57% of Page Viewing Time Happens Above the Fold
Visitors spend 57% of their page-viewing time above the fold, in the first screen they see before scrolling, and 43% below it (Nielsen Norman Group, 2018). In the earlier version of this research the split was 80% above and 20% below (Nielsen Norman Group, 2010). People scroll more than they used to, but the first screen still gets more attention than the rest of the page combined.
What the research observed
Nielsen Norman Group used eye tracking to record where people looked on websites. People did scroll, but the attention each part of the page received fell steeply as they moved down. The researchers explain this in terms of expectation: attention goes where users expect to find relevant content. Scrolling is a small cost, and visitors pay it when the top of the page suggests there is more worth seeing.
What it means for a business website
Your first screen does most of the work. A visitor deciding whether you can help them makes much of that decision from what appears before they scroll. If the first screen holds a slogan, a large photo, and little else, the visitor has to scroll to learn what you do, and many will leave first.
This applies to every page that gets traffic from search or ads, not only the home page. Service pages, location pages, and landing pages each have their own first screen.
What to do
- Put a plain statement of what you offer and who it is for in the first screen of each key page.
- Place your primary call to action in that first screen, not only at the bottom.
- Open each key page on a laptop and a phone and write down what is visible before any scrolling.
- Move the most important information up rather than adding more content below it.
Sources
- Fessenden. Scrolling and Attention. Nielsen Norman Group, 2018.
- Nielsen. Scrolling and Attention, Original Research Study. Nielsen Norman Group, 2010.