4 Ways Your Website Speed Could Impact SEO and Social Media Success
February 22, 2019
There are various marketing techniques to help get your website ahead in 2019. One of them is search engine optimization, and another is social media marketing. These two go hand in hand and can greatly improve the traffic flow to your site as well as overall revenue from new traffic. Unfortunately, a big factor in the success of the campaigns is the speed of your site.
Research shows that the modern web surfer expects results now. In fact, most internet users won’t wait more than 3-5 seconds for a page to load before moving onto the next viable link. Similarly, in Google searches, the most clicked results are in the top three slots, because consumers don’t want to waste time looking further than that for the information they seek.
It makes sense then, that your site speed could be cause for trouble in your marketing projects. If your site won’t load quickly following a click from an ad on Facebook, the consumer might just back up and keep scrolling. To fight this issue, you should first be educated on the problems it causes. Here are 4 ways your site speed is messing up your marketing efforts.
1. Page Size and Loading Time: In the last few years, the average site has doubled in size, making loading times longer than ever before. Unfortunately, while pages are growing, internet connections are about the same, meaning consumers are left waiting longer to see all that additional content you’ve packed into your site.
While it’s important to have an up to date, well made, enigmatic website, you should consider your users and what they need. When working with a site developer, ask questions like: is there a better way to input these graphics, could we save loading times by streaming this video from a third-party site like YouTube instead of embedding it, etc. You might be surprised to see how much more traffic you get by shaving off a second or two from the loading speed of a webpage.
2. Mobile-Friendly Sites are Lacking: It’s true that most businesses are finally taking steps to implement a mobile-friendly website, but compared to traditional sites, stats show a staggering 10-second lag in loading time. For a consumer only willing to wait 5-seconds, this additional 10 seconds is a troublesome thing.
Whether from a tablet or mobile phone, mobile users expect to see fast results just like desktop users do. Compared to a desktop user, a mobile user may even expect faster results because they’re on the move and have less time to sit and stare at the screen until it loads. Mobile users are checking movie times on lunch breaks, searching for local stores before hopping in the car, or seeking directions while riding public transportation. They don’t have time to sit and wait for results, which is why your mobile loading times could be leading to degraded SEO and social media traffic conversion success.
3. Tool Speed Isn’t Up to Par: It’s not just the content on your landing page that should load quickly; consumers expect everything else to function in the same way. Research suggests that businesses with tools such as shopping carts and checkout widgets could be an annoyance to customers if the tools don’t provide quick and painless results. Shoppers who must wait to purchase because a shopping cart is lagging, the shipping page isn’t loading, etc., are less likely to follow through with a sale and will shop elsewhere instead.
The same can be said for any apps you offer. Apps are a great way to stay in touch with the mobile consumers and offer faster loading options. However, if your app has problems loading, defects to a page on your standard site which loads slowly or has bugs which cause the app to freeze or close, it could cost you potential customers.
4. Videos Won’t Load: There’s nothing more frustrating than clicking on a link to watch a video only to learn it won’t load. Frozen videos are no fun, and even worse when they cause the entire website to lag. Your website speed could impact the way video streams, especially if the video is being hosted from your site rather than a third part site.
To counteract this issue, test-drive all your videos and other playable content once a week to make sure it’s all working. In fact, a few times a month you might want to consider testing your entire site to make sure it loads quickly, tools and apps are working, videos are loading, and mobile users can gain access to all your features.
The Importance of Quick Webpages
With Google taking up the majority share of the internet and one of their algorithms logging the loading times for websites, your delayed load time could cost you an impressive ranking. As mentioned above, many consumers are sticking to the top 3 google results, and some never even bother clicking to see page 2. This makes it crucial that you take your ranking and site speed seriously.
It’s not just Google that affects your traffic though. Social media followers who have made the effort to click your link and check out your webpage will be less likely to click on future ads, share your content with others, or interact with you through social media or your site. This could ruin your brand’s reputation on social media.
By practicing routine checks and implementing as many site speed changes as possible, you can save yourself the headaches associated with a slow loading site, and rank better in the process.