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First, what’s a bounce rate? If you have Google Analytics, you’ll see the actual bounce rate, which is the percentage of people  who leave your site after only visiting one page. That means they found your site, didn’t see what they were looking for, and left before seeing any other pages.

Now there could be many reasons for this. It’s possible that landing on your site was a mistake, that they were looking for something else completely and hit your site by mistake. This is going to happen (and you might check how people are finding your site to be sure that the right search terms are landing them there) and you can’t really control that.

But if you want to keep people on your site, you have to give them what they want. And to do this, you have to think like your website visitor. When people and businesses have websites created, they are often thinking like the business owner and not like the website visitor, and that’s a mistake.

Make your site usable.

The biggest mistake I see people make is that they focus on design over function. If your users can’t find the links to the pages they want to visit, then they’ll leave before they get there. Make sure it’s easy to find your way from page to page, with a clear hierarchy and navigation system.

Make your value clear.

The question I always ask new and potential clients is, “Why should someone hire you versus the competition?” I ask this because it’s important to make this answer obvious to every visitor of your website. If they’ve landed on your site because they are interested in your services, then you have a live lead right there but if you aren’t making it clear why they should choose you, then you are going to lose them.

What makes you special? Why should you be chosen? Answer this question and make it compelling.

Make sure your website is mobile-friendly.

Don’t lose customers who are looking at your site on their phone. Seriously, it’s 2016. Don’t be that guy. Not only will mobile visitors leave if your site is not mobile-friendly, but your search engine rank will suffer as well.

Have compelling content and a clear call-t0-action

What are your visitors looking for? Give them great content to keep them interested and looking for more. Then, once you’ve reeled them in with great content, tell them what you want them to do. Do you want them to contact you? SAY THAT. Some people really need that extra bump to take the final step.


 

There are always going to be visitors who leave your site after one page, that’s not going to go away. But you can optimize your site to lower that bounce rate and you can do that by thinking like your customer.

Need help optimizing your site for better conversions? We can help! Contact us for more information. (See my call-to-action there?)

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Amy Masson, Web Developer
Owner/Developer

Amy Masson

Amy is the co-owner, developer, and website strategist for Sumy Designs. She's been making websites with WordPress since 2006 and is passionate about making sure websites are as functional as they are beautiful.

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