Bounce rates have long been a standard key performance indicator (KPI) in digital marketing reports. However, with the transition to Google Analytics 4 (GA4), Google has recently deprioritized bounce rate as they are focusing more on engagement. This reframing of performance brings about a multitude of challenges. Marketers need to understand the disparities and implications between these nuanced metrics so they can guide key stakeholders through this evolving ecosystem.
We all know that change can be difficult, and it seems the switch to Google Analytics 4 is proving no different. As much as Google would like for everyone to immediately make the switch from bounce rates to engagement rates, it's not exactly realistic. To fully grasp the intricacies of knowing when to compare or not compare metrics, we need to start at the beginning.
How does Google Analytics define a bounce session?
“A bounce is a single-page session on your site. In Analytics, a bounce is calculated specifically as a session that triggers only a single request to the Analytics server, such as when a user opens a single page on your site and then exits without triggering any other requests to the Analytics server during that session.
Bounce rate is single-page sessions divided by all sessions, or the percentage of all sessions on your site in which users viewed only a single page and triggered only a single request to the Analytics server.
These single-page sessions have a session duration of 0 seconds since there are no subsequent hits after the first one that would let Analytics calculate the length of the session.”
A session that triggers only a single request to the Analytics server.
Let's break that down even further: The single request = opening a page on your site. After that, it all comes down to how many interaction events you have configured on that page.
Event tracking must be configured for every action you deem as engagement.
A little louder for those in the back: A user could enter a page on your site, engage in multiple actions, and then leave. However, if those actions were not configured under event tracking in GA3, then they wouldn’t count.
Benchmarks for bounces are NOT to be trusted!
It's important to remember one thing here: “Different strokes for different folks.” Every organization is different, and their Analytics setup is configured differently. For this reason, benchmarks for bounces and bounce rates could be based on very diverse parameters.
Here’s a real-world example in Universal Analytics (GA3):
Given this information, it’s fair to say that bounce rate has always been a dynamic metric that depends on the extent of event tracking. When trying to understand your users, excluding data from those who are meaningfully engaging with your website will result in missing valuable insights.
What happened to bounce rate in GA4?
It's important to set the scene here: When Universal Analytics first came out in the early 2000s, everything was different from website design and available browsers to user behavior. GA4 was launched to address this evolving ecosystem that takes into account multi-platform journeys and changes to user privacy.
GA4 is trying to center the conversation around engagement. Because of this, bounce rate — a metric that describes inactivity and not the experience users were having — is not included in the standard out-of-the-box reports.
The methodology for calculating bounce rates has also changed. Bounce rate in GA4 is calculated based on engaged sessions. An engaged session is a session that lasts longer than 10 seconds, has a conversion event, or has at least 2 pageviews or screen views. The bounce rate is the percentage of sessions that are not engaged.
Here are a few real-world examples in Google Analytics 4 (GA4):
How do you define conversion events in GA4?
Conversion events are any interactions or occurrences that are valuable to your business. In GA4, you can mark up to 30 app or web events as conversions (or 50 for Google Analytics 360). You can do this by creating an event for the desired user action, such as viewing a confirmation page, and then switching the toggle Mark as conversion next to the event in Google Analytics. Conversion events replace "goals" in GA4.
In GA4, there are now two ways to measure conversion rate:
How to move forward now that we're in our engagement era...
As the digital landscape continues to evolve, we'll need to regularly reassess KPIs to ensure they are providing us with actionable insights. Similar to the recent shift away from email open rates, the industry is now shifting to engagement rates. Engagement rates are a powerful and nuanced metric that can be used to understand not just IF people are spending time on your site, but HOW. Better user engagement insights help inform website strategies that can lead to increased performance for many campaign audiences, such as acquisition, cultivation, and reactivating lapsed donors, etc.
While GA4’s event-based approach offers enhanced insights into user behavior, it necessitates a recalibration of analytical frameworks and performance benchmarks. As much as Google would like us to disregard bounce rates and only focus on engagement from here on out, ultimately people will make comparisons across the two systems. By understanding these disparities and their implications, marketers can navigate the analytics landscape effectively, leveraging data to drive informed decisions and optimize multichannel experiences.
It's crucial to know when something isn't a great comparison and understand why, or when it's worthwhile for the sake of having a somewhat informed decision over mere guesswork.
Below are a few key points we've gathered to help you do just that.
Get in Touch
If you have any questions or require additional information, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. You can contact our VP of Digital Strategy & Operations, Maïca Bhatt, or send us a message directly. We're here to support you in navigating these changes and ensuring your fundraising efforts continue to thrive in this dynamic digital landscape.
