How Core Web Vitals Affect Your Website's Success
Core Web Vitals are a subset of metrics that gauge the vital aspects of a user experience including visual stability, interactivity and speed of a webpage. These ranking metrics are vital for SEO and can help improve your website ranking. In this post, we take a look at how Core Web Vitals affect your website’s success. But first let’s look at what Core Web Vitals are:
What are Core Web Vitals
Core Web Vitals are a set of key metrics defined by Google to evaluate the user experience of a web page. These include
First Input Delay (FID)- Evaluates the responsiveness of your website by measuring the delay between a user's first interaction, i.e. clicking a button, etc. and the browser's response. For a good user experience, it is recommended to aim for an FID below 100 milliseconds.
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)- Measures how quickly the largest text or image appears on the screen after a user navigates to your page. Google recommends an LCP of 2.5 seconds or less.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)- Assesses visual stability by measuring unexpected layout shifts that occur while content loads. A viable CLS score for a good user experience should be below 0.1.
There is a fourth key metric as well. Starting March 2024, Google will be replacing First Input Delay (FID) with Interaction to Next Paint (INP). This new metric assesses the entire time it takes for your website to visually respond to a user's interaction, like a click or tap. An INP of 200 milliseconds or less is recommended to ensure a quick and satisfying user experience.
How Core Web Vitals Contribute to Your Website’s Success
Core Web Vitals provide valuable insights into the perceived performance and usability of your website. A good Core Web Vitals score is indicative of a fast, responsive, and stable user experience, which can then affect your website's success in numerous ways.
Improved search engine rankings- Google openly considers Core Web Vitals as a ranking factor, implying websites with better scores tend to rank higher in search results. This will result in increased organic traffic and visibility.
Enhanced user engagement- Users frustrated with slow, unresponsive websites tend to abandon a site. By optimizing Core Web Vitals, you can provide a smooth and engaging experience that encourages users to explore your content, interact with your calls to action, and convert.
Improved sales and conversions- A smooth user experience is a must for building trust and encouraging conversions. A fast-loading, stable website is more likely to convert visitors into paying customers or even subscribers.
Reduced bounce rate- Users can be impatient. If your website takes too long to load or is difficult to navigate, they will quickly hop over to a competitor. However, optimizing Core Web Vitals will keep users engaged and reduce the chances of them leaving prematurely.
Core Web Vitals Tools
There are several tools that can help you measure and analyze your Core Web Vitals score:
Google PageSpeed Insights- This free tool provides detailed reports on your website's performance, including LCP, FID, and CLS scores, along with actionable recommendations for improvement.
Chrome DevTools- Built into the Chrome browser, DevTools offers real-time insights into your website's performance and Core Web Vitals metrics.
Web.dev Performance Tools- These include Lighthouse and other powerful tools that provide an in-depth analysis of your website's technical performance, including Core Web Vitals.
How to Improve Core Web Vitals
Page experience is dependent on a mix of factors like HTTPS & mobile-friendly design, absence of malware etc. However, the main aspect is the Core Web Vitals that are focused on website speed and stability. Even then you cannot expect your page experience to toss you to #1 in search results straight away. It is one of roughly 200 ranking factors. Still, Google gives you a year to improve our Core Web Vitals, as they will carry significant weight in your search standing.
Here are some actionable steps you can take to improve your Core Web Vitals score:
Optimize image sizes- Compress images without forgoing quality to reduce their file size and improve loading speed.
Minimize third-party scripts- Unnecessary scripts can slow down your website so it is better to evaluate and remove non-essential scripts.
Enable browser caching- This allows browsers to store frequently accessed resources locally, thereby minimizing the need to download them every time a user visits.
Implement lazy loading- Load images and content only when they are visible to the use and improve perceived performance.
Reduce and combine resources- Reduce the size of CSS and JavaScript files by minifying and combining them into fewer files.
Improve server response time- Choose a reliable hosting provider with fast servers to optimize responsiveness.
Final Thoughts
It is pertinent to remember that optimizing Core Web Vitals is an ongoing process. It is important to regularly monitor your scores, identify areas for improvement, and implement relevant solutions to consistently provide a delightful user experience.
By focusing on your Core Web Vitals and ensuring a fast, responsive, and stable website, you can improve your user experience, boost your ranking and watch your website thrive.
