What is the stay time?
Stay time is an important Key Performance Indicator (KPI) that shows how long a user stays on a website before leaving it. A high stay time indicates that the website offers relevant content that arouses the user's interest and satisfies their needs. A short stay time, on the other hand, may indicate that the content or user experience does not meet expectations.
Importance of stay time for website operators
For website operators, especially in the area of blogs, information portals and e-commerce, stay time is a decisive indicator. It helps to understand how well the content of the website holds the user's attention and whether the site is designed to be user-friendly. If the stay time decreases, this could be a sign that the content needs to be revised or the target group needs to be retargeted.
Reasons for short stay times
A short stay time can be caused by various factors:
- Insufficient content: If the content of the website does not meet users' expectations, they will quickly leave the site again.
- Wrong target group: If the website is not aimed at the right target group, this often leads to a low stay time, as users do not find what they are looking for.
- Technical problems or poor user experience: Slow loading times or confusing navigation can frustrate users and lead to a quick exit.
Stay time in social networks
In social networks such as Facebook, stay time is also an important factor in measuring the success of the platform. In 2012, for example, users were active on Facebook for an average of 405 minutes per month, which shows the platform's high retention rate.
Stay time and Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Stay time is often seen as an indicator of the quality of a website and is considered a potential ranking factor in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). A high stay time signals to search engines that users have found relevant content. This can have a positive effect on the ranking. The so-called pogo stick effect occurs when users leave a website after a short time to visit another one in the search results. This indicates that the website is not providing the desired information.
Measuring stay time
The stay time is often analyzed in combination with other KPIs such as the bounce rate or the number of pages visited per session. It is important to note that the stay time is only recorded if the user performs an action at the end of their visit, such as clicking on a button. By setting up events and goals in Google Analytics, the informative value of the stay time can be further increased.
Stay time in e-commerce
Stay time is particularly relevant for online stores, as it usually correlates with the likelihood of a conversion (e.g. purchase or registration).
