If you’re sending sales or nurture emails and not sure what actually works, A/B testing is your best friend. But let’s be real: most people either never set it up, or get lost in the weeds. This guide is for anyone using Outreach who wants to stop guessing, start testing, and get honest answers about what moves the needle.
Whether you’re a sales rep, marketer, or just the person who got “volunteered” to run email campaigns, you’ll find what you need here—minus the hype.
Why Bother With A/B Testing in Outreach?
A/B testing (or “split testing”) lets you compare two versions of an email to see which one actually gets more replies, clicks, or whatever else you care about. It’s the only way to know if that new subject line or call to action is actually better, or just feels better. Outreach has built-in tools for this, but you need to set it up right—and avoid some classic traps.
What A/B Testing Can Tell You
- Which subject lines get more opens.
- If shorter emails get more replies.
- Whether adding personalization helps (or annoys).
- What call-to-action language actually gets results.
What It Can’t Do
- Fix bad lists or irrelevant messaging.
- Turn a weak offer into a strong one.
- Tell you why something worked—just that it did.
Don’t expect magic. A/B testing is about learning, not shortcuts.
Step 1: Figure Out What You’re Actually Testing
Don’t just start swapping words for the sake of it. Before you touch Outreach, decide:
- One change at a time. Want to test two things? Run two separate tests. Otherwise, you won't know what caused the change.
- Pick a meaningful metric. Opens are okay, but replies or conversions matter more. Don’t optimize for vanity stats.
- Hypothesis first. Write down what you think will happen (“I think a question in the subject line will increase replies”).
Pro Tip: Don’t test minor stuff like “Hi” vs. “Hello.” Focus on changes that could actually move the needle: subject lines, first sentence, call-to-action, or even removing fluff.
Step 2: Prep Your Outreach Sequence
Before you launch, get your house in order:
- Clean your list. Bad data = bad results. Remove bounces, duplicates, and people who already replied.
- Segment if needed. If you’re emailing wildly different personas, test within a single segment first.
- Check your sending limits. Outreach throttles sends for good reason. Batch sends keep results cleaner and avoid spam traps.
Setting Up the A/B Test in Outreach
- Go to your sequence. In Outreach, open the sequence where you want to test.
- Add a new variant. For the step you want to test (e.g., step 1 email), click “Add Variant.” Outreach lets you create up to four, but start with two.
- Write your emails. Keep everything the same except what you’re testing. If you’re testing the subject line, the body should be identical.
- Set distribution. Outreach splits traffic evenly by default (50/50). That’s usually fine, unless you have a strong reason to weight it differently.
- Double-check everything. Typos, broken links, or inconsistent variables will tank your test. Preview both variants.
Step 3: Launch and Let It Run
This is where most people mess up—don’t peek too early.
- Don’t stop the test after 10 emails. Let it run until you have enough data. As a rule of thumb: at least 100 sends per variant (more is better).
- Don’t change things mid-test. If you tweak a variant, you’ve just invalidated the results.
- Track replies and conversions, not just opens. Outreach tracks this for you, but export data if you want to slice it another way.
Pro Tip: Avoid testing during holidays or weird news cycles. Your results will get skewed.
Step 4: Analyze Results—Honestly
Time to see what happened. Here’s how to actually get value from your test:
- Go to sequence reporting. Outreach shows you open, reply, and click rates for each variant.
- Ignore small differences. If you see a 2% lift, that’s probably noise unless you’re sending thousands of emails.
- Look for meaningful jumps. Anything over 5-10% difference (with enough volume) is worth your attention.
- Ask: Is this repeatable? One-off wins don’t mean much. If a variant looks like a winner, test it again on a new batch.
What Not to Do: - Don’t declare victory after one test. - Don’t chase statistical significance calculators unless you have big lists. Common sense is usually enough. - Don’t over-optimize for opens if your real goal is replies.
Step 5: Implement What Works (and Keep Testing)
Once you’ve got a real winner:
- Make it your new control. Use the winning version as your new default.
- Test the next thing. Rinse and repeat, but don’t run ten tests at once. You’ll just confuse yourself.
- Document what you learned. Seriously—keep a spreadsheet or a doc. Otherwise, you’ll forget, and someone else will repeat the same test next quarter.
Pro Tip: Don’t throw out your losing variants. Sometimes what flopped with one segment works elsewhere.
What’s Worth Testing (and What Isn’t)
Some things are worth your time. Some aren’t.
Worth Testing
- Subject lines (questions vs. statements, length, specificity)
- First sentence (personalized vs. generic)
- Call-to-action (direct ask vs. soft nudge)
- Email length (short vs. detailed)
- Sending time (morning vs. afternoon—though don’t expect miracles here)
Usually Not Worth It
- Tiny word tweaks (“Hi” vs. “Hello”)
- Obscure formatting (bolding one word)
- Emoji vs. no emoji (unless your audience is really into them)
- Overly clever copy (if you’re not sure what it means, your reader won’t either)
Focus on changes that could realistically shift your results by 10% or more.
What Outreach Gets Right (and Where It Falls Short)
The Good: - Sequence variants are dead simple to set up. - Reporting is clear and fast. - Built-in split testing removes manual busywork.
The Not-So-Good: - No automatic “statistical significance” alerts—use your judgment. - Testing is limited to sequence steps, not ad hoc single sends. - No built-in way to test across completely different audiences (you’ll need to segment yourself).
Bottom line: Outreach is solid for A/B testing basic email elements, but it’s not a full-blown experimentation platform. That’s fine for 99% of use cases.
Keep It Simple—and Keep Going
A/B testing in Outreach isn’t rocket science, but it does take discipline. Start with a clear question, test one thing at a time, and don’t obsess over tiny differences. Most importantly, learn something from every test—then move on.
Remember: Better to run a simple, real test than get stuck planning the perfect one. Iterate, keep notes, and don’t let “best practices” get in the way of what actually works for your audience.
Happy testing.