Shopify Speed Optimization: Complete Guide (2024) | ResultFirst

Shopify Speed Optimization: Complete Guide (2024)

Shopify is an e-commerce platform that helps businessmen sell their products easily and hassle-free. It is a widely known platform that has 10. 32% share in the global e-commerce software market.

If you are an e-commerce business owner, then Shopify speed optimization can be the key to your success. But if the site’s speed slows, customers get irritated and leave the website.

According to Google, slow page loading increases bounce rate and decreases time spent on site.

Let’s learn how to optimize the Shopify site speed.

Why should you focus on website speed?

Website speed is an important aspect of your e-commerce site, as it helps your customers to shop quickly and effectively. This also helps to increase the traffic and ranking of your e-commerce page. Here are some key reasons why you should prioritize and optimize the speed of your Shopify website:

Smooth user experience-

  • According to the Aberdeen Group, 79% of online shoppers who are unhappy with an internet site’s overall performance are less likely to shop from that store again.

So, when you have indexed your product in Shopify, ensure that the page loads quickly, improving the user’s experience.

Search Engine Optimization-

Search engine optimization will be affected if an e-commerce page does not load quickly. Typically, when the page loads slowly, the traffic on your page reduces. This can harm your SEO ranking.

Studies show that a 1-second decrease in page load time can affect SEO ranking by 28%

To rank your page in a good position, optimize the e-commerce site speed.

How To Optimize Shopify Site Speed:

Optimizing the website speed of your Shopify store is crucial for providing a smooth user experience and improving search engine scores. Here are some recommendations to help you maximize the rate of your Shopify website:

1- Choose a lightweight Shopify theme

By choosing a lightweight theme, you ensure that you select the theme that is designed to perform better and smoothly.

Lightweight themes include optimized codes and fewer features that help the page fast loading.

Moreover, the lightweight theme of Shopify helps users open and access the website from any device, such as monitors, mobiles, laptops, and others.

Here is a list of the lightweight themes that you can utilize.

  • Debut
  • Venture
  • Boundless
  • Minimal
  • Brooklyn

Shopify Plus states that lightweight themes can increase the conversation by up to 20%.

Due to this reason, happy customers who do not want to wait do more shopping.

As a result, this can enhance your overall sales.

Related: Shopify SEO Checklist: How to Rank Your Store

2- Reduce Large Image Size

In the context of Shopify, reducing large photo sizes entails optimizing your product pictures to enhance the overall performance of your online shop.

Related: Shopify Image Optimization: 8 Easy Tips (2024)

Before uploading pictures to your Shopify page, use image editing equipment to resize and compress them.

Ensure that the size suits your website design, and use compression tools to reduce file sizes without compromising quality.

Moreover, Shopify gives you an online photo editor that allows you to make short edits to your product images without delay inside the platform.

You can get entry to this editor out of your Shopify admin under the “Settings” > “Files” section.

The platform supports JPEG, PNG, and GIF codecs. JPEG is often appropriate for product images because of its desirable compression skills without a significant lack of excellence.

Reduce Large Image Size

3- Compress Image

According to Google, A 100KB image that’s compressed to 50KB can shave off a whopping 50% of the page load time. Compressed images help customers open the page in no time.

To compress the image, follow these steps.

  1. Use internal and external tools such as TinyPNG, JPEG Optimizer, Image Optim, and others.
  2. Consider image format- For images and videography, use JEP. For pictures with transparency, use PNG; for better compression, use WebP.

Compress Image

4- Replace GIFs with Static Images

GIFs can be much more engaging as they give users a better understanding. However, GIFs can be more space-consuming, which can be the reason for the slow loading of the Shopify page site.

Here’s how you can replace GIFs with static images in your Shopify store:

  • Firstly, look at your product page and identify the GIF, if any.
  • Replace the GIF video with a well-explained image that shares the same message as the GIF.

Make sure to reduce the image’s file size so it does not hinder the page loading time.

Replace GIFs with Static Images

5- Lazy Load Images

Lazy loading is a web optimization technique where images are loaded only when they come into the user’s viewport, i.e., when the photos are about to be displayed on the user’s screen.

Additionally, optimizing image loading can enhance overall website performance and improve the user experience by prioritizing the display of essential content.

Here are the steps you should follow.

  • Log in to your Shopify admin.
  • Navigate to “Online Store” and click on “Themes.”
  • In the Themes section, find the current theme and click on “Actions.”
  • Select “Edit code” from the dropdown menu.
  • Look for the main JavaScript file, often named something like theme.js. This file is typically found in the “Assets” folder.
  • Open the theme.js file and add the following lazy loading code
  • After adding the lazy loading code, save your changes.

6-Limit Third-Party JavaScript & Shopify Apps

According to a Shopify study, retailers using 50% fewer third-party scripts are those in the top 25% of Core Web Vitals scores than those in the lowest 25%.

Excessive third-party scripts can lead to slower website performance, frustrate users and potentially causing them to leave your site.

To limit this issue, review the apps installed on your Shopify store regularly. Also, remove any apps that are not essential or are no longer serving a purpose.

Moreover, review the code of each third-party script and app to understand their impact on your store’s performance.

7- Migrate Tracking Codes To Google Tag Manager

GTM loads asynchronously, reducing the effect of render-blocking resources on your website’s performance.

This can result in quicker web page load instances because the browser can keep rendering the web page simultaneously as GTM and related tags are loading in the history.

GTM allows you to manage several monitoring codes and tags inside a single container.

This reduces the number of external scripts that need to be loaded separately on every web page, making your site extra efficient in dealing with resources.

8- Run Your Store Through Google PageSpeed Insights

Running your Shopify store through Google PageSpeed Insights is a terrific exercise to assess and optimize website speed.

Here are the steps:

  • Go to Google PageSpeed Insights.
  • Enter your Shopify store’s URL and click on “Analyze.
  • Focus on addressing high-priority suggestions first, which can greatly impact website speed.

Compress and optimize pictures to reduce document sizes. Use gear like TinyPNG or ImageOptim before uploading photographs to Shopify.

Google PageSpeed Insights

Conclusion

Shopify, the leading e-commerce platform, performs a massive role in facilitating smooth and hassle-free online product sales. With a substantial 10.32% percentage within the worldwide e-commerce software marketplace, it remains a famous choice for organizations globally. However, the fulfillment of e-commerce business on Shopify is closely tied to the website’s speed.

Related: 15 Awesome E-commerce Marketing Strategies for Your Business

In the ever-evolving world of e-commerce, optimizing your Shopify store for speed is paramount to success. At our premier e-commerce SEO company, we understand the critical role that site speed plays in enhancing the user experience, boosting search engine rankings, and ultimately driving sales. With our expert guidance and tailored strategies, we specialize in helping Shopify store owners streamline their websites for lightning-fast performance. From optimizing images and minifying code to leveraging advanced caching techniques, we employ a comprehensive approach to ensure your online store loads seamlessly across all devices.

Read more:

Shopify Meta Descriptions and Titles: How to Write them?

How to Use Ecommerce SEO Best Practices to Enhance User Experience

FAQ

How to boost Shopify store speed?

To enhance your store’s speed, optimize your images by compressing them without compromising quality. Utilize Shopify’s built-in tools or third-party apps to automate this process.

In addition, minimize the number of apps you use, as each app can contribute to slower loading times.

Regularly update your Shopify theme and ensure it is well-coded for efficiency.

Also, consider upgrading your Shopify plan to access more server resources and periodically review and optimize your website’s code for performance.

What is the ideal page speed for SEO?

The best page speed for SEO is subjective, but aiming for a score above 70 is generally recommended. A page speed rating is a numerical value assigned primarily based on elements like loading time and overall performance. While anything above 50 is considered decent, achieving a rating of 70 or better shows a well-optimized internet site.

This optimization is critical for offering a smooth customer experience and aligning with search engine algorithms, ultimately contributing to better marketing ratings.

Does page speed affect SEO?

Yes, page speed significantly influences SEO outcomes.

Search engines, particularly Google, consider the loading speed of web pages to be a crucial factor in their ranking algorithms. Faster-loading pages contribute to an enhanced user experience by decreasing bounce rates and increasing user engagement.

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