![[CASE STUDY] How I Reduced My Website Bouce Rate](https://t6x7b8n6.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/reduce-website-bounce-rate-case-study.jpg)
In case you don’t know what bounce rate means, take a look at your website’s traffic stats via your Google analytics dashboard, then check the percentage of your bounce rate and see if you have a high or low bounce rate.
What Does A High Bounce Rate Mean?
For example, when a visitor comes to your site for a certain reason (news, information, or to make a purchase), and suddenly abandons your site (i.e. hit the back button). Google analytics counts it as a bounce rate.
Bounce rate could occur for the following reasons:
Slow loading website: if your website takes more than 5 seconds to load, your site visitors will leave.
Error 404: web page not found due to broken or dead links.
Poor or less valuable content: if your website content is not what your headline says, your website will hit the back button and leave to other blogs.
Confusing site: if your website is too busy with adverts or distracting pop-ups that block their vision, they will definitely leave.
No Clear call-to-action: if there is no clear call to action that tells your visitors what to do next, they will abandon your site.
Difficult checkout process: if you make your online shoppers jump through hoops just to make a buy, they will leave as well.
So all these situations were what my website experienced when I took a critical look at my Google analytics dashboard back in October 2012. I took action by seeking my friends’ opinions about my website outlook. This is what they said:
- I don’t really get what your website is all about (it’s confusing).
- What are you selling?
- It takes time to load from my smartphone.
- Your email pop up form is so annoying and distracting.
Their responses explained why my website’s bounce rate was so high each month from 70% – 100%. I had to do something about it.
Now here’s what I did to reduce my website’s bounce rate by 66%:
1. Deleted all the irrelevant WordPress plugins on my blog.
2. Installed the wp-cache plugin to make my website load faster.
3. Moved my blog posts from my home page – carolinewabara.com – to a separate blog page on my site – carolinewabara.com/blog.
4. I created a separate home page that defined what I do and moved it to the front page.
5. I installed the All-In-One SEO plugin to optimize my website’s title tags with local and relevant keywords.
6. I changed my website’s description from “Digital Marketing with Caroline Wabara” to “Nigeria Full-Service Digital Marketing Agency”.
7. I removed the email opt-in pop button and installed the static MailChimp opt-in form widget in my side bar.
8. I installed a redirection WordPress plugin to reduce error 404 pages on my site.
9. I included related posts carousel below each post to make my blog readers browse more engaging content.
10. I began writing valuable articles to inform, educate and entertain my readers.
11. I redesigned my website to make it more attractive and user-friendly.
The results:
Check it out in the images below:
October Bounce Rate was 78.57%:
November Bounce rate was reduced to 25.03%
Not bad isn’t it? Now your turn, how else do you reduce your website’s bounce rate? Tell us in the comment box below.
10 Responses
Segun Akiode
Very cool insight I must say. Yeah, off to my site to implement right away! Thanks for Sharing 🙂
Caroline Wabara
I’m glad you found my blog post useful.
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at https://www.carolinewabara.com/services.
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Rotimi Orimoloye
Hi Caroline, thanks for this article. Not bad at all. It was nice to read your point no.7 a very bold step indeed. 🙂
I also reduced my clients’ bounce rates by reducing the big big grammar they were using on their websites.
Sometimes people try to impress their visitors by using too many “professional” terms that only end up getting the user confused about what your business is all about.
Caroline Wabara
Great to hear about the BIG grammar.
Taiwo Fuwa
Very specific, did you know these were the cause of the high bounce rate immediately or you tested them out to see the impact, also as you do not need to be technical to make some changes on a website, the changes you made does require technical knowledge and expertise.
Caroline Wabara
Yes, I tested them out to see the impact. It does require some technical knowledge too.
Caroline Wabara
Yes Taiwo, these changes require technical knowledge and expertise. And I tested them out to see the impact.
Emmanuel Jimmy
There is Always something new to learn from you each time I read your post.
Caroline Wabara
Thanks Emmanuel. I’m glad you found it helpful.
Caroline Wabara
Thanks Emmanuel.