Google Optimize Discontinued and Terminated in 2023 - What Happens to My Data? Best Free Alternatives? How to backup?
How to to download your Google Optimize data and backup all of your AB test data, as sundown will happen in September 2023. Step by step instructions on what formats are available to export are here to help.
Your data is currently stored in your Google Optimize account and can be exported into an Excel or Google Sheet format. Save a copy in the cloud as well as on your hard drive, we have all heard horror stories about what happens when unique data is accidentally erased, or suffer a corrupt backup file.
How to Backup your Google Optimize Data Online
To download your Google Optimize data, you can follow these steps:
- Sign in to your Google Optimize account.
- Click on the experiment that you want to download data for.
- In the left-hand navigation menu, click on “Reports.”
- In the Reports tab, you will see a list of all the reports that you have created for the experiment. Click on the report that you want to download data for.
- In the top right corner of the report, click on the “Export” button.
- Choose the format you want to export the data to, such as Excel or Google Sheets.
- Choose the date range for the data you want to export.
- Lastly, it’s just a single click on the “Export” button to download your data.
How Long Do I have Before Downloading My Data With A Google Analytics 360 Contract?
If you are looking to extend or renew your Google Analytics 360 (Universal Analytics) contract in the first half of 2023, you will have the opportunity to renew your Optimize 360 contracts as well. This will apply to service dates ending on or before September 30, 2023.
However, if you have signed a Google Analytics 4 contract, you will not be able to sign an Optimize 360 contract. Nevertheless, you will still have access to Optimize through the integration in Google Analytics 4 until the sunset date of September 30, 2023.
Furthermore, if you have signed a Google Analytics 4 contract but plan to continue using Google Analytics 360 (Universal Analytics) during the transition period, you will have free access to Optimize 360 until the sunset date of September 30, 2023. To take advantage of this offer, it is necessary to keep your Optimize containers linked to GA360 properties.
What is AB Testing and Why is it Important?
You are my perfect client if you are a small business owner with an eCommerce website, speak with me over the phone and book today.
Before you discover which online tools are available at no cost, consider a human alternative – send me a message for SEO and UX design advice.
A/B testing is a method used to compare two versions of something, such as a web page or email, to see which one performs better. It involves creating two different versions of the thing you want to test, and then showing each version to a different group of people. For example, you might create two different versions of a web page, and then show one version to half of your website visitors, and the other version to the other half.
By doing this, you can see which version performs better in terms of achieving a specific goal, such as getting people to sign up for a newsletter or make a purchase. You can then use this information to improve your website or email by implementing the changes that led to better results.
With the retirements of this beloved tool, developers will now be forces to search for new methods to achieve true website visitor personalisation with the main aim on increasing conversion rates, sales and/or enquiries for services focussed companies.
A/B testing is often used by marketers and website owners to optimize their online content and improve their conversion rates. It allows them to test different ideas and make data-driven decisions about what works best for their audience.
A/B testing SEO and marketing content can be a powerful tool for improving the performance of your website or email campaigns, and can lead to increased engagement, conversions, and ultimately, revenue.
Where is my AB Testing Data in my Google Optimize Projects?
The initial sunset announcement from January 20th, 2023 has been revised to clarify that Google Optimize will not be making a return in Google Analytics 4 (GA4).
A lot of SEO’s and developers alike feel that this is a strong indication of a sidestep in focus towards investing in third-party AB testing integrations. If you don’t want to speak to a human and prefer to use an online tool, then do Contact Me and book in a Zoom consultation to explore the more human way of approaching this without the aid of tools.
One of the main features of Google Optimize was its ability to personalise the user experience based on visitors’ location, browsing history, and other factors. This allowed developers to offer a tailored experience to their visitors and improve engagement and conversion rates.
The discontinuation of Google Optimize also raises several challenges for developers, especially for those who heavily relied on this tool for testing and optimization. One of the challenges is identifying the elements that need to be tested. Developers must now identify the most critical elements of their website and create two different versions to test. They also need to split their audience into two groups and track visitors’ behavior to record data such as clicks, conversions, and bounce rates.
Free AB Website Alternatives to Google Optimize - Data on Freemium Online Tools - Cross Platform Headaches
In September of 2023, the free services offered by Google Optimize will cease to exist. Developers everywhere are feeling the loss of this discontinued service, which offered a range of freebie features to help them test and optimise their website projects.
One of the biggest and most popular features that developers will miss is A/B testing. Jargon-free this means when developers can compare two different versions of a homepage (or any web page) and see which one performed better.
Before this is in place there has to be a reason, a target to gather data, usually it’s revenue orientated for eCommerce websites. SaaS and B2B find a hella use with AB testing online.
Creating tailored experiences for website visitors based on their location, browsing history, and more gathered data in an easy to access format using your usual Google login. This was especially popular among developers who wanted to offer a more tailored experience to their visitors, but now they’ll have to come up with new ways to achieve this with freemium tools that may never live up to Google’s super high bar.
Personalisation is another service that will be missed by developers when Google Optimize disappears vamoosh. This withdrawn feature allowed developers to make changes to their website without having to edit the underlying code. This abandoned feature was especially useful for developers who didn’t have a lot of coding experience, but now they’ll have to learn how to edit the code manually.
The integration with other Google products such as Google Analytics and Google Ads was another service that developers will 100% pine after. This terminated feature allowed developers to view and crunch data from multiple sources in one place. Now, developers will have to use separate tools to track and analyse their website data, which may be less convenient and probably more time consuming.
SEO’s and developers will miss the reports and insights provided by Google Optimize. This ceased service provided detailed information on how their website was performing, including click-through rates, conversion rates, and more. Without it, developers will have to rely on other tools to get this information, which may not be as comprehensive or user-friendly.
The soon-defunct service offered a range of free features and services that were highly valued by developers looking to test and optimise their websites. Without it, developers will have to find new ways to achieve the same results, which may be more challenging and sorely missed.
Personalised Results Testing Two Versions of Web Pages - Advantages of AB Data Mining
Sure, Google Optimize was popular for helping developers create a range of hand written experiences for their website visitors. Some of the types of personalised experiences that Google Optimize offered included:
Location-based data: With Google Optimize, developers could create personalized experiences for visitors based on their location. For example, they could display different content or offers to visitors in different regions, or provide them with location-specific information.
Behaviour-based actions: Google Optimize allowed developers to personalize experiences based on a visitor’s browsing history or behaviour on their website. For example, they could display product recommendations based on the visitor’s previous purchases or show content related to their previous interests.
Device-based on the go: With Google Optimize, developers could create personalized experiences for visitors based on the type of device they were using. For example, they could display a mobile-optimized version of their website to visitors accessing it from a mobile device.
Time-sensitive offers: Google Optimize also allowed developers to create customised experiences based on the time of day or day of the week. For example, they could display different content or offers during different times of the day or week, such as promoting lunch specials during lunchtime. This was rolled out in Lockdown throughout the major cities in the UK Nationwide, throughout England, Wales and Scotland. I remember a gift store in the West Midlands that paid a company to run ads on phones via bluetooth whether they came within their wifi or bluetooth range, creating one time use discount codes and offers.
Overall, Google Optimize offered developers a powerful tool for creating personalized experiences for their website visitors. This allowed them to offer a more tailored experience to their visitors, which could help increase engagement, conversions, and overall satisfaction with their website.
There are several free alternatives to Google Optimize that offer similar functionality and features. Here are some popular options:
Google Analytics Content Experiments: This is a free tool that is integrated with Google Analytics. It allows you to run A/B tests on your website to compare different versions of a page and see which one performs better. You can test different page elements such as headlines, images, and calls to action.
VWO (Visual Website Optimizer): This is a free A/B testing tool that allows you to test different variations of your website to see which one performs better. It offers a visual editor that makes it easy to make changes to your website without any coding knowledge.
Optimizely: Optimizely is a free A/B testing tool that allows you to test different variations of your website to see which one performs better. It offers a visual editor that makes it easy to make changes to your website without any coding knowledge.
Crazy Egg: This is a free tool that allows you to create heatmaps of your website to see where visitors are clicking and how they are interacting with your website. It also offers A/B testing functionality to test different variations of your website.
Convertize: This is a free tool that offers A/B testing, personalization, and behavioral targeting. It allows you to create personalized experiences for your visitors based on their behavior on your website.
What are the benefits of a free AB Testing tool online?
the discontinuation of Google Optimize has left many developers looking for alternative solutions to A/B testing and customisation. However, there are several options available, including A/B testing tools ( some popular ones are listed above) and building your own tool. While the loss of Google Optimize may pose challenges in the short term, it presents an opportunity for developers to explore new ways of optimizing their websites and improving user engagement and conversion rates.
The 11 year old popular web analytics and testing tool by Google has provided essential insights for developers to run experiments and improve website performance for over a decade. Since Google has announced that they will be discontinuing the free version of Google Optimize in September 2023, this has left many developers searching for alternative solutions to A/B testing and data analysis.
To address the challenges posed by the discontinuation of Google Optimize, there are several alternative solutions that developers can explore. One of the most popular alternatives is A/B testing tools like Optimizely, VWO, and AB Tasty. These tools provide a similar range of features to Google Optimize and enable developers to test multiple changes on their website and optimize for engagement, conversion rates, and other success metrics.
Another solution is to build your own A/B testing tool using web development frameworks like React, Vue.js, and Angular. This approach requires more technical expertise but can be highly customized and provide more control over the testing process.
