- Dec 16: Consumer Tools Team
- Dec 17: Traffic Team
- Dec 18: N&Rs Team
- Dec 19: UGC Team
- Dec 20: UXFCP Team
Ayyy! We heard Jenny talk about Traffic yesterday and on Monday Hector talked about Consumer Tools. But today I get to talk to you all about News & Ratings.
Guiding us in 2024 was an overall question “Will Fandom users care about N&R content?”. This one question prompted multiple hypotheses and from there, the experiments began.
Experiments[]
We ran 3 main experiments during this year with multiple variants.
- GameFAQs Guides & Walkthrough Widget
- Our original hypothesis was that if gamers see relevant game guides and walkthrough content while on the Wiki page, then they will click through to GameFAQs to engage further with said content or the community as a whole.
- GameSpot News & Galleries
- We believed that showcasing related GameSpot gaming articles, galleries, and video pages to gaming wiki users would increase engagement and discoverability on both platforms.
- Related Games/Movies/TV Shows Widgets
- By showing users recommended games, movies, or TV shows relevant to the Wiki they're exploring, we could encourage them to discover related content and continue their journey across Fandom’s sites.
While these experiments went great in terms of engineering/design, good for team alignment, and alright for certain data points. They were not able to provide enough findings to communicate a certain level of success to our internal/external fans.
After a deep analysis, we tried a different approach with another hypothesis: “We believe that showcasing gameplay stats like difficulty, time to beat, and ownership for a game will captivate gaming audiences and encourage them to interact with the GameFAQs Player Stats Widget”. This new experiment gave us the data and win we needed to keep going, the experiment worked out so well that we ended up doing a similar idea for the Mobile Drawer.
Looking Beyond[]
- Cross-linking experiments
We did a ton of work this year on experimenting with the different N&R sites but we always have more to do. The N&R sites have the potential to bring forward valuable content for the wikis and the wikis for them to create a symbiotic relationship.
Every experiment brings us closer to understanding what truly engages our users. By testing hypotheses and listening to feedback, we uncover insights that shape better experiences, spark curiosity, and drive deeper connections across our platforms. So if you ever have any suggestions, please share them with me! We want to continue exploring in this direction and release something valuable for all of you.
- Site Stability
Frankly, N&R sites have had a hard time with successive acquisitions and changes in recent years. However, it is my personal belief that we have the team in place to begin to repair what has been broken and improve what needs to be improved. In 2025, it’s my goal to advocate for users and stakeholders alike further.
A heartfelt thank you to the incredible staff who work behind the scenes, often unseen but never unnoticed. Your dedication, creativity, and hard work are the backbone of everything we achieve. This success and future is yours too!
And remember, this blog series hasn’t finished yet! Stay tuned for more blog posts until the end of the week and let’s start the year proud of the work done until now!
I'm a huge fan of Fallout, History, and Star Wars.
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