Optimost is unique in that it is the only provider to integrate with client sites using a single JavaScript callout per page. This code, which is generated automatically by the Optimost platform, acts like an advertising server call in that it lets Optimost render the entire page or portion of the page being tested. In addition, downstream web "beacons" can be placed on pages where conversion events are to be measured.

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Does my IT department need to be involved in the implementation of Optimost?

Your IT department would need to place the Optimost JavaScript code on the relevant pages. Also, for highly dynamic sites, your IT department may have to pass on some documentation to the Optimost team to ensure proper rendering of any tested content.

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How does this impact my site’s existing production and QA processes?

Every company has a web page production process. This process often begins with a page design, then proceeds through quality control in a staging environment, and finally ends up with a published page in a production environment. From our perspective, the most important part of this process is the second step: quality control. You can’t afford to push a page into production that has not been thoroughly reviewed to make sure it looks and functions the way you want. It is crucial that the testing solution you choose not interrupt this process. Optimost is flexible enough to seamlessly integrate with just about any quality control process you have in place. Optimost has a number of tools within its console that allow creative previewing and cosmetic QA. In addition, Optimost supports functional testing through our "pinning" feature, which lets you force the display of a particular creative so you can test its functionality individually.

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How do you optimize a page that contains client-defined dynamic content?

Nearly all web pages today are produced dynamically. Your web page might show the visitor’s name when they are signed in, or you might want to optimize a product details or search results page. All those pages contain content that is changing, in addition to the predetermined changes to test elements that are taking place. How does a solution deal with this type of content? Another, less subtle, case of client-defined content relates to optimizing forms. When your visitor submits a form that contains errors, you typically show the visitor the same form again with error messages next to the invalid fields. Does the solution support this kind of functionality? Optimost’s solution is flexible enough to handle all dynamic content, including content that is client-defined. Because Optimost is executed by the browser at render-time using a single JavaScript callout, each permutation of the content can access and evaluate any amount of dynamic content provided by the client page. The dynamic content can be defined either by JavaScript variables or through hidden document elements. The test content served by Optimost controls the visual presentation of the content by referencing the variables.

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Is Optimost integrated with my web analytics package?

Yes. Optimost integrates with most major web analytics packages, allowing the client to share data between information captured by Optimost and that captured by the analytics software for the purposes of reporting and/or targeting. See the current list of partners for more details.

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Is Optimost able to test rich media, such as AJAX or Flash?

Absolutely. Websites are becoming more complex, incorporating more rich media and other applications that enhance customer experience. As the leader in the web optimization field, Optimost is on the forefront of developing technology that anticipates the needs of clients to integrate advanced content and rich media into optimization experiments. Optimost has several different techniques for testing rich media, including testing individual Flash and AJAX elements.

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Can Optimost test emails and online ads?

Yes. Emails can be tested in two ways: (1) a server-to-server approach, where the client’s email server requests creative presentations directly from the Optimost server and the systems can share success data, and (2) Optimost provides the client pre-constructed email templates to test. Either way, clients’ email campaigns can leverage the power of multivariable optimization. Online ads are tested the same way Optimost tests other website content—the client can deliver an HTML ad, including the Optimost JavaScript code, to its advertising network, and Optimost will handle the presentation of the various ad creatives.

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What type of reporting does Optimost offer?

Optimost has the most robust reporting module in the business. We offer more than a dozen standard reports, and all of them can be customized to suit your needs. Our secure web-based Campaign Management Console (CMC) displays easy-to-understand performance reports, charts, and data for any metric of interest. Clients can drill down from a summary of each test: to the performance of each individual creative, and to the performance of each individual factor being tested. Optimost supports over 60 pre-defined metrics for every success event, and supports primary metrics, secondary metrics, and custom groupings. In addition, all reports (including raw regression data) can be downloaded. Please see our reporting section for more details.

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What is your content delivery infrastructure like?

Optimost has built world-class system architecture to ensure that any content we deliver arrives quickly and reliably. This infrastructure includes multiple data centers, global load balancing, 100% failover, and 24/7 global monitoring of performance – all delivering fast response times. Optimost uses Akamai’s monitoring solutions to check site performance from numerous locations around the globe. Please see our infrastructure section for more details.

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What happens if the Optimost delivery system is unavailable?

As one of the most robust systems in the business and with failover solutions from Akamai, Optimost has yet to experience any downtime in its content delivery network. However, in the unlikely case that Optimost were to be unavailable (or if an individual visitor were not to have JavaScript enabled), the original, or "control" version of the client web page will still be served by the client’s server, causing no disruption in the site’s functionality. However, any such visitor would not be included in the experiment.

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