Why Website Speed Matters

by ​Elena Tahora, Guest Contributor

Have you ever left a website just because it took "years" to load? If so, you’re not alone.

You might think that such instance is pretty normal, that it’s fine. However, if you’re, say, selling products on your business website, this is bad news, particularly if slow-loading issue occurs on a regular basis.
​

The faster the website, the better the performance!

Keep in mind that good website speed is directly proportional to its likability to attracting viewers—it’s essential for success. The faster the website, the better the performance. So, if your site loads too slow, your visitors will likely abandon it and navigate other sites, which are your competitors.

The top priority? User experience
Millions of website visitors and potential customers are seeking for particular information on the internet, such as images, articles, jobs, etc. They want fast results, however. They have lot of things to do; they have no time to wait.

Imagine if your website loads like a snail. How will the viewers react?

Remember that humans by nature have short attention span, and if your page can’t instantly give your viewers the information they want, they will be frustrated. In point of fact, 47% of people, according to Kissmetrics.com, expect a page to load in 2 seconds or less. And 40% of people will leave pages if they take longer than 3 seconds.

In addition, people make instant judgments about websites. Recent study found out that viewers often regard slow-loading sites as unsafe and untrustworthy, while they regard fast ones as reliable and professional. Slow-loading pages create bad impression to your viewers as a result, which also means that, most probably, they won’t visit your site again.

Faster speed is equal to better search ranking
Google loves fast sites; it doesn’t like slow ones.

Why?

Because Google assures that the lists of websites in search result are the best and reliable—which means they have fast page loading time and have good contents.

Accordingly, your site’s visibility on Google search result is reliant on your page’s performance, especially when it comes to your mobile performance. If your page is too slow, Google would register it as least important. And if your page is fast, Google would rank it in a higher position, which means that website viewers would easily find your site on Google search.

Indeed, speed is essential in your website. To borrow David Besbris’s words, “speed has always been a cornerstone of Google Search.”

Few ways to improve Web speed
It’s important to note that there are many factors which slow down your site, but there are also ways how to speed it up. Here:
​
Image compression
Don’t force huge images to display in a smaller resolution using HTML. Instead, trim them down into smaller resolutions, and make sure that they are positioned at the correct dimension.

Use Content Delivery Network (CDN)
Regarded as the foundation of the Internet in charge of content delivery, CDN is responsible for preventing lags, which is why many publishers use it. How? It takes your files (images, scripts, fonts, etc.), then distributes and stores a cached version of your Website contents in all corners of the globe. In other words, CDN shortens the distance between the server’s location and the user’s.

Enable Caching
One of the elements of a website is a cache, a temporary storage of downloaded information. How does it work? Simple. It is hidden on your user’s drive, so when, for instance, visitor reenters your website, you page loads faster.  
 
Closing thoughts
We’re living in an era where humans have shorter attention spans than goldfish. It’s therefore important to leave your online viewers with good impression by, of course, giving them fast speed. Not doing so means losing your chance to convert your audience into customers. What’s even worse is that you’ll gain negative feedbacks from people who have entered your slow-loading page, which in turn creates bad image to your website.
​
Do you like your site to be regarded as unprofessional and unreliable? The answer lies in your hands.
​