Insight/Action/Outcome: Before ITVX implemented Amplitude, this UK commercial broadcast network streaming service relied on disjointed analytics to attract and keep users on their platforms. Everything changed once they started using Amplitude's pathfinder and funnel charts to track viewer paths, spot issues, and find where users were dropping off. Using Amplitude Experiment, they could make changes with confidence leading to a 12% increase in registration and a 10% rise in login conversions.
How do you win and keep viewers in a world where people constantly hop from one streaming service to another? The answer is in the data, but you need the right platform to find the right insights.
When I joined ITVX, I was already a big fan of Amplitude. I was one of its top users at another streaming service, so I knew it would be foundational to my success as the Director of Growth here, too. And that success meant expanding and monetizing our user base.
The potential was huge, but the challenge was just as big. ITVX is the online home of content from ITV, the largest British commercial free-to-air public broadcast network. In this highly competitive industry, every second of engagement matters. Our goal is to turn ITVX visitors into loyal viewers.
Decoding viewership with data
Our platform offers all ITV content, from dramas and documentaries to US-based series, comedies, reality shows, movies, and more. We also stream major sports events like the Euro Cup and have a dedicated section for ITV News. ITVX is available for free to UK viewers with ads, and there's an ad-free premium subscription option, too.
So, we've got amazing, exclusive content, a huge nationwide brand, and tons of potential viewers. My job was to ensure we got the most value from these strengths. Before I joined, there was no growth team at ITVX, and data analysis was pretty scattered. I was starting from scratch in a new department crucial for the company's revenue.
The plan was to focus on growth, boost our ecommerce strategy, and integrate Amplitude into the ITVX teams. We trained everyone on funnels, pathfinder, retention, behavior analytics, and how to set up experiments. We were ready to go!
I've had the pleasure of working closely with three amazing people at Amplitude for nearly five years: Richard Eckles, Simon Khalighi, and Laura Friend. Laura and Richard were absolute troopers during the tough contracting phase, always listening to feedback, coaching my team, and running retention courses. They made the challenging onboarding process at ITVX much smoother. Simon also deserves much appreciation for helping us seal a crucial two-year deal and navigate all the change management needed during a big data transformation.
Understanding viewer behavior leads to an aha moment
When we first set up Amplitude, we noticed unusual behavior as viewers tried to join ITVX. People started to register, switched to something else, and dropped off in unexpected places. This was odd because most of our users were ITV viewers and were coming to watch familiar content. Why change your mind? Why leave?
With Amplitude pathfinder and funnel charts, we started tracing viewer paths and noticed patterns— most users dropped off around creating passwords, logging in, and registering. We talked to our customers and figured out they were confused about ITVX being new but their ITV credentials staying the same. They thought they needed new credentials or didn’t realize they already had them, so they kept taking the wrong path.
With Amplitude pathfinder and funnel charts, we started tracing viewer paths and noticed patterns related to user drop-offs. Realizing our customers were in a different state of mind than we thought was our big aha moment.
Realizing our customers were in a different state of mind than we thought was our big aha moment. We’d never been able to analyze this before. Our free platform makes money from sponsors and ads, and millions of visitors to the ITVX app every month, so reducing drop-off in our conversion funnels was a share worth fighting for. Better overall conversion-to-view means more opportunities to serve targeted advertising.
A valuable fix
Now that we knew the root cause, we could act on our hypothesis and find solutions. We decided to redesign our onboarding process across all platforms—mobile apps, smart TV apps, and web—and used Amplitude Experiment to see if our assumptions and designs worked. ITVX had never had an experimentation platform before, so launching meaningful experiments with real revenue impact was a big deal for us.
We focused on a single email entry process to tell customers if they had an account. They’d enter their email, and we’d route them to either registration or login. By removing user confusion and guiding our viewers to the next step, we saw a huge increase in completed login and registration flows. Our login conversion rates increased by 12%, and our registration rates by 10%. With our traffic volume, the improvements translate to an enormous increase in viewing and an opportunity for targeted advertising revenue.
By removing user confusion and guiding our viewers to the next step, we saw a huge increase in completed login and registration flows. Our login conversion rates increased by 12%, and our registration rates by 10%.
Initially, we launched small-scale experiments on just one platform, and the outcomes were amazing. In less than four hours, statistically significant results spurred us to roll out the new flow everywhere. Identifying the problem and implementing the solution on at least one platform took only a few months.
New questions, more aha answers
One of the things I love most about Amplitude is that it really boosts our brain power. We can ask questions we always wanted and didn't know the answers to, and we can ask questions we didn't know we needed to ask because the data leads us to find new discoveries. One experiment leads to another, creating a never-ending cycle of optimization. With Amplitude, we're always hungry to do more. And this isn't just for the growth team at ITVX—it benefits all our teams.
For example, now our customer service team can pinpoint specific customer issues. They used to collect feedback, but it took a lot of work to make sense of it. Sometimes, customers struggled to explain their problems over the phone. Now, they don't have to. We can see what's happening through the platform, and tell the customer service team how to solve the problem.
My team uses Amplitude multiple times a day. Now, we've started running experiments to deliver personalized experiences and drive conversion. We also have monthly meetings to share insights with colleagues. It has helped foster a true culture of experimentation at ITV
Amplitude has completely changed how we design experiences and interact with our audience. No more guessing—we now let data guide us. We used to build features and hope for the best. Now, every feature is data-driven, not guess-driven, and it's way more exciting and profitable. With Amplitude, we have aha moments every day.
We used to build features and hope for the best. Now, every feature is user-driven, not guess-driven, and it's way more exciting and profitable. With Amplitude, we have aha moments every day.
