Google Website Optimizer v 1.0 The Techie Guide - Manual (Page 12)

12 Non-Standard Experiments
Non-Standard Experiments (Testing Static Content)
Background
Before we go into the specifics of setting up experiments for non-standard setups, let’s elaborate on some
GWO concepts.
Earlier in this guide, we used the terms test page and conversion page (in singular form) to keep things
simple. As you set up an experiment, GWO asks for the URL for your test page (or pages, for A/B
experiments) and the URL for your conversion page. GWO then continues to explain how to install the
JavaScript code on the test page and the conversion page.
These terms imply that your test elements are all part of a single test page with a specific URL, and that
conversions happen on a specific URL.
But what if this isn’t the case?
Let’s look at how to set up more complicated scenarios. As we saw earlier, GWO has four pieces of JavaScript
(three for A/B):
1. The Control Script at the top of the page (this loads the JavaScript functions used to replace content
for MVT or redirect the user for A/B)
2. The Section Script (utmx_section) right before a section with a at the end (for MVT only)
3. The Tracking Script JavaScript
4. The Conversion Script JavaScript
This time, instead of thinking in terms of a test page and conversion page with specific URLs, think in terms
of executing some JavaScript for each one of the functions.
• To load the utmx section function, call the Control Script, which then invokes siteopt.js, which will
provide an implementation of the utmx section function.
• To replace the content for a section, call the Section Script. This applies to MVT experiments only.
The utmx_section alone is not capable of completing this work. You need an ending tab
to delineate where the section ends.
• To register a visit, call the Tracking Script.
• To register a conversion, call the Conversion Script.
Here are a few other details you should know:
Purpose of utmx_section
The utmx_section function call just before a section, and the at the end of a section, are actually
serving two different purposes.
1. When the function is executed, it marks where the section begins and ends (denoted by ),
and it may replace the content. When a user is viewing the original content, it leaves anything
between those tags untouched.
2. When the experiment is being set up, GWO looks for the utmx_section call to identify the names and
order of the sections.