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From Problem to Solution: A Guide for Optimizers

Web analysis is like detective work. A single metric is just a clue. Only by combining several clues can you identify a pattern and find the root cause of a problem. This page is here to help you with that. We have collected the most common “problem patterns” and provide you with a checklist of possible causes and concrete, actionable recommendations.

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Pattern 1: High Bounce Rate

A high bounce rate means visitors land on your site and leave immediately without visiting a second page.
Possible Causes (The Diagnosis):
  • Mismatched Expectations: The content of your ad or Google listing doesn’t match the content of the landing page.
  • Slow Load Time: The page takes longer than 3-4 seconds to load.
  • Unclear Message: Visitors don’t understand what you offer within 3 seconds.
  • Poor Design / UX: The page is cluttered, not optimized for mobile, or hard to read.
Actionable Recommendations (The Treatment):
  • ✅ Check Message Matching: Ensure the headline of your landing page perfectly reflects the message of the ad.
  • ✅ Test Load Time: Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to analyze your site’s speed and compress images.
  • ✅ Do the 3-Second Test: Ask someone who doesn’t know your site to look at it for 3 seconds. Then, ask them what the page is about.
  • ✅ Optimize the Call-to-Action (CTA): Place your most important button prominently and “above the fold” (in the visible area without scrolling).

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Pattern 2: Low Session Duration & Few Pages per Session

Visitors don’t bounce immediately, but they leave after a short time without viewing any other pages.
Possible Causes (The Diagnosis):
  • Content Isn’t Engaging: The text is a “wall of text,” boring, or not relevant.
  • No Clear Next Steps: At the end of the page, the visitor doesn’t know what to do next.
  • Poor Internal Linking: There are no links to other relevant articles or products.
  • Lack of Mobile Optimization: Text is hard to read or links are hard to tap on a smartphone.
Actionable Recommendations (The Treatment):
  • ✅ Improve Readability: Use subheadings, short paragraphs, bold text, and lists to break up text.
  • ✅ Add Visual Elements: Include relevant images, infographics, or videos in your content.
  • ✅ Add Internal Links: Within your text and at the end of articles, include links to relevant, related content.
  • ✅ Offer Cross-Sells: On product pages, display related or alternative products.

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Pattern 3: High Drop-off at a Specific Point in the User Flow

In the User Flow graph, you see that many users are exiting at the same step (e.g., in the shopping cart or on the registration page).
Possible Causes (The Diagnosis):
  • Unexpected Costs: Shipping costs or fees are only revealed late in the process.
  • Forced Registration: Users are required to create an account to complete a purchase.
  • Overly Complicated Form: Too much or unnecessary information is requested.
  • Technical Error: The page has a bug that occurs on certain devices or browsers.
Actionable Recommendations (The Treatment):
  • ✅ Be Transparent: Communicate all costs as early as possible.
  • ✅ Offer Guest Checkout: Allow users to make a purchase without creating an account.
  • ✅ Simplify Forms: Remove every field that is not absolutely necessary.
  • ✅ Test the Process Yourself: Go through the entire process on different devices (Desktop, iPhone, Android) to find errors.

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Pattern 4: Sudden Drop in Overall Traffic

From one day to the next, your visitor numbers have dropped significantly.
Possible Causes (The Diagnosis):
  • Technical Problem: Your analytics tracking code has disappeared from the site or is faulty.
  • SEO Problem: Your site has lost ranking due to a Google update or has been penalized.
  • Referrer Problem: A major traffic source (e.g., a large newsletter that linked to you) has disappeared.
  • Marketing Campaign Ended: A paid advertising campaign has been stopped.
Actionable Recommendations (The Treatment):
  • ✅ Check the Tracking Code: Look at your website’s source code to see if the tracking snippet is still there.
  • ✅ Check Google Search Console: Look for messages or performance drops from Google.
  • ✅ Analyze Top Sources: Compare the traffic sources in the dashboard with the period before the drop. Which source is missing?
  • ✅ Check UTM Campaigns: In the UTM Dashboard, check if a campaign has ended.