In this episode of SEO’s Getting Coffee, Emina and Sean sit down with Ryan Jones, Marketing Manager at SEOTesting, to unpack the real-world realities of SEO testing, what it is, why you’re probably already doing it, and how you can do it better without spending a penny.
Ryan’s seen SEO from every angle, agency, freelance, in-house, and now builds tools to help others run SEO experiments with confidence. This episode is packed with candid takes, step-by-step advice, and myth-busting moments.
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The Power of SEO Testing & How to Do It Better | SEOs Getting Coffee Ep.44
You’re Probably Already Testing, You Just Don’t Call It That
Ryan kicks off by reframing what SEO testing really means. If you’ve ever tweaked a meta title to improve rankings or added content to try and lift a post, guess what? You’re testing.
But most SEOs don’t formalise their tests, meaning they miss out on better learnings, clearer results, and stronger outcomes.
Structure = Better Results
There’s a big difference between “messing about” and running a proper SEO test. Ryan walks through how to approach testing with more rigour:
- Start with a clear hypothesis
- Define your primary metric (clicks, CTR, etc.)
- Run your change on a defined sample
- Measure before and after using tools like GA4 and GSC
Look for statistical significance (or at least a directional result)
Testing Without Paid Tools: How to Start for Free
Don’t have a budget? No problem. Ryan explains how to run time-based tests using just Google Search Console and GA4:
- Export clicks and impressions from a page
- Calculate an average (like clicks per day)
- Make your change
- Export and compare again
- Use a significance calculator (optional but helpful)
✅ No need for expensive platforms, just a bit of time and spreadsheet work.
What You Can (and Should) Be Testing
Ryan’s go-to tests include:
- Content refreshes – still one of the most effective, repeatable ways to increase clicks
- Meta title changes – try adding “free”, “guide”, or “updated” to boost CTR
- Moving page elements – e.g. shifting a product description higher
- New page types – such as trust-building blocks that showcase E-E-A-T
- Backlink campaigns – test whether link building really moves the needle
For eCommerce, Ryan says testing is especially powerful due to the volume of similar page types.
SEO vs CRO Testing: Where It Overlaps
Sean flags an important point, while multivariate and split testing can get complex, they’re only useful if you control your variables. If you change too much at once, you’ll never know what actually worked.
The takeaway? Make small, focused changes and measure each one independently.
Testing Gone Wrong: When Results Surprise You
From one-click checkout features that bombed to ugly forms that kept outperforming slick designs, Ryan and Emina share stories about being completely wrong. Why? Because they designed tests based on themselves, not their audience.
✅ Always start with your user, not your assumptions
External Factors That Can Wreck Your Tests
Even the best-designed test can fall apart thanks to:
- Google Core Updates
- Trending search behaviour
- Seasonality
Ryan shares how one help article on GSC bugs spiked to 10K clicks during a data outage, accidentally skewing a test it was part of.
Room 404: What Ryan Wants to Banish
Ryan’s banishment? All the new acronyms muddying the SEO waters: AEO, GEO, SXO, AIO…
“At the end of the day, it’s still SEO. People are just searching in different places.”
Emina agrees: it’s all marketing, it all needs to work together.
Final Thoughts
If you’re doing SEO, you’re already testing. But by being a little more intentional, you can get clearer insights and bigger wins, without blowing your budget.
Whether you’re a solo consultant or part of a team, this episode will help you level up how you approach SEO experimentation.
For more insights and in-depth conversations on the latest in SEO and digital marketing strategies, stay stuned for upcoming episodes of “SEOs Getting Coffee.” Subscribe to our channel for regular updates and expert opinions.
