A few months ago we announced that we would be running tests on a new module to showcase interesting videos to fans visiting Wikia. During the testing period, some users saw these suggested videos on the right side of the page, and others saw it at the bottom. We also tested various content suggestion methods, with some users seeing videos closely related to a wikia’s topic, and others seeing more broadly related videos.
What we learned is that visitors to test communities favored the videos module in the right rail, interacting and watching videos twice as often as those who saw the module placed on the bottom of the page. We also saw that visitors who were part of the “right rail” test group viewed 18% more pages during their visit, compared against visitors who saw nothing different (the “control” group). What this means for you is that the video suggestions prompted readers to spend more time exploring content you’ve created and the longer they stick around, the more likely they will be to take that next step into the community by making an edit or following an article! As always, we encourage you to keep adding fully licensed videos to your articles, as our data also shows that videos get even more views when they are embedded next to relevant content.
Finally, starting this month, you will start to see the new Videos Module in the right rail on many communities. This will replace the existing Related Videos module. The videos that you have added via the Related Videos module will still be part of your wikia, and can be found if you go to Special:Videos or directly to the file page. As many of you requested during the testing period, the new Videos Module will feature content specific to your wikia whenever it is available. We are excited for this change moving forward, and as with any updates at Wikia, we welcome your feedback and reports on any issues you encounter. Thank you!
Click here to follow the Fandom staff blog.
Click here to sign up for the From the Desk of Community email newsletter.
Join our Official Discord server for registered editors!