Booking A/B Tests Ghost Buttons, But Their Hopes Fade Away As Predicted

Leak #39 from Booking.com   |   Jan 3, 2020 Listing

Ghosts buttons. We know that this style of buttons is net negative based on this evidence-based pattern. So when Booking ran this experiment, it's no surpirse that it was eventually rejected - a predictable replication.

A - Dec 18, 2019 Screenshot
REJECTED Confirmed Jan 3, 2020
B - Dec 18, 2019 Screenshot

Highlighted UI Changes From This Leak

  1. Ghost Buttons

    The control version uses high contrast blue background buttons, whereas the variation has white background buttons with a thin blue border (ghosts). 

    -0.5 Repeatability has been assigned to Pattern #77: Filled Or Ghost Buttons as evidence that it's getting worse

    Repeatability is a net count of evidence for or against a pattern. It’s how we can predict which patterns are better than others. :)

Previous Booking's Listing Leaks:

Leak 10

One Modal Too Far: Booking's Rejected Destination Overlay Experiment   |   Leak 10   |   May 27, 2019

Leak 95

Booking A/B/C/D Tests And Detects A Better Calendar Widget   |   Leak 95   |   Jul 12, 2023

Other Leaks From Booking.com Include:

Leak 2

Booking.com A/B Tested And Exposed Incremental UI Controls   |   Leak 2   |   Mar 8, 2019

Leak 4

Booking.com A/B Tested Single Vs. Multiple Line Search Forms   |   Leak 4   |   Apr 8, 2019

Leak 6

Booking A/B Tested And Rolled Out An Expanded Calendar Control   |   Leak 6   |   Apr 22, 2019

Leak 9

Booking A/B Tested 3 Search Bars Challenging The Fewer Form Fields Pattern   |   Leak 9   |   May 15, 2019

Leak 15

Booking's A/B Test Reveals More Impactful Search Criteria - Higher Location Tiles   |   Leak 15   |   Jul 18, 2019

Leak 17

Booking Also A/B Tests Icon Labels Replicating Google's Recent Experiment   |   Leak 17   |   Jul 30, 2019

Leak 28

Booking Sticks To A Traditional Breadcrumb After Rejecting A Multi-Dimensional One   |   Leak 28   |   Oct 16, 2019

Leak 30

Booking's Homepage Carousel Experiment Fails As Predicted   |   Leak 30   |   Oct 28, 2019

Leak 36

Booking Fails To Replicate Airbnb's Signup, This Experiment Suggests   |   Leak 36   |   Dec 10, 2019

Leak 46

Booking Discovers That Two Search Bars Are Not Better Than One   |   Leak 46   |   Feb 25, 2020

Leak 97

Booking A/B Tests Rounded Corners On Multiple Elements   |   Leak 97   |   Sep 14, 2023

Leak 99

Booking A/B Tests A Highly Prominent Deals Page And Possibly Rejects It   |   Leak 99   |   Oct 25, 2023

Comments