Fast page load times and rich, interactive content are both key to a successful website, but it can be difficult to balance the two.
It's not a big secret that page load time is very important to the success of your website. Google's search algorithm favors fast load Cork Bicycle Repair Zone times, and there are many studies showing that a slight increase in page load times can negatively impact conversions. Hallam Digital Marketing Manager Tom Whiley wrote a great blog post last year on how to improve page load speed. Our hosting partner, WP Engine, has created great infographics about page load speed.
Websites also need to be rich in content, images, and interactivity to drive conversions. This inevitably leads to larger pages, which naturally slows down page load times.
The conflict between the need for speed and the demand for rich content can stop a design project. Therefore, it is important to find a balance that meets both requirements.
In this blog, I'll show you an approach that will help you balance these two conflicting challenges.
Associate page speed with its purpose
Load times cannot be predicted until the website has evolved to a reasonably mature stage. Therefore, it is best to take an iterative approach to measuring and improving speed.
An important starting point is to identify your site's SEO landing page and its rich content pages. Then you can focus on reducing the page size and load speed of your SEO page as much as possible.
Similarly, rich landing pages can allow a little more space for user interaction.
The general process that can be applied is:
Identify the main landing pages that are targeted for slower loading.
Design around low load time best practices.
Determine features for low load time best practices.
Create a page.
Measure and look for opportunities to save load time.
Repeat 4-5 as needed.
This covers only the first part of the story. Next, you need to keep an eye on your major SEO pages to make sure their page load times are working as expected. This is especially true if you are using a content management system that allows anyone to edit the page