Websites are an integral part of having an online platform for a product or informational niche. They are modern-day outlets for possibly everything available. Initially, websites were introduced for easy access to scientific research and basic information. However, as time passed, the use of websites shifted slowly towards commercial and product-oriented usage. COVID-19 added more popularity to the website narrative. The e-commerce business is taking over, and more than 4 trillion dollars of revenue was generated in the USA over the last year.
Today’s information is presented in a way to display the product’s distinct features. Websites generate massive amounts of revenue worldwide. For example, Amazon generates approximately 107 billion dollars annually. Google generated 75 billion dollars last year. These are a few big names in the industry, but earning through a website is still achievable and with utmost ease. These stats speak volumes about the credibility and popularity of presenting your business through websites. Businesses around the world have evolved due to websites being the primary consumer market today.
Why is website speed important?
Most of the exchange of information and capital in the current trade system is conducted through websites and e-commerce sites. It is very necessary to take into deep consideration the technicalities that affect the user-friendliness of the time of the visitor. There are dozens of factors that play a vital role in maintaining an attractive and inciting portfolio of a website to prolong the visit time of the consumer. They range from ease of access to information, attractive visuals, accessible links, and the structural organisation of the webpage.
One of the things that is most important to gather an audience around your site and maintain or increase engagement is the website speed. Website speed is directly proportional to the time spent on your online venture. The less the bounce rate of your website is, the better the engagement will be.
Bounce rate determines the time duration that how many visitors took how much time to access your website and leave earlier than your target. Website loading speed is crucial as statistics state that if your e-commerce site has a web page loading speed of more than 3 seconds, you will most likely lose your possible conversion. There are some shortlisted reasons as to why your website speed should be among your top priorities.
Importance of website speed
Human Psychology – Online businesses are mostly carried out with the help of artificial intelligence that draws patterns of human behaviour. It gathers data, and based on that data, it is concluded where the targeted audience is keener towards. The common pattern is that most people prefer smooth and quick access to information. So having a user-friendly and fast loading speed is an essential part of website building.
- Effects on SEO – Google is involved in a huge amount of capital exchange in e-commerce; the reason for that is that it is trusted for its credibility and reliability. To maintain that trust, Google has carried certain protocols to not entertain poor user experience sites on their search engine. If your ranking on the search engine Google drops, it will gradually kill your number of visits and conversions.
- Disadvantages of the slow website – A slow website is like a parasite for your online presence; it disassembles the credibility. Furthermore, it inhibits irritation among the audience as they go through to hear your side. The most damaging factor is that a slow-loading web page creates negative feedback for you. Henceforth you are not preferred and referred by the targeted audience.
5 ways to improve your website speed
Any website does not have a perfect roadmap of reaching a massive amount of people with their venture. It is regular updates and improvements that build an impression among interested onlookers.
1. Fixing Visuals
Images are a defining part of your website. Human consciousness is more attracted to visuals than texts. So presenting images that are easy on the eye and don’t need extra hard work to download is good news. You can improve the image quality by allowing images with low megapixels. To ensure the originality and beauty of the actual image, JPG can be used. Similar is the case with videos; it is recommended to present a video preferable to the design of the website so that it takes less buffering.
2. Hosting
Contrary to common belief, hosting has an impactful effect on the overall functioning of a website, including its speed. Choosing a hosting platform that is crucial to your targeted audience is one of the most important requirements for your business. Many people mistakenly choose shared hosting, which is not recommended because it slows down the website server in the long run. A hosting plan which can withstand huge amounts of data and analysis saves time and attracts eyes. If you are thriving for big numbers on your website hosting platforms like blue host, kingsta, the pantheon is the preferred choice.
3. WordPress Themes
A large number of website developers use WordPress themes due to their audience attracting design and layout. They are basic needs of website building and are high in demand nowadays. However, using non optimised custom WordPress themes slows down the loading speed of a website. Fancy designs and layouts may also lead to inefficient performance, so it is crucial to implement well-optimised themes so they do not affect the overall performance.
4. Mobile optimisation
Mobile optimisation is very important so that you are targeting a wide variety of people. Having a website that has a good speed on desktop devices and does not respond on mobile devices is an alarming factor. You can improve the loading speed of your website for mobile devices by planning a page loading strategy. You can compress unnecessary information to increase the speed. Choose a responsive website design to update and improve speed regularly.
5. Landing page redirects
Redirects are a way of creating and forwarding more than one URL address to a landing page or website. It involves sending the URL to both the visitor and the search engine contrary to what they demanded in the first place. This extra process harms the loading speed. It is also crucial to meet the Google search engine metrics. However, reducing unnecessary landing page redirects can improve the efficiency of the website.
Benefits of improving website speed
- Improving your web speed allows UX (User Experience) to be more friendly and creative. So considering your first impression is a lasting one, it is important to provide the visitor with the required data at a tremendous pace. This will increase engagement and be a positive step towards the business of the site. Google statistics show that the satisfaction level of consumers drops by 16% if accessing a site takes a loading speed of more than 1 second.
- The improvement of a few seconds has a decisive effect on the conversions. Because the engaged audience spends 35% more time on a website that is fast at loading pages. Amazon and Google studies show that it will further increase sales conversion by 10% to 20%. Conversion is an integral part of website development as it is one of the biggest revenue generators. If sales conversions are not up to par, the idea of your website will slowly be lost by your audience.
- Moreover, increasing web speed will improve your site’s SEO rank, and Google will place you in its top rankings. It is a plus point because more than 80% of online business worldwide is carried through the platform. And having your site on its first page grants you the opportunity to compete against the giants.
- Additionally, Facebook shifted its plan of action in marketing in 2017 when it introduced a marketing strategy to promote those sites up the order that are responsive and fast in loading. To make it easier to get an idea, if you want to buy certain shoes and are presented options on your feed when searching for them. The top recommendations will always be sites that have fast-loading pages. It allows another market venture opportunity to showcase your idea to a bigger market.
Conclusion
Websites are the future of business, regardless of their niche, budget, or audience. Having a website is just having a shop if you want to start a business. Unlike a shop, you don’t have to possess a budget of millions to acquire commercial land, interiors, and a workforce to get your business known. Having an optimised website is enough to put you on the billboards.
Website speed used to be one of the most ignored factors at the outset of the website development business. However, as it tilted from informational content to commercial, the speed of loading came to the attention of website owners. From then on, website speed in the e-commerce business is the present and the future of business building.
