The internet is a web of information, a channel through which users can carry out a wide variety of activities. Monetary transfers, buying and selling, or reading the news are just a few of the activities regularly done online.
However, almost every user would say that they prefer to carry out these online activities at a speedy rate. Therefore, the speed of your website can be the difference between its success and failure.
Website speed simply refers to how much it takes your website to load. According to the infographic below by Hosting Tribunal, it is one of the most crucial factors that determine online success in today’s fast-paced world. Today, customers and web visitors don’t have the time to wait around for your site to load.
On the average, it takes an eCommerce website seven seconds to load. The ideal time that most users are willing to wait is three seconds. This means that if your website loading time takes any longer than that, most users will leave.
Most of all, a slow page load is penalized by the search engines. In 2010, Google decided to include website speed in its ranking algorithm. This means that a slow page load will have a significant impact on your site ranking which in turn affects your business’ visibility.
Statistics show that a slow website is a top reason why 51% of consumers give up midway through an online purchase. Furthermore, 39% of people will leave a site if it takes too long to load.
Not surprisingly, 74% of users will leave a website if it does not load after five seconds.
The effects of slow website speed have far-reaching implications regarding revenue. For instance, the total of abandoned online purchase carts comes to a sum of $18 billion worldwide every year.
Website speed also affects customer loyalty – 52% of consumers say that it is essential in determining how loyal they are to their favorite brands.
Slow speed can also affect the publicity of a business. With 44% of consumers telling their friends about a bad shopping experience, there is no doubt that website speed is not a factor to be underrated.
The infographic below contains more details on the far-reaching consequences of page speed on a business as well as its effects on industries all around the world.
