We can all relate to a website that simply stops before loading content, or in another typical scenario, experiencing painfully slow loading content. Most of us agree that either experience is upsetting. But beyond annoying web visitors, let’s find out what the real consequences are for a slow website.
Show me the money
Once you put a monetary value on speed, it becomes abundantly clear in terms of actual costs why the lasting visitor perception and experience with page speed directly relates to customer service and brand equity. .
For example, KISSmetrics presented statistics from Akamai, which studied the dollar cost of speed in relation to page conversions. They found that a 1-second delay in page response time results, on average, in a 7% increase in page abandonment. The trick here is that page abandonment grows exponentially as seconds accumulate, so a 4 second delay results in a 28% page abandonment, which means your slow website is losing potential visitors and revenue at an alarming rate.
This might not seem like a big deal if you’re measuring things like downloads and other calls to action where speed isn’t considered a critical metric, but it’s an important metric when applied to an eCommerce site making $100,000 a day. .
Think about it; a 1-second page lag could potentially cost you $2.5 million in lost sales per year. Additionally, page speed is an important online metric for both perceived customer service and brand quality.
Check your website speed
What does speed mean for website managers in 2018 and beyond? Do not ignore it! Do everything in your power to increase your website page speed for both desktop and mobile sites. If your website is responsive, make sure it works well on every device imaginable. If you test your website and find that it is not optimal, contact a competent web developer who knows how to optimize your website for speed. It’s more affordable than most other SEO efforts, and you have nothing to lose except customers, right?
Use Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool to see your score and take note of any tips you may be given in the results. Second, take a look at your page size, as many sites are bloated these days. Try to reduce as much as you can by optimizing images, compressing code, and loading fewer external scripts and ads.
Maybe it’s time to ditch the more egregious designer “pretties” that bloat your website and go with a more minimalist approach. What customers like most about your site is the content and how quickly they can view it.
Google also loves speed
Speed is more critical when web visitors are on mobile devices, but desktop websites are not out of the woods. Google takes note of optimizing your website for all devices, and poor results are automatically lowered in search rankings by their Page Rank algorithms. If your website speed is annoying enough to get Google’s attention, then it’s a safe bet that your user experience is in the bathroom too.
Of course, there are more than 200 factors that make up Google page ranking; however, not all items are weighted evenly or even approaching the importance of speed. Yes, your website must be responsive so that it can work well on all types of devices. Yes, you must have a security certificate whether you are doing e-commerce or not. And yes, you do need to optimize your website for speed. Once these things are in order, you can continue to add to the list, but these items are the most important after great content, which will always be number one.
