The bounce rate is when a visitor decides to leave a website as soon as he enters it.He may have found nothing to use to him and did not feel the urge to visit another page or browse further.
The lack of interaction is due to several factors, as we will discover further in this article. But generally speaking, the user simply did not see anything interesting on the site.
This issue needs to be taken seriously because of the consequences it has on your search engine rankings and your website health score.
In this article, we tell you all about how to maintain a good bounce rate on your website.
What is the bounce rate in Google Analytics?
Google Analytics is responsible for measuring, through its platform, the interactions that your website receives. All daily visits are recorded on this platform. And for Google, a high bounce rate on a website would be around 56% to 70% of the number of users visiting the website.
There is a formula established by Google Analytics that considers the number of users and their behavior when they enter the website. Therefore, for Google, a good bounce rate should be between 26% and 40%. The normal average bounce rate is 41% to 55%.
Generally, the bounce rate percentage does not fall below 20%. If it does, it is because there is duplicate code on the website, bots, or third-party plugins.
Exit rate vs. bounce rate
Most people confuses these terms because they are somewhat similar. Unlike bounce rate, which is the number of sessions on a web page, exit rate is the number of people who leave a specific page, even if they did not originally access it.
If a visitor lands on a specific page of your website and then goes back to Google, it is considered a “Bounce Rate”. But if he or she goes to visit another page or two and then leaves, then it is considered an “Exit Rate”.
In the latter case, you don’t have a high bounce rate, but a low conversion rate. Because even if someone has shown interest in your website and goes on to visit other pages to find out more, they have not been convinced that you are the right fit for their need.
→ If the exit rate is high compared to the conversion rate, you may need to revise your content and offer.
Is bounce rate is important?
Of course, because a good bounce rate identifies that the website, in its entirety, is being well received by the user. If there is a high bounce rate, this indicates that there is a strong deficit in the optimization of the website and that the user experience is not pleasant.
For example, one of the factors that most affect the occurrence of a high bounce rate is due to the speed of navigation. The user, after the long seconds of waiting on the site, realizes that he will not have a smooth experience. Their immediate reaction is to go elsewhere.
He was not seized by curiosity or the desire to see further, because he was frustrated by the speed of the web. This indicates that the website needs to be improved in this key area.
It is important to consider the bounce rate if you consider your search engine ranking essential. If Google results in a higher bounce rate than expected, it will not hesitate to hide your content in its results. This means that you will have less traffic to your website.
What is a good bounce rate?
A good bounce rate, as stated above, should be between 26% and 40%.. You can achieve this result by offering your visitor a pleasant user experience while on your website. Think of it as a museum or an art gallery tour.
A good bounce rate reflects that the content offered to the user has succeeded in capturing their attention. The user sees your content as valuable and enjoys the user-friendly navigation.
Thus, a good bounce rate is an indicator that there is a high conversion rate. That person who is browsing the website has grasped the message and will be tempted to make a purchase, becoming a customer.
How to calculate your bounce rate?
Imagine the following. Your website receives 1,000 visits a day. Of that number, only 100 people stop at a single page. All the remaining people have spent the rest of the time diving deeper into the website. This is not a high bounce rate.
Only 10% of the population did not dive deeper into the content. This percentage is obtained as follows: (Number of people who visited a single page x 100%) / (Number of visits) In this case, 10,000 is divided by 1,000.
How to reduce the bounce rate?
The optimization of a website is essential to favor a good bounce rate. It is necessary to think, and develop the website to meet the best navigability standards.
Here are some recommendations:
Think about mobile optimization
Today, statistics confirm that 50% of website visits are made from mobile devices. Your company website should be versatile and viewed elegantly on tablets or smartphones.
At Pharos Digital, we reflect on the mobile version from the first stage of our website production process.
Avoid aggressive pop-ups
Avoid pop-ups at all costs. If the user arrives at your page, don’t bombard them with advertising or ask them if they want to subscribe to your newsletter. Let them visit your page and see what you are offering.
Improve browsing speed
Work with a web developer to build a site with clean code and design. Working with templates can offer a very nice design, but they are usually templates overloaded with code and junk plug-ins, which makes the site very slow to navigate. Also think about your domain hosting, choose one that matches your needs and those of your site.
Use explainer video
Explainer videos are one of the best strategies to reduce bounce rate. Don’t just put up any video, but one that explains the content of the page, or who you are as a company. If the video is well done, you can get them to stay on that page for the whole duration of the video.
Analyze internal links
Take advantage of platforms such as Google Analytics, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to find out which pages of your website have the most visits and interactions. Include the links to those pages in others.
The most important thing about a website is to consider it to be a map. The user is invited to walk through it. You have to design a guide, for a successful user experience.
Use readable content
It is critical that the content is very well written, easy to read, and its narrative structure does not fatigue the user.
Avoid long texts, small font sizes and multiple paragraphs. Privilege audiovisuals, images, infographics to deliver your message.
Review your meta-description
Here you must align expectations. If your meta description is not what your page is about, then you gain a bounce. Your meta title, description, and URL should match exactly the content you offer. Don’t forget to use your keywords in your meta description.
Update your content frequently
You must update the content of the website now and then to increase its visibility. Renewing the content helps with its ranking on search engines.
Remove broken links
To encourage a good bounce rate, make sure that the links do not take the user to Error 404 Not Found style pages. Check that each link works.
Use relevant keywords
And finally, optimize the whole user experience with keywords, which connect and attract more visitors. The more visitors: the more metrics you will get from Google Analytics, SEMrush or Ahrefs and the more you will know where you need to improve.
Closing thoughts
When a website achieves a good bounce rate, it is because it responds to the user’s concerns and needs. The user experience engages the visitor, allowing them to understand the main idea of the website.
To ensure they stay the longest possible, you have to offer them an enjoyable experience and valuable content.
Having a website with such an attraction potential, guarantees high conversions. The company will get guaranteed customers and sales.
