Google’s algorithm updates no doubt shape the digital landscape. They have power to change how websites are designed, developed, managed and marketed, with the factors of the latest algorithm update influencing not just the overall user experience but the visibility and ranking of your website.
May brought yet another algorithm update, referred to as ‘Core Web Vitals’. These web vitals highlight a set of specific factors that anyone who owns or manages a website (and wants it to rank) must take into account.
Google Core Web Vitals focus on loading, interactivity and visual stability to ensure the page experience on your website is safe, mobile-friendly, and of a high standard. But what changes can you make to satisfy these web vitals and optimise your website for ranking success?
Feel the need for speed
One of Google’s three Core Web Vitals is Largest Contentful Paint (LCP). Put simply, LCP is how long it takes for a web page to load. There are several ways you can up your page speed and optimise for this particular web vital.
Removing any unnecessary scripts and large page elements from your website can increase page speed no end, especially if they’re scripts from a third-party, which slow page speed down considerably. Upgrading your hosting and setting up lazy loading are other easy ways to quicken your website.
Minification to reduce bulky CSS is another page speed booster that we’d recommend.
Improve on-page interaction
In addition to cutting the time it takes for your web pages to load, enhancing its on-page interactivity is another must in light of Google’s recently revealed Core Web Vitals update. Google measures the ease of interactivity with a First Input Delay (FID) score.
You can improve your FID score by minimising or deferring your JavaScript and using a browser cache to enable content to load on your pages even faster. Again the removal of non-essential, third party scripts will also serve you well here.
Increase your website’s visual stability
The third and final Core Web Vital is Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). This is how stably a page loads, and you want a low CLS score to keep Google and web users happy. Reserve space for ads elements and add new user interface elements below the fold to keep CLS to a minimum.
Optimising your website in accordance with the latest Core Web Vitals can be difficult without the right technical know-how. Let our team help you improve the user experience of your website and up your ranking by contacting us today for support and advice.
