scientists leaders: Accepting the scientific method //

This series outlines the responsibilities and roles of marketing leaders. The fourth and final section discusses MOps leaders’ roles as scientists. In previous editions, they were described as Modernizers and Orchestrators.

The scientific method is the path to knowledge. First, practitioners develop a hypothesis. This is an assumption or possible explanation for an observation. The hypothesis is then tested by carrying out experiments. A marketing idea is similar to a hypothesis. Execution, such as a campaign that is based on an idea, and measurement of results can all be compared to an experiment.

Marketing professionals and teams must adopt a scientific-discovery approach to success. Marketing and marketing operations professionals are now responsible for evaluating and implementing new martech (see part I). Adoption of new technology is based on the assumption that it will improve outcomes. The experiment is to use the marketing software and measure the results.

One example is the ability to scale email marketing platforms. It’s possible to run experiments within the platform, which can help you determine if it can accomplish that goal. A/B Testing was first implemented by creating two different versions of the email creative and deploying them to small sections of the database. This simple experiment will show which creative performs best.

Every element of any digital campaign, and every underlying tactic, is an opportunity to experiment. Recipient responses are used to determine which results were “better”. These responses could include key performance indicators (KPIs), which can range from the foundational — click-throughs and opens to form-completions and conversion rates — to campaign or business outcomes such as leads, opportunities, and sales.

Holistic testing and iterative Learning

A/B testing is often considered a starting point for marketers. Marketing can be turbocharged by linking multiple tactics and conducting experiments and using an iterative approach.

We “…want more than just A/B testing and to do what I call “holistic testing”, which is very scientific testing. Kath Pay, CEO, Holistic Email Marketing, stated at a recent MarTech conference.

Pay explained that once you have a winning result and it will not be based on the volume of emails in a single campaign, then you’ll update your hypothesis and replace the lost stream with one that supports your next hypothesis.

Learning is an iterative process, regardless of whether A/B or holistic approaches are used. Observations lead to a hypothesis. The test is designed and executed. After that, the results are reviewed and lessons learned for the next iterative learning cycle.

Evaluate results, beware automation

Each experiment produces more data that can be analyzed. The best marketers know how to evaluate the results of each experiment before they move on to the next.

Sometimes, data will require us to revise the hypothesis before we can come up with the next experiment. Automating the next step does not mean that we should.

Business results are influenced by scientists

Market leaders and marketing operations experts are often given the task of creating models that track the results of marketing programs.

For most organizations, attribution models have advanced significantly beyond the “last touch” conversion measures. To apply scientific rigor to attributions, it is necessary to test multiple hypotheses in order to determine the outcome.

Some experiments don’t work

The scientific method is built to fail. Every idea is a hypothesis, and every campaign an experiment. It’s only natural that some hypotheses will be proven wrong. Failures provide guidance for the next hypothesis or experiment.

Elea Feit Assistant Professor of Marketing at Drexel University stated that analytics will not tell you what the next big idea is, but it will tell when it’s working.

Conclusion

The key to improving customer experience is harnessing the insights generated by user interactions. It is important to adopt a scientific approach, testing hypotheses and developing them.

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