Attracting prospective buyers to your website is a difficult task and one that requires a great deal of groundwork. Online businesses invest heavily in SEO, PPC advertising and social media to drive traffic onto their site, but all that effort can be undone by a high bounce rate. 

A ‘bounce’ is when a visitor lands on your site and leaves without exploring any more pages. A high bounce rate (typically one over 60%) will massively impact your online conversion rate and sales performance. There are a few key reasons why your website may have a high bounce rate – let’s explore some of these.

Slow site speed

Site speed is a significant factor in both your user experience and performance in Google rankings. The modern digital consumer expects a seamless journey online. Anything else can result in them leaving your site, or even worse, going to a competitor. Pages that load quickly are more likely to keep visitors engaged and draw them into your website even further.

Poor or irrelevant content

Any visitor landing on your website will be expecting products, information or content in line with what has initially attracted them. They could have arrived at your site from a Google search, existing backlink or social media referral – but, either way, they will have an idea of what they are expecting from your site. If your website doesn’t offer what they are looking for, they are very likely to bounce and end their session. As such, it is essential that your on-site content is optimised and relevant to your target audience.

Lack of mobile optimisation

The proportion of internet users on mobile phones is ever increasing and thus consumers expect websites to be mobile-friendly. A website lacking mobile optimisation will fail to cater to a large percentage of shoppers and visitors to your website will quickly bounce when the user experience isn’t what they expected. Optimising an eCommerce store across all devices is a tricky endeavour, so enlisting the help of a specialist eCommerce agency is a good option.

Technical error

A high bounce rate could be a signal of technical fault in your website. If users land on a 404 page, they will quickly leave and move elsewhere. Similarly, a blank page or issue with loading will stop them from exploring further into your site. Errors can occur across platforms, devices and browsers – so keep an eye on these. The longer a technical error remains on your site, the more opportunities you will miss out on.

Bad layout and design 

Users want to be able to navigate a site effortlessly and find what they are looking for. A poor page layout, menu system or aesthetic design can make visitors feel uncomfortable and less likely to explore the site further. Lots of on-page ads and pop-ups can make a website feel less trustworthy and consumers may not feel confident enough to follow through with a purchase. A simple, eloquent design with an easy navigation system will entice visitors into staying on the site longer and potentially spending their money.