WPML makes it easy to build multilingual sites and run them. With it, you can translate pages, posts, custom post types, taxonomies, menus, and even the theme’s texts.
Nelio A/B Testing is fully compatible with WPML. In particular, with Nelio A/B Testing you’ll be able to test your WordPress site content (as usual), as well as all the translated pages, posts, menus… You can see the official WPML announcement here.
When using Nelio A/B Testing along with WPML, there are a few things you should be aware of. Read the following documentation carefully and, if you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
A Brief Introduction to How Nelio A/B Testing Works
Nelio A/B Testing is a plugin to split test all your WordPress components. The first version we released (late 2013) supported page testing only, but it has evolved a lot since then and now you can also test posts, headlines, themes, widgets, and so on.
In an A/B test, you have an original element (a certain page, a theme, your current set of widgets…), and you create one or more alternatives of that element. For instance, you may have the following landing page:
for which you want to create a test. In the variant you create, you want to modify the title and change the label of the call-to-action button. The result might look like as follows:
In order to create a page variant in Nelio A/B Testing, you’ll first need to create a Page Test and specify the page that will be tested. After that, you’ll be able to create as many variants as you want using the user interface of Nelio A/B Testing. For each variant, Nelio A/B Testing will duplicate the content of the tested page (and all its standard metadata) and will generate a new, completely different page: the variant (which you’ll then be able to modify so that you can apply all the changes you need).
Page variants only exist within the context of the test. If you go to the WordPress Dashboard » Pages, you won’t find them there; the only way to access and edit a page variant is via the test in which it was created.
The same applies to other Nelio’s tests: post, headline, widget, or CSS tests (to name a few) will let you create one or more alternatives of the original element by duplicating it into a new one.
An Even-Briefer Introduction to How WPML Works
WPML follows a similar approach for translating the contents of your website. When you want, for instance, to translate a certain page, post, or menu, WPML will create a new page, post, or menu (which you’ll later edit so that it contains the translation of the original element). Then, WPML establishes a link between the original content and its translation, stating that a certain page is the, for example, Spanish translation of a certain English page.
How Can I Run Split Tests on WPML’s Translations?
Assume you have an original page named “Pricing” and its translation in Spanish: “Precios”. These two pages are linked one with the other thanks to WPML. From the point of view of Nelio A/B Testing, however, these two pages are completely different: Nelio A/B Testing doesn’t know (nor it needs to, actually) that one is the translation of the other.
If you want to create a split test for the “Pricing” page, simply adhere to the instructions described here.
If, on the other hand, you want to create a split test for the “Precios” page (that is, the translation), you’ll first have to:
- log into your WordPress Dashboard and
- select Spanish as the current language, so that the page “Precios” becomes available under your WordPress Dashboard » Pages menu.
Once the Dashboard is configured to show you Spanish contents, you’ll be able to create tests for them. In this case, once “Precios” is available, you can use the same instructions as before and create the split test for the Spanish translation:
Following these steps, you’ll be able to create any kind of test for your main language and any other languages you might be using in WPML.
Can the Alternatives of a Test Be Translated by WPML?
No. All the alternative content that is created by Nelio cannot be translated by WPML. As we already said, this content is hidden and can only be used within the context of a split test.
Why Can’t I See Alternative Translated Content?
Alternative content is properly labeled as such by Nelio A/B Testing, and only exists within the context of a split test, in Nelio A/B Testing’s realm. Therefore, the only way to access and edit alternative content is via the test in which it was created.