Users expect a responsive, safe, and speedy web experience. Over half of web users will leave a page if it doesn’t load within three seconds! Longer than that and you could be losing valuable customers and revenue. Your website’s speed differs among various devices. So although you think your website’s speed is optimized for a brand new iPhone, it may be slower for older smartphones, which could affect your ranking on SERPs.
Google PageSpeed Insights scores your website based on page speed and optimization. This will tell you how fast your average user finds your site. In addition, Google PageSpeed Insights offers suggestions on how you can improve your score and make your website fast across all devices. Here are 5 ways you can optimize your website’s speed:
1. Limit Redirects
When it comes to a redesign, redirects are inevitable. However, too many redirects can slow down page rendering on desktops and mobile devices. This is because each redirect adds an extra HTTP request-response cycle. Consider limiting redirects to one per landing page. If you create new content to replace the old, use a permanent 301 redirect. If you plan on making a few short-term changes, like promotions, use a temporary 302 redirect.
2. Improve Server Response Time
Your server response time is the difference between a user waiting three seconds and seven seconds for a page to load. Google recommends that your server response time be below 200ms. You can determine your server response time with tools likes Pingdom which will test your site and tell you where potential issues may arise.
In addition, your database gets full over time, mainly with unnecessary data including:
- Spam comments
- Unapproved comments
- Post revisions
- Trashed items
Be sure to do an audit of these things on the backend in order to improve response time.
3. Optimize and Compress Images
Images make up a large portion of your website, and larger images can slow down your site dramatically. You may be tempted to use PNG for all of your images to ensure high quality. However, these decrease page speed and take up a lot of space. Instead, use JPGs for the majority of your images. This reduces the size of your image without affecting the quality. Use PNGs for images with logos, illustrations, or text.
In either case, your images should be responsive. To do this, make sure you use relative sizes for images as well as specify different images depending on device characteristics. For example, use a srcset attribute and the x descriptor in the img element to let browsers know when to use a specific image.
4. Limit Plugins
Yes, plugins are convenient and you can easily install them on your own. But beware, too many plugins and your site’s speed begins to decline. It’s tempting to add impractical features to your site like gravatar and profile tools. However, many of these features can be done through manual coding. It might not be as quick and easy as simply installing a plugin, but it definitely saves you a headache in the long run. The maximum number of plugins you should use really depends on the size of your website. Some popular websites may utilize over 50 plugins. Talk to a development team first to determine if there are any coding solutions first.
5. Managed Hosting Takes Care of Everything
With a managed hosting plan, you can worry less about technical issues and focus more on your business. Whether you use WordPress, Drupal or another content management system, Sevaa Group can manage your site for you. We take care of everything from SEO to server-side maintenance. Your site will be responsive and fast across all devices. In addition, our managed hosting package includes:
- Redundant solid state storage
- Scalability and load balancing
- Continuous integration deployment
- Managed backups
- 24/7 server monitoring and self-healing
This is just a handful of benefits we offer with our managed hosting. All of our solutions are tailored to your website’s needs. Talk to us about our hosting plans.
