Google Analytics’ recent switch from Universal Analytics (UA) to GA4 added some neat new data, including all things engagement. Here’s how you can use the new GA4 engagement metrics to find out how long users are keeping your web pages in focus–and how to keep them there longer.
What Engagement Metrics Are
Google Analytics GA4’s engagement metrics include:
- Sessions: the total number of interactions a user has with your website within a given time period
- Average Session Duration: the average amount of time each user session lasts
- Pages/Screens per Session: the average number of pages or screens viewed during each user session
- Bounce Rate: the percentage of single-page sessions (i.e., sessions where the user visits one page and then exits the website without further interaction)
- Conversion Rate: the percentage of sessions that resulted in a desired action (e.g. a purchase or registration)
- Mobile Events per Session: the average number of mobile events (taps, swipes, and scrolls) that users perform during each session
- Newly Acquired Users: the number of new customers acquired during a given period pageviews, session duration, and pages/session.
Why Engagement Metrics Are Important
In a nutshell, engagement metrics tell you how many pages users are viewing during their visit and how long users are staying on your site. You can use this data to determine which areas of your website visitors are engaging with most, and which pages are causing them to leave.
This information can also identify problem areas on your website–slow-loading pages, pages with poor content or navigation, and so on. By using these insights, you can optimize your website to improve user engagement and increase the amount of time that users spend on your website.
How to Use Engagement Metrics to Keep Visitors on Your Site Longer
- Improve Site Speed: Use GA4 Engagement metrics to identify and fix any issues that may be causing a slow site. This can be done by examining the page load time and other performance metrics, and by analyzing the user experience. You can also use free tools like GTmetrix to evaluate your website speed.
- Offer Unique, Engaging Content: Create unique content that is engaging for users and encourages them to spend more time on your website. Examples of this include videos, interactive elements, and relevant blog posts. AI tools can make generating content easier than ever–just be sure to use them as a base rather than letting them do all the work for you. Your unique voice is vital to instilling trust in your users.
- Improve Site Navigation: Make sure that users can find what they’re looking for by creating a logical navigational structure.
- Do Quality Assurance Testing: Regularly run tests (automated as well as human) to ensure that everything on your website is working correctly. A smoothly functioning website will give users a positive experience, encourage repeat visits, and give people good reason to refer your site to others.
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