Slow website ruining your startup | Why a slow website is bad for your startup's progress?

Table of Content

• What is Website Performance?
• How we can measure our website performance?
• What happens when a website is slow?
• How do users feel about a slow website?
• Who is affected by poor website performance?
• How can we fix this problem?

What is Website Performance?

Website performance refers to how well and how quickly a website works for users. It includes how fast web pages load, how smoothly the site responds to clicks and other interactions, and how stable and reliable the site is under different conditions.

Key Factors Affecting Website Performance

• Page Load Time: The time it takes for a web page to fully load and display all its content.

• Time to First Byte (TTFB): The time it takes for the server to send the first byte of data to the user's browser.

• Render Time: The time it takes for the browser to process and display the web page so it becomes interactive.

• Mobile Performance: How well the website performs on mobile devices, considering factors like speed and usability.

• Hosting and Server Performance: The quality and speed of the server that hosts the website, affecting how quickly the site can deliver data.

• Website Design and Code Optimization: Efficient coding and design practices that help the site run faster and more smoothly. Writing optimized code from the start can help you save time and resources.

• Content Delivery Networks (CDNs): Networks of servers that distribute the website's content closer to users around the world, improving load times.

• Browser Caching: Storing parts of the website locally on the user’s device to speed up load times for future visits.

• Network Conditions: The speed and reliability of the user’s internet connection, which can impact how quickly the site loads.

• Third-Party Plugins and Scripts: Additional features and tools that can enhance the website but might slow it down if not optimized properly.

How we can measure our website performance?

First, we need to understand how websites work. Unlike mobile apps, which load data predownloaded from the app store, websites load in a web browser by retrieving data from a web server over the internet in real-time. This is why websites require more attention to performance than mobile apps.

Why is performance so important? It’s all about making a good impression. Psychological concepts like the Halo Effect highlight the importance of first impressions. Marketers often use this to their advantage, as discussed in another article link.

To measure website performance, developers use tools like PageSpeed Insights and Lighthouse, which provide core web vitals and a broad overview of website performance. For more detailed analysis, tools like Unlighthouse can generate reports for every page of your website, providing a more comprehensive understanding of performance.

Core Web Vitals Metrics

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures loading performance. To provide a good user experience, strive to have LCP occur within the first 2.5 seconds of the page starting to load
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures responsiveness. To provide a good user experience, strive to have an INP of less than 200 milliseconds.
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures visual stability. To provide a good user experience, strive to have a CLS score of less than 0.1.

These metrics help identify areas where your website is performing well and where it needs improvement.

What Happens When a Website is Slow?

We now understand website performance, but why does it matter so much? Why should waiting just a couple of extra seconds matter, and why should you care about improving your website's speed?

These are common questions, but the reality is that website speed significantly impacts your customers' experience and, ultimately, your business success.

A slow website can undermine your digital marketing efforts if you don't prioritize user experience. Poor performance can frustrate visitors, leading to higher bounce rates, lower conversion rates, and a negative impact on your business.

Let's dive into some real-life examples to see the impact of slow websites and how improving performance can benefit businesses.

Real-life Examples:

• For instance, Tokopedia reduced their render time from 14 seconds to 2 seconds for 3G connections. This improvement led to a 19% increase in visitors, a 35% increase in total sessions, a 7% increase in new users, a 17% increase in active users, and a 16% increase in sessions per user.
• Similarly, Netflix discovered that by optimizing their code, they could drastically improve performance. By removing React from the client-side code on their first landing page for signup, they improved the Time-to-Interactive by over 50% . This example highlights the significant impact of even small changes on overall website performance.

• Another striking example is Amazon, which found that if their pages were just one second slower, they could lose $1.6 billion in sales each year. This illustrates how even a seemingly insignificant delay can have massive financial implications.

• Google also reported that even a tiny delay in their search results—less than half a second—could lead to a loss of 8 million searches a day. This means missing out on countless opportunities to display ads and engage with users.

Attention Span and User Behavior

Humans naturally have short attention spans, and this has only worsened in the age of social media.

With the rise of platforms like TikTok and Instagram, where short-form content prevails, Gen Z has even shorter attention spans. This means that websites need to load quickly and deliver content efficiently to keep users engaged.

In conclusion, slow website performance not only frustrates users but can also lead to significant financial losses and missed opportunities. Prioritizing website speed is crucial for maintaining user satisfaction and achieving business success.

How do users feel about a slow website?

The desire for speed is universal; people want things done quickly, regardless of their generation. In today's fast-paced world, waiting even a few seconds can be enough to lose a user's attention and interest. This impatience is not limited to any specific age group—everyone values their time and expects swift online experiences.

Users today are accustomed to modern, fast websites. Major companies invest heavily in optimizing their website performance to ensure seamless user experiences.

These investments set high standards and expectations. As a result, users expect similar fast and efficient experiences from all websites they visit. When a website fails to meet these expectations, it leaves a negative impression that can be hard to overcome.

This expectation aligns with Jakob’s Law, which states that users spend most of their time on other sites and prefer your site to work the same way as the sites they already know.

When your site is slow, users find it unfamiliar and frustrating, leading to a loss of trust and favorability. Users are not inclined to spend extra time figuring out a slow, clunky website when they can easily find a faster alternative.

A slow website not only frustrates users but also gives off a negative impression. Slow websites are often associated with scam sites that are designed to steal data. Users are wary of such sites and are likely to leave quickly.

The perception of your website as untrustworthy or outdated can be incredibly damaging. Users may associate the slow performance with poor security practices, making them hesitant to provide personal information or complete transactions.

Who is affected by poor website performance?

Users impressions directly affects the businesses, entrepreneur, startups and companies.

All business are dependent upon their users. Happy customers makes a business owner happy. But this happiness only can achieve when you understand the psychology of human mind. How human mind thinks and interact with different things.

Google algorithm always promotes sites that have great user experience and performance. So, it become compulsory for business to improve their site performance.

How can we fix this problem?

Solving website performance issues can be crucial and complex for businesses, but some simple practices can help address these problems. While each specific issue might require tailored solutions, here are some general strategies that can significantly improve website performance.

1. 1. Optimize your Code

   Optimizing your code is a major step towards improving performance. Ensure that your website is built with performance in mind from the start.
   
   This might require experts to optimize your JavaScript, CSS, and other scripts. By reducing the amount of JavaScript, you can minimize the load on your website, making it faster. Clean, well-organized, and efficient code not only improves speed but also enhances SEO.

2. 2. Image Optimization

   Images are essential for visual content, but they need to be optimized to prevent slow load times. Compressing images into formats like .avif or .webp can reduce their size without sacrificing quality.
   
   Additionally, adding alt tags and adjusting the image size for both mobile and desktop can make a significant difference. For detailed guidance on image optimization, you can refer to specialized blogs on the topic.

3. 3. Hosting and Server Performance

   Choosing a reliable hosting service and optimizing server performance are crucial for website speed. Ensure your server can handle the traffic and that it is located close to your target audience. Investing in a good hosting service can significantly reduce load times and improve user experience.

4. 4. Browser Caching

   Implementing browser caching allows previously loaded resources to be reused, reducing the need to reload them on subsequent visits. This can drastically improve the speed for returning users. Properly configuring caching settings can help in reducing server load and speeding up your website.

5. 5. Reducing and Optimizing Third-Party Plugins

   Optimizing your code is a major step towards improving performance. Ensure that your website is built with performance in mind from the start. This might require experts to optimize your JavaScript, CSS, and other scripts.
   
   By reducing the amount of JavaScript, you can minimize the load on your website, making it faster. Clean, well-organized, and efficient code not only improves speed but also enhances SEO.

6. 6. Reducing Unnecessary Fancy Animations

   While animations can enhance user experience, too many can slow down your site. Evaluate the necessity of each animation and remove any that do not add significant value. Focus on simple, effective animations that do not compromise performance.