Book Review: Always Be Testing
Bryan Eisenberg's latest project, "Always Be Testing" is billed as "The Complete Guide to Google Website Optimizer" and lives up to its name. An ambitious dive into the field of website testing that covers just about every aspect of why you should test and how to do it.Being a testing evangelist and a fairly recent convert to Google Website Optimizer (GWO), I was eager to dive into the latest by Bryan Eisenberg of FutureNow, author of "Call to Action" and pioneer of persuasion architecture. Bryan is joined by co-author John Quarto-vonTivadar, chief scientist at FutureNow and apparently a former NASA scientist who worked on the Hubble space telescope. I have no idea how that relates to Google Website Optimizer, but it's still impressive.
"Always Be Testing" covers a lot of ground, including the basics of Google Website Optimizer, a primer on testing concepts, real-world testing examples, and overviews of core website optimization concepts - scent, personas, persuasion architecture, etc. The how-to aspect of the book quickly leads into a comprehensive discussion of what to test and why, including some difficult questions, such as:
What if what we're testing is only what we can think of, but the problem lies in what we haven't thought of yet?
Like any tool, learning how to test is relatively easy. Knowing what to test and making intelligent choices that improve your website's conversion rate is a difficult combination of science and art. One of my initial concerns about "Always Be Testing" was that the focus on GWO would be too narrow or that the broad scope would only be appropriate for newcomers to testing. Although the book is a great resource to people who are new to testing, there's plenty of material to satisfy conversion specialists.
Almost half of the book is made up of a comprehensive review of 30 factors to consider while testing, including usability, design, trust, the buying cycle, consumer personality types, and many more. These 30 factors are used to produce hundreds of questions that may be one of the most useful aspects of the book. Anyone who does regular testing knows how easy it can be to hit the wall where changes start producing little or no improvement, and this section of the book will be a valuable reference for people stuck in that situation.
Probably my only issue with the book was that the ambitious scope left me wanting for more on some topics. If you're looking for a primer on persuasion architecture, for example, one of Eisenberg's other books may be a better start. If you're new to testing, though, new to GWO, or a seasoned professional who wants a great reference book for those days when you hit the testing wall, "Always Be Testing" is a great choice.
Dr. Pete
· Tuesday, August 19@Mike - Thanks; I have to admit that I don't usually do reviews because, by the time I catch up with my reading list, the book has been out a year or so. This is definitely a great resource for testing, but from an analytics standpoint you might want to check out "Web Analytics: An Hour A Day" by Avinash Kaushik.
Sometimes using stuff is better training in usability than anything else. Half of what the experts do is listen to the people who use stuff.
Linda Bustos
· Monday, September 1Dr. Pete, you are a good book reviewer! I agree, Avinash's Web Analytics an Hour A Day is a good primer on Analytics.
Mike, one of the things I really like about Always Be Testing is how it spells out how to use Google Website Optimizer and even goes into detail on how it works. It's good for non-technical people who don't like to read so much online about how to get started with an online tool :)
You'd also enjoy Andy King's Web Site Optimization which has a little bit of everything under the sun :)
Dr. Pete
· Tuesday, September 2@Linda: Thanks for the recommendation - I've heard some other people mention Andy's book and will have to check it out. I'm about halfway through "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini, which many people have recommended and I finally got around to. If the second half lives up to the first half, I'd go as far as calling the book brilliant and a must-read for anyone in any area of marketing.
MikeTek
· Monday, August 18Great review, Pete. I've been meaning to pick up a book on analytics/testing. With your stamp of approval I'll add this one to the top of the list. Plus it has a purdy cover.
Would you recommend this as a good first read on analytics/testing?
It'd be cool to see some more book reviews like this - as someone with decidedly little training in usability (aside from, ehem, using stuff) and testing I find your opinion pretty valuable.