Pogo-sticking in SEO is something Google doesn’t particularly like. Here we explain what pogo-sticking means, what causes it to happen, and how it differs from bounce rate.
What is pogo-sticking?
Pogo-sticking is when people repeatedly jump back and forth between search results until they eventually find a page they like. It’s different from bounce rate, which measures the percentage of people who exit your website without taking a significant action (e.g. filling out a contact form, clicking a link, etc).
Bounce rate measures all visitors, regardless of whether they found your page from search results or not. Since GA4 was introduced, dwell time has become a far more useful metric than bounce rate.
Whilst not considered a ranking factor, Google RankBrain can detect pogo-sticking. If it decides people are quickly navigating away from your pages, it can see this as a red flag and rank your website less favourably.
What causes pogo-sticking?
1. Poor UX
A subpar user experience (UX) is the main reason visitors to your website decide to swiftly pogo-stick away. Good UX should be part of your website’s core design, and consider every stage of the user journey. If your website is built with the end-user in mind, it should be easy to navigate and intuitively lead prospective visitors towards their goal – be that information or a contact form.
Poor UX on a website can be caused by a number of different things:
- Annoying pop-ups and ads: A page cluttered with irritating pop-ups and too many ads is instantly off-putting.
- Slow loading: A classic cause of pogo-sticking – users won’t give websites more than a few seconds to load before they give up on them.
- Confusing layout: A website should feel instantly familiar and friendly; if it doesn’t, users are likely to leave in search of one that does.
- Not optimised for mobile: As most people do their searching on mobile devices these days, this simply cannot be overlooked.
2. Clickbait
Misleading page titles and metatags, articles with attention-grabbing titles like “5 Amazing Hacks That Will Change Your WHOLE Life” – clickbait is a page that doesn’t deliver what it promises.
While clickbait might entice search users to click through to your website, ultimately they feel tricked and their trust in your business is instantly compromised. This generally leads to immediate pogo-sticking back to the search results page.
3. Confusing content and buried information
Good SEO-driven content will be keyword optimised to pull relevant traffic through to your website from search results. However, content can’t just rank highly in search – it also needs to provide users with the answers they were looking for in the first place.
Bloated content that refuses to get to the point and deliberately buries the information visitors are searching for is a classic cause of pogo-sticking. For example, if you Googled “what is pogo-sticking”, clicked on this article, and found yourself scrolling through endless reams of information on just about every element of SEO apart from pogo-sticking – you’d be rightfully ticked off.
Key content should never be buried. Signpost the important information right at the top of any article, and ensure the rest of it is clear, concise, and easy to navigate – so users can find out a bit more on the subject if they wish.
How to prevent pogo-sticking
Addressing all of the above is the best way to minimise the risk of users pogo-sticking away from your website. A few ways you can do this are:
- Fast page loading: Address any issues that might be causing your website to load slowly, such as overly large images and videos, improper caching, and slow server responses.
- Improve UX: Make sure your website’s layout makes sense. Every page should be clear and intuitive to navigate, at every stage of the user journey.
- Refine your content: Churning out pages of uninspired AI-generated content is not the way forward. Instead, make your pages concise, to the point, and enjoyable to read. Key information should get pride of place at the top of the page.
