The number of times people spend on your site can tell you whether they like it. Short sessions are often associated with slow site performance, poor content, unattractive design, technical errors, failure to meet visitor expectations, etc. On the other hand, Longer sessions make it clear that your site is useful. On the other hand, Longer sessions let you know that your site is useful.
Marketers are constantly looking for ways to increase the amount of time visitors spend on the site. The more time they spend there, the more likely they will like the content, start trusting the brand and eventually turn into quality leads.
In this article, a writer who provides a writing help for students tells 12 ways to keep visitors on the site from personal experience.
1. Tidy up the design.
The average person spends 10-20 seconds on a website before deciding to leave or stay. A simple and attractive design will hold a visitor’s attention. Winning design attracts its appearance and makes it easier to find information. Because it is not cluttered with unnecessary elements and graphics, and thus the visitor will spend more time just studying the report.
2. Simplify navigation.
If someone does not understand how to use your site, he will not understand and close the tab. Include only the most essential pages you think a visitor should open in your main navigation menu to prevent this from happening. Also, make sure that the search bar is visible so that the site user doesn’t waste time searching for it.
3. Stick to the headline
You can find attractive headlines on some sites that have little to do with the main content. This makes it difficult to gain the audience’s attention and trust.
The headline should reflect the essence of your content. Start with a brief introduction and then move on to the issues you want to discuss, beginning with the most important ones.
4. Place the value proposition on the home page
As soon as visitors realize that the site is not providing them with value, they will leave right away. Place a short, clear, and unique value proposition on the site’s home page to prevent this from happening. Tell them what you do and why you’re worth doing business with the proposal. This way, visitors will learn more about your product and spend more time on the site. In addition, such an offer will probably convince people to buy from you rather than your competitors.
5. Publish relevant content regularly
Visitors are unlikely to waste time looking at old, irrelevant content. Get in the habit of posting new, original content regularly. Consider using different types of content: blog posts, articles, ebooks, audio, video, social media posts, webinars, infographics, etc. That way, you’ll satisfy the tastes of a wider audience.
Also, use the content you’ve already published to keep your content current. Add new information to old blog articles and apply them to create an ebook. This approach saves time creating content and attracts more visitors.
6. Create content that is easy to read “diagonally.”
Online users rarely read every word on a website. More often than not, they run across the page with their eyes to find the information they want. If your content consists of large chunks of text that are impossible to read quickly, a person will likely leave the site.
How to make the text more readable:
- Use short sentences and paragraphs to don’t scare away visitors with the volume of text.
- Use a line spacing and font size that is pleasing to the eye.
- Use subheadings, lists, and markers to break up long passages into smaller sections.
- Highlight essential words, phrases, and sentences in bold.
- Add images, videos, infographics, and other visuals.
- Touch one main idea in each paragraph.
7. Improve page speed
Most people close a website if it takes more than two or three seconds to load pages. That’s why it’s crucial to improve speed. How to do this:
- Compress large images.
- Invest in CDNs to reduce server response times and decrease load times.
- Remove or replace plugins that slow down the site.
- Remove unused portions of code.
- Reduce the number of redirects of visitors to other sites.
- Use the caching features in your browser.
8. Insert internal links into content.
You will provide the reader with more information on a specific topic with such links. For example, you’ve written an article titled “10 Myths about Marketing Automation,” and one of its subheadings is “What is Marketing Automation.” Attach a link to the phrase “marketing automation” to another publication on your site that details the topic.
Internal links are not only necessary to provide readers with more information. They also increase page views and improve SEO. However, don’t put too many links on one page (two or three are usually enough).
9. Add visual elements.
Quality and relevant photos, videos, and graphics help readers better understand the content. Visual content isn’t just pleasing to the eye. It’s also interactive. Visitors love this more than just text. Quality visuals increase people’s engagement and the amount of time they spend on your site.
10. Use pop-ups
“exit-intent” pop-ups appear on a page when a visitor wants to close the site and provide a compelling reason not to do so. When used correctly, pop-ups reduce bounce rates and increase conversions.
Several ways to use pop-ups:
- Encourage others to read your posts.
- Offer to subscribe to your newsletter in exchange for a free audio or video version of your blog, for example.
- Invite a chat with customer service agents to address any questions or concerns.
- Ask for feedback on your product or service.
- Encourage them to share your content or subscribe to you on social media.
- Talk about new products or services.
11. Include CTA buttons in your content
Most people close the site as soon as they find the information they want, thereby increasing the bounce rate. In turn, this affects both conversion rates and profits. That’s why it’s worth placing CTA buttons at the end of every post. Clear, relevant, and attractive examples hold the attention of visitors and lead to conversions. However, it’s worth remembering that all CTAs should match the theme of the page on which you are placing them.
12. Remarketing ads
Remarketing ads follow visitors on your site for a predetermined period of time. You might find that the ads are too intrusive and annoying, so consider testing different durations. You can also customize your ads to address customers’ concerns and goals. The more personalized your ads are, the higher your conversion rate will be. Here are some tips on how to effectively use remarketing ads to increase your sales.
Remarketing ads are another way to stay in touch with visitors after they leave your website. The best remarketing campaigns use the data feed of your products. To set up dynamic remarketing, you must tagging your site with a data feed of all products. If you have hundreds of products, dynamic remarketing is an excellent choice. It works by serving personalized ads to website visitors who have previously visited your site.