Definition
Eye tracking is software that uses a web cam or a video camera to monitor eye gaze and in some cases biometric responses to visual content. This generates heat maps of eye gaze to show where visitor attention is drawn to on the screen. This can provide valuable insights about the effectiveness of different designs and whether users are noticing important messages or assets on page.
Here is an example of an eye tracking heatmap from a Google study in 2015. This discovered that:
- Mobile users scan vertically more than horizontally.
- Users are viewing more search results within a single session but are spending less time browsing each one (on average 1.17 seconds compared to 2 seconds in 2005).
- Results that are positioned lower down the SERP (particularly positions 2 to 4) are receiving more clicks than they did a few years ago.
Source: Mediative
Resources:
Eyetracking research – How to use eye tracking to optimise digital content.
Conversion marketing – Glossary of Conversion Marketing.
Over 300 tools reviewed – Digital Marketing Toolbox.
A/B testing software – Which A/B testing tool should you choose?
Credit:
Eye icons created by Freepik – Flaticon
Featured image: Freeimages
