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by John Daters on Tue, May 25, 2021 @ 09:30
Google’s up to it again. The search giant is forcing website and business owners to make the Internet faster or suffer the consequences. For years now, Google has been beating the drums of a faster online experience and placing the onus at the feet of you, the business owner.
With its newest Core Web Vitals initiative, Google is really putting pressure on website owners to make a change.
With this upcoming algorithm update — slated to roll out mid-June through August of 2021 — Google has set hard and fast benchmark metrics for what makes a site fast or slow. The consequences of passing or failing Google’s litmus test are nothing short of your bottom line. Slow sites will be dethroned in search ranking by faster sites that hit predetermined speed thresholds, allowing these speedy websites to rise in rank and leaving slow sites to wonder what happened.
Why It Could Be Devastating If Business Owners Don’t Prioritize Speed
How do we know it’s not all smoke and mirrors, that website owners should treat this like their business is at stake and that even a one-second difference could mean the difference between winning and losing online?
Google rarely telegraphs any algorithm changes. They usually roll out large updates and let industry experts sort out what happened after the fact. Not so with Core Web Vitals. In this case, Google has spoken from a megaphone to let the industry know that this critical update to how they rank websites is coming — an overall unusual step by the usually tight-lipped search giant. If Google is shouting a message from the rooftops it behooves industry experts to take note.
Another clue that Google is pushing hard on this new site speed algorithm update is the fact that they recently pushed back the launch of their new ranking system by a few months. Originally slated to launch in May, Google gave website owners a 30-day reprieve when they pushed back launch to start in mid-June, with a slow rollout to be completed across all searches and sites by the end of August. When Google wants to be sure there’s forewarning and time to make an update, it’s a safe bet that big changes are coming. Making sure your site is set up for success in the new world of search is going to be critical to your profitability and market reach. Making sure your site is up to snuff is like checking your balance sheet, too far off from the mark and you’ll be irrelevant and underwater sooner than later.
Wondering how your site speed currently stacks up in anticipation of Google’s Core Web Vitals algorithm update for search? Reach out to a SyncShow representative to find out and build a plan before your HubSpot site suffers.
Demystifying Google’s Core Web Vitals Update
What Are Google's New Ranking Factors Anyway
In addition to Google's previous emphasis on providing secure, safe browsing and a mobile-friendly experience, search engine rankings will now be heavily influenced by Google's new Core Web Vitals algorithm update.
Web Vitals Metrics:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures how long it takes for the largest element on your screen to load.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Measures how much your page layout shifts when a user is interacting with your website.
First Input Delay (FID): Measures how long it takes for your page to become interactive once it loads.
These metrics are calculated using real-world data from your actual website visitors in order to tell Google whether or not they should send more traffic to your website.
If your website's metrics don't fall within Google's thresholds, Google is not going to route traffic to your site as frequently and may favor your competitor's website instead. This is not an ideal situation when it comes to generating leads from your website and building your company's brand awareness.
Contact us today to gain the peace of mind that, come August, your website will be optimized for Google's new standards and will be better positioned to perform strongly in search as a result.
