Design an A/B test for a search ranking change
Last updated: March 8, 2026
Quick Overview
Design an experiment to test the impact of a redesigned homepage. Include sample size calculation, metrics, and analysis plan.
Square/Block
March 8, 2026203
4
2,016 solved
Design an experiment to test the impact of a redesigned homepage. Include sample size calculation, metrics, and analysis plan.
Square/Block asks this during the Phone Screen to assess your experimentation skills. They want to see how you define success metrics, design controlled experiments, and interpret results with appropriate statistical rigor.
What the Interviewer Expects
- Design complex experimentation strategies for tricky scenarios
- Handle multi-armed bandits, switchback experiments, and quasi-experiments
- Address long-term effects vs short-term metrics
- Propose causal inference methods when randomization is not possible
- Build a measurement framework that connects metrics to business value
- Discuss organizational experimentation culture and maturity
Key Topics to Cover
How to Approach This
- Define success metrics carefully. A good metric is measurable, actionable, and aligned with business goals.
- Run experiments long enough to account for novelty effects and weekly seasonality.
- Use funnel analysis to identify where users drop off for maximum optimization impact.
- Segment results by key dimensions (platform, country, user cohort) to catch hidden patterns.
- Consider network effects and interference between treatment and control groups.
Possible Follow-up Questions
- What if the experiment shows a positive short-term effect but you suspect a negative long-term impact?
- How would you handle interference between treatment and control?
- What if you discover a bug in the logging during the experiment?
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Browse Analytics QuestionsSample Answer
Defining the Analysis Framework
Start by framing the problem clearly: 1. **What question are we answering?** Be specific about the hypothesis or business question. 2. **What data d...
Analysis Approach
**Exploratory Analysis**: Start with aggregate trends, then segment by key dimensions (platform, country, user cohort, channel). Look for heterogeneou...
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