Have you noticed your bounce rate rising lately?
We noticed it on our newest blog FunCityStuff.com and so we decided to try a little experiment.
The great news: It Worked! In just 5 days we reduced the bounce rate on the blog by 14%.
Frankly, this is the easiest blogging win in quite a while. It is easy. It is fast and I am going to show you right now.
Obviously, this is not a guarantee but implementing it sure won't hurt. Our solution came pre-installed with our theme and in this post you will get a screen-shot walk thru of how to use it.
Don't worry, if you are not running the same theme as us, there is a free solution for you too.
How we reduced the blog bounce rate
We added Related Posts at the bottom of each blog post.
There are countless options that you can use to do this with WordPress. On this blog we are running Performag by Thrive Themes.
How to add related posts with a Thrive Theme
1. Log into WordPress
2. Scroll down and click on Thrive Dashboard (bottom left)
3. Click on Theme Options
4. Click on Related Posts
5. Click on Enable This Feature
6. Type in the number of related posts that you would like shown.
Note: Make sure that 'Display Related Posts Box' and 'Display Featured Images' are both turned on.
The number of related posts that you choose to show will be unique to your blog. Depending on your design and layout, 4 may be perfect or just 2. Take a look at it and judge it for yourself. There is no right or wrong answer here.
Free Related Posts WordPress Plugins
If you are not running Thrive Themes, you can still show related posts. With WordPress almost all things are possible.
Jetpack Related Post Plugin
This is a free plugin that was created by the creators of WordPress, Automattic. While there are not a lot of options with this plugin, a lot are not really necessary. If there is not a related post option with your theme, then this is not a bad choice.
Note: To use this plugin you will need to have Jetpack installed and a WordPress ID established. You will need to connect Jetpack to your WP ID.
- You can control the number of related posts
- You can have related posts with or without images
Pro: This is a plugin that is created by the folks who bring us WordPress, so you can trust it as safe and secure.
Con: It is lacking in the realm of style. When I tried it on my blog, it just didn't format well or look as good.
Conclusion
No matter if you use an option from your theme or a free WordPress plugin, a related post section is a great idea.
It is always good to offer your readers other choices so that they spend more time on your blog. While you are here, go ahead and click on one of my related plugins below.
Do you have any tips on how to reduce bounce rate on blogs?
Great suggestion, I forgot about that. I remember when we implemented that on SuperParentMom.com’s blog it greatly reduced her bounce rate. Now to make sure I am providing as many related post on my blog. :p
Thanks for the tip–keep blogging!
Fred,
Yes, glad to hear about it working on another blog.
Blog on,
-Renee’
Great idea! Doing this today! Tweeted & pinned!