Test Planning: Create a universal test planner in 3 simple steps
One of my responsibilities as a Research Analyst is to manage ongoing test planning with our Research Partners and at times, keeping tests running smoothly can be a challenge.
This is especially true when you consider testing is not a static event – it’s more like a living, breathing continuous cycle of motion.
But even with so many moving parts, effectively managing test plans can be made a little easier with two proven key factors for success – planning and preparation.
Today’s MarketingSherpa blog post is three tips for test planning management. Our goal is to give marketers a few simple best practices to help keep their testing queue in good order.
Step #1. Create
Creating a universal test planner everyone on your team can access is a great place to start.
For our research team, we created a universal test planner including:
- Results from prior testing with our Research Partner
- Current active tests
- Any future testing planned
- A list of test statuses definitions that everyone on the team understands – (test active, test complete, inconclusive, etc.)
- A brief description of what is being tested (call-to-action button test, value copy test, etc.)
- A list of who is responsible for each task in the test plan
Step#2. Organize
As I mentioned in the previous step, the status of a test can change and, based on the results, so will the ideas and priorities for future testing.
Some tests will move forward in the queue, and others will be pushed back to a later time.
So, to help keep our team informed of changes in the testing environment, we update the planner throughout the day and in real time during brainstorming sessions based on results and Partner feedback.
This allows us to focus our research and testing strategy efforts on expanding on discoveries versus chasing our tails to keep up-to-date.
