“How do you measure whether users actually understand and act on your content? Have you done comprehension tests or A/B experiments?”
Here is what thought leaders had to say.
Clarity Requires Empathy and Real User Testing
We’ve learned that it’s not enough for users just to read our content—they have to get it, feel confident about it, and ideally, act on it. And honestly, for a while, we assumed they did… until we started actually asking.
We’ve run a few comprehension tests where we’d share an article or guide, then follow up with simple questions or tasks to see what stuck. Sometimes the results were humbling. People would misinterpret steps we thought were crystal clear or skip important parts entirely. That told us we had work to do—not just in writing better, but in guiding readers more thoughtfully.
We also A/B tested versions of the same landing page with small tweaks and watched which one got more clicks or signups. It’s not glamorous, but it’s real feedback.
In the end, I’ve learned that clarity isn’t just about clean grammar—it’s about empathy. If a reader gets lost, that’s on us, not them.
Eugene Musienko, CEO, Merehead LLC
A/B Tests Reveal True Content Comprehension Metrics
We focus on making insurance simple and clear, so it’s really important to know if our content actually helps users. One way we measure this is by looking at user behavior, like how long they stay on a page, what they click next, or if they complete a quote form. These actions tell us they not only understood the content but also found it helpful enough to take the next step.
We’ve also done A/B tests with different versions of the same article to see which one leads to better engagement or conversion. In some cases, we’ve used short quizzes or polls to test comprehension directly. It doesn’t have to be complicated—sometimes even a few targeted questions can show us what’s working and what’s not.
Nathan Weller, Head of Content and Licensed Insurance, Insuranks
Ruthless Live Tests Prove Real Comprehension
Getting real proof that people actually “get it” is non-negotiable in my world. So, I get ruthless with live comprehension tests built into the workflow. Right after someone finishes a new training or content drop, I toss them a real task: a three-minute, unannounced case study or a simulated client call, nothing staged or cushy. Last quarter, I rolled this out to 80 percent of our appraisal staff and tracked time-to-correct-response down to the second. If people freeze, fumble, or push the work to someone else, I know the content missed. I would rather fix the training than celebrate a false “completion” metric. In reality, if at least 90 percent can finish in under four minutes, with fewer than two edits, that is when I know we hit comprehension, no sense.
On top of that, I love mixing in A/B content swaps, just to check if new formats or examples actually change what people do in real life. Sometimes, just swapping one visual for a line of text pushes our error rate down by 20 percent. Small and direct changes that show up in weekly numbers.
Fact is, real comprehension shows up in speed and accuracy, not page views or likes. If your team is acting on what you put out, you will see the difference on the floor, in the field, or on the bottom line.
Tracie Crites, Chief Marketing Officer, HEAVY Equipment Appraisal
User Intent Lead to more Engagement
I believe real understanding shows up in what users do, not just what they read. We keep things simple and track whether users follow through on key actions, like getting a quote, comparing policies, or reaching out with questions. If they’re moving through the site confidently and making informed decisions, that’s a strong sign they’re getting it.
We’ve also run A/B tests to see which versions of content actually lead to more engagement or conversions. And occasionally, we conduct mini-comprehension checks—asking a small group of users to explain a section in their own words. That feedback helps us fine-tune our content to be even clearer.
Brian Greenberg, Founder, Insurancy
Decision Speed Measures True Content Understanding
Measuring how long it took for users to make a decision after reading our content
One of the issues that comes with offering a product or service that involves building AI assistants, is that many users can be completely unfamiliar with the content. So, instead of relying on surveys or open rates to measure the user’s comprehension, we measure the timing of user decisions after engaging with our content.
For example, if we just launched an onboarding tutorial or feature announcement, we track if the user managed to complete the task within 24-48 hours, if the action was done without any overwriting steps and was not abandoned midday, and also if they managed to get the action completed without having to use previous resources such as support chats or help articles. If they manage to do these things, it is measured as a success.
Neha Rathi, Founder, Nifty
Lynn Martelli is an editor at Readability. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University and has worked as an editor for over 10 years. Lynn has edited a wide variety of books, including fiction, non-fiction, memoirs, and more. In her free time, Lynn enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with her family and friends.
