One second can cost you everything: Put your website in the fast lane

Performance isn’t just about tech. It affects your visibility, user experience, and credibility. In this article, we’ll show you four proven ways to cut your website’s load time – plus tools for self-checking and a downloadable checklist.

Why one second can change everything

One extra second of load time can mean:

•    You lose visitors – over 50% of mobile users bounce after 3 seconds.
•    You drop in Google rankings – Core Web Vitals are a ranking factor.
•    You look unprofessional – slow pages hurt your image and your conversion rate.

And this doesn’t just apply to online stores. Even portfolio, project, or info sites benefit hugely from strong performance:
They appear more trustworthy, build confidence, and leave a lasting impression.

4 ways to speed up your site

You don’t need a full relaunch. Many improvements are simple and low effort. The following four areas make a big difference.

1. Caching: Reuse instead of recalculating

Why it helps:

Static assets like images, scripts, or layout files don’t need to reload every time. That reduces server load and speeds things up.

How to implement it:

•    Enable browser caching via .htaccess, your CMS, or a plugin
•    Set up server-side caching (e.g. Redis, FastCGI, or Varnish)
•    If you're on WordPress: use WP Rocket, LiteSpeed Cache, or W3 Total Cache

Pro tip: Use fragment caching for elements that rarely change – like menus.

2. Optimize images: Less data, same impact

Why it matters:

Images often account for the majority of a page’s weight – especially on mobile.

How to speed things up:

•    Use modern formats like WebP or AVIF
•    Compress with tools like Squoosh.app, TinyPNG, or ImageMagick
•    Add lazy loading (loading="lazy") to delay loading until images scroll into view
•    Make sure your image dimensions match the display size – no 3000px images in a 300px box

3. Server location & infrastructure: closer = faster

The shorter the distance, the quicker the load. Choose a hosting provider with servers physically close to your audience.

With Green, you get:

•    Data centers in Switzerland – fast load times and legal peace of mind
•    Modern tech: HTTP/2, NVMe SSDs, up-to-date PHP versions
•    100% renewable energy – fast, responsible hosting

Pro tip: For reliable testing, skip global test locations and use:

•    WebPageTest.org – choose test location (e.g. Zurich)
•    speed.cloudflare.com – measures real-world CDN latency

4. Test it yourself: Measure your load time

Test your site regularly – especially on mobile.

Top tools:

•    PageSpeed Insights (pagespeed.web.dev)
→ Based on Core Web Vitals
•    GTmetrix (gtmetrix.com)
→ Technical metrics like Time to First Byte (TTFB)
•    WebPageTest (webpagetest.org)
→ Location-specific results and video analysis

Key benchmarks:

•    LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): under 2.5 sec
•    TTFB (Time to First Byte): under 200 ms
•    CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): under 0.1
•    Page size: under 2 MB (if possible)

Bottom line: Your website deserves top speed

Whether you’re generating leads, showcasing a project, or sharing knowledge – speed matters. It shows professionalism, boosts visibility, and makes life easier for your users.

Green helps you stay ahead:

•    Swiss hosting with premium infrastructure
•    Local support from Switzerland
•    Sustainable. Fast. Reliable.