The Importance of Page Load Speed
Posted on 8th June 2024 at 10:13
We wouldn’t normally start with a statistic, but as page load speed is as important as ever to any business, we want to express just why it matters so much. So, as well as it being a key Google ranking factor and impacting your SEO, dwell on these for a few moments:
E-commerce sites that load in 1 second experience 3x higher conversion rates.
On average, the page load speed of a first-page Google result is 1.65 seconds.
A website’s average page load speed is 3.21 seconds.
82% of consumers say slow page loading speeds impact their purchasing decisions.
Now that we’ve got you sitting up and taking notice, let’s discuss why page load speed is so important for small and medium-sized businesses in Coventry.
What is page load speed?
So, what do we mean by page load speed? Well, also known as page speed, it is how quickly your web page loads via a mobile device or desktop computer. There are a variety of factors that can impact how quickly or slowly the page loads, such as how fast your web hosting is, the size of the page, the amount of content and images, and the device being used by the user to view your website.
Google uses page load speed to rank your website in search queries. They’ve set these benchmarks:
Good – a page loading speed of 2.5 seconds or less.
Needs improvement – 2.5 to 4 seconds.
Poor – it takes more than 4 seconds for the page to load.
So, even if we take the average website load speed in the statistics above, most websites fit into the ‘needs improvement’ category.
Why is it important for your website?
In today’s demanding digital world, your online presence is crucial to business success. Along with page load speed, user experience, conversion rates, website traffic, search engine optimisation (SEO), mobile responsiveness, Google ranking and website performance are all part of the formula.
A poor loading speed will significantly impact your website visitors and doesn’t create that all-important first impression. It can also lead to higher bounce rates, with users leaving your website before engaging with any of your pages. Plus, satisfaction levels are seriously dented, and users are unlikely to return.
In such a competitive online environment, especially locally in Coventry, consumers will choose faster-loading websites that offer a seamless user experience.
The impact of poor page loading speed
If your website pages are taking a long time to load, and by a long time we mean more than 4 seconds, it will have an impact on a variety of other aspects.
User experience. Not only is it frustrating for website users, particularly if you have an e-commerce business, but it creates a bad impression and impacts their website use.
Increased bounce rate. If users are unhappy with the time it takes your website pages to load, they will quickly leave and go to a competitor's website.
SEO. User experience is a key ranking factor for Google. Search ranking platforms will penalise websites that are slow to load, which will impact website visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Lower conversion rates. A result of poor page loading speed and a higher bounce rate is fewer users converting into customers, ultimately impacting your bottom line.
Mobile optimisation. In an increasingly mobile world, a poor-loading website will impact Google's rankings.
Regular monitoring and testing of your website’s loading speed is important for any business, but especially SMEs in Coventry. There are online tools that will test your website’s performance, such as GTmetrix and Google’s PageSpeed Insights.
Tips for improving page load speed
The good news is that there are steps you can take to improve your website’s page load speed.
Optimise images. High-resolution images take up a high amount of bandwidth, which will lead to much slower loading times. So, reduce the size of the images but be careful not to lose the quality. Optimising the images on pages will not only improve page loading speed but will also improve user experience and page ranking.
Coding. Website codes, and algorithms, that aren’t necessary or are redundant will slow down your site. The same applies to the overuse of plug-ins and scripts. So make sure you only use integrations that are needed and regularly check script efficiency.
Improve server response time. Often a slow page loading speed is because the server you’re using is taking too long to respond to a user’s request. There are various reasons for this, including high levels of traffic or issues with the hardware/software. Ensure your server is sufficient to handle lots of traffic, particularly in peak times, like an online sale, and that it can respond quickly.
Use caching tools. Every visit to your website by a user means that the browser caches the page’s resources so it can load the page more quickly the next time it’s opened. However, if the right caching mechanisms aren’t utilised correctly, it will slow down the loading speed.
Site design. Keep your website design clean and simple, which will also improve user experience.
Reduce page redirects. Keep them to an absolute minimum and avoid redirect loops where a redirect diverts users back to the original URL.
Following these steps and regularly monitoring your website’s loading speed will ensure it continues to perform at its best.
At it’seeze Coventry, we specialise in creating and building mobile-friendly, SEO-optimised websites that perform beyond your expectations. We will design a website that truly reflects your business and wins more customers. With ongoing support and all the tools you need to stay secure, get in touch with us for hassle-free, lightning-fast web design in Coventry.
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