Back in 2011 – 2012, SEO was simple. All you had to do was put your keyword on the page and build backlinks to that page with your keyword as the anchor text. If you built more powerful links than your competitors, you would rank higher. In fact, bad websites would often outrank good websites just because they had a higher number of backlinks.

However, in 2013 and beyond, those days are over. Now Google pays close attention to the quality of your website. And the most important factor in determining your site quality is bounce rate.

If your site has a high bounce rate (meaning people leave your site quickly) then your rankings will suffer. On the other hand, if you follow these 7 simple tactics below and have a lower bounce rate than your competitors, you can enjoy top positions in Google and the massive traffic and profits that come with it.

Tactic #1 – Social Sharing

Make your website social by adding Facebook like and social share buttons in prominent places, like the top, bottom, or side or your blog. This will lower your bounce rate by about 1%.

After you create your page, add 10 Facebook likes to each page or post. If you don’t feel comfortable buying social shares, then ask your friends or family to share you stuff or e-mail your list or fan page to get some momentum.

Tactic #2 – Author Photo

Another effective tactic is to add a photo to the sidebar of your blog or website. Make sure your photo is a personal photo of you and not a lame professional photo taken by photographer.

This will lower your bounce rate by another 1-3%. It increases trust instantly because very few websites display who the author is. Next to the image, add a description with a link to an internal page on your site and it’ll reduce your bounce rate even more.

Tactic #3 – Social Proof

Adding comments, reviews, or testimonials to your website can also lower your bounce rate by another 2-5%. After you publish a page, promote it on your social media profiles and encourage people to comment.

Your goal should be to at least get 3 to 4 comments per post. Not only does this reduce your bounce rate, it also signals to Google that your website is popular and contains interesting content. This is a huge ranking factor post Penguin.

Tactic #4 – Interlinking

Another technique for reducing your bounce rate is to interlink your pages. This also helps with SEO because Google likes internal links. Your goal should be to have at least 5 internal links on each page. Contextual links work the best. Sidebar links are not as effective. Also, make sure the links stand out. Using the standard blue underlined text works best.

Tactic #5 – Google Plus

Having great content alone is not enough. You also have to connect with users on a personal level and show Google that you can be trusted. One great way to do that is to connect your Google plus profile with your blog.

This has great SEO benefits and it can also increase your click through rate, since having an image next to your search result will capture the attention of your audience. Avoid using pen names for your author name. Being upfront and transparent goes a long way in keeping readers on your blog and coming back for more.

Tactic #6 – Most Popular Articles

If you have done all of the above, then you should see a significant drop in your bounce rate. You’re on the right track. But you’re nowhere near being done just yet. Once your readers finish consuming your content, you’ll want to keep them on your site by giving them even more articles to read.

To do, list your most popular articles beneath every single blog post on your website. This can lower your bounce rate by an additional 2-4%. People naturally crave to see the most popular things. By listing the most popular articles on your blog, you’ll give readers a good sense of what it’s all about, resulting in more subscribers.

Tactic #7 – Add A Video

Adding a video is probably the most effective tactic for reducing your bounce rate. Given the fact that video consists of 56% of all web traffic, it’s obvious why this has such a dramatic impact. Video is more engaging than text, especially if your video is awesome.

Add a video to the top of your post and you’ll see your bounce rate drop by 2-3%. If you don’t have your own video, searching youtube for something related to your offer or content is an option. Just make sure you set the embed options so users can’t click away from your site. Or use a self hosted video player like JWPlayer, FlowPlayer, or Easy Video Suite to do the job.

But I Can’t Do This… It’s Too Hard!

Fear ye not, my friend. Contrary to popular beliefs, you don’t have to be a mad scientist to get people to stay on your website. All that’s required is to spend some time on the above tactics to increase trust and engagement. These tactics take very little time to implement, yet their impact on your rankings and profits can be massive. So why not implement them today?