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16/05/2016 | Webreality

Google: black or blue links?

You may have noticed your recent participation in a split test on the biggest website in the world: Google. That’s right, Google rolled out a split test last weekend changing all links to black, instead of blue.  It was reported that users were seeing slightly different shades of blue as well.

The black links caused quite an uproar on social media with the majority of comments expressing dislike and even anger!  The hashtag #BringBackTheBlue even started trending on Twitter.

What do you think about the black links?

At Webreality, we love split testing.

The test Google ran - known as an “A/B test” because it used just two versions - will have sourced extremely valuable data which used to learn more about their market (well, everyone!) and improve user experience (UX) for their search engine results page. The fact that the tech giant, Google, is performing split tests preaches the importance of running tests on every website, to continually improve UX in this fast-paced web industry.

What is split testing?

A split test comprises two (or sometimes more) versions of the same web page to identify which one performs best.

Split tests can be very simple and subtle. One of the most common test is changing the colour or text of a call-to-action button. Or, they can be very noticeable which will have a greater impact on the user, like Google’s black links.

They can also be used to great effect on email marketing campaigns.

Results are often easy to collect and analyse as we can simply see, for example, how many people clicked on the blue link vs black link.

Can I run a split test on my website?

Yes, any website can run a split test! Our team at Webreality will help to explore and aim to provide high ROI and engagement improvement tests for your website. We’ll also generate a neat report with all the results and further ideas after every test.

Contact Mark Evans for more information.