PragerU Strategy & Organization
THE PROBLEMS:
Users were coming to the PragerU home page with no clear path to discover content. Basic categorization for a video streaming service was missing. Bounce rates on video pages was >90%. No clear incentive for users to engage with the service and minimal cross-promotional opportunities were available.
SCOPE
Display content in a variety ways without adding to the editorial workload. Create more incentive for users to create an account and/or subscribe. Expand the concept of video personalities to allow for multiple hosts, guests and a full browse feature. Add cross-promotional areas to showcase new features, videos, and campaigns.
GOALS
- Increase user account creation and subscription conversions by 15%
- Reduce bounce rate on video pages by 20% with engagement or cross-promotion
- Improve user’s content discovery satisfaction
- Reduce the overall lift for internal editorial team to program content
TEAM
- UX Director
- 1 Offsite UI Designer
- 2 Engineers (1 Offsite)
- 1.5 Project Managers (.5 Offsite)
- Cross-team internal stakeholders (6 at various points)
THE ACTIONS:
Categorize all video content to allow easier discovery and build a base for future user customization. Provide easy methods to subscribe, join and engage. Add cross-promotional areas on key page types. Organize the content and personalities to improve search and SEO.
Categorization
The library of over 2,000 videos was only loosely organized by series, making it difficult for users to naturally discover content by category or theme. The editorial team created topics on the fly, without moderation or documentation, resulting in more than 700 unmanageable “topics” plus unlimited keywords for each video.
I used an AI agent to analyze and categorize all 700+ topics. In the first pass, I combined the AI’s output with many hours of manual review to reduce the list to fewer than 380 topics by eliminating proper nouns, hyper-specific terms, and duplicates
This consolidation was done in close collaboration with the editorial team and producers to ensure each video’s key themes were accurately and concisely represented.
I then created 20 core categories to cover the full breadth of content. Executive leadership increased this to 25 categories, and the art department designed custom icons for each. This new category structure not only improved content organization but also laid the foundation for a future “personal goals” feature for users with paid subscriptions.
Organizing Personalities and Guests
I developed a system that enabled PragerU to clearly distinguish between three roles: Hosts (in-house talent with their own shows), Presenters (experts featured in 5-Minute Videos), and Guests (experts and newsmakers appearing in interviews).
I also introduced the ability to assign multiple personalities to a single piece of content, along with more comprehensive bios that showcase the videos each person appears in. With more than 500 hosts, presenters, and guests in total, I automated and streamlined bulk editing and updates during the most recent site redesign.
Subscribe & Cross-Promote
To boost user engagement, I added a multi-purpose section to all video pages that served two key functions.
First, for non-logged-in users, it featured a simple email collection form. Users who were impressed or drawn in by a video were 4x more likely to subscribe to our email marketing when the opportunity was readily available.
Second, for logged-in users (or when designated by the marketing team), the same section dynamically promoted new content, upcoming features, and active fundraising campaigns.
THE RESULTS:
👍 73%
73% of users surveyed preferred browsing content by categories.
+36%
Video pages saw +36% engagement when a cross-promotion was displayed.
+24%
24% increase in the number of personalities linked to content and made searchable.
Hello!
I’m Lisa Wilkins, a user experience director, designer and product strategist. The Sonoran Desert is my home, and it inspires me everyday with it’s beautiful simplicity and underlying complexity. I’m adaptable, resilient, and nerdy which are qualities I weave into everything I do. I’m most proud of raising a son full of gratitude, training various equines, and spoiling a very good dog.
Let me know how I can help your organization.
Persuading pixels to achieve their maximum potential
PragerU Product Strategy
& Organization
THE PROBLEMS:
Users were coming to the PragerU home page with no clear path to discover content. Basic categorization for a video streaming service was missing. Bounce rates on video pages was >90%. No clear incentive for users to engage with the service and minimal cross-promotional opportunities were available.
SCOPE
Display content in a variety ways without adding to the editorial workload. Create more incentive for users to create an account and/or subscribe. Expand the concept of video personalities to allow for multiple hosts, guests and a full browse feature. Add cross-promotional areas to showcase new features, videos, and campaigns.
GOALS
- Increase user account creation and subscription conversions by 15%
- Reduce bounce rate on video pages by 20% with engagement or cross-promotion
- Improve user’s content discovery satisfaction
- Reduce the overall lift for internal editorial team to program content
TEAM
- UX Director
- 1 Offsite UI Designer
- 2 Engineers (1 Offsite)
- 1.5 Project Managers (.5 Offsite)
- Cross-team internal stakeholders (6 at various points)
THE ACTIONS:
Categorize all video content to allow easier discovery and build a base for future user customization. Provide easy methods to subscribe, join and engage. Add cross-promotional areas on key page types. Organize the content and personalities to improve search and SEO.
Categorization
The library of over 2,000 videos was only loosely organized by series, making it difficult for users to naturally discover content by category or theme. The editorial team created topics on the fly, without moderation or documentation, resulting in more than 700 unmanageable “topics” plus unlimited keywords for each video.
I used an AI agent to analyze and categorize all 700+ topics. In the first pass, I combined the AI’s output with many hours of manual review to reduce the list to fewer than 380 topics by eliminating proper nouns, hyper-specific terms, and duplicates
This consolidation was done in close collaboration with the editorial team and producers to ensure each video’s key themes were accurately and concisely represented.
I then created 20 core categories to cover the full breadth of content. Executive leadership increased this to 25 categories, and the art department designed custom icons for each. This new category structure not only improved content organization but also laid the foundation for a future “personal goals” feature for users with paid subscriptions.
Organizing Personalities and Guests
To improve discoverability of presenter content, I developed a system that enabled PragerU to clearly distinguish between three roles: Hosts (in-house talent with their own shows), Presenters (experts featured in 5-Minute Videos), and Guests (experts and newsmakers appearing in interviews).
I also introduced the ability to assign multiple personalities to a single piece of content, along with more comprehensive bios that showcase the videos each person appears in. Additionally, I oversaw updates to photos and bios—many of which had not been refreshed in over 8 years. With more than 500 hosts, presenters, and guests in total, I automated and streamlined bulk editing and updates during the most recent site redesign.
Subscribe & Cross-Promote
To boost user engagement, I added a multi-purpose section to all video pages that served two key functions.
First, for non-logged-in users, it featured a simple email collection form. Users who were impressed or drawn in by a video were 4x more likely to subscribe to our email marketing when the opportunity was readily available.
Second, for logged-in users (or when designated by the marketing team), the same section dynamically promoted new content, upcoming features, and active fundraising campaigns.
THE RESULTS:
👍 73%
73% of users surveyed preferred browsing content by categories.
+36%
Video pages saw +36% engagement when a cross-promotion was displayed.
+24%
24% increase in the number of personalities linked to content and made searchable.
Hello!
I’m Lisa Wilkins, a user experience director, designer and product strategist. The Sonoran Desert is my home, and it inspires me everyday with it’s beautiful simplicity and underlying complexity. I’m adaptable, resilient, and nerdy which are qualities I weave into everything I do. I’m most proud of raising a son full of gratitude, training various equines, and spoiling a very good dog.
Let me know how I can help your organization.
Persuading pixels to achieve their maximum potential
PragerU Strategy & Organization
THE PROBLEMS:
Users were coming to the PragerU home page with no clear path to discover content. Basic categorization for a video streaming service was missing. Bounce rates on video pages was >90%. No clear incentive for users to engage with the service and minimal cross-promotional opportunities were available.
SCOPE
Display content in a variety ways without adding to the editorial workload. Create more incentive for users to create an account and/or subscribe. Expand the concept of video personalities to allow for multiple hosts, guests and a full browse feature. Add cross-promotional areas to showcase new features, videos, and campaigns.
GOALS
- Increase user account creation and subscription conversions by 15%
- Reduce bounce rate on video pages by 20% with engagement or cross-promotion
- Improve user’s content discovery satisfaction
- Reduce the overall lift for internal editorial team to program content
TEAM
- UX Director
- 1 Offsite UI Designer
- 2 Engineers (1 Offsite)
- 1.5 Project Managers (.5 Offsite)
- Cross-team internal stakeholders (6 at various points)
THE ACTIONS:
Categorize all video content to allow easier discovery and build a base for future user customization. Provide easy methods to subscribe, join and engage. Add cross-promotional areas on key page types. Organize the content and personalities to improve search and SEO.
Categorization
The library of over 2,000 videos was only loosely organized by series, making it difficult for users to naturally discover content by category or theme. The editorial team created topics on the fly, without moderation or documentation, resulting in more than 700 unmanageable “topics” plus unlimited keywords for each video.
I used an AI agent to analyze and categorize all 700+ topics. In the first pass, I combined the AI’s output with many hours of manual review to reduce the list to fewer than 380 topics by eliminating proper nouns, hyper-specific terms, and duplicates
This consolidation was done in close collaboration with the editorial team and producers to ensure each video’s key themes were accurately and concisely represented.
I then created 20 core categories to cover the full breadth of content. Executive leadership increased this to 25 categories, and the art department designed custom icons for each. This new category structure not only improved content organization but also laid the foundation for a future “personal goals” feature for users with paid subscriptions.
Organizing Personalities and Guests
I developed a system that enabled PragerU to clearly distinguish between three roles: Hosts (in-house talent with their own shows), Presenters (experts featured in 5-Minute Videos), and Guests (experts and newsmakers appearing in interviews).
I also introduced the ability to assign multiple personalities to a single piece of content, along with more comprehensive bios that showcase the videos each person appears in. With more than 500 hosts, presenters, and guests in total, I automated and streamlined bulk editing and updates during the most recent site redesign.
Subscribe & Cross-Promote
To boost user engagement, I added a multi-purpose section to all video pages that served two key functions.
First, for non-logged-in users, it featured a simple email collection form. Users who were impressed or drawn in by a video were 4x more likely to subscribe to our email marketing when the opportunity was readily available.
Second, for logged-in users (or when designated by the marketing team), the same section dynamically promoted new content, upcoming features, and active fundraising campaigns.
THE RESULTS:
👍 73%
73% of users surveyed preferred browsing content by categories.
+36%
Video pages saw +36% engagement when a cross-promotion was displayed.
+24%
24% increase in the number of personalities linked to content and made searchable.
Hello!
I’m Lisa Wilkins, a user experience director, designer and product strategist. The Sonoran Desert is my home, and it inspires me everyday with it’s beautiful simplicity and underlying complexity. I’m adaptable, resilient, and nerdy which are qualities I weave into everything I do. I’m most proud of raising a son full of gratitude, training various equines, and spoiling a very good dog.
Let me know how I can help your organization.
Persuading pixels to achieve their maximum potential