Do you have a high exit rate on a given page?
Most people assume an exit rate is bad. They assume that when a page has a particularly high exit rate, it can indicate that you aren’t giving users a clear (or compelling enough) next step to stay within your ecosystem. This may very well be the case, but it could also be a good high exit rate.
Let me explain.
First, What is an Exit Rate?
Google Analytics defines an exit rate as the number of times visitors have left a site from a single page. Ideally, this is at the end of your funnel. But it can be after visiting several pages that the visitor then decides to leave.
How to Identify if you have a High Exit Rate
There are a couple of ways to do this. The most common is through your Google Analytics (or Adobe Analytics) account.
In your Google Analytics account, navigate to Behavior > Site Content > Exit Pages. Here, you’ll see an overview of total exits across your set timespan and a breakdown of the number of exits and the exit rate for each page of your website.
The second way is through your Crazy Egg snapshot List Report - Both Tab. If the first 10 rows (for example) of all types link, you have a high exit rate.
How to Fix It
Several different issues can cause high exit rates, so identifying the underlying issue is the first step. There are a few different ways to approach the problem using heatmaps:
- The traditional heatmap report can show you if users are clicking elsewhere and getting distracted. For example, if your content has third-party ads on it, visitors may be exiting your site by clicking on those ads.
We prefer the List Report to identify if the exit rate is good or bad. By seeing exactly which link your visitors are clicking on the most, you can explain where those people are going—by listing every URL visitors go to after leaving a given landing page.
Are they going further into your site?
- If yes, then you have a good exit rate on this page.
- If they are going to different areas on the same page (like a tab menu link), that is still good. They are interacting with the content on your page.
- If the link takes them off your site but to another site where you have a connection with the site, this can be a good exit rate.
- When your visitors leave your site to go to another site where you have no beneficial relationship, is this a bad exit rate.
Once you have a sense of where people are going when they exit your page, it’s easier to see the areas where you can make changes to alter that behavior.