Protocols analyzed.
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
Value Proposition
(Mi)YES

31. Meta-analysis results
Number of
Columns
Less
(Ma)YES
Column Weight
Uneven
Y
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
At the beginning of the
thought sequence, the
highest performing pages
often have three or more
columns that are evenly
weighted.
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(ex: 33%/33%/33%)
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
More
Even
Value Proposition
(Mi)YES

32. Meta-analysis results
Number of
Columns
Less
(Ma)YES
Column Weight
Uneven
Y
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
As the thought sequence
progresses, column
counts in high-performing
pages drop. If there are
two columns, they are
unevenly weighted.
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
(70%/30% or 80%/20%)
(Mi)YES
(Mi)YES
More
Even
Value Proposition
(Mi)YES

33. On the ideal number of columns
F
Key Principles
1. First, we must understand there is no single answer to the question, “How many
columns should I use?” Sometimes “less” is optimal; and sometimes “more” is
optimal.
2. To begin answering this question, we must understand where the customer is in
the mental (not physical) conversion funnel. From there, we can apply two
underlying principles:
1.
The more we know about what the visitor wants, the more we should focus on that desire
(less columns; unequally weighted).
2.
The less we know about what the visitor wants, the more we should enable the them to
self-select (more columns; equally weighted)

34. Live Optimization
Columns

36. Live Optimization
Tracky
Primary Audience: Business and consumers
Primary Objective: Awareness
http://bit.ly/1aJj4sL
#WebClinic

37. Live Optimization
Santa Fe Way
Primary Audience: Health enthusiasts
Primary Objective: Information page
http://bit.ly/1c3zQDN
#WebClinic

38. Live Optimization
Windstream
Primary Audience: B2C
Primary Objective: Lead gen/sales
http://bit.ly/1f6PyP1
#WebClinic

39. Live Optimization
Environmental Defense Fund
Primary Audience: Potential donors
Primary Objective: Raise funds
http://bit.ly/1aqws7k
#WebClinic

40. Live Optimization
StudyAbroad.com
Primary Audience: Students
Primary Objective: Info page
http://bit.ly/KGhAG1
#WebClinic

41. Live Optimization
Declaring Bankruptcy
Primary Audience: B2C
Primary Objective: Lead generation
http://bit.ly/1biojwl
#WebClinic

42. Live Optimization
Jewish Federation
Primary Audience: Members
Primary Objective: Fundraising
http://bit.ly/1f6PyhV
#WebClinic

43. Live Optimization
IHG
Primary Audience: B2C
Primary Objective: Lead generation
http://bit.ly/JH3dkj
#WebClinic

44. Live Optimization
Applied Inspirations
Primary Audience: B2C
Primary Objective: Sales
http://bit.ly/1dvTJ24
#WebClinic

45. Next Clinic: Background
Experiment ID: TP2136
Record Location: MECLABS Research Library
Research Partner: [Protected]
Background: A large, well-known audio technology and engineering company offering
professional and personal audio products.
Goal: To significantly increase the number clicks from a promotional email.
Research Question: Which email call-to-action copy will produce the greatest
clickthrough rate?
Test Design: A/B single factorial split test

46. Next Clinic: Email template

47. Next Clinic: Email template

48. Next Clinic: Version A

49. Next Clinic: Version B

50. Next Clinic: Side-by-Side
Version A
Version B
“Shop Now”
“View Details”

51. Which treatment won?

52. To see the results
Live Feb. 12 at 4 p.m. EST
Join the live 35-minute Web clinic
• How can I get the most clickthrough for the least effort?
• Which call-to-action copy works best for promotional emails?
• How does copywriting change for newsletters and nurturebased emails?
To join live, register at the link below:
MarketingExperiments.com/TwoWordsEmail

53. See how you can conduct research with us
MECLABS conducts rigorous experiments in the new science of optimization. We apply our
discoveries to help leaders optimize the financial performance of their sales and
marketing programs.
Learn more about how you may
be a fit for a MECLABS Research
Rartnership:
• Select Research Partnership
Opportunities on the postwebinar survey
• Contact us directly
info@MECLABS.com
1-877-635-0565
x