The End of the Google Optimize Era: Exploring Worthy Alternatives for A/B Testing

Google is ending the era of free A/B testing - both Google Optimize and its paid extended version, Optimize 360, will cease operations on September 30, 2023. However, all historical data can already be preserved. Instructions on how to do this with Google Optimize going away can be found here. To access unprocessed historical data, you can utilize the Google Analytics Data API.

With Google Optimize soon becoming a thing of the past, what will we have to work with in the near future? Together with Marco Fedorenko, an SEO expert and author of the Telegram channel "SEO Ideas," we have selected the best available Google Optimize alternatives. All of them seamlessly integrate with Google, allowing for smooth incorporation of A/B testing solutions into Google Analytics 4.

Optimizely for A/B Testing and Experiments

The Optimizely platform is an excellent alternative to Google Optimize. Here are a few key advantages.

Comprehensive A/B Testing Capabilities

The platform offers a wide range of testing and optimization options, including A/B, multivariate, and multipage experiments. This will allow you to test various elements of your website or application and gather valuable insights for optimizing the user experience.

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Advanced Targeting and Segmentation

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With Optimizely, you can create audience segments based on various attributes, such as:

• Location
• Device
• Behavior
• Demographic data

This allows you to target specific groups of users for your experiments and optimizations.

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Easy-to-use Visual Editor

It allows creating and modifying experiments without the need for deep programming knowledge, making it accessible to a wide range of professionals, including marketers and product managers.

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Reliable Analytics and Reporting

Analytics and comprehensive reports are available in real-time, allowing you to track the effectiveness of your experiments and make data-driven decisions.

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The advanced targeting capabilities, reliable analytics, seamless integration with Google Analytics 4, and various API and SDK options all make Optimizely a worthy alternative to Google Optimize.

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For Google Optimize users, Optimizely has introduced a special offer.

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Visual Website Optimizer for comprehensive A/B testing and conversion optimization.

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VWO or Visual Website Optimizer is another platform among the top options to replace Google Optimize. What functionalities does it offer?

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Comprehensive Set of Tools for Testing and Optimization

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VWO tool is useful for:

• A/B testing
• multivariate testing
• split URL testing
• personalization

These options allow conducting various experiments and optimizing your website based on data obtained from insights.

Intuitively Understandable Visual Editor

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Just like in Optimizely, the Visual Website Optimizer platform's visual editor allows easy creation and modification of experiments without requiring advanced programming skills.

Advanced Targeting and Segmentation

The platform provides powerful targeting and segmentation capabilities, allowing personalized experiences for different audience segments based on various attributes:

• Location
• Device
• Behavior
• Demographic data
• This enhances the conversion rate and user engagement.

Reliable Analytics and Reporting

VWO also integrates well with Google Analytics 4, providing real-time analytics and detailed reporting.

Heatmaps and Session Recordings

An additional bonus of the platform. These options offer valuable insights into how users interact with your website, helping you identify areas for improvement and optimize the user experience based on their actual behavior.

Flexibility and Collaboration

VWO offers various APIs and integrations, making it easy to incorporate the platform into your existing tech stack. You can assign user roles, manage permissions, and establish effective workflows within your team. VWO also includes behavioral analysis tools that gather data for hypothesis building, eliminating the need for additional tools.

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An especially pleasant bonus of Visual Website Optimizer is the free Starter package available for websites with up to 50,000 users.

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Convert for Corporate-Level A/B Testing Business

Convert is the next powerful A/B testing tool that is on par with its competitors in terms of functionality. While it lacks built-in tools for creating heatmaps or session recordings (although integration is available), its user-friendly interface, advanced targeting features, unlimited tests, and seamless integration with various platforms make it the ideal solution for marketers aiming to improve their website's Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO).

Additionally, it is worth mentioning:

• Dynamic testing

Allows creating personalized tests in the JS editor, providing full control over your website's JS, jQuery, and CSS.

• Advanced DMP profiling

Allows pulling unique identifiers from your segmented databases.

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Other advantages of the platform include:

• User-friendly interface (suitable for both beginners and experienced marketers).
• Advanced targeting capabilities for personalized testing.
• Seamless integration with popular platforms.
• Multivariate and multipage testing options.
• Reliable reporting and analytics features.
• Excellent customer support.

Freshmarketer - an "All-in-One" A/B Testing Platform

Finally, Freshmarketer is a versatile marketing platform from Freshworks that combines the power of multiple marketing tools: A/B testing, heatmaps for gathering quantitative data during tests for further iterations, session recordings, AI-powered text variations recommendations, and more, providing a comprehensive optimization solution.

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A/B Testing, Split Testing, and Funnel Analysis 

Freshmarketer offers an intuitive A/B testing tool that allows creating and launching experiments to compare different variations of your web pages. The easy-to-use visual editor enables making changes without any programming knowledge, and the platform also supports CSS and JavaScript for experienced users.

In the visual editor, you can quickly set up goals, custom events, and targeting parameters for each variation of your web page to enhance engagement and conversion.

Marketing and CRO Tools

These include form analytics, session recordings, integrations, and heatmaps. Heatmaps visualize user behavior and identify areas for improvement and optimization. Session recordings are crucial for identifying usability issues, optimizing user flows, and enhancing the overall user experience. Additionally, Freshmarketer seamlessly integrates with Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Shopify, WordPress, and more.

Considerations When Choosing an A/B Testing Platform

When selecting an A/B testing platform, pay attention to a few key points:

• Customization capabilities: You need a tool that allows creating a unique user experience tailored to your audience's needs.
• Targeting options: Look for a platform that enables targeting specific segments of your audience based on their behavior, location, and other factors.
• Data collection capabilities: Choose a tool that allows gathering as much data as possible about your audience's behavior.

Google Optimize sunset is slowly approaching, so you still have time to test each platform and choose the one that meets all your requirements.

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