LostOne - 10:29 pm on Jun 28, 2012 (gmt 0)

What I would guess is that, the exit rate PLUS the user searching again for the item on another site, ie, clicking another link, or modifying their search, is the actual trigger. An exit page where no further search occurs means the user found precisely what they were looking for, which is the theoretical goal.

Not where I live. I never look at one page or site for a query. It doesn’t matter what site it is either. It could be the most informative and respected site on the web in its niche. Nowadays it’s all about finding a consensus while wading through the rubbish. For instance let’s say I search for “blue widgets” I may look at three or four sites and look for similarities, or the consensus. The last site which never bothered to answer the query was not what I was looking for, yet I'm done. Should it be rewarded? Not in this case.