Reasons why website visitors stop reading before the end of your page : It doesn’t matter what your publishing, you publish for a reason. You want something to happen, you expect results.

Maybe you want the visitors to:

Remember your reader’s attention is fragile and short-term most of the time.

This is why we don’t host any ADs on our website MiltonMarketing.com, ADs are a distraction to our visitors, slow down a website (30%-70% slower at times), and redirect our visitors to other businesses taking away from our bottom line.

The theory of an AD on any website is to distract your users from your content and attract them to click on the AD at which point you make a couple of cents or dollars depending on many factors.

This is great for websites with millions of visitors a month or have no products/services to offer.

In theory, it is profitable however some businesses don’t want or even need a distracted user, they want to only present their own high-quality content in a distraction-free environment served up quickly.

What is Google AdSense? and Does it work? Use Google AdSense to make money online by placing ads on your website and YouTube channel.

It works in theory but if you have a product or service your giving clients away for pennies on the dollar.

Also Google AdSense can slow your website down by 30%-70% damaging your SEO

Reasons why website visitors stop reading before the end of your page:

You use too many empty words or phrases

Keeping in mind your readers’ fragility of attention, avoid writing nonsense, vague, big words, and make certain your clearly communicating your points, and ideas.

Long phrases and sentences with almost zero meaning instantly dilute your readers’ interest and attention.

Think of empty words/phrases as Empty calories. Air bubbles in a water pump. Not helpful.

You focus on more than one thing

To achieve the best results from any page, you need to stay focused on just one thing.

Running shoes. Not running shoes and climbing boots.

Coffee makers. Not coffee makers and coffee grinders.

Time tracking. Not time tracking and invoicing.

Marketers always think it would be a great idea to cover more than one topic per page.

We think it’s a bet-hedging thing.

“If they don’t buy the running shoes, maybe they’ll buy the climbing boots.”

Unlikely. Because by dividing everyone’s attention into two different directions, you’re having the likelihood they’ll buy either one. Same applies for ADs on your website.

By all means, add links to related topics. But keep the focus of your page on a single item, service, or idea. :)

Your page looks or feels like hard work

This is related to empty words and phrases.

Empty words and phrases make it harder to read your page.

That 45-word sentence about selling coffee machines is difficult to read because your mind is trying to figure out what the heck is going on.

A huge cognitive load is dumped on the reader. The author is asking his readers to do the work he should have done himself.

“Dear Reader, I’m too lazy to spend the time communicating my point simply and with clarity, so I’m going to dump 45 words of nonsense on your lap and ask you to figure it out at your end.”

Not going to happen.

Never ask your readers to do the heavy lifting.

Always find the simplest ways to make your point.

And then use short words and short sentences.

Like this.

Makes it super-easy to read. And understand.

You fail to engage your readers at an emotional level

Readers are not engaged by descriptions or facts, so don’t just list amazing features of the software you’re selling.

If you want someone to keep reading to the end, you need to make them feel something. Find a way to engage them emotionally.

Tell them how using the products/services you offer will free up tons of time they can then spend with friends and family or focusing on their business. Or how it will make them look good to their boss. Or make them a hero to other members of the team.

Give them a strong emotional stake in the outcome.

Lists of features do have a role to play. They can seal the deal.

But first, you need to engage people at an emotional level. Touch them. Move them.

An emotionally engaged reader is not only a lot more likely to keep reading to the end of the page, but they also are more likely to buy and then become a fan of your business.

Your website takes too long to load and use

Slow loading websites account for 70%-80% lost visitors to your site.

Users, especially today, expect instant loading web pages.

Having too many ADs or Google AdSense is a bad idea because your pushing potential clients away and your website loading time will be 7-12 seconds with Google AdSense installed.

Average web page load speeds are 0.1 seconds to 4 seconds if you are over 4 seconds your losing potentially 70%-80% of your visitors. Test your websites speed here: GTMetrix or Pingdom

If you are having issues with optimizing your WordPress websites speed, we can help. Contact Us.

Conclusion

When you get to the end of any page you’re writing, go back and make sure there is no break in the flow or unintended shift in the pace.

Sometimes a single sentence or paragraph can break the flow of an entire page.

And when that happens — when you make the reader pause or stumble — you lose a ton of readers. Remember the part about visitors attention being fragile.

What do we mean by a break in flow or pace?

It could be you’re falling victim, even in a small way,  too much blah blah. Wading through that stuff is a total pace-killer. If you really want the information present on the page then use the design.

What do you mean to use the design?

Well like this article. Its organized its main sub-headings in toggles. To present little bits of information at a time. No ADs or distractions. Well, other than the cookie warning (required-by-law) and our satisfied-meter to see if you would recommend this to a family/friend. The user is free to use the toggles to learn more while looking at the overall picture. That’s what we mean by using the GUI design to deliver your message.

Or maybe you’re having a problem with inserting a related thought or idea that’s kind of relevant, but actually more of a distraction. And as a result, you’re breaking the flow.

The longer I spend on a page, the more likely I am to start breaking the flow with distracting ideas.

There’s a lesson there for all of us.

Know your weaknesses as a writer. Be aware of how you’re likely to fail your readers and lose them before the end of the page.

Then go back and revise.

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