4 Unique Reasons Why The Bounce Rate Is High On Your Website (Does It Even Matter?)

Published by Algorithmic Global on August 10, 2020August 10, 2020

Bounce rate is a controversial subject amongst SEO experts because not everyone agrees on whether it even matters. 

SEMRush has recently put out ranking factors 2.0, which describes what SEO efforts influence the search engine results page (SERP) positions. In their ranking factors, they have concluded that a bounce rate of 49 percent and below is what an SEO specialist should shoot for to show up as a top 3 domain in the SERPs for a chosen keyword. 

What is Bounce Rate? 

According to Google Analytics Help, a bounce rate is a measure of the frequency at which a user goes to a web page without navigating to another page. The goal is to have a lower bounce rate on the site because, ideally, the user will want to view more content on the desired website. 

Four Reasons A Website Has A High Bounce Rate?

There are four reasons why a website might have a high bounce rate: 

1. Slow loading speed
2. Low-quality web design
3. A mismatch between content and keywords
4. Poor mobile optimization

How To Check The Bounce Rate? 

The simplest way to see your website’s bounce rate will be to look into your Google Analytics. 

In the above example, we are looking at the analytics for a client’s website in Dayton, Ohio. To find the bounce rate for the previous month (July 2020), we followed the following steps: 

1. Log into Google Analytics
2. Click the behavior tab (Left tab bar under acquisition) 
3. Enter the dates for the month of July (Top right corner) 

As you can see, the bounce rate for this client was 66.58 percent for the month of July. 

If you are looking to go further you can check the Local SEO bounce rate. 

In Google Analytics go to the Audience→ GEO → Location

How Does Bounce Rate Correlate To SEO? 

In past SEO blog posts, we have gone over many different strategies to optimize a website for search. There is a distinct correlation to SEO and bounce rate; the four reasons listed above that contribute to a page’s high bounce rate also make a website not SEO friendly. 

Remember, not all websites are the same. Some sites are going to have a higher bounce rate depending on the service/industry. For example, a plumbing website might have a higher bounce rate because the user has a plumbing issue and needs a plumber on-site as soon as possible. If this is the case, the user may only click on one page of the website to get their desired request.

Conclusion

As you can see, the bounce rate directly correlates to SEO, but a high bounce rate doesn’t mean a website is not optimized. One last example: Algorithmic global currently specializes in working with restoration companies. We do our best to keep the bounce rate as low as possible, but frequently users only look at one page of the website for the desired keyword that matches their particular situation. 
We are always looking for new clients. Algorithmic Global specializes in helping restoration companies looking for a reliable digital marketing company to handle their SEO and lead generation. Contact us via our contact page to see how we can help your business grow.