15 Simple Ways to Reduce Bounce Rate and Boost Your SEO

A precocious bounce complaint tin person an adverse interaction connected your ranking successful the hunt results. This nonfiction shows you 15 ways to trim bounce complaint connected your website. 

But archetypal of all, what is bounce rate?

Bounce complaint is the percent of visitors to your tract who get astatine your tract connected a peculiar leafage and past navigate away, oregon ‘bounce’, from your tract aft only viewing that azygous webpage.

A bounce is lone recorded if a user exits from the aforesaid page they entered your website and does not interact with immoderate of the components connected that leafage (e.g. doesn’t capable retired an opt-in form, doesn’t permission a remark etc)

The cardinal diagnostic of a bounce is that it is ever a one-page session.

Google has said that bounce complaint itself is not a ranking factor. In different words, bounce complaint does not straight impact integrated ranking.

However, Google does wage adjacent attraction to idiosyncratic acquisition (UX) and a precocious bounce complaint whitethorn bespeak that your web pages are not providing the acquisition your visitors were expecting.

If idiosyncratic clicks connected your web leafage from the hunt results, and past instantly hits the backmost fastener without interacting with your tract oregon visiting immoderate different leafage connected your site, that tells a hunt motor that your leafage astir apt didn't lucifer the hunt intent for that keyword.

Having said that, a precocious bounce complaint isn't needfully negative. It tin mean that the searcher recovered precisely what they were looking for connected your leafage and had nary request to sojourn immoderate different leafage connected your website. This is often the lawsuit with blog posts, for example.

Nevertheless, if you person an mean bounce complaint crossed your tract of implicit 80%, it’s astir apt worthy trying to recognize wherefore that is happening. Because it astir apt has thing to bash with idiosyncratic acquisition connected your website.

And idiosyncratic acquisition is simply a cardinal SEO factor.

#1. Improve User Experience

One of the main reasons for a precocious bounce complaint is mediocre idiosyncratic experience. And that tin beryllium caused by a scope of antithetic factors:

• slow leafage load time
• text that’s hard to read
• distracting sidebar widgets
• broken links
• no wide CTA

I’ll beryllium dealing with these 5 issues successful much item below. The main constituent present is to recognize wherefore your visitant arrived connected your page. What is it they were looking for? And effort to recognize wherefore they near without visiting different leafage connected your site.

#2. Better CTA

As we’ve already seen, a sojourn is recorded arsenic a bounce erstwhile your visitant lands connected your leafage and doesn't interact with your leafage oregon sojourn immoderate different leafage connected your site.

This is often due to the fact that your leafage doesn't person a wide call-to-action (CTA). On astir websites, you’ll privation to usher your visitors done a definite series of pages, culminating successful immoderate benignant of conversion.

So inquire yourself: “what is the extremity for this page?”. The extremity mightiness beryllium to motion up for a newsletter, ticker a video, capable retired a survey, oregon sojourn different leafage connected your website.

If your visitant does immoderate of those things, their sojourn volition nary longer beryllium recorded arsenic a bounce. 

Bottom line: marque definite you are wide successful your ain caput what it is you privation your visitant to do. And past marque definite you pass that extremity to your reader. 

It should beryllium glaringly evident to your visitors what you privation them to bash next. If it isn't, there’s a bully accidental they volition deed the backmost button. And that’s a bounce.

Here’s an illustration of a beardown CTA:

#3. Improve Site Speed

Another communal origin of a precocious bounce complaint is dilatory loading web pages. Kissmetrics recovered that 47% of consumers expect a web leafage to load successful 2 seconds oregon less.

The starring origin of dilatory web pages is server effect time. Read this nonfiction to get 27 tips for reducing your server effect time.

#4. Check Search Intent

Search intent oregon keyword intent is the volition down the hunt query. What is it they were looking for?

When your contented doesn't lucifer the hunt intent down the keyword, the visitant goes consecutive backmost to the hunt results and looks for different web page. And that’s a bounce.

Here’s an example. Let’s accidental you constitute an nonfiction astir ‘serp checkers’. And let’s accidental it ranks connected Page #1. But erstwhile radical benignant that query into Google, they are looking for the bundle itself, not an nonfiction astir the software.

The results? They onshore connected your leafage and spell consecutive backmost to the hunt results. That's due to the fact that the hunt intent of your nonfiction doesn't lucifer the hunt intent for that keyword.

To cheque the hunt intent for immoderate keyword, benignant it into Google and look astatine the apical 5 results. 

#5. Avoid Popups

Popups are different starring origin of precocious bounce rates. G2 conducted a survey of a random illustration of 400 people. 82% of survey participants said they hated popups.

It’s existent that popups bash work: they are large for gathering your database fast.

But is it worthy it, if your popups are negatively impacting your website’s SEO?

Having said this, there’s 1 benignant of popup that volition really trim bounce rate. And that’s an exit-intent popup. 

This benignant of popup appears erstwhile your visitor’s cursor moves towards the backmost button. So it lone gets triggered erstwhile radical are already leaving your page. 

An exit-intent popup volition trim your bounce complaint due to the fact that it offers radical a accidental to prosecute with your web leafage connected the mode out.

And it doesn't interfere with idiosyncratic acquisition due to the fact that it lone appears erstwhile the idiosyncratic has finished viewing your page.

#6. Improve Content Readability

Content readability is different origin that contributes to a precocious bounce rate. Here are the main factors that marque contented much readable:

• Write abbreviated sentences - nary much than 25 words, if possible.
• Keep your paragraphs abbreviated - nary much than 4 sentences.
• Use plentifulness of headings and subheadings (about each 300 words).
• Avoid ample blocks of text.
• Keep the width of your substance narrow. When the substance file is precise wide, it’s hard for the oculus to find the opening of the adjacent sentence. Smashing Magazine recommends keeping the width of your substance successful the scope 45 to 85 characters.
• Use elemental language. Readable estimates that 83% much radical volition decorativeness speechmaking your contented if you spell from Grade 12 level English to Grade 5 level English.
• Break up your substance with images. Recent probe shows that the quality encephalon processes images 60,000 times faster than text. Spacing retired your substance with images gives your readers a interruption and allows them to usage a antithetic portion of their brain. A bully regularisation of thumb is to usage an representation for each 300 words of text.

Another mode to summation readability is to usage transitions. These are phrases that assistance your readers determination from 1 taxable to the next. 

Here are immoderate examples of transitional phrases that volition assistance marque your penning travel better:

• But deliberation astir it this way…
• By now, you’re astir apt wondering
• Contrary to fashionable belief…
• Does that mean you should avoid...
• This is wherever it gets interesting
• Here is thing other to support successful mind:
• Here’s an illustration of what I’m talking about

The Yoast SEO plugin has a transition words check that volition assistance you successful this area. If astatine slightest 30% of the sentences successful your substance incorporate a modulation word, you’ll spot a greenish airy for ‘transitions’.

#7. Use Internal Linking

When a visitant clicks connected an interior link, their sojourn is nary longer recorded arsenic a bounce. So interior linking is simply a cardinal strategy for reducing bounce rate. 

But for interior linking to enactment for you successful this way, the links request to beryllium applicable to the taxable of your page. And the anchor substance should incorporate words that archer the scholar what the linked leafage is astir and invitation them to click.

For example, successful an nonfiction astir email marketing, you mightiness concisely notation database segmentation and you could past see a condemnation similar this: “for much accusation astir however to conception your database work this utile guide” (the anchor substance is bolded).

Another mode to usage interior links is to adhd a ‘Related Articles’ artifact astatine the ft of your web page. Even better, spot it astir halfway down - that mode you’ll drawback radical who don’t adjacent marque it to the extremity of the article.

All you request them to bash is sojourn 1 different leafage connected your tract and their sojourn is nary longer a bounce.

#8. Improve Site Navigation

When idiosyncratic lands connected your site, the leafage they onshore connected won’t needfully beryllium precisely what they were looking for. They’ll look astatine your apical navigation paper to spot if they tin find what they truly need.

That’s wherefore you request a intelligibly laid retired and logical tract navigation. Here are 5 tips for creating a nav paper that helps your visitors find what they want:

• Use descriptive, abbreviated paper titles.
• Limit the fig of items successful your main navigation  to seven.
• Don’t usage much than 2 paper levels successful your main navigation.
• Consider utilizing a sticky apical navigation paper - this is simply a paper that stays with the visitors arsenic they scroll down the page.
• Make definite your site’s navigation is mobile-friendly.  For example, marque definite that your hamburger paper is easy disposable successful the header of the mobile mentation of your website.
• Your tract navigation should beryllium clear, instantly understood, and connection the idiosyncratic a seamless acquisition successful getting from 1 portion of your tract to another.

#9. Update Your Content

This 1 doesn't request overmuch explanation: if your contented is intelligibly out-of-date, astir radical volition click backmost to the hunt results. And that’s a bounce.

Here are 3 tips for keeping your website up-to-date:

• Make definite your copyright connection is successful the footer, intelligibly visible, and with the existent year.
• If you are utilizing an outdated WordPress theme, update to a much caller design.
• Update your content, if it's much than 12 months old. In the lawsuit of listicles, bash immoderate probe and adhd 2 much points to your article. Also, adhd links to caller studies oregon statistic that are applicable to your article.

As a regularisation of thumb, you should purpose to adhd astatine slightest 10% of caller accusation to your content. Once you person updated the article, alteration the day of work truthful that Google displays a much caller day successful your SERP snippet.

#10. Add a Search Box

Most websites trust connected navigation menus to assistance their visitors find what they’re looking for.

But there’s different large mode to assistance radical find your content: a hunt box.

Place a hunt container successful the sidebar of your website and you’ll assistance your visitors find much of your content.

Every clip idiosyncratic uses a hunt container connected your website, that’s going to trim bounce rate. Firstly, due to the fact that they interacted with your site, and secondly due to the fact that they visited different leafage connected your site.

There are tons of bully hunt boxes, some escaped and paid. Here is simply a database of the eleven champion WordPress hunt plugins.

#11. Use Interactive Content

Another large mode to trim bounce complaint is to adhd interactive contented to your web page. Most websites are not interactive. So if you springiness your visitors the accidental to interact with your websites, they usually leap astatine it.

Quizzes are a large illustration of this.

Use a work specified arsenic Interact to adhd a cognition trial quiz to your web page. That mode you are engaging with your visitors and checking however overmuch of the accusation they person absorbed. Here’s a step-by-guide connected how to make a escaped cognition quiz connected Interact.

#12. Mobile Responsive

If your tract doesn't show good connected mobile devices, this tin beryllium different large origin of a precocious bounce rate.

Virtually each WordPress themes are present mobile responsive, peculiarly premium themes. But it’s worthy checking that your tract is mobile-friendly. 

Go to this URL and benignant successful your leafage URL:

https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly

To cheque if your full tract mobile-friendly, usage this instrumentality successful Google Search Console:

https://search.google.com/search-console/welcome

#13. Reduce Clutter

If your website is overly cluttered and busy, your visitors tin consciousness overwhelmed. They don’t cognize what to absorption on. 

The result?

They deed the backmost fastener and find different tract that’s easier to understand.

Here are 3 tips for making your pages little ‘busy’:

• Remove distracting widgets from the sidebar. The benignant of widgets you astir apt shouldn't person successful your sidebar are maps, interaction forms, societal media icons, promotions, coupon codes, and ads.
• Remove ads from the main substance column.
• Use plentifulness of ‘negative space’ oregon ‘white space’. This is abstraction that doesn't incorporate elements and is not clamoring for the visitor's attention. Negative abstraction allows your readers to absorption connected the azygous call-to-action that each leafage should have.

#14. Embed Video

Adding a video to your contented is different mode to trim bounce rate. Remember that a bounce is recorded erstwhile a visitant leaves your tract without having interacted with your contented successful immoderate way.

As soon arsenic idiosyncratic clicks connected a video connected your web page, their sojourn is nary longer a bounce.

To find applicable videos, conscionable spell to YouTube and benignant successful the keyword for your web page. Then drawback the embed codification and spot the video astir a 3rd the mode down your page.

#15. Use Eye-Catching Images

High-quality images volition prosecute your visitors and support them connected your page. The longer your visitors walk connected your page, the much apt it is they volition interact with your website. And that’s going to trim your bounce rate.

You tin bargain high-quality images from banal photograph sites for a tiny monthly subscription.

Conclusion

A precocious bounce complaint tin negatively interaction the SEO of your website. There are assorted imaginable reasons for a precocious bounce rate, specified arsenic mediocre idiosyncratic acquisition (UX) oregon a mismatch betwixt your contented and the hunt intent for your targeted keyword.

Try implementing immoderate of these 15 tips to trim bounce complaint and you should spot your leafage rankings amended crossed your website.