Create a comprehensive test plan for one new channel using the Channel Test Sprint framework.

Objective

Develop a complete, stakeholder-ready test plan that can be executed immediately. This exercise bridges strategy and execution.

Instructions

Using the Channel Test Sprint framework, create a detailed Test Plan for one channel you intend to try.

Required Components

1. Channel Selection

Which channel are you testing? Be specific.

• ❌ Bad: "Social media"
• ✅ Good: "Sponsored posts in 'SaaS Growth Tips' newsletter (12K subscribers)"

2. Goal

What do you want to achieve? Focus on one primary goal.

• Examples: Acquire 50 demo requests, Generate 100 MQLs, Drive 500 qualified visitors, Achieve <$200 CPL

3. Hypothesis

What do you believe will happen? Format: "We believe that [action] will result in [outcome] because [reason]."

Example: "We believe that sponsoring 'Data Science Weekly' newsletter will yield <$150 per demo request, beating our current LinkedIn CPL of $220, because the newsletter's audience (data professionals at mid-market companies) closely matches our ICP and the 42% open rate suggests high engagement."

4. Budget & Timeline

• Total budget: $___
• Duration: ___ weeks
• Start date: ___
• End date: ___

Example: $3,000 over 4 weeks (4 newsletter placements at $750 each)

5. Target Audience

Who are you trying to reach?

• Demographics/firmographics
• Specific targeting parameters
• Why this audience matches your ICP

6. Creative & Messaging

What will you show them?

• Ad format (text, image, video)
• Key message/value prop
• Call-to-action
• Landing page destination

7. Success Criteria

Define clear thresholds:

Success: (You'll scale the channel)

• Example: CPL < $150 AND 50+ demos requested

Mixed Results: (You'll iterate and test again)

• Example: CPL $150-$250 with high-quality leads OR 25-49 demos

Failure: (You'll stop testing this channel)

• Example: CPL > $250 OR < 25 demos with poor SQL conversion

Define these BEFORE launch to avoid bias.

8. Metrics to Track

List specific metrics:

• Impressions
• Clicks
• Click-through rate (CTR)
• Landing page conversion rate
• Leads/demos generated
• Cost per click (CPC)
• Cost per lead (CPL)
• MQL-to-SQL conversion rate (if trackable in timeframe)

9. Measurement Setup

How will you track results?

• UTM parameters: utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=sponsorship&utm_campaign=datasciweekly_q1
• Dedicated landing page or unique promo code
• CRM campaign tracking
• Attribution window (e.g., 30 days from click)

10. Success Review Plan

When and how will you evaluate?

• Review date: ___ (typically 1 week after test ends)
• Who's involved: ___ (marketing lead, growth team, stakeholders)
• Decision options: Scale / Iterate / Kill

Example Test Plan

Channel: Reddit Ads targeting r/SaaS, r/Entrepreneur, r/startups

Goal: Acquire at least 50 demo requests in one month

Hypothesis: Targeting three relevant Subreddits with our ads will yield <$200 per demo request, beating our current Facebook Ads CPL of $280, because Reddit's B2B audience in these communities actively discusses SaaS tools and seeks recommendations.

Budget: $3,000 over 4 weeks

Target Audience: Founders, marketers, and product managers at early-stage startups (seed to Series A) in the US and Canada, active in SaaS-related subreddits.

Creative: Promoted post format with casual, problem-solving tone. Headline: "Tired of juggling 10 tools for customer data?" Body highlights our integration platform with a soft CTA to "See how it works." Image shows a simplified dashboard screenshot.

Success Criteria:

• Success: CPL <$200 AND 50+ demos; Stretch: CPL <$150
• Iterate: CPL $200-$300 with high engagement (comments, upvotes)
• Kill: CPL >$300 OR <30 demos

Metrics:

• Clicks, CTR, CPC
• Landing page visits and conversion rate
• Demo requests
• CPL
• Any uplift in direct traffic from Reddit

Measurement:

• UTM: utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=saas_demo_q1
• Dedicated landing page: website.com/reddit
• Salesforce campaign tracking

Review: Week of Feb 15th with growth team. Decision: Scale if success, iterate with new creative if mixed, kill if failure.

Deliverable

A 1-2 page document or slide deck with all 10 components filled out. This should be ready to present to your manager or team for approval.

Discussion Questions

• What's the riskiest assumption in your hypothesis?
• How will you adjust if you hit "mixed results"?
• What could you learn even if the test fails?
• How does this test fit into your broader channel strategy?

Outcome

You've created a professional, executable test plan that demonstrates strategic thinking and attention to measurement. This document can serve as a template for future channel experiments, building a library of test plans that scales your growth process.