HOW IMPROVING YOUR PAGESPEED REDUCES YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT
Why loading speed matters and how it is connected to the environment
PAGESPEED AND SUSTAINABILITY
As the internet becomes increasingly integrated into our daily lives, the speed at which websites load has become an increasingly important factor for both users and businesses. Not only do slow-loading websites drive users away, but they also have a negative impact on the environment. In this post, we will explore the relationship between Pagespeed and sustainability and discuss what you can do to improve the speed of your website while also reducing your carbon footprint.
There are several reasons why Pagespeed is important. First and foremost, slow-loading websites drive users away. According to a study by Google, 53% of mobile users will abandon a website if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load. This can lead to a significant loss of traffic and revenue for businesses that rely on their websites to generate leads or sales.
In addition to driving users away, slow-loading websites also have a negative impact on search engine rankings. Google has stated that Pagespeed is a ranking factor in their search algorithm, meaning that faster-loading websites are more likely to rank higher in search results. This can lead to increased traffic and revenue for businesses that prioritize Pagespeed.
HOW PAGESPEED IMPACTS THE ENVIRONMENT
In addition to the negative impacts on users and businesses, slow-loading websites also have a negative impact on the environment. Every time a website is loaded, it requires energy to transmit data, process information and render the page on a user’s device. The more data that needs to be transmitted and processed, the more energy is required, leading to a larger carbon footprint.
In fact, the electricity used by the internet accounts for approximately 3.7% of global carbon emissions, and this number is expected to continue to grow as internet usage increases. By optimizing the speed of your website, you can reduce the amount of energy required to load your pages, ultimately leading to a smaller carbon footprint.
HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR PAGESPEED AND CARBON FOOTPRINT
There are several steps you can take to improve the speed of your website and reduce its carbon footprint. Here are a few tips to get you started and how SpeedSize™, a disruptive media and website optimization platform can help you better secure customers, while making a big difference caring for our planet’s health:
Optimize images: Large, unoptimized images can significantly slow down the loading time of your website. By compressing images and using appropriate file types (such as JPEG for photographs and PNG for graphics), you can significantly reduce the size of your images without sacrificing quality.
The SpeedSize™ Solution: SpeedSize™ takes this level of image optimization to another level, greatly reducing the file size of source media by up to ~99%, but visibly identical to the original image.
Optimize videos: While videos are known to be very large in file size, they have become standard practice and an amazing way to engage customers with your website, along with your paid marketing efforts.
The SpeedSize™ Solution: With SpeedSize™ optimization you can present videos without any visible quality loss in the same file size as a typical image. See how it works here
Enable caching: Caching allows your website to store commonly used resources (such as images and stylesheets) in a user’s browser, reducing the amount of data that needs to be transmitted with each page load.
The SpeedSize™ Solution: With SpeedSize™ optimization all your website’s media is automatically cached for 1 year. Unless a user disables their cache, their media will expend less requests on the server, and by proxy, less electricity.
Minimize the use of third-party resources: Every time your website loads a resource from a third-party server (such as a social media widget), it adds additional load time to your website. By minimizing the use of third-party resources, you can reduce the amount of data that needs to be transmitted and improve the speed of your website.
The SpeedSize™ Solution: With SpeedSize™ Pagespeed Optimization, you will be able to reduce requests from unnecessary 3rd party resources and optimize everything in your site’s architecture preventing your site from loading lightning-fast and energy efficiently.
Use a content delivery network (CDN): A CDN is a network of servers that are used to deliver content to users based on their geographic location. By using a CDN, you can reduce the distance that data needs to travel, resulting in faster load times.
The SpeedSize™ Solution: SpeedSize™ uses the most efficient CDN available, Amazon Cloudfront AWS. Amazon CloudFront uses a global network of 400+ Points of Presence in 90+ cities across 47 countries to ensure the fastest delivery possible. For enterprise clients bound to other CDNs we also have the ability to provide custom integrations.
AUTOMATICALLY REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT WITH SPEEDSIZE™
By integrating SpeedSize™ and other optimization techniques that our Pagespeed Optimization team can provide, you can significantly improve the speed of your website while also reducing its carbon footprint. In today’s digital age, Pagespeed and sustainability are crucial considerations for businesses of all sizes. By prioritizing both, you can create a more efficient, user-friendly and environmentally-friendly website. Talk to us to learn more
