First things first, Google defines Bounce Rate as “In Analytics, a bounce is calculated specifically as a session that triggers only a single request to the Analytics server, such as when a user opens a single page on your site and then exits without triggering any other requests to the Analytics server during that session.” In simple words, when a visitor leaves not only the page of your website he or she landed on first but also the exits the whole website, it is known as bounce rate. So, naturally, the higher the bounce rate the worse it is for you. You want to keep it as low as possible. And properly diagnosing causes of high bounce rate is the key to increase user engagement and improve site rankings. Here are 10 sureshot ways to reduce your website’s bounce rate.

1. Bring down your page load time. Visitors tend to bounce right off the page when it takes even a fraction of a second too long than they have the patience for. If the visitor can’t see what they are looking for at once, you lose.
2. Make way for easy page navigation. No one wants to land on a page and b more confused than before as to what they are looking for and where is it hidden. It should not be a puzzle for them to solve. Make it all easy to find.
3. Great web design will take you great places. Nothing builds trust almost immediately than a great nice, clean, well-designed website. Anything suspicious or spammy looking or simply unattractive design will make the visitors leave.
4. Make it all mobile-friendly. Researches and result thereof from around the world clearly state that majority of visitors use mobiles to search the web. If your website is not optimized for mobiles, not only will you lose a huge chunk of visitors but also Google’s favor.
5. Keep away from pop-ups in general. Agreed that running ads on your website is financially viable, especially if traffic inflow is high, but using too many along with pop-ups is a huge no-no. If anything, it is a major blot on your page’s user experience.
6. Make it all easier to read. Long-form content, properly formatted and structured is a big plus. But using long sentences and paragraphs is an equally big minus. Break your content with bullet points, numbering, images, and videos etc. to make it easier for your visitors to find information.
7. Optimize your internal linking strategy. The primary purpose of using internal links is to keep your visitor engaged and on the website for the longest period of time. To be able to jump from one topic to another related topic enhances visitor’s overall user experience.
8. Make your links open on a new tab. There’s nothing more irritable than to click a link and having it open on the same tab, breaking the flow of things in a second. Also, having multiple tabs of the same website open increases the time a visitor spends on the website.
9. Replace those broken links at once. Keeping in tune with the above two points, it is of great importance that you replace all the broken links with the relevant ones that work. It is a huge put off for a visitor when a link doesn’t work just when he or she is about to delve deeper into the topic.
10. Make your CTA action-packed. Last but not the least, a convincing Call-to-Action strategically placed on the website is an asset. It would help if the visitor is able to locate it within the first few second of him or her landing on the page. Think appealing colours, fonts, and buttons that are instant attention-grabbers.

You can utilize Google Analytics to your advantage and optimize your website according to what you find. The crux of the story is to improve the overall user experience for your visitors so they would want to spend more and more time on your website. And that is exactly the kind of websites that Google prefers as well. Happy optimizing!