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How to make your website faster
March 06, 2013
Both website visitors and search engines alike prefer web pages that load quickly. Akin Fagbohun, researcher and content writer on behalf of managed data services company Six Degrees Group, explains how to squeeze more pace out of your site.
Compress your website files
In the same way that you can zip files to reduce their size on your computer, you can also compress the files that form the structure and content of your web pages.
Most recent web browsers can open compressed files, and using compression means your site’s pages will be transferred more quickly. You can compress your HTML, CSS and JavaScript files for faster load times.
The process of compressing and uploading your files can be a little technical, so you may want to ask your web designer or agency about this.
Use browser caching
Browser caching is an excellent way to reduce load times for returning visitors. Caching tells a returning visitor’s web browser if anything on the site has changed since they last visited.
If the site is the same, the web browser will simply show the pages it downloaded last time, instead of downloading the information again. And if only certain files have changed, it’ll only download those.
Most web hosting companies already support caching. If yours does, it should be enabled automatically, so you won’t have to do anything to benefit.
Implement image management
If you want your site to be super-quick, think about how the images you’re uploading will be displayed. To minimise load times, make sure images you upload have already been scaled to the size at which they’ll be displayed.
If the same image is used in different places at different sizes, scale the image down to the maximum size it will appear then reduce the size in your website’s HTML code where necessary.
Most content management systems like WordPress will do this for you.
Use a content delivery network (CDN)
The term ‘CDN’ has become a bit of a buzzword in the world of web hosting lately. When you use a CDN service, your website is replicated to a number of servers around the world.
When a visitor calls up your site, the server closest to them delivers your site. This reduces the stress placed on any single web server, and means the data has a shorter distance to travel to its destination.
Again, some web hosting firms provide access to a CDN as part of their hosting package.
- Why the website X Factor effect is killing small businesses
- Three free services to monitor for website problems
- The fundamentals of search engine optimisation
Are you sure you're ready to launch your website?
May 09, 2011
This is a guest post written by Jonathan Brealey, co-founder of web hosting and reseller hosting company Heart Internet.
Launching a new website is a big job. It's easy to let important tasks slip through the net. So, if you're getting ready to go live, here are some key tasks to make sure you've ticked off.
- Proofread. There is no surer way to make your business look unprofessional than poor spelling and grammar. If you have written the site’s content yourself or you have been proofreading through multiple drafts, get some fresh eyes to give it a once over. You’ll be amazed what gets missed when people have been working on a document for too long.
- Test all forms. Most websites have a way for visitors to ask questions or get in touch. This is an important lead generator and customer service mechanism for your website so make sure any forms or email addresses work 100%. Just take a couple of minutes to fill in every form and click on any links that open emails. Test that the email address works too.
- Check your legal policies. This is important for commercial and legal reasons. If you take payment online or capture user data, be it through contact forms or analytics, you should link to terms and conditions and privacy policy pages from your footer. These pages clearly explain how you will use the data you are gathering. Business Link offer free terms and conditions and privacy policy templates for you to download and adapt to your business. If you are a registered company you must also display your registered company name, number, and address on your website.
- Make sure links work. There is nothing more frustrating than a broken link that doesn't take you where you want to go. Sadly, they are also easy to create. One missing character is all it takes. There are dozens of tools that can check a web page’s links are all working. One of the best is the W3C link checker.
- Put analytics in place. Without analytics software on your website you are essentially half blind as to how people are using it and how effective any marketing campaigns are. Popular analytics software includes Google Analytics (free), GoingUp (free) and Clicky (free for up to 3,000 page impressions per day).
- Custom 404 error page. '404 pages' are where people are taken if they go to a URL that doesn't exist or they click on a broken link. There are some great imaginative 404 pages out there, but the most important thing is to clearly show there's been an error and offer links back into your website. Here are some tips from Google.
- Check search engine optimisation. The importance of getting listed high in search engine results is well documented, and so are the basic tactics to achieve this. At the very least, optimise your page titles, header tags, linked text (also called 'anchor text') and use of keywords in your copy. For a great, detailed breakdown, have a read of this beginner's guide to SEO too.
Why website usability matters
March 15, 2011
In the world of web design, usability and user centred design are buzz phrases of the moment. But what do they really mean for your business? And don't you have to have a big web design budget to worry about stuff like that?
What is usability?
Usability on the web is about ensuring everything on your website is as easy to use, read and find as possible.
At the most basic level, that means putting proper calls to action (things you want people to do) on your website, highlighting key areas and making sure everything works properly.
On a more advanced level, usability is achieved by structuring and building your website according to the needs of its users and the behaviours they display during testing and research.
The British Heart Foundation’s website structure is based on the feedback of focus groups and research through user testing. (The BHF is a client of Zabisco.)
Why does usability matter?
In today’s fast-paced world, your users have less time than ever to spend on your website. Why would anyone wait ten seconds for it to load when thousands of alternatives are a click away? Why would they spend time digging for information when other sites make it easier to find?
Users have a low tolerance of poor usability. And why shouldn't they? It's annoying when things are hard to use, and websites are no exception.
It’s vital your website works properly and loads quickly. Your web developers should be able to advise you on the best ways to achieve what you want from your website. Your choice of web hosting service can affect the load speed too.
But it’s not just about load speeds and functionality. Your website’s content and layout are also key elements of the user experience. By understanding the needs and motivations of people who visit your site, you can tailor your content to fit them.
Make your website more usable
At Zabisco, we create top class user experiences. We use customer research, information architecture, user centred design and content and web development to meet the needs of your end user.
But if you don’t have the budget to invest in user experience services from an agency, here’s how to improve your own website - quickly, easily and cheaply:
- Understand your end user. Your end users / customers / clients (or whatever you call them) are the most important people for your business. Understanding them is the first step to improved usability. It can be as simple as asking them. Pick up the phone – or even better, meet them in person.
- Simplify your navigation. Your navigation should direct users to the areas of your site they will find valuable, in ways they can understand. Simplify your labelling and ensure it uses language your end users are familiar with.
- Provide clear calls to action. A call to action is any button or hyperlink that asks your user to do something. Create calls to action which tell your users what you want them to do and help them achieve their goals on your site.
- Think about your layout. Show your users what they need to see – it’s as simple as that! A clear layout helps people navigate your site. It can also reflect your business branding and structure in a really positive way.
- Build your website properly. A top class website build will mean everything on your site works efficiently and intuitively. Think about search engine optimisation when building your website too, to help search engines recognise the purpose of your site and send you traffic that will benefit from your services and content.
Usability is more than a buzz word. Done properly, it will provide real benefit to your users and your business.
Laura Hampton works for Zabisco. Read the Zabisco blog.
Free website advice from Google in London
March 09, 2011
We've just spotted that Google is running a free website clinic on 5 April at TechHub, near Old Street in east London. During the one-and-a-half-hour session experts from the company will explain how Google search works and how to make your website more visible in the results. There'll then be the chance to ask questions.
The session is open to anyone who runs a 'legitimate website', and as it's for 175 people, you're not likely to get much one-to-one advice given the time available.
However, if you're free that Tuesday evening it sounds like a good chance to pick up a few tips straight from the horse's mouth. Not that we'd ever compare Google staff to horses, obviously.
Spaces are limited, so you'll want to get more details and sign up pronto.
(Spotted via a Tweet from @ianvisits.)
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