Why do users leave your site?

Creating a website is much easier than bringing it to a state where we get a high percentage of conversions.

It requires a lot of testing and, above all, experience in matters such as user experience and user interface.

However, there are standard mistakes that we make and do not even realize how much they affect this ill-fated transformation.

1. Navigation on your site is not intuitive

This is an extremely important element of any website. Annoying users with the lack of an intuitive menu is essentially the nail in the conversion coffin.

Believe me, it is impossible to search for specific information while wandering through the labyrinth of links and broken links. A user would rather shut down your site in anger because they can't find anything than decide, for example, to contact you via email.

Poor site navigation is not only harmful to the user, but also to search engines, which can lower your site's ranking for it.

The golden rule of site navigation is to put yourself in the place of the client, as if you were visiting your site for the first time. If you have doubts about its intuitiveness, then it is worth doing a UX / UI audit, which will show all its shortcomings.

2. Annoying pop-ups

Any pop-ups or even 301 redirects can be very annoying.

Many users, faced with such pop-up windows, automatically close them and do not even want to read what is written in them.

Now you can say that these pop-ups appear on almost all sites. However, they are chosen appropriately and usually pop up in a specific context, and not a second after entering the page.

What's more, these pop-ups store a cookie that lasts for a month or more, and the user will be sure that next time the pop-up won't annoy them too soon.

If you are annoyed by such intrusive pop-ups, why put them on your site?

Poorly designed pop-ups tend to decrease conversions, not increase them.

3. Lack of basic signs that your site is safe and authentic

Why do users leave your site?

Maybe because your website doesn't feel secure or authentic for your company?

Your customers are not stupid and will not trust just anyone. If the browser "screams" that the site is not safe, believe me, many potential customers will simply leave.

Is that why an SSL certificate is so important these days, even if you don't store sensitive data or sell products?

The casual user doesn't know that your site just doesn't need an SSL certificate.

If Google has "determined" that it's not secure and you can't see the green padlock anywhere, then the site is not safe and that's it.Then they think, "I'm leaving."

Many sites implement HTTPS for peace of mind.

4. Music and video autoplay on the site

I will frankly admit to you that this is my favorite mistake, which, surprisingly, is still being committed.

Try to remember if you ever left a site that arbitrarily turned on some music? I think you did not have to rummage through your memory for a long time.

This also applies to online videos. Users want to decide whether they want to watch videos or listen to music right now.

At the end of a hard day, such “add-ons” on sites cause irritation and lead to a decrease in conversion. If you get rid of them, you will definitely notice a positive difference.

5. Lack of multi-channel communication

Imagine that you need urgent product information.

You visit an online store that is trying to sell it and all you see is email contacts and the woman who answered the call is not familiar with the technical aspects.

99% of such clients will immediately go to a competitor's website, and there they will quickly communicate with a consultant who has all the parameters in front of his eyes and who is able to answer a complex question almost instantly and without hesitation.

If the client does not find an online chat, he will notice that the competitor has various social networks - for example, Facebook, and it will become clear there that they correspond very quickly within a few minutes.

Do you think the client will email you or use other communication channels that your competitors have?

I want to say that there are so many ways to communicate these days that ignoring at least some of the most relevant ones cuts off a significant part of conversions.

If a client needs immediate help, an email or a quick phone call is not always a good solution.

Therefore, it is worth betting on new ways of communication in order not to miss a single business opportunity.

6. Slow content loading

This is something that I couldn't ignore or mention only in summary. This is still a common problem for many sites.

Why do users leave your site?

Because its content takes so long to load that they are already losing their patience. Especially when it comes to mobile versions.

Every year, the expectations of users are getting higher, so every second counts. Visitors simply don't want to wait for pages to load slowly.

If on desktop computers a long loading time can still be somehow forgiven, then on mobile devices it is unforgivable.

I won't mention that Google recently introduced the mobile first index.

Most often, it is enough to optimize the images on the site, reduce their quality and resolution, and the speed will instantly increase.

It's also worth reading about what srcset is and implement this system that solves the problems of large images that also need to be served on phones, for example.

Why do users leave your site? - summary

Creating a beautiful website is sometimes just not enough. Other times, all those animations can even ruin the entire conversion you've been working so hard on.

By making small changes and monitoring the results, you can make the client stay on your site a little longer, which in most cases is enough.

Finally, I want to remind you of the errors that are obvious these days, but some people may not know about them yet:

• The content on the site is visually unreadable.
• There are ads on your company website.
• You didn't include a call to action anywhere.
• Your website is not responding to changes.

Do you have any other guesses about why users leave your site?

Share your thoughts with us in the comments section.