How User Behaviour Affects SEO?

User Behaviour in SEO

In the changing field of Search Engine Optimization, understanding the user behaviour is the most important factor for successful SEO of a website. For this it is important to understand what user behaviour is and what are its factors that affect the Google ranking of a website. 

To understand how a user is interacting with your site or how it is using Google. In this blog we will guide you in a very simple and easy way about the user behaviour in SEO 

What is User Behaviour?

First of all, let’s understand what the term user behaviour actually means?

User behaviour means how the visitor is interacting with the search engine before and after it reaches out to your website. User behaviour include several things such as 

• What and where the user clicks on your website

• How much time the user was on your website

• How many pages does he clicked

• Has a user filled a form or made a transaction through your website

• Where the user leave the site

By analyzing this behaviour of users on your website, you can determine the weak points of your website that cause bad user experience and fix them. Fixing the issues helps you in keeping the user on your website for a longer time period. 

User Behaviour on Google

Search Engines also gives much importance to user behaviour. Every search engine uses its own algorithm to identify the search rankings. There are several search engines such as Google, Bing, MSN and many others. But in this blog we will specifically talk about the user behaviour on Google.

We are only talking about Google because almost 92% of the world uses Google. Google is relatively open about the method of collecting data.

Google uses bots or crawlers to crawl and index web pages. When we say that the page is indexed on Google it means that the page is available in Google database. When it is present in the Google database, it appears on the search engine. 

When we say that the page is ranked it means, Google will show it to users on a specific keyword on its ranking number. 

When a user searches a query, Google algorithm starts working. The results are given in order. Then a big list of ranked results is shown to the user.

Algorithm of Google works on several factors to order the rankings of search results. The factors also include the following

• Click-through-rate (CTR)

• Bounce Rate

• Conversion Rate

• Navigation channels

• Session Durations 

• Session Frequency

You will get a clear picture after our example

Let’s suppose I am looking for a new cricket bat. I want the best one. Obviously I will search Best New Cricket Bat and press enter.

As soon as I press enter, Google will show the most relevant result to the given query.

Google will pay attention to the way I interact with the search results. If most of the users leave the page early then Google will consider it as irrelevant to search query or low quality content. This will result in Google drop ranking. 

User Behavioral Factors Affecting Google’s Search Ranking

It has been stated earlier, that Google considers various behavioral factors for SEO. 

Google prioritizes the user experience. Due to this Google wants the content on it to be very helpful and easy to read so that the user does not leave Google and go to another search engine.

When you are doing the SEO of your website, you have to consider these metrics. Now we will discuss how these factors affect the search ranking and how to measure them.

Click-Through-Rate (CTR)

CTR is the most important factor that Google considers for ordering the search rankings. Basically the term CTR means how many users click on a website link when it appears at the result page. In other words, CTR measures the number of impressions that lead to website clicks.

How does CTR affect Google’s Search Ranking?

CTR tells how many users click on the link of your website. This gives a strong signal to Google about your website. 

If the CTR of your website is high, this means that most of the users are engaging your website and finding the relevancy and quality in it. This gives a positive signal to Google about the website and improves its ranking. 

Next time whenever the user searches the query, Google will look whether the content related to your query is available on your website or not. If it is available, then Google will show your website in the top search results. 

Vice versa, if the CTR of the website is low, this means users are not getting relevant and quality content on the website. This sends negative signals to Google and de-rank your website.

In the above image the total impressions are 1.59K in which 180 converted into clicks. As a result the average CTR is 11.3%.

Bounce Rate 

Alongside CTR, Bounce Rate is also a major factor. CTR and Bounce Rate are the two big factors on which the site reputation depends. 

Bounce Rate means how many users come to your website and leave it immediately without clicking on any other page or navigating. 

How Does Bounce Rate Affect Google’s Search Ranking?

If the bounce rate of your website is high this means that a high number of users are coming to your website and leaving without any interaction. This gives a strong negative signal to Google that the user has not found anything good on your website and leaves immediately. As a result Google will de-rank your website.

Vice versa, if the bounce rate of your website is low, this means people are finding something valuable due to which they navigate to other pages as well. This sends a positive signal and Google will rank your website.

Consider the above given graph. The bounce rate of a website in Google Analytics is high. Also it identifies from which source coming traffic has a higher bounce rate.

Google Latest Algorithm Updates

Google keeps updating its algorithm on the basis of user behaviour for improving the search result quality. 

Google algorithm is not a user behaviour but it changes after considering the user behaviour because google prioritises the user experience. 

The Google Core update of March 2025, Google made some updates that are as follow

• The system of Google now considers whether the content on a website is written by a person who has any expertise and experience or not.
  

• Google checks whether the information is from a trustworthy and reliable source.
  

• Google will focus more on original content rather than using Ai or copying from other sites to create low quality pages.
  

• Google has also stricter its spam policies such as use of expired domains or posting low quality content just to get clicks.

How Does Google Algorithm Updates Affect Google’s Search Ranking?

The updates in Google Algorithm have a big impact on Google’s Search Ranking. Most of the website owners have witnessed a drop in ranking after this core update. 

After this update the website that had low quality or Ai generated content have been de-ranked. Also, the website content that Google identifies as not written by an expert has been dropped. 

Also the spammy websites, link farms and manipulative SEO tactics have witnessed a ranking drop. 

Device Impact on User Behaviour

User behaviour greatly depends on the device that is being used by the user. Mobile users usually look for quick answers and local information. This shows a short visit on the website but high intent for immediate action. 

On the other hand, desktop users may engage in more in-depth research. This results in a long session and several interactions on the website. 

Google’s mobile first indexing highlights the importance of improving the website for mobile users. Responsive design, fast loading speed and smooth navigation are important to serve mobile searchers. 

Desktop experience should be more comprehensive content and usability. 

How Does Different Devices Affect Google’s Search Result?

Google also considers the use of devices through which a user is coming to a website. 

If your website is not friendly to every device then Google will eventually de-rank it. This is because users interact with your website from different devices. Some users may use laptops and some may use mobiles. 

If the website is not mobile friendly, then the user will immediately leave it without visiting other pages of the website. This will result in bad user-experience and increase the bounce rate. This results in a ranking drop of a website.

The above given image is from Google Search Console of one of our client websites. As you can clearly see that the most of the traffic coming on the website is from Desktop rather than mobile. This means that the website may not be mobile friendly. For attracting more traffic we have to optimize the website for mobile users as well.

Website Security

Website security and privacy can greatly impact the user behaviour. Users tend to use and interact with websites that are secure and their private data such as password is secure. 

With increasing concerns over data privacy and regulations like GDPR gathering and using user behaviour data has become more complex. Marketers should balance the need for behavioural insights with ethical data practices and compliance.

This change promotes the use of compiled, anonymous and first party data collection methods. The users should be clear about the usage of their data. Also they should be given the option to enter their data so that it builds user trust. 

How Does Website Security Affect Google’s Search Result?

Website security is not a user behavior but it has a huge impact on it. 

Website security is important on every website but it is most important in e-commerce websites in which users have to enter card information for transactions or the websites in which users have to put their login details. If the website is not secure, then it can be hacked and sensitive information can be stolen. 

When  a user notices that the website is not secure or has potential risk, then he will return from the website without making any transaction or filling the forms. This will increase a bounce rate and eventually Google will de-rank the website. 

Conclusion

User behaviour can turn the game of website SEO. By shifting from basic metrics to modern behavioural insights, SEO experts can do more effective SEO. Keep updated about algorithm updates, device specific behaviours and secure websites, you can bring most of the organic traffic.

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