So, your bounce rate is low, and your world is sunshine and roses. The content campaign is a resounding success … Well, not quite. True, bounce minimalization indicates widespread visitor retention. But there’s more here than meets the screen.
Bounce rate is merely an early signal. More work lies ahead. To maximize content effectiveness, strategists must go one better – they must identify the relevant traffic sources. Who’s coming from where? You can save the why for later.
Why do sources demand serious scrutiny? Because knowing them gives strategists the ultimate marketing compass – a way to direct the bulk of content to the productive zones -- and skimp on the rest. Go with your strength, or go down the wrong path … the choice is yours.
An important calculation takes precedence when exploring and analyzing traffic sources. It is – time spent per traffic source. Simple yet golden. Why? Because this ratio gives marketers a very revealing comparison tool.
Here’s how the math works. Let’s say Instagram users linger for an average stay of five minutes. In that case, the metric’s value is 5 minutes/Instagram visitor. Not exactly rocket science.
On the other hand, an email campaign may be generating a slew of visitors who stay planted for a half hour. With this group, the content-visitor connection clearly is much stronger than that of the Instagram group. Content should be directed accordingly.
Want to take this a step further? OK, content marketers can amplify the results of traffic source analysis by also identifying device source metrics. If, for instance, the big bulging guest loads arrive via mobile phone, as opposed to un-mobile tablets, the former device should be the primary focus.
Knowing and catering to both the traffic source and the device source tremendously boosts the odds of content success. On the other hand, you can skip the drudgery of marketing research and count on the four-leaf clover in your hand.
If you have questions or comments about analyzing website traffic sources, or any other brand-related topic, feel free to send them our way. You can connect with the Young Company team at 949-376-8404 or bart@youngcompany.com. And be sure to follow us for the latest brand marketing news and tips.