We think videos are a great way to help introduce the teams working at GDS. In past months we've focused on the Transformation team, Finance team, Hosting and Infrastructure team, User research team and Procurement. Now it's the turn of the Product analysts.
Meet the Product analysts - video transcript
Peter Jordan (Product analytics lead, Government Digital Service):
The product analysts look at how people interact with the site, where they come from, and what we're particularly interested in on GOV.UK is getting people to transactions or to the information that they want.
Why we love search
Lana Gibson (Product analyst, Government Digital Service):
The needs for GOV.UK were based on SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) analysis: what were people searching for?
Peter Jordan:
When you've got a need, when you're looking when the train time is, when you're looking how much your new passport costs, you've got something that's going on in your head…
Tara Stockford (Product analyst - search, Government Digital Service):
Tax disc, car tax, road tax.
Peter Jordan:
…and you try and, amazingly, you try and express that need in a few words that you enter into a search box, and I just find that fascinating.
Tara Stockford:
There are so many different words that people can use to search for the same thing.
Peter Jordan:
By understanding that, you can then help the product managers design the content that answers people's needs.
Tara Stockford:
We'll make sure that they get the main tax disc page no matter which of those phrases they've searched for.
Decisions with data
Ashraf Chohan (Product analyst):
Yesterday I was finishing up implementation phase one with Google and today it's browse analysis. I'm going to try and get out all the data I need so I can start working on it tomorrow.
Peter Jordan:
It's important to make decisions with data because if you don't have data you're acting on a hunch.
John Byrne (Product analyst, Government Digital Service):
We're focusing very much on actionable analytics, using data to help improve content and user experiences.
Peter Jordan:
What we want to do is identify what in analytics terms is called a funnel, so lots of people start the thing off, it gradually gets narrow and fewer people actually get to the end point. What we want to do is work, by gathering that information, is widen that funnel so a much higher proportion of people actually get to the end.
Lana Gibson:
You publish something, you monitor, you find problems, you iterate, and then you analyse again.
