[pbiggar]

I think this post and most posts on the topic are missing a major advantage of A/B testing. Sure, one of its uses is to experiment and try to keep optimizing everything. The other use of A/B testing is to prevent regressions in a statistically rigorous way.

Basically, if you can afford it, every change to the website could be A/B tested, and you'd know that the change doesn't negatively impact the conversion rate. Sometime's its really useful to know that you can safely change the button from red to a colour that matches your palette better, and "no change" is a great result.

[JacobJans]

I've been using this thinking recently to great advantage.

My basic strategy has been to make the design more beautiful, and if the conversion rate stays the same or improves, I've succeeded.

This way, I've been able to significantly improve the aesthetic appeal of many of my sites without risking the bottom line.