Best Practices for Designing High-Performance Websites
Welcome to the world of web design and development, where you will encounter a myriad of colors, patterns, and sometimes, a headache or three. Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and a high-performance website isn’t coded in one either. Fortunately for you, I’ve compiled a list of best practices to help you move from stumbling novice to confident coder quicker than you can say “HTML.”
Understand the Importance of Loading Speed
Let’s start by appreciating the importance of website loading speed. You don’t want your users to have enough time to make a sandwich while your website loads, do you? Neither do they. Studies show that if a website takes more than 3 seconds to load, users are more likely to abandon it. So remember, folks, in the race for speed, slow and steady doesn’t win the race.
How to Improve Website Loading Time
Use Appropriate Image Size
Though it’s tempting to use high-resolution images for their Instagram-worthy quality, large file sizes slow down your website. Like an epic novel you’ve sworn to finish but can’t get past the first 100 pages, big images are pretty but ultimately, a burden. Stick to the necessary image size and remember: beauty lies in the loading speed of the beholder.
Minimize HTTP Requests
When a user visits a webpage, their computer sends an HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) request for each file. More files equal more requests, which translates to slower loading times. Try to minimize these by combining all your CSS into one file and your JavaScript into another. It’s like streamlining your morning routine so that you can catch that elusive bus to work.
Implement Browser Caching
Browser caching is the online version of your brain remembering your friend’s birthday. It stores files from a website on the local computer, meaning less data needs to be loaded on subsequent visits. So the next time your users visit your website, it will load at autobahn speeds.
Prioritize Responsive Design
With the world and its dog surfing the web on a plethora of devices, responsive design is a must. Essentially, this means ensuring your website looks good on any screen size. Without it, viewing your website on a phone or tablet might look like trying to fit an elephant into a Mini Cooper – a tight squeeze.
Test, Tweek, Repeat
Finally, remember that building a high-performance website is a process. Test your website regularly and adjust where necessary. It’s a bit like cutting your own bangs. You make the first cut, it’s uneven, you adjust, you overcompensate, you adjust again…it’s a cycle (but hopefully with more successful results).
And there you have it, folks, a beginner’s guide to designing high-performance websites. Now lace up those coding boots and take your first steps into the world of web design and development. Let’s make the online world a faster, brighter place, one website at a time!
