My journey into the world of web analytics began with an
overview of various metrics that can be used to help gage the success of a
company’s digital marketing efforts.
Thus far, I have found Bounce Rate to be one of the most
straightforward metrics while also providing an abundance of valuable
information regarding engagement and customer behavior. One of the most notable professionals within
the web analytics industry, Avinash Kaushik, refers to Bounce Rate as being
“the sexiest web metric ever!” in his book Web Analytics 2.0.
In explaining the concept of Bounce Rate and why I feel it is a valuable metric, I think it is also important to understand the key
differences between Bounce Rate and Exit Rate so that the two are not
confused.
A Bounce Rate measures the percentage of visitors that enter
and exit your site on the same page without clicking through to any other pages
on your site. To give a more clear
understanding, a “bounce” happens when someone clicks on a link to your site,
does nothing, and then leaves from the same page.
An Exit Rate measures the percentage of visitors that left
your site on a particular page based on how many views the page has. So, let’s say Joe performed an organic search
on Google and clicks a link to a page on your website displaying a blog
post. He then decides to click and view
your About Us page, which is also where he exits your site. Joe has viewed more than one page on your
site before exiting from the About Us page. But, if Joe had clicked on the link to your
blog post from the organic search and then left without visiting another page,
it would have been considered a bounce.
However, a problem with Exit Rates is that everyone who
visits your site has to eventually leave at some point so this metric is
usually broken down into “good” and “bad” exits.
While both metrics are important, I think Exit Rates are
better for determining a potential leakage with a process. For example, if visitors are continuously
exiting your site from a page that is meant to lead them to another, more
important page, then the exit page may need to be revisited and edited.
One of the primary reasons I find Bounce Rate to be a bit
more telling is because it is a better indicator of a sites success with
engaging visitors as well as the quality of the traffic on a site.
Measuring the Bounce Rate for your site can help indicate your
success with engaging visitors. The
Bounce Rate should also be determined for individual site pages. Also according to Kaushik, “You'll understand better why your conversion
rate is so low, if you have made changes over the last x amount of time then
watching a trend of bounce rate is a sure way to know if the changes you are
making are for the better.”
Measuring the Bounce Rate for your site’s top referrals can
indicate where your high quality and low quality traffic is coming from. If a site is sending low quality traffic on a regular
basis, the relationship with the site may need to be revisited.
It is also important to note that a high bounce rate may not
always be a bad thing. For blog sites
and other informational sources, visitors may find the information they are
looking for from one page. In a situation
like this, you can determine whether or not a high bounce rate is acceptable by
analyzing the average time spent on a page with a high bounce rate.
Overall, taking steps to reduce your site's Bounce Rate, especially on the pages with the most traffic, will mean your visitors are more engaged with your site's content, which increasing the likelihood of conversion.
References:
Eubanks, N. (2013, January 13). Reduce
bounce rate: 20 things to consider. Retrieved from http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2237250/Reduce-Bounce-Rate-20-Things-to-Consider
Kaushik, A. (2007). Standard
metrics revisited:bounce rate. Retrieved from http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/standard-metrics-revisited-3-bounce-rate/
Kaushik, A. (2010). Web
analytics 2.0. (pp. 51-52). Wiley Publishing, Inc.
Web analytics definitions. (2007, August 16). Retrieved
from http://www.digitalanalyticsassociation.org/Files/PDF_standards/WebAnalyticsDefinitionsVol1.pdf
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