Site load times are becoming part of your ranking on Google and other search engines which means this is something you need to understand.
While this is certainly one of the most important reasons for the time it takes for a website to load matters to you and your customer, the user experience is even more important. If your customers can’t use your website as quickly as they want to, it’s time to make changes to improve the speed it loads for them.
A Simple Reason
The longer a webpage takes to load, the more its bounce rate will increase. This means your users aren’t finding the content of your website useful, but the real culprit could simply be the load times. Because the time it takes for your website to load is so important, you need to ensure your site will load quickly and easy for your users to stay on the site and take advantage of what you offer.
The Sliding Scale of Site Load Times
You can think of site speed as a sliding scale. The faster a site loads, the more likely a user is to stay on it, which lowers the bounce rate. For example, a page that loads within two seconds will have an average bounce rate of 9 percent while pages that load in five seconds see the bounce rate increase to 38 percent or more.
How Fast Should a Website Load?
Ideally, you want to have a website that loads within three seconds. If your site is an e-commerce site, it should load in two seconds or less. The two-to-three second mark is typically the turning point where bounce rates skyrocket. Once you reach beyond the three-second mark, you’re losing users from your site in droves. You could have amazing content on your site, but if it doesn’t load quickly, it’s not going to matter.
How Does Mobile Compare to Desktop Browsing?
The shift is nearly complete. More users browse and search for information using their mobile devices than a desktop or laptop computer. This means the mobile version of your site needs to be ready to load faster. Unfortunately, most users report slower site load times on mobile devices, although many chalk this up to the connection speed they have on their mobile devices.
How Are Experiences Different on Mobile vs. Desktop?
Reports show that mobile users expect pages to load faster on mobile devices than on desktops. Most users will abandon a mobile site that doesn’t load within five seconds and expect the site to load in less than four seconds. These same users are a little more patient when using a desktop. While this doesn’t make a lot of sense regarding user experience, it shows the user expectations regarding mobile versions of your site.
How Do Site Load Times Impact Sales?
Any slow website will see an increase in the bounce rate, which is a sales opportunity lost. Just a one-second delay in the site load speed will reduce page views by eleven percent, decrease customer satisfaction by sixteen percent, and reduce conversions by seven percent. Can your business afford these reductions? If not, you need to improve your site load times.
How is Customer Loyalty Impacted by Load Times?
When compared to the competition, if your website loads slower than other sites, many shoppers will be less likely to buy from your site. In fact, 79 percent of online shoppers will not give you a second chance. Unless you are the only game in town, 64 percent of online shoppers will buy the same item from a different site. Can you afford to lose out to the competition?
Site Load Times Greatly Impact Your Google Ranking
Google uses load times as a ranking signal because the user experience is a huge part of what this search engine reviews. The Google research shows that when a page load time increase from one to three seconds, the bounce rate increases by 32 percent, and by 90 percent when the time goes from one to five seconds.
Put Energy on Your Site Speed
If you haven’t reviewed it already, you’re likely missing out on sales. Review your site load speed on your Google Analytics report and learn how to improve it so that you don’t miss out on opportunities. Your website can’t afford to load slowly and you can’t afford for it to be a drain on your budget. Improve your site load times and see how your website helps you gain more customers.
This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning a commission is given should you decide to make a purchase through these links, at no cost to you. All products shown are researched and tested to give an accurate review for you.