Why Website Speed Is Important

From attracting new customers and clients to building your brand, a website is critical to the growth of your business. 

You most likely also know that offering a great user experience is just as important as having a website at all. In fact, 88% of online consumers are less likely to return to a website after a bad experience. 

One of the biggest components of ensuring your visitors have the best experience is your website’s speed. As technology continues to grow rapidly, users are becoming less patient with slower website load times. Almost 50% of users say they don’t want to wait more than two seconds for a website to load. 

We put together this guide to help you understand why website speed is important to your business and your visitors. 

What is website speed?

The website speed (also referred to as website performance) is the amount of time it takes a browser to load fully functional web pages from a given site.

Expectations for great user experience 

To understand why website speed is essential, it’s necessary to also understand online users’ overall expectations. 

• A study done by Backlinko found that the average time it takes to load a webpage is 10.3 seconds on desktop and 27.3 seconds on mobile.
• 53% of internet users are most likely to abandon a website if it takes more than 3 seconds to load. 
• 47% of the users expect a desktop website to load in 2 seconds or less.
• Between 70% to 96% of the visitors who abandon your site due to speed will never return.

The importance of website speed

Your business’s website performance is essential for many reasons that directly impact your business’s growth. Whether you already have a site or are just researching website costs, your website speed is something you shouldn’t ignore. 

First impressions matter

Job interviews, real estate, first dates….whatever the case might be, we always hear, “you only get one first impression.” The same goes for your website. 

When a user visits your website for the first time, there’s a pretty good possibility they will judge you, your website quality, and your business. This is your time to give them an excellent user experience. If not, don’t expect them to stick around, come back, or tell their friends good things about your business.  

Part of making a solid first impression is ensuring your website loads quickly. 

Direct impact on Google ranking 

Let us let you in on a not-so-little secret; website speed plays a pretty critical role in where a business ranks on a Google search. Google has made it clear it wants an internet that is fast, accessible, and user-friendly. 

Google has been using website speed as a key ranking signal in its algorithm for many years to prioritize getting relevant information to users as quickly as possible. 

For your website to rank well on Google, be sure that your web pages are optimized enough to load faster. 

Higher rankings= increase in organic traffic= growth in your business

Conversion rate 

Many studies have shown how website speed directly affects conversion rate. One study found that a one-second delay in webpage loading can decrease conversion rates by 70%. 

What does that mean for businesses? You can’t afford a slow website if you want your business to grow online. Making changes to your loading time is a massive part of your conversion rate optimization. 

As the saying goes, time is money. 

Bounce rate

The percentage of people who leave your website after only visiting one page is known as the bounce rate. Obviously, this is the opposite of what any business wants a user to do.  

Users are more likely to “bounce” (close the window/leave your site) if a page does not load within a few seconds. For example, BBC did a study and found that for every additional second in page load time, they lost 10% of their total visitors.  

Final thoughts

Slow website speed will often cause users to leave your website faster than they found it and end up on your competitor’s website. Therefore, in addition to your website’s design and aesthetic appeal, you need to make sure it is optimized to load as quickly as possible. 

Working with a digital marketing agency that understands the importance of providing users with the best user experience is essential when designing and developing your business’s website. Here at Firon Marketing, we specialize in defining brand strategy and identity, website development, and digital marketing solutions. See how we can help with your next project.