Google analytics. Let’s face it; most people dig around in there for a little bit, get lost and come out again. Not only is it a confusing mix of graphs, charts and unfamiliar language, but it only tells you WHAT is happening. Whereas what you really want to know is, “WHY is that happening?”. It’s the why that’s important. Because when you know “why,” that’s when you can improve it.

What are the questions you should be asking?

What you really want to know is:

• Why are your bounce rates high? 
• Why do people not spend much time on your site?
• Why are your conversion rates not as high as you hoped?

Let me pull back the curtain on some of that. Websites are built for humans. Not search engines. 

How do humans read websites?  Quickly, that’s how. And with very little patience. 

Bounce rates

#1 Are you clear on the problem you solve for your customers?

Humans come to your website, wanting to know one thing. Can you solve their problem? 

E.g.:

• Can you help them demystify their accounts? 
• Do you have the office chair that solves their backache? 
• Remote working is causing their staff time and frustration. Can you offer the tech they need to make things easy?

If within 3-5 seconds of landing on your website, they can’t tell what you do and why you matter to them and their problems – guess what? They’ll leave. And your bounce rates will go up. Your time on site – that’ll go down. 

What else could affect your bounce rate?

#2 Load time is slow 

People don’t want to wait. Humans have very little patience! Improving your load time by even a second can improve your bounce rates. That’s something your web developer should be able to help you with. (This is the one tip that Google WILL tell you about)

#3 Unclear navigation and layout 

Navigation

If your website is confusing or cluttered with information your user doesn’t want or need… guess what? People will leave. They don’t want to figure out where the essential information is or where to go next; they’ll just leave instead. 

Layout

Your site will be clearer if you make it scannable. How do you do that? With clear subheadings, small chunks of text and clear, relevant images. Next time you go to your site (do it now), decide how quickly you think visitors to your site can find the information they need to know. If they need to hunt for it for more than a second or two, you’ve probably discovered one of the clues to an undesirable bounce rate. 

Conversion rates

Why are conversion rates not as high as you hoped? That could be a couple of things:

#1 Call-to-action buttons

Often the first one to fix is your call to action. Do you have a single call to action button that is the obvious button to press? Do you repeat it throughout your site? If you don’t call your customers to action. They won’t take action. Be clear about what you want them to do, tell them, and tell them again, and they are more likely to do it. This is not the time to be shy. If you’re a parent who’s tried to encourage your children to get their shoes on in the morning, you know this is not a one-time request. Repeat it often enough, though, and it will happen. The same principle applies to the call-to-action buttons. You need to repeat them time and time again. 

#2 Your offering is not clear. 

People want to be clear about what they are buying. Is your offer clear? Do people know exactly what they are getting and how much it is going to cost? Be clear and be specific. Remember, no visitor to your site wants to figure this out for themselves. 

#3 People don’t know why they should trust you

One reason people won’t buy? They don’t know if they should trust you. How do you overcome that? Simple. Social proof.

Testimonials are a simple way of letting people know that you help people like them. Tell customer stories; they are much more powerful than statistics. People look to other people for reassurance. Testimonials are a way to help them do just that. 

#4 You make it difficult to do business with you

The simpler your contact forms, the more you will convert. People don’t want to give away personal data, and they don’t want to spend time filling out your form or checkout cart. Think about what information you need, and only ask for that. Longer forms reduce a prospects chance of making that purchase or downloading that form every single time. Less is more. 

Get more insight into your Google Analytics

Google Analytics will tell you what is happening. What you want to know is why… and you need a human for that. Want to know why your website isn’t working as well as it should? Drop me an email at belinda@cornishmarketing.co.uk, and I’ll send you a free audit of your site, highlighting what’s important and reasons why your website isn’t getting the results that you are looking for. Then you’ll know how to improve it. Get in touch, I’m here to help.