Lazy loading is one way to speed up loading by only rendering assets within view. There are several plugins available for free on WordPress to accomplish this. It’s not just images that can be targeted. Other assets such as iframes can be delayed in rendering which could have quite an impact if you have many youtube embeds. It’s also not uncommon to see premium themes these days incorporate lazy loading directly.
I would hope the very first thing that a web design company would do after finishing a site for a client is to run a speed test. It’s one thing to have an amazing looking site. It’s quite another to have that website load quickly and without any hiccups. As a designer, there has to be a balance between aesthetics, speed, and the needs of your client. Having a widget that affects loading time, for instance, should be taken into consideration. Is it necessary? Will it have value to your visitors?
Google PageSpeed still provides very valuable data when it comes to optimization. However, as I’ve learned, it might not suit your visitors best to make sacrifices in order to achieve the best score. Render-blocking scripts and CSS minification might be better left alone. For me, FOUT (flash of unstyled text) and FOUC (flash of unstyled content) should absolutely be avoided. I’d rather have a few marks deducted on a score than compromise user experience. Google font swapping and content moving around during page load is both unsightly and distracting. In most cases, you may shave a little bit of time off but is it really worth it?
Since mobile devices and smartphones have become so prevalent, the need for speed has never been greater. It is one thing to have a fast broadband connection at your home. It is quite another to have a weak connection on a 3G or 4G signal. Every byte of data and how it is served can be crucial. Don’t overlook the simple optimization feature of HTTP/2.
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