What does dwell time mean?
Dwell time is the time that users spend on the entire website or on subpages. Analysis tools such as Google Analytics record the length of visit by default. In these evaluations you can see the average value of this visit and can draw conclusions for the page quality, just as with a bounce rate. Based on the length of stay, assumptions can be made about the quality of the content and the interests of the visitors. So if users like a website and the content helps them, they spend more time on that page and are more likely to convert. Dwell time also plays a major role for performance in the organic rankings. If the average dwell time is rather low, there are two possible causes, e.g. that the content does not appeal to the target group, e.g. due to incorrectly selected keywords or that the user does not find his way around the page and therefore leaves it quickly.
The higher the dwell time, the higher the probability that the page corresponds exactly to the searcher’s wishes.
How do you improve dwell time?
The user always comes to a website with a specific need and has a certain expectation. In order to generate a high length of stay, this expectation should at best be fulfilled and give him the feeling of being in the right place. However, you cannot force your visitors to stay on your site. With the following points, however, you create the best conditions for your users to feel comfortable on your site and not leave it so quickly.
The following points, for example, can improve the length of stay:
- Simple website structure: intuitive, comprehensible, no dead ends.
- Long texts tire quickly, so make sure they are well structured with meaningful headings. The visitor must feel comfortable with you and be able to use your website intuitively.
- Clear website content: Structure texts well, expand them with images or similar or offer further content. Also make an effort to provide variety and explain your content in the form of infographics, tables or videos.
- The first impression is crucial: make sure that your website is visually convincing in the first few seconds (e.g. with meaningful headlines, trusts and images) and that the visitor has the impression that he is in the right place. Blurred images and spelling mistakes are just as taboo as an intrusive call-to-action right at the beginning.
- High-quality content: the content must not be thin, poorly researched or riddled with spelling mistakes. Make sure that your statements are verifiable, that you create added value and that you publish your content after a correction loop. Think about what help you can offer your reader. (checklists or summaries, overviews)
- Optimize snippets: Snippet content should be confirmed with website content, no automated creation.
- Internal links: don’t be stingy with internal links. If you have other interesting articles, you can list them under “Related articles” below your article, for example.
- Improve loading speed: mobile users become impatient and leave your website immediately if the page does not load fast enough. It is not for nothing that loading speed is an official ranking factor.
- Mobile optimization: Make sure that your website also delivers a perfect mobile user experience. Zooming content is annoying.
- Videos: nothing is better if you want to increase your dwell time. But only if the video is relevant and really fits your content. You can either produce your own video or embed a YouTube video in your text.
Our expert opinion:
The dwell time is of fundamental importance for the performance in the organic search results. The important thing is to make sure that your visitors get a good first impression of your website. You should also offer them high-quality and varied content and a good structure to give them a reason to stay on your website.
