What is Dwell Time?
Dwell time is the duration a visitor spends on a web page after clicking a link from the search results before returning to the SERP (Search Engine Results Page). It reflects user engagement and content relevance.
Dwell Time vs. Bounce Rate vs. Time on Page
- Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave a site after viewing only one page.
- Time on Page: The total time a visitor spends on a page before navigating elsewhere.
- Dwell Time: Specifically the time between clicking a search result and returning to the search results.
Is Dwell Time a Ranking Factor?
There is no official confirmation from Google that dwell time is a ranking factor. While it is believed to reflect user satisfaction, Google employees have mentioned that clicks data is unreliable for rankings.
Improving Dwell Time
- Engaging Introductions: Use hooks like the PAS (Problem-Agitate-Solve) formula.
- Matching Search Intent: Ensure your content aligns with what users are searching for.
- Avoiding Clickbait: Titles and meta descriptions should accurately represent the content.
- Covering Relevant Subtopics: Address potential questions and related topics.
- Updating Content Regularly: Keep information current and relevant.
- Internal Links: Provide links to related content to keep users on your site longer.
FAQs
Who created dwell time?
Duane Forrester from Bing first mentioned it in 2011.
How do you calculate dwell time?
It cannot be directly calculated as search engines do not share this data.
What is the average dwell time?
Unknown, as search engines do not disclose this information and it varies by industry and intent.
