Google’s Core Web Vitals are still vitally important to a website’s performance! Have you tested your site recently? A lot of factors could affect it. Learn what you can to improve your score and SEO.
Before I started this business in 2011, I remember Google’s major “Panda” and “Penguin” updates. That changed how websites ranked or didn’t rank on Google’s Search Engine Results Page (SERP). With this major update, businesses that enjoyed being on the first page of Google by cheating the search engine with black-hat tactics found themselves buried or kicked off Google completely. It ruined businesses that depended on being on the first page.
Today, page-loading speed is critical. Especially for the AI search bots that come to your site looking for content. If your site takes too long to load, they will go elsewhere. Like your competitor. Likewise, if a potential customer has to wait for your website to load before they can do something, they, too, will go elsewhere.
What You Need to Know About Core Web Vitals
First, understand that Google still has over 90% of all global searches, so, yes, you need to pay attention. (Source)
Second, a lot of this is technical stuff, and you may need a web developer to help you. Now, if you are on a platform like Shopify or Etsy, it’s up to them to figure it out for you. If you’re on Wix, Weebly, or a site builder, they may or may not have this figured out. In either case, they should have something about Core Web Vitals in their help system or at least inform you of what it means for your website.
If not, it may be time to move your site to a self-hosted platform. Furthermore, the best one, in my opinion, is WordPress. Ultimately, it’s preferred because you own it, you customize it, and you control everything. Including updates. Plus, it’s not that difficult to learn! I can teach you how to Manage YOUR WORDPRESS WEBSITE!
On the other hand, if you already have a hosted website, WordPress, or other platform, you’ll need to test your site to see where it’s failing. Use Google’s Page Speed test.
The Three Vital Components of Core Web Vitals
Undeniably, the idea behind these Core Web Vitals is to improve the user experience (UX). In the long run, this will benefit you as potential customers are more likely to find you, stay on your page, and convert.
A bad UX will cost you sales!
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): This is how fast a page loads on a mobile device. Here’s what may affect it…
- Slow server response time – this is at the hosting level. If, after you run the test, this comes up as an issue, contact your web host.
- Java and CSS code and script in the back end of a page that blocks rendering (loading) – this is at the developer level. If you’re on one of the page builder sites, this may be a factor that cannot be remedied. On WordPress, changing your theme would be an option. I can help you find an SEO-friendly theme. Book a free call now.
- Large graphics or videos – I know that the large graphics are cool, but if they take too long to load, they hurt you rather than help. I still recommend putting a video on your home page to help explain what you do or have to offer, but upload it to YouTube, and then just embed the link. That way, the video is watchable on your site, but the load is on YouTube.
- First Input Delay (FID) – This measures how soon a visitor can interact with your page. Pop-ups, cookie banners, and other dynamic elements will hurt more than help. Especially on a mobile device. The most frustrating thing for me is trying to read an article on my tablet, and a stupid pop-up blocks the whole screen. Sometimes, it’s so big that I have to turn the tablet so I can see the “x” to close it. That’s what this is all about. If this causes sites to remove popups, I’m all for it! If you must have a pop-up, put it at the bottom or set it to open when the visitor is leaving the page. Additionally, JavaScript can also hinder this. Unfortunately, that’s what most of these easy, DIY site builders use as their foundation. Again, it may be time to upgrade to WordPress.
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) – This looks at the visual stability of each page. Previously, I had this problem on my site. When I redid it, I just uploaded the graphics to a slider on the home page, and didn’t pay attention to the sizes of the pictures. They were all different sizes. In other words, when the slider automatically showed the next graphic, it would move all the page text either up or down. I ended up removing the slider altogether. It wasn’t needed. Other elements that can affect this are…
- Advertisements of different sizes
- Cookie banners
- Notices or pop-ups
- Images, embeds, and iframes without dimensions – this will happen if your website hasn’t been updated in a few years.
- Certain web fonts. If you are using fancy web fonts, these also may be hurting your site.
In Summary, the Three Core Web Vitals cover…
- LCP – loading
- FID – interactivity
- CLS – visual stability
So, the first thing you need to do is run Google’s Page Speed Test. Then, review the results and show them to your webmaster to see how your site can be improved. Consequently, if you have a WordPress site, Google has a free plugin, Site Kit, that connects to Google Analytics, Search Console, and the Page Speed Test. This is what came up for one of my clients. I have some work to do…
Mobile Core Web Vitals test results
Ultimately, there’s no time to waste! These Core Web Vitals affect your website’s functionality, SEO ranking, and getting cited in the AI answer chatbots! If your website doesn’t work effectively for you, what good is it?
If you’d like me to test your website, click here to book a free 15-minute phone consult.
All in all, if you find that you need to change hosting providers and you want to go to WordPress, I recommend Lightning Base (affiliate link). It’s where I have this very site. Good tech support, loads fast on the server side, and they only do WordPress. I wouldn’t be an affiliate if they weren’t great!
If you have a WordPress website that needs major work, I recommend OnsiteWP (Tell them I sent you!). They can help you with tweaking an existing website, as well as creating a whole new WordPress website if you need to move from a site-builder platform.
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What are Core Web Vitals, and why do they matter for your website?
Core Web Vitals are a set of metrics that measure user experience, focusing on how fast and smoothly a page loads, how quickly users can interact with it, and how stable the layout is. They matter because they affect your site’s performance, SEO ranking, and even how AI answer bots cite your site.
How can I test Core Web Vitals and use the results to improve my site?
Run Google’s Page Speed Test to see where your site stands, then review the results with your webmaster to identify what to fix. If you’re using WordPress, you can also use the Site Kit plugin to connect Analytics, Search Console, and Page Speed data for easier monitoring.
What are the three vital components of Core Web Vitals, and what can affect each one?
The three components are Largest Contentful Paint, which reflects how fast a page loads on mobile and can be affected by slow server response, blocking JavaScript or CSS, and large graphics; First Input Delay, which measures how quickly a user can interact with the page and is hurt by pop-ups and heavy JavaScript; and Cumulative Layout Shift, which looks at visual stability and can be caused by images, ads, banners, or fonts that shift content during load.
Should I switch to WordPress or another platform to improve Core Web Vitals?
If you’re on a hosted site builder and finding Core Web Vitals hard to fix, a self-hosted platform like WordPress is often best because you own and control it, can customize it, and update it more easily. In some cases, upgrading hosting or moving from a site builder to WordPress can help with performance.
What practical steps can I take to improve Core Web Vitals on my site?
Test with Google’s Page Speed Test, optimize server response times, reduce or optimize JavaScript and CSS that block rendering, use smaller or properly sized graphics, avoid intrusive pop-ups, and ensure images and fonts have defined dimensions to reduce layout shifts. If possible, consider hosting on a fast WordPress setup and review plugins and themes for performance.
