We all judge a book by its cover. The nicer the book cover, the more we feel the content is good. It’s the same story with images, too; the nicer the image is, the better the article is, but when it comes to optimization, we compress the image like hell out of it. Sometimes, the image optimization plugin compresses it so much that the image dimension, weight, height, and size get changed, and the image starts looking terrible.
If you want to make your website better, there are some mistakes people often make which should be avoided. Putting nice pictures on your site makes it look good, but it also makes the site slow to load. This is especially tough for people with not-so-great internet on their phones.
Having a slow site doesn’t just annoy visitors; it also costs more money because of all the data it uses. This is a big expense for IT, along with hosting and storage.
Let’s talk about some common issues we see when working on websites.
Not Image Optimization at all
Not optimizing images on your website can affect its performance and user experience. It’s crucial to optimize images for all platforms to speed up your page loading.
When optimizing images, using the right formats and enhancement solutions is important. For WordPress sites, plugins like WP Smush and EWWW can help. Another excellent tool is the imagecompressor, a well-known image compression tool that maintains image quality.
Consider using Nestify, Cache, and Page speed optimization solutions, which offer high-speed hosting services. This can further improve your website’s performance and loading speed.
Choose Incorrect Format
It is important to select the appropriate image format for your website. There are common formats like JPEG, PNG, and GIF. Sometimes, people need to pick the right format, causing issues.
Each format has its purpose. If you use the right one, it saves time and money. Using the right format can speed up your website.
Here’s a simple guide:
Here’s a simple guide:
- For regular images, like photos, use “.jpeg.”
- Logos and charts look better in “.png.”
- Short videos work well with GIFs.
Using the right formats saves bandwidth, making your website faster and more efficient.
Not Using Next Gen Image Format – AVIF and WebP
If you’re okay with some loss in quality and your main goal is saving bandwidth, AVIF is a good choice. Just make sure the speed of encoding and decoding works for you.
WebP is more commonly supported and works well for regular images that don’t need advanced features like a wide color range or text overlays.
However, AVIF might not compress non-photographic images as effectively as PNG or lossless WebP. WebP might save less space than JPEG for high-quality lossy compression.
If AVIF and WebP don’t work for you, consider MozJPEG for optimizing JPEGs, OxiPNG for non-photographic images, or JPEG 2000 for lossy or lossless photographic images. Choose the one that fits your needs best.
Adding A Button Behind The Image!
Using image fragments for buttons in web design is not recommended. If the button is hidden behind the image, users might not be aware of its existence. This practice can be considered cloaking, which is a black hat SEO tactic. Cloaking is the practice of misleading both search engines and people by displaying different material to each. If the button triggers intrusive pop-ups, it can harm user experience, impacting search engine rankings.
In the past, when CSS was more basic, people used images to make buttons look fancy due to limitations. However, this approach leads to a poor browsing experience, increased development costs, and longer project timelines.
It’s now better to use CSS for styling instead of button background images or rounded corners. CSS supports features like rounded corners, button shadows, and custom fonts, providing a more efficient and modern solution.
Incorrectly Configuring Caching Headers in Response
It’s important to set proper caching headers in the response for images on your website. When a user accesses an image, the browser stores a cached copy. This cached copy is then used instead of downloading the original image repeatedly, saving bandwidth and speeding up page loads. Enabling image caching is crucial, and developers should configure the caching settings correctly.
When caching images in the browser, it’s not enough to rely on clearing the content on the CDN if the image content changes. Instead, use versioning in the URL. This ensures that even if the content changes, the browser recognizes it as a new version and fetches the updated image, avoiding potential issues with outdated cached images.
Not Using CDN
A common mistake is delivering all website content directly from the origin server. If, for example, your website is hosted in New Delhi and a user from London accesses it, the content delivery may need to be faster due to the physical distance and heavy traffic. This strain on the server can lead to a slow website loading speed.
Using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) is an easy way to solve this issue. A global server network is formed by multiple servers or CDNs. If a website in New Delhi uses a CDN, the main server hosts the data, but when a user from London visits the website, the nearest available CDN server delivers the data. This not only speeds up the website loading but also reduces bandwidth usage.
Wrapping up
Effective image optimization is a critical aspect of enhancing website performance and user experience. Avoiding common mistakes in handling website images is essential for ensuring faster loading times, reduced bandwidth usage, and improved search engine rankings. By choosing appropriate image formats, utilizing compression tools, implementing caching strategies, and embracing Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), web developers can create websites that are not only visually appealing but also efficient in delivering content to users across the globe.
Staying mindful of these practices contributes to a seamless and enjoyable online experience for visitors while optimizing the website for both speed and accessibility.
FAQs on Image Optimization
1. Why is image optimization important for a website?
Image optimization is crucial for a website because it improves loading times, enhances user experience, and reduces bandwidth usage. It also positively influences search engine rankings, contributing to better visibility.
2. What are the common mistakes in handling website images?
Common mistakes include using incorrect image formats, not optimizing images, placing buttons behind images, and not setting proper caching headers. These mistakes can lead to slower loading times and negatively impact user experience.
3. How can image caching benefit a website?
Image caching allows browsers to store a copy of an image after it’s first loaded. This cached copy is then used instead of re-downloading the original image, saving bandwidth and speeding up subsequent page loads.
4. Why is using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) recommended for image delivery?
Using a CDN is recommended because it helps distribute website content across servers globally. This ensures that users receive content from the nearest server, reducing latency and improving website loading speed.
