How Google Uses User Engagement Metrics Like Dwell Time and Pogo Sticking to Rank Pages in 2026

In this episode of The SEO Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into the mechanics of dwell time and pogo sticking—two user engagement signals that Google increasingly uses to gauge content quality. They break down what each metric measures, how they differ from click-through rate, and why a high bounce rate isn't necessarily bad if dwell time is strong. Using a real-world example of a travel blog that saw a 40 percent traffic drop after a Google update, they explore how session replay tools and analytics can reveal whether users are actually engaging with your content. The conversation covers practical ways to improve dwell time through better formatting, internal linking, and content depth, and wraps up with a forward-looking question about how AI summaries might reshape engagement metrics. If you want actionable insights on keeping users on your page and out of the search results, this episode is for you. #DwellTime #PogoSticking #UserEngagement #GoogleRankingSignal #SearchBehavior #ContentQuality #SEO2026 #BounceRate #SessionReplay #InternalLinking #TravelBlogSEO #GoogleUpdate #Analytics #CoreWebVitals #SearchIntent #Marketing #SEOStrategy #FexingoBusiness Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo