Your website has been fully audited, reviewed, and optimized. This service is designed to improve your user experience, which directly affects your Core Web Vitals (CWV). By focusing on how real visitors interact with your site, we ensure your performance gains are meaningful and long-lasting.
A Quick Note: We understand this guide is a bit of a lengthier read, but we highly suggest seeing it through to the end. It contains valuable information regarding how we manage your site's performance.
Real-World Data vs. Lab Scores
We want to be clear about tools like Google PageSpeed Insights (PSI), GTmetrix, DebugBear, and other lab tests. While a high score looks good, a perfect 100/100 lab score is not our primary goal, nor is it essential for success.
Google evaluates your website based on Core Web Vitals collected from real visitors over time, reported via the Chrome User Experience Report (CrUX). Our service aims to improve that real visitor experience. Because CWV data is collected over a rolling 28-day period, you should not rely on instantaneous lab tests to measure success. It takes time for Google to recognize and report the improvements we have made.
Note on Lab Accuracy: You cannot solely rely on a lab test to gauge your site's health. In some cases, we must make specific exclusions or configuration changes that might technically lower a lab score but actually benefit your real-world Core Web Vitals. We prioritize the actual visitor experience over "gaming" a synthetic test.
Ultimately, it is these real-world Core Web Vitals that Google utilizes within its search ranking algorithms. Lab tests like PSI can be helpful for technical debugging, but they are not the metrics Google uses to determine your site's performance standing in search results.
What We Optimized
Our team implemented a suite of high-level performance enhancements using a premium optimization plugin, combined with hands-on work to tailor the results to your site. Depending on your site's specific needs, we may have performed manual CSS tweaks and implemented Code Snippets. These changes were specifically chosen to improve your Core Web Vitals:
Core Cleanup: We removed unnecessary WordPress features that create background bloat.
CSS & JavaScript Management: We removed unused CSS and implemented strategies to delay and defer unnecessary JavaScript to speed up the initial paint.
Visual Stability: We preloaded fonts to prevent Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) and preloaded images "above the fold" to improve your Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) score.
Smart Loading: We enabled lazy loading so that images only load as a visitor starts scrolling. This reduces the number of elements that must load initially, significantly speeding up the perceived load time.
Refined Optimization: We may have used Code Snippets and Additional CSS to fine-tune your site for your specific environment.
Boost
As part of your service, Boost has been configured on your site. This is a requirement for Optimization Pro because it provides the infrastructure necessary to improve performance at the CDN level. This includes:
Enterprise Edge Caching: Using Cloudflare Enterprise to deliver your content from servers closest to your visitors to improve TTFB.
Image Optimization: Automated WebP delivery and compression.
Advanced Security: Protecting your site from malicious traffic that can slow down your server.
For more details on these features, please see our guide:
Understanding Your Audit Reports
The Website Performance Audit you received represents your site before our work began.
Because we need to observe how the changes affect your real-world Core Web Vitals, we will perform a follow-up audit in 30 days. This second report will show the data-backed results of our work and include any further suggestions to keep your site lean.
Continuous White-Glove Monitoring
Optimization Pro includes ongoing monthly monitoring. Site performance is not static; it changes as you add content, plugins, or updates.
Observation: We monitor your site to ensure Core Web Vitals remain in the "green" and adjust settings as needed.
Monthly Check-ins: Even if everything is running perfectly, we will check in every month to ensure the optimizations are working as intended.
Search Console: If we noticed any active CWV issues in your Google Search Console property, we have already started the validation process for you. We check these metrics every month, but if you ever see a notification between our check-ins, feel free to reach out and we are happy to assist.
Expert Review & Recommendations
Multiple Performance Experts have reviewed your site to ensure the optimizations haven't caused any functional issues. However, we always recommend that you monitor your own traffic, ad statistics, and site metrics. If you notice anything unusual, let us know so we can make immediate adjustments.
Finally, please review the "WordPress Environment" section of your audit. We often leave specific notes there regarding items that should be updated or replaced to further improve your performance. We are available to help you implement those recommendations whenever you are ready.
We'll talk to you next month!