Most Internet users dislike waiting. When they land on your website, they expect your web pages to finish loading almost instantly. If it takes longer than three seconds, most visitors will leave for your competitors' sites and never return. This is why you need to implement browser caching as a way of boosting your website's page speed.
Browser caching to speed up site loading
When visitors arrive on your website, their browsers download all the files necessary to display the page, including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and images. This process can take time, especially if your web page has a lot of content or uses heavy media files. The more files and the larger they are, the longer it takes for your web page to load.
Browser caching stores these files on the visitor's browser the first time they visit your website. When they return, their browser "remembers" your site and retrieves the stored files instead of downloading them again from your servers. This significantly reduces the time it takes to load your web page.
Fast pages for user experience and site ranking
A fast website provides visitors with a smooth experience; slow loading can frustrate and leave them dissatisfied with your business. If they are happy with your site, they are less inclined to go and more likely to interact with your other content. You also get more opportunities to convert them into paying customers the longer they stay.
Additionally, website page speed is one of the key factors Google considers when ranking sites on its results pages. Faster websites rank highly and are more visible to users, so improving loading speeds can positively impact your site's search engine optimization (SEO).
Here are statistics proving why it's crucial that your site loads quickly:
83% of Internet users expect websites to load entirely in no more than three seconds.
40% of visitors will abandon a website if it doesn't load within three seconds. The figures are higher for mobile users.
Websites that load within five seconds have a 38% bounce rate (the percentage of visitors who leave immediately). In comparison, those that load in two seconds only have 9%.
79% of online shoppers are less likely to return after experiencing poor website performance.
Every second of page load time can lower your conversion rates by over 2%.
Even with high-quality content, visitors may leave your website if it doesn't lead quickly enough. This is why increasing website page speed is one of the priorities of technical SEO, which focuses on ensuring your site runs smoothly.
Website audits for checking page speeds
Before diving into browser caching, you need to learn how to assess your site's current page speed. This will help you identify which areas of your website need improvement and how effective browser caching might be. Thankfully, page speed checker tools like Google PageSpeed Insights make this easy to accomplish.
Alternatively, you can conduct a complete website audit. Unlike a page speed checker, which provides limited data, a full website audit gives you an in-depth list of issues impacting your website's speed, such as broken links and tech SEO errors. It can also include recommendations for improving loading speeds and highlight areas where browser caching can make a difference.
Multiple ways to implement browser caching
Implementing browser caching may sound complex, but it's actually simpler than you think. There are several ways to do it, and which works for you depends on factors like your hosting and website platform.
If your website runs on WordPress, you can use plugins like W3 Total Cache or WP Super Cache to enable browser caching. These plugins are designed to automate the process and be user-friendly, so you can use them without manually editing any code. This makes them easy to use even if you're not very tech-savvy.
If your site runs on Apache servers, you can add a specific code to your .htaccess file to set an expiration time for different types of files. For example, you might instruct the browser to cache images for six months or JavaScript files for one month. Setting a limit is necessary to ensure that visitors always receive the latest version of your website, even when you make updates.
You can also use browser caching offered by a content delivery network (CDN) service. CDNs store your website's files on multiple servers across the globe, which helps speed up your site further by ensuring your site's data is downloaded from the servers closest to your visitors. The closer servers are to your users, the faster they can download your website.
A fast website is necessary for a strong Internet presence and reputation. Browser caching is a straightforward way to boost your site's speed, so it's worth including in your tech SEO strategy. Thankfully, there are many ways to implement it, even without extensive technical knowledge.
Alternatively, you can hire a professional technical SEO agency to manage the behind-the-scenes aspect of your website. An agency has tech and SEO experts who can analyze your website and recommend the best ways to optimize it for speed and monitor its performance.
Keep visitors and search engines happy by investing in technical SEO today!
