Pogo-Sticking in SEO: What It Is & What to Do About It

Pogo-sticking is an SEO word utilized to picture a concern wherever a searcher rapidly navigates backmost and distant betwixt pages successful hunt results.

It’s a concern dreaded by immoderate SEOs. They judge this idiosyncratic behaviour is tracked by Google and results successful websites being penalized.

But is Google really penalizing pogo-sticking? And should you truly interest astir it? In this article, you’ll larn the following:

• Difference betwixt pogo-sticking and bounce rate
• Causes of pogo-sticking
• Is pogo-sticking a ranking factor?
• Should you interest astir pogo-sticking?
• How to marque your contented much engaging 

First, let’s marque things a spot clearer and gully the enactment betwixt pogo-sticking and bounce rate, arsenic radical often get them confused:

• Pogo-sticking, arsenic defined successful the intro, is erstwhile a idiosyncratic enters a tract from a SERP (search motor results page) and rapidly leaves it to spell backmost to the SERP.
• Bounce complaint is erstwhile a idiosyncratic enters a tract from immoderate root and doesn’t execute immoderate enactment connected it (e.g., clicking a link, filling a form, oregon putting an point successful a cart). So if idiosyncratic opens this article, reads it entirely, and doesn’t bash thing other earlier leaving—that counts arsenic a bounce. 

Recommended reading: What Is Bounce Rate? How to Interpret and Work With It

There are galore imaginable causes of pogo-sticking. Do enactment that not each of them are caused by mediocre contented oregon atrocious UX (user experience).

Clickbait content

In this scenario, a searcher enters a tract that overpromises and underdelivers. In different words, the searcher comes crossed clickbait content.

We’ve each seen specified contented connected the web, and we each instantly regret clicking connected them: “You’ll Never Believe This (…),” “Do This One Thing for 6 Weeks and (…),” “They Don’t Want You to Know This (…),” and truthful on. And erstwhile we do, we consciousness tricked, truthful we “pogo” backmost to the SERP.

To illustrate, let’s presume you privation to cheque what the net has to accidental astir the sentiment that SEO is dead. You travel crossed thing like this:

OK, let’s larn astir the “new SEO” then.

So SEO seems to beryllium dead. This sounds similar large news. And alternatively of a 10-step people connected “old SEO,” this tract offers a five-step people connected “new SEO.” But to your surprise, you observe that “old SEO” is not that dormant after all.

That’s clickbait—you’d privation to permission arsenic soon arsenic imaginable and ne'er come back.

Buried oregon locked information

In different words, the searcher can’t find what they are looking for adjacent though the accusation whitethorn really beryllium there. The occupation is the accusation is buried nether tons of text, obscured by confusing language, oregon unavailable to some users.

Here’s an example. This screenshot comes from a webpage that was 1 of the apical results for “turbocharger nonaccomplishment symptoms.” We’ve got a partition of substance of astir apt valid information. But there’s nary notation of the symptoms.

Well, the symptoms we privation to spot are really determination but mode little connected the page. Before you tin get to the symptoms, you are expected to work astir however a turbo works and a database of causes of a turbo breakdown. Since determination is nary contiguous solution to the query, the searcher simply goes backmost to the SERP to effort immoderate other page.

A akin happening happens erstwhile the contented is lone disposable to signed-up users oregon enactment down an “email wall.” The website whitethorn beryllium bully and connection the accusation the searcher needs. But since it’s not instantly available, the searcher returns to the SERP.

Poor UX

In this scenario, the searcher gets instantly frustrated (or suspicious) by however the tract looks and works, truthful they instrumentality to the information of the SERP.

Let’s spot an example. Here, not lone does the website load slowly, but we besides get a beauteous annoying interstitial pop-up.

Poor UX tin beryllium caused by a fig of things:

• Slow site speed
• Annoying ads
• Pushy sign-up forms that screen the content
• Confusing website layout
• Website not optimized for mobile devices

The searcher is conscionable browsing around

Pogo-sticking whitethorn besides hap erstwhile the searcher is simply browsing around; they whitethorn not mean to enactment agelong connected 1 peculiar page. They could beryllium looking for immoderate inspiration, comparing prices, oregon trying to callback a tract they saw the other day.

Other reasons

To further exemplify the complexity of scenarios that tin pb to pogo-sticking, let’s see this situation. Let’s accidental idiosyncratic told you that you tin enactment WD40 connected car doorway seals successful wintertime to forestall them from freezing. Logically, you’ll privation to verify that information. So you Google it.

Just by speechmaking the descriptions nether the bluish links, you tin spot the searcher gets antithetic answers. This whitethorn “trigger” pogo-sticking but for antithetic reasons. And sometimes, that could beryllium benignant of Google’s fault.

• If the searcher clicks the archetypal result, they’ll astir apt bounce backmost rather accelerated due to the fact that that tract is astir frozen car locks and not seals. They whitethorn travel backmost to the SERP, but that decidedly isn’t the content’s fault.
• How astir effect #4? It says that you tin usage WD40 to forestall seals from freezing. However, you shouldn’t bash it excessively often. After seeing this, the searcher whitethorn travel backmost to the SERP and effort different effect to verify that information. Again, this is pogo-sticking, but penalizing anybody present is unfair.
• And if the searcher clicks #6 first? Maybe that’s due to the fact that they archetypal work the snippet successful effect #5. If they get to fig #6, they’ll get the reply rather fast. Don’t enactment WD40 connected car doorway seals (which is astir apt the close reply here). Then, they whitethorn instrumentality to the SERP to find different tract with this benignant of accusation to double-check, oregon they whitethorn execute a caller search.

Now for the large question: Is pogo-sticking a ranking factor? Tl;dr: Pogo-sticking is astir surely not a ranking factor. A fewer years back, John Mueller confirmed that in a Google Webmaster Central hangout, saying:

From an SEO perspective: not necessarily. Since determination tin beryllium galore reasons wherefore searchers whitethorn leap betwixt sites, Google astir surely doesn’t dainty pogo-sticking arsenic a ranking factor. So don’t interest astir it specifically.

From a concern perspective: It whitethorn beryllium thing to look into. Ranking factors oregon not, you astir apt privation your readers to instrumentality astir longer than a fewer seconds and prosecute with what you offer.

Here are a fewer tips that tin assistance you assistance your readers.

Fix tract UX. Also connected mobile

Not each website has to enactment successful plan contests. If you privation to supply the champion acquisition for the reader, conscionable support things elemental with minimum distraction. Everything that is not the contented the searcher is looking for should enactment the speechmaking experience. In practice, this means it should enactment retired of the way.

A nonstop mode to amended your site’s UX is to hole the UI (user interface). Here are some ideas:

• Get escaped of pop-ups – These see sign-up forms, exit forms, etc. Do the aforesaid for immoderate banners that displacement the layout.
• Make definite your website’s layout is clear, consistent, and usable – This is especially existent for your website’s navigation. Having a beautifully designed tract is great. But it’s much important not to overload the user’s cognitive capableness with elements that don’t service immoderate applicable purpose.
• Optimize your website for mobile devices – Website postulation coming from mobile devices accounts for a spot more than 50%. On apical of that, Google indexes and ranks contented based connected mobile versions of the websites (mobile-first indexing).

Keep your site fast

Obviously, cipher likes to hold for a tract to load. But much importantly, immoderate radical volition conscionable permission if loading takes excessively agelong oregon if your tract is dilatory successful general. Some radical volition apt debar dilatory pages if determination are competitors that supply contented faster. And successful this competition, every 2nd matters.

Moreover, if you privation your contented to fertile precocious successful SERPs, you request to supply users contented arsenic accelerated arsenic possible. That’s due to the fact that 1 of Google’s ranking factors is site speed.

You tin cheque the loading clip for immoderate webpage utilizing services similar PageSpeed Insights.

For checking aggregate webpages astatine standard (even for third-party websites), you tin usage Ahrefs’ Site Audit. Apart from showing metrics similar Time to First Byte, it besides supports Core Web Vitals (through Google’s PageSpeed Insights API).

Use the inverted pyramid method

The inverted pyramid is simply a tried and tested journalistic method that puts the “need to know” earlier the “nice to know.” Following this regularisation volition assistance your readers find accusation quicker. It volition surely assistance the website astir turbocharger nonaccomplishment symptoms, which we discussed earlier.

For example, if you’re targeting a keyword wherever searchers are chiefly looking for a definition, you’ll astir apt privation to pb with that.

That’s what we did for our nonfiction connected hunt visibility. 

This is due to the fact that it is wide from the SERP that astir searchers privation a definition:

Use wide formatting and ocular elements

Nobody likes a partition of text, particularly online wherever most radical skim content. Use these champion practices to marque your contented easier to digest:

• Keep wrong 85 characters per line
• Limit paragraphs to 3 to 4 sentences
• Use lists and slug points to interruption up blocks of text
• Use a legible font
• Use a font colour that contrasts with the background

You should besides see utilizing ocular elements to interruption up substance wherever relevant, particularly successful acquisition content. In fact, 1 study found that radical pursuing directions with substance and illustrations bash 323% amended than radical pursuing directions without illustrations.

To illustrate: Which mentation of the beneath nonfiction is much apt to get the reader’s attention? The 1 with the graph oregon the 1 without?

Below is different large illustration of however to captivate the reader’s attraction with visuals portion making the contented casual to skim and comprehend. Notice however the signifier of this nonfiction follows its function: telling the quality betwixt the flu and COVID-19.

Use applicable interior links

Some hunt queries are meant to lick a azygous occupation fast. Others are the opening of a learning travel astir a analyzable topic. And usually, 1 azygous portion of contented can’t perchance screen specified a topic. For these kinds of queries, you tin make a full bid of contented and interlink it to usher the idiosyncratic successful the close direction.

For example, this usher connected SEO for startups is implicit 4,500 words long. But adjacent though this is simply a alternatively lengthy contented format, we can’t perchance explicate everything determination is to cognize astir the topic. However, we tin nexus to articles that explicate definite problems of SEO successful detail, specified arsenic keyword probe oregon method SEO.

You tin automate the process of uncovering interior linking opportunities to a ample grade for escaped utilizing Ahrefs Webmaster Tools. Just motion up, crawl your tract with Site Audit, and spell to the Internal nexus opportunities report. This volition amusement you applicable interior linking opportunities crossed your site.

For example, you tin spot successful the screenshot beneath there’s an accidental to nexus the words “keyword research” successful our station astir the champion fertile trackers to our station connected escaped keyword probe tools.

Demonstrate E‑A-T

E‑A‑T stands for expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. It comes from Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines, a papers utilized by quality prime raters to measure the prime of Google’s hunt results.

E‑A-T is a conception from the SEO world. But demonstrating expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness is ever a bully thought erstwhile it comes to content. It’s a awesome to the idiosyncratic that your contented is worthy speechmaking (or watching). It’s adjacent much important if your contented revolves astir YMYL (Your Money oregon Your Life) topics, specified arsenic money, health, and safety.

But what does it mean to show E‑A-T exactly?

• Expertise means having a precocious level of cognition oregon accomplishment successful a peculiar field. In different words, it refers to contented created by a taxable substance expert. If you privation to show that, have experts make your content. You can hire them oregon judge impermanent posts from radical who cognize their stuff.
• Authoritativeness is astir reputation, peculiarly among different experts and influencers successful the industry. There’s nary different mode to bash this than to amusement your credentials. Think nonrecreational experience, world credentials, speaking astatine well-known conferences, etc.
• Trustworthiness is astir the legitimacy, transparency, and accuracy of the website and its content. Simply put, you should cheque your facts and support your contented up to date.

To exemplify my point, which of these pages is simply a amended root of accusation for the query, “What to bash erstwhile your tummy hurts?” The apical 1 oregon the one below?

There are a fewer much things you tin bash to show E‑A-T that are much astir SEO than bully contented instauration practices. If you privation to larn more, cheque retired our nonfiction connected E‑A-T and wherefore it’s important for SEO.         

Keep contented up to date

Freshness is much important for immoderate queries than others. After all, who wants 2011’s champion headphones erstwhile they tin person this year’s best?

Updating your contented each twelvemonth (or much often) to service caller contented is simply a bully thought if that’s what your readers expect. This maneuver is thing that you tin repetition each year, conscionable similar what Digital Trends mag does:

At Ahrefs, we update contented regularly too. Just look astatine the integrated postulation spikes aft we repeatedly refreshed 1 of our blog posts:

Final thoughts

Don’t interest astir pogo-sticking for SEO reasons. According to John, the alleged pogo-sticking is not a ranking factor. His connection makes full consciousness erstwhile you see the imaginable reasons for searchers to leap backmost and distant betwixt SERPs and websites.

If you truly privation your users to instrumentality astir longer connected your website, effort 1 of the tips listed supra to marque your contented much engaging. Some of those tips whitethorn adjacent assistance you fertile higher successful the SERPs.

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