Google incorporating site speed in search rankings

Bed & Breakfast / Short Term Rental Host Forum

Help Support Bed & Breakfast / Short Term Rental Host Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

JBloggs

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 7, 2008
Messages
17,744
Reaction score
9
Google incorporating site speed in search rankings
JB - - and a quote that I find very perceptive
"Also take a step back for a minute and consider the intent of this change: a faster web is great for everyone, but especially for users. Lots of websites have demonstrated that speeding up the user experience results in more usage. So speeding up your website isn't just something that can affect your search rankings–it’s a fantastic idea for your users."
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are.
 
Okay back to the second comment about images, I just entered an innmates URL and went to the OPTIMIZE IMAGES
and NONE of them have the B&B name... "winter scene, eggs benedict, green lodging, room1, kitchen2, fire," etc. TOSS YOUR INN NAME on those photo names when you save them!
and
when I entered the URL it took quite a while to get the insights done, I tried the next inmate on the homepage URL and it was done in a flash!
thumbs_up.gif

Test yours against others, and see what I mean...
One of you in had this(which the rest did not), which I notice if I go to your page:
"In our test, your server responded in 2.8 seconds. There are many factors that can slow down your server response time. Please read our recommendations to learn how you can monitor and measure where your server is spending the most time."
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
.
EmptyNest said:
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
I saw that they recommend the cache system online so it can go quickly to find the images vs in a directory, or something. I will read that more thoroughly later...
Yes, templates can cause this with the stylesheets, but we can control other aspects. I was unaware of a few images that ended up being larger and less compressed than they should be, so I will address that at check in time later as I wait for guests. :)
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
.
EmptyNest said:
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
I saw that they recommend the cache system online so it can go quickly to find the images vs in a directory, or something. I will read that more thoroughly later...
Yes, templates can cause this with the stylesheets, but we can control other aspects. I was unaware of a few images that ended up being larger and less compressed than they should be, so I will address that at check in time later as I wait for guests. :)
.
The images get me every time. I just don't know what the 'correct' size is to start with. It's either huge on my website or too small. So I end up sizing it on the page and that gets dined every time by Google.
And, I don't name the photos properly.
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Joey Bloggs said:
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are.
Same message I got. I haven't a clue what it means. I get so overwhelmed by all this...STUFF!
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
.
EmptyNest said:
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
I saw that they recommend the cache system online so it can go quickly to find the images vs in a directory, or something. I will read that more thoroughly later...
Yes, templates can cause this with the stylesheets, but we can control other aspects. I was unaware of a few images that ended up being larger and less compressed than they should be, so I will address that at check in time later as I wait for guests. :)
.
The images get me every time. I just don't know what the 'correct' size is to start with. It's either huge on my website or too small. So I end up sizing it on the page and that gets dined every time by Google.
And, I don't name the photos properly.
.
It is not just a matter of resizing the images. They must be compressed with photo editing software. I use Paint Shop Pro. I just bought psp16..it it 64 bit and supposed to be very fast. We'll see. I already hate that I can't have my blue background :-( Compression has to be played around with. You want the file small, but not so small that it degrades the photo. Fine line...
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
.
EmptyNest said:
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
I saw that they recommend the cache system online so it can go quickly to find the images vs in a directory, or something. I will read that more thoroughly later...
Yes, templates can cause this with the stylesheets, but we can control other aspects. I was unaware of a few images that ended up being larger and less compressed than they should be, so I will address that at check in time later as I wait for guests. :)
.
The images get me every time. I just don't know what the 'correct' size is to start with. It's either huge on my website or too small. So I end up sizing it on the page and that gets dined every time by Google.
And, I don't name the photos properly.
.
It is not just a matter of resizing the images. They must be compressed with photo editing software. I use Paint Shop Pro. I just bought psp16..it it 64 bit and supposed to be very fast. We'll see. I already hate that I can't have my blue background :-( Compression has to be played around with. You want the file small, but not so small that it degrades the photo. Fine line...
.
I do compress them with editing software. The error message explicitly tells me to not use code to manipulate the dimensions of the photo.
So, I upload a photo that is (ex) 1200 x 600. The template will let me load it at that size, too big for the screen, or allow me to select a 'medium' size of (ex) 200 x 100 which is to small. So I go into the code and force the photo to be 300 x 150. Google does not like that.
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
.
EmptyNest said:
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
I saw that they recommend the cache system online so it can go quickly to find the images vs in a directory, or something. I will read that more thoroughly later...
Yes, templates can cause this with the stylesheets, but we can control other aspects. I was unaware of a few images that ended up being larger and less compressed than they should be, so I will address that at check in time later as I wait for guests. :)
.
The images get me every time. I just don't know what the 'correct' size is to start with. It's either huge on my website or too small. So I end up sizing it on the page and that gets dined every time by Google.
And, I don't name the photos properly.
.
It is not just a matter of resizing the images. They must be compressed with photo editing software. I use Paint Shop Pro. I just bought psp16..it it 64 bit and supposed to be very fast. We'll see. I already hate that I can't have my blue background :-( Compression has to be played around with. You want the file small, but not so small that it degrades the photo. Fine line...
.
I do compress them with editing software. The error message explicitly tells me to not use code to manipulate the dimensions of the photo.
So, I upload a photo that is (ex) 1200 x 600. The template will let me load it at that size, too big for the screen, or allow me to select a 'medium' size of (ex) 200 x 100 which is to small. So I go into the code and force the photo to be 300 x 150. Google does not like that.
.
Once you have your page layout designed, and you know what the pixel dimensions are of all the images on that page, then you can re-size the images in your editing software and re-upload them to your server. You still want to specify the width and height in the img tags, because then the browser can go ahead and render the page without having to wait for the images to finish loading.
 
"Often even a little bit of work can make big differences for site speed."
There are tools to test your site speed - linked in this article. Yes, B&B websites have more photos, but are they being optimized? We have the tools to do this FOR FREE NOW. Use them.
and, don't forget to name your images so they come up in "google image searches" people! This goes for CAPTIONS and IMAGE NAMES.
Here is one to try: http://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
"eliminate render blocking javascript and css in the ABOVE THE FOLD content" unfortunately on our page these are from the website TEMPLATE itself...looking at what they are..
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
.
EmptyNest said:
Half of this I have no control over and would have to be a programmer to understand. Yes, compress images, titles etc. But with us using WP themes, there is not much you can do. Same for server speed. I suspect many of the plugins cause issues. But one solution could be to install a cache program. But that has to be done After a site is completed or you run into other issues.
Here is one to consider installing.
I saw that they recommend the cache system online so it can go quickly to find the images vs in a directory, or something. I will read that more thoroughly later...
Yes, templates can cause this with the stylesheets, but we can control other aspects. I was unaware of a few images that ended up being larger and less compressed than they should be, so I will address that at check in time later as I wait for guests. :)
.
The images get me every time. I just don't know what the 'correct' size is to start with. It's either huge on my website or too small. So I end up sizing it on the page and that gets dined every time by Google.
And, I don't name the photos properly.
.
It is not just a matter of resizing the images. They must be compressed with photo editing software. I use Paint Shop Pro. I just bought psp16..it it 64 bit and supposed to be very fast. We'll see. I already hate that I can't have my blue background :-( Compression has to be played around with. You want the file small, but not so small that it degrades the photo. Fine line...
.
I do compress them with editing software. The error message explicitly tells me to not use code to manipulate the dimensions of the photo.
So, I upload a photo that is (ex) 1200 x 600. The template will let me load it at that size, too big for the screen, or allow me to select a 'medium' size of (ex) 200 x 100 which is to small. So I go into the code and force the photo to be 300 x 150. Google does not like that.
.
Once you have your page layout designed, and you know what the pixel dimensions are of all the images on that page, then you can re-size the images in your editing software and re-upload them to your server. You still want to specify the width and height in the img tags, because then the browser can go ahead and render the page without having to wait for the images to finish loading.
.
Extra work. Resize before you upload. The largest size I ever upload is 800 pixels wide and usually compress about 20%. I will say however, though now with the new capabilities of themes for page size images I am using larger ones for home pages / with revolution sliders. But still 1902 px. wide and compressed 20-30%
 
I think those sites with the big photo sliders at the top of the page will always be downgraded in page load speed, but I also think those big photos showing off the property are really important to get people to stay on the site and make them want to stay on the property!
 
Back
Top