GameDev x3 their page load speed and boosted their conversion rate 30%

Challenges

The GameDev team had reached a technical ceiling with Teachable. They had customised their site as much as possible, but it didn’t look or act the way they wanted. They had poor visibility into user behaviour analytics, weren’t confident in running paid ads, and had a massive backlog of “wish list features”. Their list of challenges had been building for years and included:

• Teachable would change it’s API without warning, breaking their system
• A lack of clear conversion reporting meant they couldn’t run paid ads
• Teachable’s page builder prevented meaningful A/B testing
• The site’s natural growth had plateaued

Goals

The GameDev team wanted the “super user” version of Teachable. Their new system had to allow them to create courses quickly, manage students, and provide a deep dive into the data behind customer behaviours. They also wanted to present a customer-facing experience that was beautiful, fun, easy to navigate and blazing fast. This platform would be the foundation for their future growth, and it needed to tick a few other important boxes:

• Deep analytics that connects trends across their various systems
• The ability to A/B test product pricing, details, and interface changes
• Granular account permissions for the various users on their team
• A low-transaction cost payment processor to avoid overpaying fees

How did it play out?

After years of extending Teachable beyond what it’s normally capable of, the GameDev platform had become a tangle of extensions added by different developers. The only way forward was to pull our sleeves up and do a deep collaborative discovery session. The only change the project had of being successful was creating a detailed roadmap to guide the system’s development.

Even with a detailed roadmap, the challenge of recreating Teachable and a beautiful fully custom website on top was quite daunting.

Over the next two years, we worked through weekly sprints to design, develop, test and release features, looking for ways to improve on the speed and usability of systems like Teachable and Thinkific.

The project was released in May, 2024, quickly acquiring almost 20,000 weekly active users. The new site’s ability to convert users jumped almost 30% in the first month. Due to a clever integration with PostHog, the GameDev team now have complete analytical visibility into customer and student behaviour.

What's next for GameDev?

It’s a bit cliche, but this new system is only the beginning for the GameDev team. As they look to establish their long term foothold in the video game training industry, they have a long list of ideas they plan to add to their website. From creative upsell mechanisms, to time-saving automations, and even interactive ways to distribute training.

Over the next 12 months, the focus will be A/B testing and system optimisation to provide the best possible shopping and course consumption experience. This will open the door for running paid advertising campaigns that take their revenue to the next level.