When developing and optimizing your business’s website, it’s easy to overlook the importance of fast load times. Even if your site features a clean design with proper navigation links, though, speed can affect its overall performance in several ways. If your website suffers from slow load times, may may struggle to achieve a higher search ranking, attract traffic, generate sales and more.
Only 38% of Users Will Wait Longer Than 5 Seconds
According to a study conducted by Imperva, only 38% of internet users will wait longer than five seconds for a website to load. After surveying thousands of online shoppers, researchers found that most users expect websites to load in under five seconds, with 35% of users expecting sites to load in just three to five seconds. Forcing users to wait longer than five seconds could result in missed leads and sales for your business.
Google and Bing Rank Fast-Loading Sites Higher
Both Google and Bing have publicly announced the use of speed as a ranking factor, meaning fast-loading websites rank higher in Google’s and Bing’s search results than slow-loading websites. Google has prioritized speed in its ranking algorithm since 2010. Since then, it’s become an even more powerful ranking signal. Just last year, for example, Google said it was now using speed as a ranking signal for mobile searches as well as desktop searches. The bottom line is that your website needs to load quickly; otherwise, it could hinder your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy.
Reducing Load Times Results in More Sales
If you sell products or services on your business’s website, you may generate more sales by optimizing it to load more quickly. In a study conducted by Shopzilla, the e-commerce company discovered that reducing its load time from four to six seconds to just 1.5 seconds resulted in 7% to 12% more sales. Furthermore, Shopzilla reported 25% more pageviews, presumably because visitors aren’t abandoning the website due to long load times.
Long Load Times Hurt Your Business’s Credibility
A non-quantifiable way in which load load times affect your business involves credibility. When a potential customer visits your business’s website, he or she expects it to load quickly. If it doesn’t, the prospect may assume that your business is incapable of creating and maintaining a high-quality website, thereby making your business less credible.
Don’t let your business’s website suffer from long load times. Focus on optimizing your site to achieve faster load times so that you avoid the headaches listed here.
If you have questions about improving the speed of your site and increasing visits to your business or professional profile online, call me and I’ll talk through how you can increase leads, increase the value of each deal, and establish or strengthen your online marketing funnel.
CONTACT CHRIS
c. 303 . 505 . 4242
e. chris.holland@greenvinemarketing.com
