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The post Deal or No Deal: The Black Friday and Cyber Monday Bargain Bonanza appeared first on Codeable.

Any seasoned developer knows you’ll have to constantly test, look for bugs, and sometimes start all over before finally turning the site over to the client. That can be frustrating, especially if you have a lot of pending projects. The last thing you want is clients complaining about delays caused by your lack of progress, right?

To avoid such occurrences or scenarios, you should find a way to optimize your productivity. Let’s explore how it can streamline your workflow, overcome development obstacles, and ensure timely project completion.

Top 3 Blockers that Make WordPress Developers Less Productive

Making a website means running into many problems or obstacles. However, these three are the most common:

#1 – Manual Workflows

Admit it: it’s very time-consuming setting up a WordPress site. Installing chosen themes and plugins already takes a lot of time, especially if you need to activate multiple plugins. Want to do things more than downloading files, uploading them to the server, and activating them through the WordPress admin panel?

The duration of this setup phase can vary significantly. You can find yourself working on it for at least two hours to potentially two weeks or even more, depending on the complexity and scope of the website being developed.

And even if you and your team have your go-to set of plugins and themes that you use repeatedly, you still have to go through the whole process for every new site. You can’t just let your clients peek at another client’s website and copy what’s installed, especially if they don’t know each other or are competitors, right? So, you’ll always go back to square one, which results in more lost time.

#2 – Accessibility for Clients and Team Members

Another thing that can lessen your productivity is waiting for client feedback. Aside from them being busy, they’d have to wait for you to walk them through each page of the website. After all, they wouldn’t want to ruin your work by changing a different line of code accidentally, right?

It’s not just your clients you have to worry about, though, if you’re working with team members. What if one of your assigned team members loses the WordPress login credentials and passwords? That means they won’t be able to work on their part until you get them the username and password.

And if you’re collaborating with a remote team, the time loss becomes even more frustrating. Instead of your team members diving right into the work, they’re left waiting for you to wake up or respond. It can become a very frustrating bottleneck if this happens.

#3 – Making A WordPress Sandbox

A WordPress sandbox is a test environment for testing design elements, code, plugin compatibility, and much more before you take the site live. And again, any WordPress developer knows that testing is important to ensure you don’t run into anything that can break the site as a result.

However, the process of making one can be quite tedious and hard to share. For example, you can make a duplicate site via a local installation of WordPress. You won’t need an Internet connection to make any changes.

This duplicate site would only be viewable on your computer. That will be a problem if you and your client are in different time zones. Collaborating with your team will also be hard since the only sandbox is on your computer.

You can also use a spare domain if you have one and create a duplicate of the site. The problem with this is that you might forget all about it once you’re done with the test and leave it open for many security issues. If you were to use the exact same website and settings on both your live site and your sandbox environment, it could potentially make it easier for hackers to breach your site’s security.

Top 5 Productivity Tools for WordPress Developers

1. InstaWP

Claiming the top spot is InstaWP, a revolutionary and swift WordPress sandbox spin-up tool. With a simple click, users can effortlessly create a temporary WordPress site, whether starting from scratch or utilizing one of the pre-designed templates. Eliminating the need for account sign-ups, InstaWP makes the process even more convenient . By just pressing the “Try For Free” button, users can instantaneously set up a demo site and embark on their WordPress journey without delay.

Users have the freedom to select their preferred WordPress version, PHP version, and even tailor the configuration to their specific needs. Whether they desire a site pre-installed with WooCommerce or Jetpack, the platform offers a seamless way to bring their vision to life. However, it is essential to note that each site created through InstaWP has a temporary lifespan of eight hours. As a practical recommendation, signing up for a free account proves advantageous, providing users with the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of three sites, 1 GB of disk space, and the extended duration of two days for temporary sites.

Certainly, for those seeking enhanced features and extended benefits, InstaWP offers the option to invest in either monthly or annual plans. These plans are tailored to meet the diverse needs of users, providing them with access to a host of advanced functionalities and exclusive perks. By opting for an investment plan, individuals can unlock a plethora of premium tools, increased storage capacities, priority customer support, and more. With the flexibility of choosing between monthly or annual billing, users can align their investment with their unique preferences and requirements.

While most of the tools in this list are often used by WordPress professionals, InstaWP is very new to the WP world, and is quite unique in many senses. For more information on pricing, you can check out InstaWP’s plans here!

2. WP-CLI

Taking the second spot on the list is WP-CLI, a powerful command-line interface designed specifically for WordPress professionals. When dealing with tasks like updating plugins on client sites, managing multisite installations, or uploading bulk media, WP-CLI proves to be an invaluable ally. This versatile tool is not only useful for developers but also streamlines various administrative tasks, such as moderating user permissions, site backups, and database restoration.

Accessible from both Windows shell and OS X, WP-CLI offers a significant advantage in terms of execution speed when compared to performing similar functions through the WordPress admin dashboard. This efficiency translates to increased productivity, making WP-CLI a go-to tool for WordPress professionals seeking to optimize their workflows. With its seamless integration and time-saving capabilities, WP-CLI becomes a compelling choice that professionals will undoubtedly appreciate and enjoy leveraging to enhance their WordPress management endeavors.

3. GenerateWP

Securing the third position on the list is GenerateWP, an incredibly valuable tool for WordPress professionals seeking a rapid and efficient approach to crafting website layouts. By providing users with a quick skeleton of their WordPress site, GenerateWP streamlines the process of generating the entire site’s layout with ease and convenience.

GenerateWP offers a diverse set of features, allowing users to leverage shortcodes, taxonomies, custom post types, and a wide array of essential WordPress elements. One of its standout advantages lies in the vast library of theme functions and snippets it presents, which can significantly reduce the reliance on custom coding. This not only enhances productivity but also ensures a seamless development experience for users of all skill levels.

By harnessing the reusable elements and exceptional capabilities of GenerateWP, users can save a substantial amount of time with each new project. The tool’s ability to expedite website development makes it an invaluable asset for busy professionals seeking to optimize their workflows.

Expert Tip! Users can maximize the utility of their GenerateWP creations by saving them as InstaWP templates, enabling easy deployment to multiple sites. This pro tip adds another layer of efficiency, empowering users to maintain consistency across their projects while streamlining their website creation process with GenerateWP.

4. PHP Code Sniffer

Ranking at number four is PHP Code Sniffer, an indispensable tool for developers working on complex WordPress projects that involve multiple programming and scripting languages. When dealing with intricate coding tasks, the likelihood of errors and issues rises significantly. To mitigate this, the implementation of a problem detection tool like PHP Code Sniffer becomes essential. This powerful tool excels in identifying mixed code scripts and promptly notifies users about potential code errors, enhancing code quality and streamlining the development process.

In a WordPress project, where precision and accuracy are paramount, PHP Code Sniffer proves to be a valuable asset. By proactively detecting and addressing code issues, developers can significantly reduce the occurrence of bugs, ensuring a smoother and more efficient development cycle. Moreover, the tool’s capability to enforce coding standards and best practices ensures a consistent and organized codebase, benefiting both individual developers and collaborative teams.

With PHP Code Sniffer as a part of their development toolkit, WordPress professionals can boost their confidence in code quality and deliver more robust, error-free solutions. By catching potential problems early on, developers can save time on troubleshooting and devote more energy to creative and strategic aspects of their projects. Embracing PHP Code Sniffer exemplifies the commitment to producing clean and reliable code, ultimately elevating the overall quality and success of WordPress projects.

5. Postman

And finally, making its mark as the last but certainly not the least on the list is Postman – a favorite among developers when it comes to projects involving APIs. For WordPress developers, this powerful tool serves as an invaluable asset for seamlessly sending and receiving data between WordPress sites. APIs, or Application Programming Interfaces, play a crucial role in facilitating communication and data exchange between different software applications. With Postman at their disposal, WordPress professionals can harness the full potential of APIs, unlocking a myriad of opportunities for themselves and their clients’ partner organizations.

Integrating APIs into a WordPress site can usher in a world of possibilities and benefits. By allowing seamless interactions between diverse systems, businesses can enhance their operational efficiency and deliver a more robust user experience. WordPress developers can leverage Postman to securely transmit data, such as user information, content, and other vital elements, ensuring a smooth and cohesive integration with external services and applications. This secure data exchange not only empowers organizations to collaborate effectively but also safeguards sensitive information, prioritizing data privacy and organizational security.

Embracing Postman as part of their toolkit empowers WordPress developers to craft versatile and feature-rich websites that interact seamlessly with external platforms, services, and applications. The tool’s user-friendly interface and comprehensive features make it accessible to developers of all levels, providing an excellent opportunity to explore the world of APIs and enrich the capabilities of WordPress sites.

The Final Word

A well-curated toolkit not only boosts the productivity of WordPress developers but also has the potential to maximize their income.

The tools mentioned above have the capacity to automate various aspects of the WordPress development journey, offering a range of benefits to users. By incorporating these tools into their workflow, developers can significantly improve efficiency, streamline tasks, and simplify their work life while also keeping their clients happy.

Embracing these resources provides an opportunity to explore new avenues of optimization and innovation within the realm of WordPress development. So, don’t hesitate to delve deeper into these tools and give them a try to unlock their full potential and elevate your WordPress development experience. Happy exploring!

The post How to Maximize Your WordPress Development Productivity [5 Tools Enlisted] appeared first on Codeable.

In this article, we’ll delve into how personalization can help small businesses and how you can automate personalization so that it can be sustainable and manageable.

How Personalization is Used in Business Today

Businesses worldwide are beginning to offer more and more personalization for their customers. Personalization can come in many forms and flavors, including optimized advertising to display catered ads, more innovative algorithms for better product recommendations, as well as the increasingly popular end-of-year summaries that give users a sense of individuality.

According to online research studies, 49% of consumers will likely become repeat customers after a personalized shopping experience. Nearly half of consumers prefer to see personalization in their day-to-day interactions with businesses yet as a small business owner, sometimes this level of personalization may feel out of reach. At the end of the day, though, the local freelancer doesn’t have the big-time budget that Spotify or Amazon has.

Importance of a Personalized Customer Experience

Humans are emotional creatures and as a part of the human race, it doesn’t feel quite right to be addressed with “Hey there” – if you know my name, I want to hear it! Instead, we’re drawn to content that speaks to us, which is why marketers always talk about catering to your niches. It’s essential to help make your clientele feel unique yet understood. 

We like to think we make complicated decisions based on rational analysis, but most of the time, we actually make an emotional decision and then invent a rational analysis to justify it.

– Seth Godin

Just as you would foster a friendly relationship with a neighbor, the same principles still apply to creating positive feelings with customers. People like it when you ask questions and focus the conversation on themselves; bonus if you can remember these in your following conversation. Humans feel good when they can sense someone taking an interest – which is why we love when businesses go the extra mile to come up with delightful little details to improve our interactions with them. 

Personalization is a subtle way to let your customers know you care about their experience and care to understand them better.

Improving Online Customer Experience with Automated Personalization

Most small business owners know this fact and consider it a staple in their success. When a business is small, it’s easy to noticeably see the difference a hand-written Thank You card can make for repeat business, but the problem is that most personalizations small business owners are familiar with are manual and time-consuming. For example, as your customer base grows, you may need help to keep up with everyone’s birthdays.

And, when it comes to the online world, not all small businesses can keep up with all of the emerging trends and technologies. The learning curve is steep with monstrous platforms like Google Analytics, WooCommerce, or WordPress. Or we don’t have the time to set up certain features that will make the customer feel appreciated, even if it’s as simple as automatically adding their name to an email.

Personalization Examples for Small Businesses

Of course most people at this point are used to the basic levels of personalization, including just using their name in the proper context. The problem becomes clear though, when we don’t use any level of personalization and don’t take advantage of the automation potential we have at hand.

Here are some personalization examples that you can automate:

• Thank you emails sent after reaching a milestone (for example, if a client has made their 3rd purchase)
• Send an automatic birthday card or coupon with a customized message
• Compile user data into a fun end-of-year summary (for example, “you contributed $139 to the save-a-cat fund with your purchases this year!”)
• Gamify your site and award customers for interactions
• Email newsletters containing automated suggestions based on previous purchases
• Change the homepage of your site depending on the viewer’s device, geographic location, or UTM parameters

Personalization & Automation Tools

So what do you need to get started? There are various tools on the market to help you begin personalizing and automating your customer experience. Let’s highlight some of the top automation and research tools.

VWO

VWO is a personalization-focused tool that allows you to research your website and use data to understand your visitors and customers better. They make it easy to swap page content such as headers, images, and call-to-actions based on targeted audiences.

Zapier

Zapier is likely the most popular tool on the market for no-code automation. They offer thousands of integrations with well-loved apps such as Dropbox, Google Sheets, Docusign, WordPress, and Office 365; in addition to more under categories such as Project Management, Email, CRMs, and Marketing tools.

Make

Formerly known as Integromat, Make is the newly revamped marketing automation tool on the market. They offer a similar integration list to Zapier at a lower cost with a more visual interface to build and automate workflows.

Three Strategies to Begin Using Automated Personalization In Your Business Website

Let’s go over some quick and simple ways to personalize your user experience, starting from your website. These will combine everything we covered above and give you some actionable steps to start.

Automate Product Recommendations in Your WooCommerce Shop

WooCommerce is an online platform that allows businesses to create and manage their online store. Personalizing and automating product recommendations in your WooCommerce shop can significantly increase customer engagement and sales. By tailoring product recommendations to each customer, you can provide a more personalized, customized shopping experience that encourages customers to return and make repeat purchases. With the help of WordPress plugins or a custom developer, you can easily set up automated rules for recommending products that are tailored to each individual customer’s needs.

Recommendation Engine – Best WooCommerce Recommendation add-on

With the help of the WooCommerce Recommendation Engine add-on, businesses can increase their sales by suggesting relevant products to customers. In addition, this add-on allows businesses to take advantage of the data they have collected from customers and use it to make more informed decisions about what products they should promote. 

This add-on includes two widgets: One to show related products by views or purchase history and one to offer recommendations based on the products other users buy together. This is a great way to help customers discover new products and services that they may be interested in. It also enhances the customer experience by providing personalized recommendations based on past purchases, searches, and browsing history.

Self-Service Online Appointment Booking

If you’re running a business that requires appointment booking and you’re currently managing this manually – the first big step you could take is to set up an automatic booking system. If you’re scared of letting automation handle your schedule though, I’m here to assure you that this will make your job easier and has many personalization benefits.
For one, it’s exhausting to go back and forth with a client to find a suitable meeting time. Whether you’re doing this through email or phone, managing and coordinating meetings takes a lot of precious time from your day. Statistics show that around 67% of consumers prefer to personally find their appointment time and not have to contact anyone to schedule a service or meeting with a business.

Calendly – Best Quick Start Scheduling

To get started with appointment scheduling right away, Calendly is your best bet. They’re hands-down the biggest scheduling tool on the market, rightfully so, and they offer excellent, easy-to-use booking features as well as personalization tools such as customized emails. Their platform is intuitive and free to get started.

Simply Schedule Appointments – Best WordPress Scheduling

If you’re currently using a WordPress website, though, we highly recommend Simply Schedule Appointments instead. They offer all of the same features and qualities of Calendly with the added benefit of fitting perfectly into any page and layout on your website. In addition, they can perfectly match your brand’s style and color scheme, personalize your emails and SMS with information drawn directly from the customer’s information, and even integrate it with your logged-in user profiles to show them a personalized view of their upcoming appointments.

Do I Choose Simply Schedule Appointments or Calendly?

For WordPress sites, Simply Schedule Appointments is the clear winner as it even integrates with WordPress page builders like Elementor and popular plugins like Gravity Forms.

Newsletter Signups and Automated Drip Sequences

Newsletter drip sequences allow you to send personalized messages at specific intervals that are tailored to each user’s needs. By leveraging the power of automation, businesses can send customized messages to their customers at the right time and place. This helps them to build relationships with their customers and increase conversions. 
Automated drip sequences also help businesses to track customer engagement, allowing them to optimize their campaigns for better results. Additionally, newsletter signups allow businesses to collect valuable data about their customers that can be used for segmentation and targeting purposes. You could even have a WordPress email form popup when a visitor tries to exit the site. This helps build relationships with customers over time, resulting in increased customer loyalty and engagement.

Personalization is Within Reach

Automating your business website can be daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. With the right strategies and tools, you can begin automating your website and make it easier to manage. In this article, we’ve discussed three methods that you can use to start automating your business website: Automating Product Recommendations in Your WooCommerce Store, Self-Service Online Appointment Booking, and lastly Newsletter Signups and Automated Drip Sequences. With these strategies in place, you can begin taking advantage of the many benefits of automation and personalization.

The post Three Strategies to Begin Using Automated Personalization On Your Business Website appeared first on Codeable.

With the Zoom feature and other customizations, WooCommerce provides helpful options for spotlighting your product images. However you can, and should, start optimizing your images even before uploading them to your WooCommerce store.

Follow these easy tips to ensure perfect product images that not only meet WooCommerce requirements but also give your product images an extra professional edge.

For optimal display, follow image size guidelines

Using images in the correct size avoids issues such as blurriness and pixelation, as well as optimizing user experience on your site. 

WooCommerce recommends a minimum image size of 800×800 pixels. Doing so ensures good display quality for the different image types on your store, such as single-product images, catalog images, and thumbnails.

Avoid using images smaller than the recommended size as they may look blurry or pixelated, especially when viewed in close-up using the Zoom feature. 

If you have to use a small image, try using upscaling software to enlarge it to a higher resolution before uploading it to WooCommerce.

800×800 pixels is the minimum size, so you can use larger images. This may be a good idea for certain WooCommerce themes or if your images contain a lot of detail. 

On the other hand, using very large images is not advised because they slow down page speed, negatively impacting user experience and SEO. For the same reason, it is preferable to use images in JPG format and avoid heavier formats such as PNG.

Choose the best aspect ratio for your pictures

In addition to size, aspect ratio also impacts how well images display on your store.

In WooCommerce, single product images display in their original aspect ratio whereas smaller thumbnail images are cropped to 1:1 by default. Therefore, it’s important to check that your product is still in the frame when cropped down as a thumbnail. An easy way to manage this is to crop all images to a 1:1 ratio before uploading them. 

You can use the Customizer in WooCommerce to set the aspect ratio you want product images to display in such as 4:6, 3:2, or 16:9. Whatever the ratio used, pre-cropping images to this format can help avoid display issues.

Use a flawless background that lets your product shine

Achieving a clean background makes images look more professional and ensures that the focus stays on your product so it’s well worth the extra effort.

WooCommerce recommends using white or off-white backgrounds for simple product images. Photographing your products against a sweep, or even a piece of white paper can help you achieve this. 

You can clean up small defects, such as dust specs, with a spot healer. For larger objects and distractions in the background, an object remover can be used, such as inPixio’s Auto Erase tool to retouch the picture.

Alternatively, you can erase the entire background from your picture and replace it with a white one. AI-powered background removers select the subject of a photo automatically and delete the background in a single action, then all that’s left to do is to select a new one. 

Replacing backgrounds in this way can save time and ensure a clean, consistent finish, with no dust specs or shadows. For example, you can show the same product from different angles while maintaining a uniform look for your catalog.

Show your product in its best light

Lighting can be a tricky part of product photography. If you don’t have a professional lightbox at your disposal, the best option is generally to use natural light when shooting your products. 

If possible, take your photos on a slightly overcast day and always at the same time of day in order to have the best chance of consistent lighting.

If this isn’t working out, don’t worry – lighting is another aspect that can be fixed in post-production. Most photo editors offer simple sliders to adjust your images. Some also offer an auto-correct feature that finds the ideal settings for your image at the touch of a button. 

Start by tweaking exposure, highlights and shadows but be careful to not overdo it. If images look washed out, you can also play with saturation and vibrance to restore them. Again, avoid over-editing photos as this can distort the true colors of your product.

Master focus in lifestyle shots

The risk with lifestyle or real-world shots is that the surroundings can distract from the image or even overpower it. 

You can avoid this by carefully considering props and composition before beginning your shot. However, even with the best pre-planning, something may sneak into your photo that you’re not happy with, or you may change your mind about the setup later.

Cropping out or erasing stray objects is one way to deal with this. Another idea is to use blur. By blurring parts of the image background it is possible to keep the atmosphere of lifestyle shots while giving more focus to your main product and blending out clutter. 

Many phone cameras now offer portrait mode for blurred backgrounds. Otherwise, you can easily add blur using tools and presets in most photo editors.

Make images consistent for a professional catalog

With a product catalog, consistency is key to projecting professionalism. 

We already covered uniform aspect ratios and backgrounds as two tips for achieving image consistency. 

When editing photos from a single shoot, it usually makes sense to apply the same settings to all images, resulting in a consistent and professional finish. 

Once you find the ideal settings for things like exposure, keep a note of them in case you need to edit more similar photos later.

Finally, it’s a good idea to check the angle of your shots and straighten any pictures that look tilted.

Achieving professional pictures is easier than you think

Professional product pictures can make a big difference to your WooCommerce store and have a positive impact on sales. Fortunately, you don’t need to be an expert photographer to achieve them. 

Simple editing hacks can compensate for issues during shooting. Mastering image size, aspect ratio, background, lighting, and consistency are key to making WooCommerce images that convert.

The examples in this post were edited with inPixio Photo Studio, an easy-to-use photo editor with AI-powered features such as background and object removal, auto-correction, and image effects. You can download a free trial to test out the tools and features on your own pictures. 

The post Get WooCommerce images that convert with these simple tips appeared first on Codeable.

✅ Register a domain 

✅ Develop a great-looking website 

✅ Hit publish 

Test your website’s speed…

It’s frustrating and demotivating. 

We know. 

Especially after you’ve done all the right things. 

Luckily, we’ve collected a list of optimizations that will allow you to transform your bad PSI score into…

But before that, there are some foundational insights (pun intended) you should know about Google’s PageSpeed Insights.

How to Navigate Your PSI Report (The Latest Version)

Millions of people use Google’s PSI – from website owners with zero technical expertise to experienced web developers. Hence, its UI must be easy to navigate and provide granular data simultaneously. 

And it sure does. 

Here are the main elements of your PSI report:

1. Mobile and Desktop Performance

When 53.74% of the total web visits are mobile, monitoring your site’s performance on desktop and mobile is essential.

In PSI, you can easily switch between both:

2. Core Web Vitals Assessment

In 2021, Google introduced the Core Web Vitals (CWV) – a set of three metrics measuring your page’s load time, visual stability, and page interactivity. 

Basically, they are Google’s way of sizing up your page’s overall UX. 

The respective metrics are:

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) – measures how long it takes for the largest above-the-fold element to load on a page.

• First Input Delay (FID) – measures the delay between a user’s first interaction and the moment the browser can respond.
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) – measures how much unexpected layout shifts affect the user experience on a page.

In the widget, there are three other notable metrics:

• First Contentful Paint (FCP) – measure the time it takes for the browser to visualize the first piece of DOM content (e.g., image, SVG, non-blank canvas element) on a page.

• Interaction to Next Paint (INP) – records the latency of all interactions throughout the entire page lifecycle.
• Time to First Byte (TTFB) – measures how long it takes for a client’s browser to receive the first byte of the response from the server.

They don’t play a part in your Core Web Vitals assessment. However, each measures an important aspect of your site’s loading process, so you should aim to achieve a good score on all three. 

Note that the CWV widget shows data for the last 28 days. This means you will not see an immediate improvement in your Core Web Vitals after applying some optimizations.

And one more thing…

From the top right corner, you can switch between “This URL” and “Origin”:

• “This URL” shows Core Web Vitals results for the specific web page you’re testing.

• “Origin” provides data about your site’s overall Core Web Vitals score.

What if PSI doesn’t show CWV data?

There are two reasons for that to happen:

• Your property is new in Search Console (it might take a few days before CWV data is shown)

• There is not enough data available in the CrUX report to provide meaningful information for the chosen device type (desktop or mobile)

3. Performance Score & Opportunities and Diagnostics

The next section is your Performance score, followed by the Opportunities and Diagnostics panel.

In a recent update (Oct 2022), Google has added three more scores in addition to Performance. The added categories are Accessibility, Best Practices, and SEO.

• Accessibility – measures your site’s availability to users regardless of impairments or operational diversity. 
• Best Practices – evaluates if your website adheres to guidelines regarding trust and safety, JavaScript, images, source maps, etc.

• SEO – measures how well your web page follows basic search engine optimization advice.

Then, you have the metrics that build your Performance score:

And at the bottom, you will see the Opportunities and Diagnostics panels.

In a nutshell, they provide you with a list of optimizations that, once applied, will improve your PSI score and Core Web Vitals. 

Each improvement suggestion is expandable, providing you with more granular data, an explanation of the warning, what improvements you can expect, and affected metrics.

And here’s a nice trick…

By clicking on each score, you will be redirected to the specific optimization suggestion that will affect it. 

On the other hand, you can switch between audits relevant to specific metrics – FCP, TBT, CLS, or LCP.

What Do You Consider a Good PSI Score for a Web Page?

A score of 90 or above is considered good. 50 to 89 is a score that needs improvement. Аnd below 50 is considered poor.

The good thing is that Google’s PSI uses a tri-color scoring system, so you shouldn’t bother remembering the exact thresholds. 

The only things you should remember are that:

• Green = Good Performance
• Orange = Needs Improvement
• Red = Poor Performance

And you will find the tri-color system used all over your PSI report:

How is My Site’s Performance Score Calculated?

Your Performance score is a weighted average of these six metrics:

• First Contentful Paint (FCP)
• Time to Interactive (TTI)
• Speed Index
• Total Blocking Time (TBT)
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

Each metric has a different weight and, respectively – a different impact on your score:

Important note from Google:

“In general, only metrics contribute to your [Lighthouse] Performance score, not the results of Opportunities or Diagnostics. That said, improving the opportunities and diagnostics likely improve the metric values, so there is an indirect relationship.”

Why is My Score Different Each Time I Test?

You’ve probably noticed that your PSI score can fluctuate without applying any changes to your website.

Like the last time you ran a test and accidentally closed the tab, so you had to rerun it.

And all of a sudden, your score has changed. 

Don’t worry, you’re not crazy, nor is there a problem with your website. 

There are a lot of underlying conditions and variables that impact your Performance score. Including:

• A/B tests or changes in ads being served
• Internet traffic routing changes
• Testing on different devices (a high-performance desktop vs. a low-performance laptop)
• Browser extensions that inject JavaScript and add/modify network requests
• Antivirus software

In fact, there’s in-depth Lighthouse documentation on variability, zoning in on the different factors that play a role in your site’s score and its fluctuation.

Make sure to look them up, and remember – don’t jump to conclusions about your site’s performance after a single-page speed test. Run tests regularly and use other testing tools as well.

Now, let’s move on to the next most baffling question about PageSpeed scores.

Why is My Mobile Performance Score Lower Than My Desktop?

These are the three main reasons:

• Mobile devices have slower processors
• PageSpeed Insights run mobile tests on a slower network 
• Mobile devices have device-specific CSS rules (re-sizing images, viewport size, etc.)

Let’s delve deeper into each reason.

Firstly, although today’s mobile devices are advanced, we can agree they cannot be compared to the latest Mac or custom-built PCs. Hence, they have less computing power which leads to slower page rendering.

Secondly, PSI uses a slow 4G throttling when testing your site on mobile:

The truth is mobile networks are unstable.

For instance, you’re surfing at full 4G or 5G speed on your way to the subway. After a few minutes, you’re already under the ground, and suddenly, your connectivity worsens. 

Hence, the browsing experience gets slower. 

To recreate these scenarios accurately, Google runs a mobile test on a slower network.

Lastly, mobile devices resize the various page elements, such as images. This is referred to as mobile CSS language rules. These processes take a toll and slow down your site’s performance. 

So the next time you test your site and see a difference between the mobile and desktop score, remind yourself there are reasons for that outside of your control.

How much does the Google PSI score matter?

Not as much as you think.

Here’s the truth:

Your Performance score is based on lab data.

The lab data is provided by Lighthouse. It’s collected within a controlled environment with a predefined device and network settings.

Put simply, a 100/100 score does not mean that your visitors have an excellent experience browsing your website. 

You do not need to over-obsess with reaching a perfect score. That’s not how Google PageSpeed Insights is meant to be used. 

You should instead focus on implementing all suggestions in the Opportunity and Diagnostics panel. That will lead to much greater benefits for your website. 

Like…

Passing your Core Web Vitals. 

The Core Web Vitals assessment we mentioned earlier is based on field data (also known as Real User Monitoring).

“Field data is determined by monitoring all users who visit a page and measuring a given set of performance metrics for each one of those users’ individual experiences. Because field data is based on real-user visits, it reflects the actual devices, network conditions, and geographic locations of your users.”

The Chrome User Experience Report (CrUX) provides information for the Core Web Vitals section in your PSI report.

Another harsh truth is that:

Your PageSpeed score will not affect your ranking. Core Web Vitals will.

Passing them is what boosts your site in the SERP and leads to more conversions.

For example, Rakuten 24 increased revenue per visitor by 53.37% and conversion rate by 33.13% after improving their Core Web Vitals.  

Another one would be The Economic Times which reduced their bounce rates across their website by 43% after optimizing their Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) and Cumulative Layoutshift (CLS) scores. 
То summarize:

Use the Performance score for testing and debugging purposes. Don’t waste your time chasing the perfect score. While it looks good on paper, it doesn’t do much in the real world. A lot of websites have 100/100 PSI scores but fail their CWV. In fact, according to the latest CrUX results – only 41.6% of all tested websites have good Core Web Vitals.

How to Improve Your PageSpeed Score on Both Mobile and Desktop (Checklist)

We’ve prepared a list of the optimizations that will have the most significant impact on your PageSpeed score and real-world performance.

1. Add a caching layer

Having a caching layer on your website is one of the fundamental steps towards improving your performance, reducing your server’s load, and providing visitors with an exceptional experience.

Next steps: Use a world-class caching tool that automatically adds a caching layer to your website.

2. Optimize your images

99% of websites rely on visual content to engage their visitors. However, unoptimized images can seriously hinder your site’s performance, leading to unsatisfactory results.  That’s why it is important to apply the respective optimizations.

Next steps: Choose the right image format (JPEG, WebP, PNG, etc.), compress them before uploading to reduce their file size, and use a CDN.

3. Compress and minify your code

Reducing HTML, CSS, and JavaScript file size is crucial to speeding up your website. You can make your site’s code lighter by compressing or minifying it. Applying code minification will remove unnecessary parts like whitespace and comments from the code, on the other hand – code compression will apply algorithms to rewrite the files’ binary code, using fewer bits than the original.

Next steps: Apply code compression and minification (manually or using a tool).

4. Eliminate render-blocking resources

Some CSS and JavaScript files can be “render-blocking.”

When the browser encounters them, it must download, parse, and execute them before doing anything else, including rendering.

To optimize the rendering process, you can apply techniques such as Critical CSS, delay third-party scripts by using async and defer, and apply code optimization and splitting.
Next steps: Implement Critical CSS, defer third-party scripts, and apply code optimization (manually, ask a developer or use a tool).

5. Minimize main-thread work

The Main Thread is where the browser does most of the work needed to display a page. Long-running JavaScript tasks can block the Main Thread, leading to slow load times, unresponsive pages, and a bad user experience. 
Next steps: Remove unnecessary plugins, implement Critical CSS, reduce unused CSS, and delay or remove third-party JavaScript.

6. Reduce the impact of third-party code

Most websites rely on third-party scripts. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with it, but there’s a thin line between helping your site and hurting it. That’s why it’s essential to minimize their negative impact while still utilizing their valuable features.
Next steps: Lazy load third-party scripts, try self-hosting some of them, establish early connections using prefetch, or remove entirely the ones that don’t serve you.

7. Bonus Advice: Use CDN to serve your content

A Content Delivery Network (CDN) consists of multiple geographically distributed servers at various points of presence (PoP) all around the globe.

Relying on a CDN will shorten the physical distance between your users and your content (web servers). It’s a great way to speed up your site while doing business internationally. 
Next steps: Find a CDN provider with a large network of servers distributed all over the globe.

Wrapping Up

Regularly testing your website will allow you always to know how your website’s performing. 

However, avoid focusing solely on your PageSpeed score.

Instead, knuckle down and start implementing all improvement suggestions. Everything else will follow. 

You will see an immediate boost in your Performance score, but more importantly – you will be on the path toward passing your Core Web Vitals. 

We know that standing in front of a long list of improvement suggestions can be frightening.

But the good news is you can deal with them automatically!

As an all-in-one solution, NitroPack combines 35+ optimizations to improve your site’s performance. No need to write or change a single line of code. 

Install, connect, and NitroPack starts applying improvements on its own.
You can see your site with NitroPack before installing, and there’s a 14-day money-back guarantee if you don’t see immediate results.

The post How to Fix Low PageSpeed Insights Score (2023 Checklist) appeared first on Codeable.

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Codeable’s mission is to re-shape the world of online WordPress freelancing by creating a healthy working environment where both freelance developers and clients thrive. OnTheGoSystems, like Codeable, is also focused on changing the WordPress world and pushing the boundaries of what websites can achieve.

When we decided to partner with OnTheGoSystems, our Codeable experts were very excited because many of them already use and recommend their products WPML and Toolset. The ringing endorsement from our crew and a shared vision of a better web are only two reasons we believe this will be a great partnership.

How OnThegoSystems and Codeable are working together

OnTheGoSystems is dedicated to helping their customers run awesome websites, however, they often get requests that fall outside the scope of services they offer and refer those out to trusted consultants. Now, Codeable will be featured among those they recommend to their customers to get the help they need with their website — including configuring multi-lingual sites with WPML or enabling clients to use Toolset to create custom website elements without writing PHP or Javascript.

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The post Helping More People Together — Codeable and OnTheGoSystems Partnership Announcement appeared first on Codeable.