It can be tough to admit that your website has a high bounce rate, kind of like accepting that your child might not be the most attractive one at school. You think your website is fantastic, but the bounce rate in Google Analytics tells a different story. It’s hard to accept because you love your website, so why doesn’t everyone else?

What Makes a Good Bounce Rate?

Just like beauty, a “good” bounce rate is subjective. A bounce rate of 80% might be great for one site but terrible for another. It depends on your site’s purpose and your business objectives.

Many website owners and managers closely monitor bounce rate as an indicator of a site’s appeal and try to lower it. Some believe it even affects search rankings through Google’s RankBrain algorithm, making it an important SEO metric to optimize.

This post will explore 11 ways to do just that. However, before we begin, let’s discuss the inherent problems with bounce rate as a performance metric and what it means for marketers.

A Quick Look at the Issues with Bounce Rate

You’ve probably seen the “Time on Page” metric in Google Analytics alongside Bounce Rate. As the name suggests, it estimates how long users spend on a page. However, it’s an approximation because Google Analytics (and other analytics platforms) need two clicks to calculate it accurately: an “entrance” click (usually the link that brings a user to a page) and an “exit” click (typically when they navigate away from the page).

The problem is that the exit click is often missing. Have you ever read a page for a few minutes before closing the tab or browser? Google Analytics couldn’t accurately measure Time on Page because it missed that exit click. Even if a user reads every word of an 8,000-word post and leaves satisfied, it’s logged as a bounce if they close the tab without clicking elsewhere. The same applies if they open a link in a new tab and leave the original open before closing the browser.

This is why bounce rate, as a metric, isn’t great.

Rigby knows how much bounce rate sucks.

Because of this flaw, many marketers are shifting away from bounce rate as a primary metric, focusing on “attention metrics” like dwell time and scroll depth. Accurately measuring bounce rate (and Time on Page) is difficult, but keeping bounce rates low is still worthwhile.

If your bounce rate is extremely high or suddenly spikes after site changes, you have a serious issue to address.

With that said, let’s explore how to make your pages more engaging and reduce that annoying bounce rate.

1. Speed Up Page Load Time

Many marketers assume high bounce rates stem from content issues. However, significant problems can arise before users even see the page.

Of all the issues a web page can have, slow loading is arguably the worst. It doesn’t matter how good the content is if users can’t read it (or even see it), and 47% of users expect a web page to load in two seconds or less, making on-page optimization critical for reducing bounce rates.

This is especially crucial for mobile sites. According to Radware, a connection delay of just 500 milliseconds can lead to an increase in “peak frustration” of more than 26% and an 8% decrease in engagement.

Furthermore, slow-loading pages are a primary cause of shopping cart abandonment for e-commerce businesses. Shockingly, only 2% of the top 100 e-commerce websites have mobile sites that fully load in under five seconds on mobile devices. One-fifth take almost eight seconds, an unreasonably long time for sites reliant on conversion rate optimization.

Shopping cart abandonment percentages (Image via Search Engine Journal)

Before even considering your page content, ensure visitors can view it within a reasonable timeframe.

2. Make Your Content Approachable with Smart Formatting

Have you ever clicked on a blog post or webpage only to be met with a massive wall of text? It’s incredibly off-putting for readers. Even if your content is valuable and unique, it won’t matter if readers are intimidated by a blog post as dense as War and Peace or Les Misérables.

Some blog posts read a bit too much like this; and as such, are formidable

Formatting your pages to be welcoming and accessible is crucial for reducing bounce rates. The easier it is for visitors to find what they need, the more likely they’ll stay. Don’t overwhelm them with long paragraphs spanning entire pages. Use white space to make your content more approachable.

Here’s how to make content less intimidating:

• Use headers appropriately
• Include frequent subheadings
• Add relevant images
• Use bulleted lists (like this one!)

These formatting options make your content easier to digest, allowing readers to scan or skim and find what’s most relevant to them.

However, don’t underestimate your readers’ intelligence either. Understand their needs and provide for them. Some blogs, while informative, insist on using line breaks or images between every sentence, which can be just as annoying as huge blocks of text.

3. Use Sidebar Widgets and Promotions Carefully

Some web pages are perfect for offering relevant content, promotions, and other materials to your audience. Blog pages are a prime example, and it’s rare to find a decent blog without a sidebar. However, stuffing your content’s margins with ads, awards, and other clutter will overwhelm visitors and encourage them to bounce.

Sidebars widgets and promotions can be overwhelming

If you highlight content from your sidebar, ensure it provides additional value. For example, related article recommendations that build on the main topic are great for making your site more engaging and providing genuinely valuable content. Similarly, if you include awards and trust signals, ensure they’re from reputable sources and serve a purpose.

Also, be cautious with pop-ups from services like Bounce Exchange. They can be effective but also distracting, especially if they appear immediately upon visiting a page. Give visitors time to engage with your content before hitting them with newsletter sign-ups or other promotions. Don’t be too aggressive too quickly.

4. Analyze Bounce Rate Alongside Time on Site

As the saying goes, “No metric is an island.” Examining bounce rate data in isolation can be as misleading as relying on it exclusively.

It’s crucial to consider bounce rate within the context of your site’s overall performance. This helps you determine whether the issue lies with a specific page, a page type (like your blog or product pages), or your entire site. If your Time on Site metrics are good but your blog has a high bounce rate, the problem might be the content. Conversely, if both bounce rate and Time on Site are low, you may not be meeting visitors’ needs effectively.

Read more on Analytics’ Time on Site metric in this excellent post by Google’s Justin Cutroni

As with any metric, analyze usage trends alongside other site data. This ensures you don’t make site-wide decisions based on a single outlier page or miss a larger problem by focusing too narrowly.

5. Prioritize Relevance Above All Else

Beyond technical aspects like page load times and formatting, one of the biggest contributors to high bounce rates is relevance – or lack thereof.

Some sites effectively target specific keywords but then offer content only vaguely related, or worse, completely irrelevant. If the page you serve doesn’t directly address a user’s search, they’ll likely bounce. Therefore, prioritize relevance above all else.

Relevance is the name of the game in Conversion Rate Optimization

If you target and rank for a keyword, ensure the page content is highly relevant. Consider user intent. Are they looking to learn or buy something? What stage of the funnel are they in? What problem are they trying to solve? These questions help you provide the most relevant and useful content, making visitors more likely to stay.

6. Include a Single, Clear Call to Action

Just as you consider what the user wants (as you should when optimizing for relevance), think about what action you want them to take after consuming your content. Once you know, you can guide them with ONE clear call to action.

Call-to-actions like this one leave a lot to be desired

The more CTAs you cram onto a single page, the more likely you’ll confuse visitors. While it would be ideal if visitors meticulously examined every CTA before acting, this rarely happens. Your site should make it easy for visitors to quickly find what they want and take action.

Avoid overwhelming visitors with numerous CTAs. Consider user intent and how your pages help them achieve their goals. Then include a clear, relevant CTA that guides them.

7. Implement a Logical and USEFUL Internal Linking Structure

Many advocate for numerous internal links to reduce bounce rates. While this can be effective, giving Analytics that crucial second click to measure Time on Page accurately, it can backfire by making your content seem spammy. We’ve all seen sites that link internally every other sentence. It looks terrible and doesn’t enhance the user experience or provide genuine value.

A cramped internal linking structure causes all kinds of readability issues

Relevance is key here, too. If you have a valuable, actionable blog post that thoroughly explains a topic and would benefit your audience, link to it from other pages. However, avoid going overboard. Too many internal links can confuse visitors (as mentioned earlier) and discourage them from clicking any at all.

When choosing internal links and anchor text, focus on relevance and a logical strategy. For example, in our Quality Score guides, we link to pages about bidding in AdWords and click-through rate because these topics are closely related to Quality Score. Linking to articles about clickbait or general SEO wouldn’t make sense because they’re less relevant.

Resist linking to every article in your archive. Focus on linking to useful articles or pages that are highly relevant and potentially valuable to your visitors.

8. Improve Your Product Pages

Optimizing product pages is challenging. Too much information overwhelms visitors, while too little leaves them feeling uninformed. However, spending a little time analyzing your product pages will likely reveal optimization opportunities to reduce bounce rates and improve conversions.

How might we rework this page to optimize for conversions?

One reason people don’t convert on product pages is that they’re not ready to purchase. Sometimes it’s simple buyer hesitation or price aversion. Other times, it’s because they can’t find the information they need, like manufacturing details, return policies, or user reviews.

Remember that product pages might naturally have slightly higher bounce rates than other pages, depending on the product or service. However, if you notice unusually high bounce rates on your product pages, experiment with adding more information. Is your return policy clear and prominent to address risk aversion? Is the product’s origin and manufacturing process transparent? Do you showcase positive customer reviews? As always, A/B test these changes before fully committing.

9. Make Your Site Easily Searchable

Even in 2016, site search functionality often feels stuck in the dark ages of Geocities. Many websites treat it as an afterthought, missing a huge opportunity to help visitors find what they need and reduce bounce rates.

Non-navigable means high bounce rate

Even the most accurate content recommendations still control what you offer. Site search empowers visitors to find what they want, not what you think they want. If you’ve ever searched a site and received a “Page Not Found” or “No Results” message for a query that should have yielded numerous results, you know how frustrating it is.

Your site search will likely never be as good as Google’s, but that’s no excuse to neglect it. The easier it is for users to find what they’re looking for, the more likely they’ll stay on your site.

10. Optimize for Mobile

It’s disheartening that this still needs emphasis, but the number of websites not optimized for mobile is astounding. With more users accessing the Web primarily from mobile devices increasing every year, neglecting mobile optimization is practically begging visitors to leave and go elsewhere.

The world is going mobile. Don’t just optimize for it. Make it a priority.

Launching a mobile-friendly site can be a pain, especially for larger sites. It’s a complex process that might be beyond your technical capabilities, potentially adding another expense. However, mobile optimization is crucial for all sites, and you should prioritize it regardless of the time, effort, expense, or stress involved.

Remember tip #1 when optimizing for mobile: a beautiful site is useless if it takes forever to load on a phone.

11. Make Site Navigation Effortless

Put bluntly, think of your website visitors as impatient and entitled. They want everything handed to them with minimal effort. This might not be the most flattering perspective, but if you make them work even slightly to find what they need, they’ll leave. Therefore, make your site navigation as effortless as possible.

Effortless, clean site navigation

Imagine a typical browsing session from a user’s perspective. They arrive at your site, quickly scan your content (often for just a second or two – that’s all you get), and decide that while this page isn’t exactly what they need, your site might have it. Then, they try to navigate to the desired page, only to encounter illogical animated drop-down menus, image links that don’t look clickable, or other navigational nightmares.

What do you think they do next? They bounce faster than a rubber ball.

Your site navigation should be clear, intuitive, and provide a seamless experience. Visitors shouldn’t have to guess where they are or how to get around. Avoid forcing them down artificial paths designed to funnel them towards a sale. Remember, they are in control, not you.

Analyze your current site navigation and look for ways to simplify it. Then simplify it even further. In fact, aim for a level of simplicity that seems almost counterintuitive because that’s what visitors want. They don’t care about you or your company—only themselves and what they need.