提升用户参与度的实用方法 [Kumo荐]

[互联网人物]

Kumo推荐理由：通过提升用户参与度，加固用户对APP的认同感，能够提升用户留存率。用户留存过程的本质，是用户和APP在交互过程中，不断缩小APP功能与用户预期的距离，最终用户在确认APP的价值后形成稳定的使用模式。这个过程是双向作用的，以每一次交互为契机，APP以功能和内容等形式不断满足用户的当前需求，甚至能以此延伸激发出用户新的需求。所以，在使用磨合的过程中，为了使APP功能与用户预期的距离尽快缩小，替代APP单向传递价值的本位视角，以加深用户参与程度的侧面策略，能更有效地加快获取用户的使用好感。此外，根据用户生命周期，在不同阶段使用针对性策略来不断加固用户对APP的认同度。与此同时，加深参与度能让用户持续感知到APP变化，从而维持用户的新鲜感惊喜感，循环促进用户的使用意愿，形成良性闭环。

天气类的APP基本每天都要打开，购票APP几个月才打开一次。APP的功能和需求度不同决定了用户的使用依赖度的差异化。不同使用频率的APP，用户的参与程度各有差别。与页面流量、访客、召回用户、会话不同，目前没有一个分析APP能即时的告诉你需要知道的信息。但如果疏于考虑用户参与度就会导致危机出现。正如snapchat的20亿美元估值，大部分是建立在一代人每日多次使用基础上的。

为什么用户参与如此重要？大部分用户启动了APP之后只会使用一次，正如每款产品都有试用一样，这就是现实中的谬误漏斗。

10 Actionable Ideas to Increase Website User Engagement

Engaging users is the crucial first step in the conversion process. You must engage your audience before you can convince them to buy or subscribe. Also, having users leave your website within a few seconds will negatively impact your bounce rate. So if website user engagement is so important, how exactly can you increase it? In this article, I’ll outline 10 proven tips that can help you effectively engage with visitors.

“Engaging users is the crucial first step in the #conversion process.” – @shane_barker

1. Reduce page load time

You’ve probably had an experience with slow-loading pages yourself. You find a website that looks interesting, then you click on the link only to be kept waiting for it to load. You likely exit the website because it’s frustrating to wait and wait. A study conducted by Soasta found that pages loading just one second slower can experience a 56% increase in their bounce rate. That spells trouble for website user engagement.

Conduct a page speed test using free tools like Pingdom and see if your site loads within two seconds. If not, take the steps to improve the load speed by removing unnecessary elements from your pages. Images can be engaging, but try to limit the number of images per post so that the page loads faster. You could also download plugins that will ensure image loading is delayed until readers scroll to the specific area.

2. Improve your internal linking structure

In addition to boosting your SEO ranking, a good internal linking structure will enable users to navigate your site easily. Then you’ll be able to generate more page views with each visitor and decrease bounce rate. Both are essential for website user engagement. Try using relevant anchor texts to link other related content on your website.

For example, I linked to an infographic about bounce rate using the anchor text “bounce rate” in the paragraph above. This is a good example of how internal linking works. You can implement this for website user engagement too. But avoid overdoing the internal linking tactic because it could annoy users if you do it more than twice per post. You could also mention “Read Also/ Recommended for You” links in the middle of the post.

3. Display related content

This website user engagement tip is somewhat similar to internal linking. Simply display relevant posts at the end of each page. This helps visitors easily find related posts if they require more information about the topic they were initially reading.

While you can do this manually, you can also shorten the process using plug-ins like YARPP. This plug-in automatically places snippets for more posts or pages at the end of your content. It allows you to display these posts using either a thumbnail or text link.

4. Simplify navigation

What if lots of your site visitors leave because they’re unable to find something? Many websites are too difficult to navigate, resulting in a high bounce rate and poor website user engagement. Simplify and reorganize your navigation structure so that users can find the page they need without much effort.

Take a look at the example below from Threadsforthought.com. Here the navigation menu has been organized neatly. Visitors won’t get confused about where to find the latest lookbooks or check out the sales.

5. Choose your writing style

Your style of writing can impact your website user engagement by determining how readers respond to your content. What works for one audience base might not work well with another. There are two predominant writing styles on the Internet – a friendly, easy-going conversational tone and a more formal professional tone.

The majority of websites opt to use the former style – from quirky and fun informational websites like Buzzfeed to popular Internet marketing sites. However, the formal tone may be better for business websites providing more serious content. Do your homework to identify the kind of writing style will best relay your message to your target audience.

6. Use a responsive design

Statista reported that 52.7% of the world’s population used their mobile phones to access the Internet in 2015. They expect this figure to increase to 61.2% by 2018. For Internet marketers, this means that building responsive websites is critical to engage both desktop and mobile users. It could be frustrating to navigate your desktop website on a mobile phone, which prevents good website user engagement.

For Biowars, a fully responsive website helped them completely engage users. After the upgrade, they experienced an 80% decrease in bounce rate and a whopping 119.97% increase in new users. Biowars also improved product engagement with an average of over 4,500 game downloads in a month without advertising support.

7. Study your audience

Gain insight into the preferences and values of your audience by conducting a survey. This will help you create content that your target group can truly engage with. Ask them questions about what they like and what they expect from you. Find out if they feel you’re lacking in certain design features or content coverage.

Your feedback will show where you need improvement for better website user engagement. I suggest using tools like Survey Monkey for adding polls and surveys to your site. Whatever your survey is about, make sure you keep questions short and simple. Avoid taking too much of your visitors’ time with lengthy surveys.

8. Add a prominent search box

Too many websites get this wrong. How would your visitors feel if they have to search for the search box? People visit your website to find something specific. If they’re confused about how to find that thing, they’re going to leave. Engage your visitors by allowing them to easily find what they’re looking for. Add a prominent search box that users can easily locate to locate specific content.

You’ve probably noticed that most websites have their search box on the top left. So users generally expect the search box to be located there. It’s best to go simple with your search box design, but adding features like a drop-down menu or an auto-suggest feature could boost website user engagement. Here’s a good example of a clearly visible search box from ShaneBarker.com. Notice how the magnifying glass is red, which makes the box more prominent.

9. Collect email addresses

Website user engagement isn’t just about engaging with a new visitor once. It also concerns your ability to drive visitors back to your site. You can do this by collecting their email address, which you can use for sending new content updates. Plug-ins like Bloom provide great tools for creating an opt-in form and building your email subscriber list.

Having a pop-up opt-in form when visitors land on your page is the most popular choice. However, you could place a subscription form on your site’s sidebar. Adding an opt-in box at the end of posts could also engage visitors after they’ve thoroughly enjoyed your content. The Crazy Egg blog has a subscription form at the bottom of their blog posts.

10. Hold contests or giveaways

Contests and giveaways are the best way to improve every aspect of your performance. They’re beneficial for page visits, subscriptions, conversions,  and website user engagement. Create your giveaways in a manner wherein users reap rewards for taking certain actions. For instance, you could out a reward for referrals, content shares, social media likes, or product reviews/testimonials.

The benefits can clearly be seen in the case of OfficeAdventure, an app that brings together various offices to embrace a fit lifestyle. They used sweepstakes to not only increase brand recognition but also improve website user engagement.

Conclusion

With website user engagement being an essential aspect determining the performance of a business, you need to make the most of the above tips. Run tests to see which works best for your website design instead of simply settling on one. As you can see, your focus should be on making your website attractive, interactive, and user-friendly.

Do you need more help reaching your website user engagement goals? Let me know in the comments section below. I’d love to help!