Add a bounce rate goal

You can add a bounce rate goal to an experiment to provide insights into website optimization and visitor behavior. It lets you measure the percentage of visitors who enter a specific page on a website and then leave without continuing to view other pages.

Sitecore Personalize calculates the bounce rate using the VIEW event. It counts a VIEW event as a bounce if the visitor leaves the site without viewing additional pages before their web session closes.

For example, you can create an experiment in Sitecore Personalize and add a bounce rate goal to compare the bounce rates of two variants and determine which variant results in a lower bounce rate.

Note

For Sitecore Personalize to select the winning variant based on a decreased bounce rate, add the bounce rate goal as the experiment's first goal, setting it as the primary goal. If exit rate isn't the main metric but still of interest, add it as a secondary goal. All goals that follow a primary goal are automatically set as secondary goals.

Warning

The Personalize API is what developers use to run interactive experiments. If you add a bounce rate goal to an interactive experiment, ensure that your organization uses the browserId attribute when calling the Personalize API. This ensures that the goal is attributed to the correct browser session and the attribution rate is accurate when viewing performance analytics.

To add a bounce rate goal:

In the experiment builder, click the Goals tile and click Add Goals.
In the Goals pane, click Bounce rate.
In the Bounce rate pane, in the Goal name field, enter a descriptive name for the goal. This name will display on the Performance screen.
In the Track pages section, select one of the following operators to track the page:
- Equals - matches the page name you enter in the text field exactly with the page parameter from the VIEW event.
  
  Example: If you entered home in the adjacent text field, this option will only track the page with a parameter that exactly matches this string.
- Regex - matches the page parameter from the VIEW event using a Regular Expression (RegEx) pattern. The RegEx should result in a full match of the page name, not a partial match.
  
  Example: If your page parameter is home, using the RegEx pattern [a-zA-Z] will not match the full string home but only one of its letters, like h. However, if you used the pattern [a-zA-Z]+, it will match the entire string and be able to track that page.
- Starts with - matches the beginning of the page parameter from the VIEW event with a specific string.
  
  Example: If you entered home in the adjacent text field, this option will track any page with a parameter that begins with home such as home or homepage.
In the adjacent text field, enter the full or partial name, or RegEx pattern of the page you want to track. This must be the same page on which the experiment is configured to run and corresponds to the page parameter from the VIEW event.

Warning

You must enter the exact page parameter in the text field. The page parameter you enter in the text field depends on how the webpage was tagged when it was integrated with Sitecore Personalize. If you do not know it, ask a member of your technical team.
Optionally, to add additional page parameters, click Add and provide the details to track the page.
Optionally, to add more details about the goal, click Description.
Sitecore Personalize automatically creates a Friendly ID as you enter a Goal name. You can use this ID to refer to the goal when integrating.

To edit the ID, click and enter the new ID for the goal.

Note

When editing, use a-z, 0-9, and underscores for spaces.
Click Save. The goal is added to the Goals tile.

Bounce rate goal snapshot

What it tracks - users who visit only one page during the session and leave without further engagement.
Conversion - occurs when the user exits the site without viewing additional pages before the session ends.
Attribution - identifies and credits the experiment that either prompted the user to leave or encouraged them to interact further.
Last-touch example - if a user lands on a personalized homepage, and then exits without visiting any other pages, the homepage experiment is credited for contributing to the bounce (goal conversion). On the other hand, if the personalized homepage prompts the user to visit more pages, it is credited for lowering the bounce rate.

Next steps

Start the experiment for personalization to take effect and for any variants to be potentially exposed to guests.
View the analytics. After starting the experiment, you can immediately see operational data. Within 24 hours, you'll see how your variants are performing against each other on the Performance screen. This lets you see which variant is leading or if a winner has been declared based on the goal.

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