The term “optimization” is vague. there are many references to this in technology “Search engine optimization” being the most commonly associated in my experience.
so then you explain that you run tests on the website… so people think you run speed tests and “optimize” the code for a website…
Next you explain that you run statistical tests which is still vague. so you say “A/B testing” and people think they now know all about your job. the problem with saying “A/B testing” is that you are instantly put in the “this person just runs A/B tests” bucket. that is not true.
An optimization Manager who has been properly trained or has sufficient experience to know better, is a type of product manager who bases their priorities on qualitative and quantitative testing and user experience.
User experience designers are often designers. User experience is not design, but strategy. I submit that a user experience designer can often have design experience, but by placing a designer in a user experience designer role, does not make a user experience designer. The user experience field is just as vast as the designer field and warrants the same amount of work and effort to master, which is why I usually team up with designers and “user experience designers” to come up with great user experiences.
User experience strategy
a simple way of introducing this to you is through the thought sequence, which I wrote about a while back. Basically what is the best way to communicate with your target audience, and how do you communicate with your fringe audience.
This is all based on Conversion rate optimization – which fuels user experience strategy and design.
In my experience an “Experience Team”/”Optimization Team”/”Growth Team” is most effective if it is made up of these cross-functional roles:
– Design
– Front-End Development
– Back-End Development
– Data Analyst
– Optimization Manager
There are many ways to build an Experience team, and the one I have found fits a lot of the time may not be the way it will work best in your organization. For example, you can get someone who can do all these things by themselves… they just wont be able to do any of them very well, and wont be able to do it quickly. If you are starting from nothing, and do not have the funds or experience to build a full team, then the one-man-band is probably for you.
I am fascinated to find most companies misunderstand these responsibilities and struggle to achieve a successful experience team.
Scientific Web Optimization 