Adding visuals to your WordPress website is a great way to make your pages more engaging. But finding the perfect image is only half the battle. Sometimes, you’ll need to adjust how the graphic displays to make it more attractive or optimize it for web performance.
Fortunately, it’s easy to edit your images in WordPress. You can resize a photo completely, crop out irrelevant sections, and even optimize it for a WooCommerce product page.
In this post, we’ll show you how to edit images in WordPress. Then, we’ll discuss image optimization and how it can improve your loading times. Let’s get started!
How to easily edit images in WordPress (8 ways)
There are a few different ways to edit images in WordPress. Let’s start by talking about resizing.
1. How to resize an image in WordPress
You may want to resize your images in WordPress because smaller images load faster. If you only have one or two photos on your site, this might not make a noticeable difference. But image-heavy sites require lots of processing to load content.
Additionally, you may want to resize your images to specific dimensions for design purposes.
To resize your images in WordPress, navigate to Media → Library. Then, upload a new file or select an existing one. Next, click on Edit Image.
Under Scale Image, enter your new dimensions, specifying an exact width and height. Then, hit Scale.
To use your resized version of the photo, head back to your Media Library and select it. Then, copy the file URL.
Finally, paste the URL wherever you want to use it on your site.
Or, you can simply reinsert the image into the Image block on your page.
2. How to crop images in WordPress
Cropping an image trims your photo rather than resizing it entirely. Therefore, it allows you to cut out less important parts of the image and draw focus to a specific object within the frame.
To crop an image in WordPress, navigate to Media → Library. Then, upload your photo. Next, click on Edit Image and select Crop.
At this point, you’ll be able to physically drag the editor around to crop out parts of your image that you don’t need.
When you’re happy with your new photo, click on Crop again to execute the changes. Then, hit Save.
3. How to flip an image
You may also wish to flip an image in WordPress. While not as common as other image edits, flipping can have great artistic effects.
For instance, flipping can adjust the photograph’s focus, leading your visitor’s eye toward important elements. Plus, it can reinforce themes in an image or evoke certain emotions.
To flip an image in WordPress, head to Media → Library → Edit Image. The next action depends on how you want to flip your image. You can either choose Flip vertical or Flip horizontal.
Flipping vertically will show your image upside down, whereas the horizontal option will create a mirror-image effect. When you’re happy with your changes, click on Save.
4. How to rotate an image
You can also rotate an image in WordPress, either by turning your image counterclockwise or clockwise. This is an easy way to fix matching or alignment issues on your page.
To get started, you’ll need to go to Media → Library → Edit Image. There, click on Rotate left or Rotate right.
This action willrotate your image by 90 degrees each time. So, if you want to turn your image 180 degrees, click twice on the appropriate button.
It’s important to note that if you make a mistake while editing your images, you can simply select Undo to erase the last action. Then, hit Save when your photo editing is complete!
5. How to align an image
Aligning an image is one of the easiest ways to edit a photo in WordPress. It determines where your graphic will sit on the page relative to other content. You can only apply alignment settings once you’ve added a picture to a post or page.
First, insert the photo into your page using the Image block. Then, navigate to the toolbar above the block.
Click on the Align icon.
As you can see, you can align an image to the left or right or make it centered. Plus, you’re able to change the width variations at this stage, making your image Full width or Wide width.
6. How to restore an image to its original version
While editing a photo in WordPress, you may accidentally make a mistake or apply unwanted changes. Fortunately, it’s easy to revert any edits and restore an image to its original version.
As we discussed earlier, if it’s only a single action that you want to reverse, click on Undo within the image editor:
Alternatively, if you resized your photo and entered the wrong dimensions, select Restore image.
Sometimes, this setting is hidden by default. In this case, you’ll need to expand the Restore Original Image tab to find this feature. It will reset your photo and remove the changes you applied to it.
7. How to bulk resize images in WordPress
Currently, there’s no default way to bulk resize images in WordPress. But you can use a plugin like Imsanity to add that functionality. This is a free tool, so you can go ahead and install it directly within WordPress.
Then, go to Settings → Imsanity.
When resizing all the images on your site, it’s important to be aware that this action can drastically alter the layout of your posts and pages. Therefore, it’s a good idea to make a fresh backup of your site before you begin.
Jetpack VaultPress Backup is an excellent automated backup plugin. You can restore your site in just one click using the mobile app, even when your site is offline. Better yet, the tool can back up all files, WooCommerce data, and your database.
If you decide to resize all your WordPress images with Imsanity, select the maximum height and width for your photos. Then, save your changes.
Alternatively, click on the List View icon in the Media Libraryto selectively resize your images.
Here, you can pick specific photos and then select Resize Image.
8. How to edit and resize images for WooCommerce
If you run an ecommerce store, you may also want to edit product images in WooCommerce. After all, you’ll need high-quality photos to convince customers to purchase your items.
Fortunately, you’re able to make most changes using the WooCommerce Customizer. To get started, head to Appearance → Customize → WooCommerce → Product Images.
Here, you can adjust the main image and thumbnail widths, choosing between square, custom, or uncropped.
Additionally, for users with coding knowledge, you can control WooCommerce image sizes using hooks. For example, the wc_get_image_sizefunction modifies the image size definitions.
Additionally, WooCommerce version 3.3 and above provides access to automatic thumbnail resizing. Alternatively, you can install a plugin, like Force Regenerate Thumbnails, to handle this process for you.
How to optimize your images for better loading speeds
So far, we’ve mostly discussed editing photos for visual design reasons. Still, there’s an equally important consideration: image optimization.
But Jetpack CDN’s Photon technology does way more than a normal CDN. It automatically re-encodes images to lighter, more modern formats. It auto-resizes them based on the needs of each individual visitor — providing the best possible experience in terms of both speed and visual quality.
Jetpack Boost lets you easily implement lazy loading of images and also comes with additional options to enhance speed like deferring JavaScript and generating critical CSS.
Better yet, both tools work in the background of your site, requiring little to no ongoing maintenance. Plus, with Jetpack Boost, you can access quick reports with clear site performance scores across desktop and mobile.
Lazy loading is one of the best ways to speed up content delivery. This setting prevents images from loading until visitors scroll down to where they are on the page. Therefore, your website won’t have to load all your visual content simultaneously.
Luckily, this is one of the free features available with Jetpack Boost. To get started with the plugin, you’ll need to connect it to a WordPress.com account. If you don’t have an account, it’s completely free to create one.
Then, go to Jetpack → Boost to configure your settings.
Here, use the toggle to enable Lazy Image Loading.
To enable the CDN, head to Jetpack → Settings and open the Performance tab.
Look for the section that says Performance & speed. Then, turn on Enable site accelerator:
Step 3: Activate additional settings for faster speeds
The first setting you’ll see within your Jetpack Boost dashboard is Optimize CSS Loading. When you turn on this setting, Jetpack will generate Critical CSS for your web pages.
This means that only the CSS ‘above the fold’ (the part of the page immediately visible to users) will load until visitors scroll down the page. As such, your content loads much faster, especially for those on mobile devices.
With a paid Jetpack Boost plan, you can save time with automated Critical CSS.
This way, you can continue making site changes as needed. Jetpack automatically regenerates your website’s Critical CSS and performance scores each time you update your content.
Jetpack Boost also lets you defer the loading of non-essential JavaScript. This means your site will first load the most visible elements, like styles and images, and delay other tasks until later. This process reduces the burden on your server.
Frequently asked questions about editing images in WordPress
Now, let’s answer some of the most common questions about editing and optimizing images in WordPress!
What are the best image formats for WordPress?
The WordPress Media Library currently supports JPEG/JPG, PNG, and WebP images. JPEG and PNG are typically the most popular formats, and they use different compression processes.
JPEGs are a great option for photography portfolios and other highly-visual content, since the compression type maintains high image quality.
On the other hand, PNGs support transparent backgrounds, so they’re often preferred for graphic design purposes. Plus, they work well for screenshots and icons.
WebP is growing in popularity. As an image format designed specifically for web usage, it offers better compression than the alternatives and results in a smaller file size.
Is it better to resize an image before uploading it to WordPress?
To maintain fast loading times, it’s best to resize images before uploading them to WordPress. This way, you’ll be able to keep the file sizes as small as possible.
Of course, you can then resize images even further within WordPress. Once you add a photo to your site, you’ll be able to apply additional edits within your Media Library, like resizing or cropping.
Is image compression and optimization important?
Image compression creates a smaller file. You can also optimize your images using extra features like lazy loading.
Both image compression and optimization are important because they improve your overall loading speeds. This is essential, since Google uses speed as a ranking factor.
Additionally, a fast website is more user-friendly. It can reduce bounce rates by encouraging visitors to spend more time on your site.
Speed is also important for Core Web Vitals. This is a set of standardized metrics that reveal how a user experiences a web page. Image compression and optimization enable you to improve two key metrics: First Contentful Paint (FCP) and Largest Contentful Paint (LCP).
Edit and optimize images in WordPress
Taking beautiful photographs or creating unique illustrations is a great way to spruce up your web design. But sometimes your images will require some editing or adjustments.
Fortunately, you can resize, crop, align, flip, and rotate images easily in WordPress. Better yet, you’re able to resize photos in bulk with the help of a plugin. It’s also straightforward to resize product images and thumbnails for WooCommerce.
Image optimization is vital to maintaining fast loading times and creating a better user experience. The easiest way to optimize your images is with Jetpack Boost. With this plugin, you’ll have access to lazy loading, Critical CSS, and Jetpack’s CDN. Check out Jetpack’s plans today to get started!
The world we live in has a heartbeat, and it’s the rhythmic tapping of keys, the swiping of screens, and the posting of emojis. Yes, we’re talking about social media, the digital megaphone that amplifies our voices and connects us to the rest of the world.
For a business owner, social media offers a treasure trove of opportunities to grow, thrive, and outshine the competition.
In today’s post, we’ll unveil 27 benefits of embracing this digital revolution for your business. And, because we’re all about helping WordPress site owners find success, we’ll introduce you to Jetpack Social, the plugin that helps you ride the social media wave with ease and finesse.
Social media benefits for brand visibility and awareness
1. Expand your reach to a wider audience
Think of social media as your business’s virtual megaphone, shouting your message to the masses. It helps you tap into the vast pool of potential customers who are out there, just waiting to discover your brand. With a well-crafted social media strategy, your company will attract more attention, turning those casual scrollers into loyal followers.
2. Connect with your target audience on a personal level
On social media, people aren’t looking for cold, corporate messages. They’re seeking connections with real, authentic brands. Social media platforms offer the opportunity to create a genuine bond with your audience, allowing you to showcase your brand’s personality and tell your story in an engaging way. Make your audience feel like they’re a part of your journey, and they’ll become your biggest cheerleaders.
3. Boost brand perception
By fine-tuning your social media presence, you can create a cohesive and memorable brand image that makes your business stand out. Remember, consistency is key — from your profile picture to your bio, ensure that your brand message is clear and consistent across all platforms, including your website and any print materials you use.
4. Tie your brand to influential personalities
For their followers, the opinions and recommendations of influencers are incredibly powerful. By partnering with influencers who resonate with your brand, you can amplify your message and gain the trust of their audience. Moreover, don’t underestimate the value of your existing customers — anyone now has the potential to become a brand advocate and share their experiences.
5. Build brand partnerships and run cross-promotions
In the business world, collaboration is the secret sauce for success. Social media provides a unique opportunity to forge strategic partnerships with complementary brands and run cross promotions to expand your reach and share resources.
Social media benefits for traffic, sales, and revenue
6. Easily create and share existing content
Thankfully, you don’t need a million dollar production budget to create and share valuable, engaging content. You can quickly try many different kinds of content and see what ideas are engaging enough to entice your audience to click, like, comment, and share. When ideas succeed, they can not only drive traffic to your website, but also help to establish your brand as a thought leader.
7. Auto-share content from your website
As much work as you’ve put into your website, you want to ensure as many people as possible see it. Often, the hardest part of sharing site content on social media is remembering to work it into your content calendar.
With Jetpack Social, you can easily auto-share your blog posts and other website content to your social media platforms, saving you time and ensuring that your audience never misses an update.
8. Run more short-term promotions and offers
Social media provides an irresistible opportunity to run flash sales and marketing promotions that turn followers into customers. And you no longer need a big budget for signage and ad creative. You can quickly create deals for almost any holiday, special event, or temporary fad.
By running exclusive deals and offers on your social media channels, you can not only drive sales, but also encourage your followers to share these promotions with their networks, extending your reach even further.
9. Make the most of social commerce and shoppable posts
The age of social commerce is upon us, where customers can shop directly from their social media feeds. By integrating shoppable posts and social commerce features into your social media strategy, you can create a seamless shopping experience that drives sales and keeps customers coming back for more.
10. Benefit from affordable advertising
Organic reach is fantastic, but sometimes you need a little boost to get your message in front of the right people. Paid social media advertising offers the opportunity to target specific demographics and interests, ensuring that your ad budget is spent wisely and effectively. With the right targeting, your ads will reach your ideal customers, driving traffic and increasing sales. The best part is that, unlike traditional media advertising, you can start advertising for just a few dollars per day.
11. Efficiently follow up with potential customers
Sometimes, customers need a gentle nudge to remind them of your brand and products. Retargeting ads on social media can help you re-engage potential customers who have shown interest in your brand but haven’t yet converted. By keeping your brand top-of-mind, you can increase the likelihood of turning those prospects into paying customers.
Social media benefits for gaining customer insights
12. Learn from detailed audience demographics and analytics
Social media platforms are treasure troves of data, providing valuable insights into your audience’s demographics, interests, and preferences. By analyzing this data, you can better understand your target customers and create content and campaigns that resonate with them, ultimately driving more engagement and conversions.
13. Track and measure customer engagement
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Regularly tracking and analyzing engagement metrics — such as likes, shares, comments, and click-through rates — will help you identify what’s working and what’s not. This valuable information enables you to fine-tune your social media strategy and focus on the content and tactics that generate the best results.
14. Take advantage of social listening and sentiment analysis
Social listening involves monitoring social media conversations and mentions to gain insights into what people are saying about your brand, products, and industry. Sentiment analysis takes it a step further by evaluating the tone and emotions behind these conversations. By leveraging these tools, you can stay ahead of the curve, identify potential issues before they escalate, and uncover valuable feedback to improve your offerings.
15. Send out fast, reliable surveys and polls
Want to know what your customers really think? Just ask them. In the past, you had to send out expensive paper surveys, ask for feedback at your physical locations, or hire an expensive firm to do market research.
Now, social media surveys and polls offer an easy and engaging way to gather feedback, opinions, and preferences from your audience. Get quick feedback on which SKUs to stock next, what pricing format your audience prefers, or nearly anything else. Use this valuable data to inform your business decisions and demonstrate that you value your customers’ input.
Social media benefits for strengthening customer relationships
16. Provide real-time customer support
More than ever, customers have an expectation of quick and efficient support. Social media allows you to offer real-time assistance, addressing concerns and inquiries promptly and publicly. You can solve issues before they turn into a bigger headache, and by demonstrating your commitment to customer satisfaction, you can strengthen relationships and build a loyal customer base.
17. Gather more customer-generated content and testimonials
There’s no better endorsement than a happy customer singing your praises. Through social media, you can easily encourage your customers to share their experiences with your brand through user-generated content and testimonials. By showcasing these authentic stories on your social media channels, you can build trust and credibility with your audience.
18. Host more frequent events and contests
Who doesn’t love a little friendly competition? Social media events and contests are a fantastic way to engage your audience, create buzz around your brand, and reward loyal customers. From photo contests to live Q&A sessions, get creative with your events and watch your customer relationships flourish.
Social media benefits for brand reputation and authority
19. Establish thought leadership through content curation
Content curation is the art of collecting, organizing, and sharing the best content from various sources to provide value to your audience. By consistently curating and sharing high-quality, relevant content, you can establish your brand as a thought leader in your industry, earning the trust and respect of your audience.
20. Collaborate with industry experts and influencers
Aligning your brand with industry experts and influencers can significantly boost your credibility and authority. By collaborating on content, events, or campaigns, you can tap into their expertise and expand your reach to their audience, further solidifying your brand’s reputation.
21. Participate in relevant online conversations and communities
You no longer need to spend your days and nights driving to industry events and meet-and-greets that may or may not be worth your time.
In just a few spare minutes each day, you can join online conversations and communities relevant to your industry to showcase your expertise, provide value, and build relationships with potential customers. By engaging in these discussions, you can position your brand as an authoritative and helpful resource, earning the trust and respect of your audience.
22. Showcase company culture and values
Your brand is more than just your products or services; it’s the people behind it and the values they uphold. Social media allows you to highlight your company culture, values, and the faces behind your brand. This helps humanize your business and allows your audience to connect with you on a deeper level.
Social media benefits for managing brand reputation
23. Address negative feedback and reviews before they spiral
Bad reviews can be a tough pill to swallow, but they’re also an opportunity to demonstrate your brand’s commitment to customer satisfaction. By addressing these concerns promptly and professionally on social media, you can turn a negative situation into a positive one and show your audience that you genuinely care about their experience.
24. Amplify positive customer experiences
When a customer has a fantastic experience with your brand, make sure the world knows about it. Share positive reviews, testimonials, and customer-generated content on your social media channels to highlight the best of what your brand has to offer.
25. Proactively engage with followers to maintain brand reputation
Your brand’s reputation is built on the relationships you nurture with your customers. By proactively engaging with your followers on social media — responding to comments, asking for feedback, and sharing user-generated content — you can maintain a positive brand reputation and foster long-lasting customer loyalty.
Social media benefits for competitive analysis
26. Quickly identify competitor strategies and weaknesses
Keeping an eye on your competition is crucial for staying ahead in the game. Social media platforms offer a wealth of information on your competitors’ strategies, successes, and weaknesses. By analyzing this data, you can identify opportunities for your brand to shine and stay one step ahead.
27. Gather industry trends and insights
Staying up-to-date on industry trends and insights is crucial for success. Social media platforms provide a real-time snapshot of what’s happening in your industry, allowing you to adapt your strategies efficiently.
Frequently asked questions
Below are some commonly asked questions about social media marketing, along with answers from industry experts:
Where can I learn more about social media marketing?
To expand your knowledge of social media marketing, consider exploring the following resources:
Online courses. Websites like Coursera, Udemy, and LinkedIn Learning offer comprehensive social media marketing courses, ranging from beginner to advanced levels, to help you develop your skills.
Blogs and websites. Follow industry-leading blogs and websites such as Social Media Examiner, Jetpack, WordPress, and WooCommerce for insights, tips, and case studies on social media marketing.
Webinars and workshops. Regularly attend webinars and workshops hosted by social media experts and influencers. These events often provide valuable insights and actionable tips.
eBooks and guides. Download free or paid eBooks and guides on social media marketing, which can offer in-depth information and step-by-step strategies for various platforms.
Podcasts. Subscribe to social media marketing podcasts to stay updated on the latest trends and insights.
Networking. Join online communities, forums, and social media groups where professionals discuss social media marketing strategies, challenges, and experiences.
How can I plan a social media strategy for my business?
Below is a step-by-step summary to help you plan a social media strategy for your business:
Set clear goals. Identify your social media objectives, such as brand awareness, customer engagement, lead generation, or sales conversions.
Define your target audience. Understand the demographics, interests, and online behavior of your ideal customers to create content that resonates with them.
Choose the right platforms. Select social media platforms that align with your audience and objectives. Focus on a few platforms where your target audience is most active.
Develop a content strategy. Create a mix of content types, such as promotional, educational, entertaining, and engaging posts, that will appeal to your audience.
Establish a posting schedule. Determine the optimal posting frequency and timing for each platform, based on your audience’s preferences and your resources.
Monitor and analyze performance. Regularly track your social media metrics to measure the effectiveness of your strategy and make data-driven adjustments as needed.
What should I post on my social media pages?
Post a mix of content that’s relevant, valuable, and engaging for your audience. This may include blog posts, industry news, behind-the-scenes looks, promotional offers, user-generated content, and more. Remember to maintain a balance between promotional and non-promotional content to keep your audience engaged.
To keep your social media pages engaging and relevant, consider posting the following types of content:
Educational content. Share informative blog posts, how-to guides, infographics, and industry news to establish your brand as a valuable resource.
Entertaining content. Create fun and entertaining content, such as memes, GIFs, or quizzes, that align with your brand’s tone and voice.
Behind-the-scenes looks. Showcase your company culture and the people behind your brand with candid photos, videos, and stories.
Promotional offers. Share exclusive deals, discounts, and product launches to drive sales and reward your followers.
User-generated content. Encourage your customers to share their experiences and showcase their posts on your social media channels.
Inspirational content. Post motivational quotes, stories, or images that inspire and uplift your audience.
Interactive content. Engage your audience with polls, surveys, or Q&A sessions to encourage participation and gather feedback.
To create a successful social media content strategy, follow these steps:
Identify your goals and objectives. Determine what you want to achieve through your social media content, such as increased engagement, brand awareness, or lead generation.
Understand your audience. Research your target audience’s demographics, interests, and preferences to create content that resonates with them.
Choose content formats. Experiment with various content formats, such as images, videos, articles, and stories, to see what performs best on each platform
Develop content themes and categories. Create a mix of content categories, such as educational, entertaining, promotional, and user-generated content, to maintain variety and keep your audience engaged.
Plan a content distribution strategy. Determine the best times and days to post on each platform and establish a posting frequency that works for your audience and resources.
Monitor and analyze performance. Regularly track your social media metrics to measure the effectiveness of your content strategy and make data-driven adjustments as needed.
A social media content calendar is an essential tool for organizing, scheduling, and tracking your social media posts.
To create one, begin by outlining your content categories, themes, and posting frequency. Then, map out your content for the coming weeks or months, ensuring that you maintain a balanced mix of content types.
Here’s a summary of the steps to create a social media content calendar:
Outline content categories. Define the content themes and categories that you’ll be posting, such as educational, entertaining, or promotional content.
Determine posting frequency. Decide how often you’ll post on each platform, considering your audience’s preferences and your resources.
Plan content in advance. Map out your content for the coming weeks or months, ensuring that you maintain a balanced mix of content types.
Use a digital tool. Leverage tools like Google Calendar, Trello, or Asana to organize and schedule your content calendar, making it easily accessible to your team.
Schedule and automate posts. Use social media management tools like Jetpack Social to schedule and publish your content across multiple platforms.
Monitor and adjust. Regularly review your content calendar and make adjustments based on your performance metrics, audience feedback, or emerging trends.
Growing your social media following takes time, effort, and consistency. To attract and retain followers, consistently post valuable and engaging content, interact with your audience, use relevant hashtags, and collaborate with influencers and complementary brands. Paid advertising and promotions can also help boost your follower count.
To grow your social media following, consider these strategies:
Post valuable and engaging content. Consistently share content that’s relevant, valuable, and interesting to your target audience.
Interact with your audience. Respond to comments, questions, and messages to build relationships with your followers and encourage new users to join the conversation.
Use relevant hashtags. Incorporate popular and relevant hashtags in your posts to increase your content’s visibility and reach a larger audience.
Collaborate with influencers and complementary brands. Partner with influencers and other businesses in your industry to tap into their audience and expand your reach.
Run paid advertising and promotions. Utilize paid advertising campaigns, such as Facebook Ads or Instagram Sponsored Posts, to target and attract potential followers.
Host giveaways and contests. Organize social media contests and giveaways to encourage engagement, increase your reach, and reward your followers.
How can I automate social media posts to save time?
Social media automation tools, like Jetpack Social, can help you schedule and publish posts across multiple platforms, saving you time and ensuring consistency. These tools also offer analytics to help you monitor your performance and optimize your social media strategy.
Jetpack Social: Bringing automation to your social media strategy
Now that you’re well-versed in the many benefits of social media for your business, it’s time to consider a game-changing tool that will help you effortlessly harness the power of social media: Jetpack Social.
Jetpack Social is a robust social media sharing plugin for WordPress that allows you to auto-share your content across multiple platforms, schedule posts, and track engagement — all from one convenient dashboard. With Jetpack Social, you can ensure that your social media strategy is firing on all cylinders without breaking a sweat.
By automating your social media efforts with Jetpack Social, you can focus on creating compelling content, engaging with your audience, and growing your business, while Jetpack Social takes care of the nitty-gritty.
Social media is an essential tool for businesses of all sizes, offering countless benefits for brand visibility, customer engagement, sales, and much more. By leveraging these benefits and incorporating a social media automation tool like Jetpack Social into your strategy, you can elevate your brand to new heights and ensure that your business thrives.
Time to First Byte (TTFB) and server response times are metrics that directly correspond to your website’s perceived speed and overall performance. Optimizing your site to minimize these times can help improve Core Web Vitals scores and, consequently, edge out stiff competition for search engine ranking positions. This also helps you provide the best possible user experience for your site visitors.
Working on these metrics might sound complicated, but there are plenty of ways even beginners can reduce TTFB and server response times on WordPress. For instance, you can install optimization plugins, use a Content Delivery Network (CDN), or migrate to a faster web host.
In this post, we’ll take a closer look at TTFB and why it’s important. Then, we’ll discuss six ways to reduce your TTFB and server response times.
What is Time to First Byte (TTFB)?
To put it simply, Time to First Byte (TTFB) refers to the time that passes between when you click on a web page to when your browser first starts to receive a response. In more technical terms, TTFB measures how long it takes for the server to deliver the first byte of data as a result of an HTTP request.
This process begins with an HTTP request which needs to be received by the server. The speed of this stage depends on a few factors, including the speed of the network, the distance between the client and the server, and any interruptions that might occur.
Next, the server has to process the request. This might involve running scripts, making database calls, and communicating with other network systems. Lastly, the server will deliver a response. This can be affected by the speed of the server and the user’s internet connection. The longer these stages take, the longer it takes for your page to display.
How does TTFB impact the user experience on a WordPress site?
Time to First Byte affects your overall page speed, so keeping it low can contribute to a positive user experience. And visitors are pretty demanding — when page speed increases from just one to three seconds, the probability of people leaving your site increases by 32 percent.
Since page speed is important for keeping users engaged, a good TTFB score can help you generate leads, score conversions, and make sales.
From overloaded servers and discount hosts cutting corners to more positive problems like a huge spike in the popularity of your site, there are a number of things that can contribute to high TTFB times. These include:
A slow server. Your server might not be optimized for WordPress, or you might be on a shared server where you have to compete with other websites for resources.
Servers that are located in just one area. This can cause a high TTFB score for visitors who reside farther from the data center. This is because the further away people are from your server, the higher the network latency and the longer the wait times.
A configuration issue with your server. In this case, you’ll need to contact your web host to see what they can do.
Server saturation. If there’s too much traffic on your website, your server won’t be able to handle the number of requests. This can be quite common if you have a basic hosting plan and experience sudden, rapid growth.
Slow DNS response times. Most people stick with the Domain Name System (DNS) provided by their web host. But, typically, hosting providers don’t spring for a premium DNS, which can lead to slow server response times and high latency.
Unoptimized content. Huge files, lots of database queries, and other types of unoptimized content can result in high TTFB.
How to improve server response times (TTFB) on WordPress (Six Ways)
Now that you know why TTFB is important, let’s take a look at six simple ways to reduce TTFB and server response times.
1. Optimize for Core Web Vitals
If you’re not happy with your TTFB score, the best place to start is by installing a plugin that targets an improvement in Core Web Vitals. These are separate metrics that Google uses to determine site performance and user experience. While this could potentially improve your TTFB, it will also improve the visitor experience overall and compensate for any harm done by a low TTFB score.
With Jetpack Boost, you can optimize your Core Web Vitals and the overall speed of your website.
Developed by Automattic (the company behind WordPress.com), Jetpack Boost is free, open-source, and beginner-friendly. It’s a powerful optimization tool that enables you to improve SEO and Core Web Vitals, targeting specific metrics like LCP and FCP.
To get started, all you need to do is install and activate the plugin in WordPress. Go to Plugins → Add New. Then, you can search for “Jetpack Boost†and click Install now → Activate.
If you have the Jetpack plugin, you can also add Jetpack Boost as a feature.
Once you’ve activated the plugin, you’ll get an instant performance score for desktop and mobile. There are also several features you can take advantage of.
To get started, your only decision is what toggles to activate. You can:
Optimize CSS loading. This ensures that your important styling information loads first.
Defer non-essential JavaScript. This is a great way to speed up content delivery since you’ll be able to load images and styles more quickly.
Turn on lazy image loading. With this feature enabled, your images will only load as they appear on the screen, rather than a browser rendering all the images on a page at once.
2. Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)
Another easy way to reduce TTFB and server response times is to add and use a Content Delivery Network (CDN) in WordPress. CDNs are a cluster of servers, located at strategic locations to speed up the delivery of static content like images and scripts.
CDNs enable you to eradicate the issue of latency and improve your loading times. For instance, your web host’s servers might be in the United States, but you may have lots of visitors based in Europe.
In this instance, TTFB will likely be high for your European visitors since they’re located far away from the server. To combat this, you can use a CDN that uses multiple servers, including one that’s closer to your visitor’s location.
There are a number of CDN providers, but Jetpack CDN is the ideal choice for WordPress.
Jetpack CDN is beginner-friendly and doesn’t involve any complicated configuration or installation steps. Better yet, it’s free, it’s automatic, and there’s no cap on the number of static files you can serve through the CDN. Additionally, Jetpack CDN takes extra measures to improve loading times by automatically resizing images for mobile devices.
While CDNs are a great way to reduce TTFB and server response times, they also enable you to stabilize your site. For example, if one of your web host’s servers goes down, you can continue serving content from the CDN. In fact, even if the entire data center crashes, you can rely on CDNs to keep your website available.
3. Leverage page caching
Page caching speeds up your website’s loading times, but it also reduces the server processing time. This targets the middle part of the TTFB process.
Without caching, WordPress has to execute PHP and MySQL queries every time a new request is made. This can be a time-consuming process.
So instead, you can use caching to generate HTML files directly, rather than generating them from PHP every time. As a result, it takes much less time for you to display your pages to visitors.
Some web hosts like DreamHost offer built-in caching with their managed WordPress hosting plans. If this is the case, you may just need to reach out and ask the host to activate it for you.
Otherwise, there are plenty of free plugins you can use to add caching to your site, like WP Super Cache. This plugin is suitable for all kinds of users.Â
If you’re comfortable editing PHP files, you can use the Expert caching method, which is the quickest available.
Or, beginners can stick with the Simple caching mode, which enables you to keep portions of your page dynamic.
What’s more, you can schedule Garbage Collection at regular intervals to free up space on your server. Meanwhile, you can activate Preload Mode to conserve resources while serving static content at fast speeds.
4. Migrate to a faster web host
If you’re not happy with your current performance, and you think your host’s servers may be to blame, you can migrate to a new web host or server to reduce TTFB. Even if you’re on a budget, you should still prioritize choosing a quality WordPress host with reliable service.
Shared hosting is usually the cheapest option. Meanwhile, dedicated hosting sits at the pricier end of the scale. That’s because, with shared hosting, your website will be on a server with many other websites. So, response times can be slow, and your server is less equipped to handle sharp traffic spikes.
It can be best to opt for a managed WordPress package. The servers used for these plans are optimized specifically for WordPress, and you’ll likely get some sophisticated built-in features for fast performance.
Some quality web hosts even give you the option to automatically minify CSS or JavaScript code, which is a quick and easy way to improve your site’s performance. But fancy features aren’t the only important factor to consider.
Before you make a decision on hosting, it’s a good idea to find out where your host’s servers are located. If most of your customers are based in Europe, it isn’t ideal to choose a web host with data centers scattered around the United States.
On top of that, it’s important to make sure your host’s plans are scalable. For instance, if you’re expecting your business to grow rapidly, your host should easily be able to scale up your resources. This way, you’re able to maintain a good TTFB score and enjoy fast server response times.
5. Use the latest PHP version
Another way to reduce TTFB on WordPress is to make sure you’re running the latest PHP version. Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP) is the programming language that WordPress is built upon.
With each new version of PHP, you can access tighter security measures that reduce the possibility of hacking attempts. But, you can also access new features that expand the functionality of your site or improve its performance.
For example, the more advanced versions of PHP can handle more requests per second. Therefore, to reduce TTFB and server response times, you can check and update your website’s PHP version.
It’s important to make sure you’re running the latest versions of all software on your site, including themes and plugins. This way, you can strengthen your site’s security and improve overall performance.
To do this, head to Dashboard → Updates.
Here, you can view any updates that are available. You can also enable automatic updates for WordPress security releases. Plus, if you scroll further down, you can see whether there are updates available for any plugins and themes on your site.
If there are, simply check the box besides the software you want to update. Then, click on Update. Keep in mind, it’s always a good idea to make a fresh backup of your site before running updates in case something goes wrong.
6. Use a premium DNS provider
Upgrading your Domain Name System (DNS) provider is another easy way to reduce TTFB and server response times on WordPress. Even though some web hosts offer a DNS, most don’t give you access to a premium provider.
DNS works by translating domain names into computer-friendly IP addresses so that browsers can load internet resources like web pages. The process takes place automatically as far as the user is concerned, so it’s not something you need to actively initiate.
Premium DNS providers tend to use a global network of DNS servers, enabling you to answer DNS queries with low latency. This way, you can serve content more quickly, improving SEO and Core Web Vitals.
To take things up a notch, you can even enable DNS prefetching on your site. With this, you can instruct the browser to perform DNS lookups on a page while the user is browsing.
Frequently asked questions about TTFB
Although we’ve tried to provide an in-depth look at how to reduce TTFB and server response times, you might still have some questions. In this section, we’ll answer the most common questions concerning TTFB.
How can I measure my WordPress site’s TTFB score?
Before you start implementing tips from this post, you can measure your site’s current TTFB using some handy tools. PageSpeed Insights is your best bet, since it’s free, fast, and easily accessible. All you need to do is enter your site’s URL and click on Analyze.
Then, you’ll receive a Core Web Vitals assessment for desktop and mobile. Here, you can see clear scores for each of the metrics including Total Blocking Time and FCP. Below this, you’ll also find diagnostics information and advice on how to improve your accessibility rating.
Google Search Console (GSC) is another useful tool to measure TTFB. But, to get started with GSC, you’ll first need to create an account.
Alternatively, you can use Lighthouse, which you can run in Chrome DevTools from the command line or as a Node module. This way, you can access an advanced page audit and generate a free report to improve the quality of your web pages.
This audit will include an assessment of plenty of useful metrics including TTFB and Time to Interactive (TTI).
What is a good TTFB score?
According to Google, most websites should aim for a TTFB score of 0.8 seconds. Anything over 800 milliseconds (ms) needs improvement. Scores above 1800 ms are considered very poor. If this is the score you receive, you should take steps to reduce your TTFB right away.
How can I easily account for a low TTFB score?
The best place to start is with a free plugin like Jetpack Boost. Not only is this method the most beginner-friendly, it’s also super quick to set up. It works automatically in the background of your site and requires very little configuration.
It works to improve the overall performance of your site and your Core Web Vitals score, immediately going to work to counteract a poor TTFB result.
Plus, you can target important Core Web Vitals straight from your WordPress dashboard. To get started, head to Plugins → Add New in WordPress. Then, search for “Jetpack Boost.†Click install now → Activate.
Then, from your WordPress dashboard, visit Jetpack → Boost to view your performance score. This is also where you can tweak settings to boost your Core Web Vitals and improve SEO. For example, you can enable Lazy Loading so that your images only load when they’re needed.
Additionally, you can defer non-essential JavaScript to prioritize the loading of styles and images. The plugin is super simple to use, and if you change your mind about one of the settings, you only need to return to this page and use the toggle to disable the feature.
Reduce TTFB and server response times now
If you’re looking to improve the user experience and boost your Core Web Vitals, you might want to reduce Time to First Byte (TTFB). Fortunately, there are tons of ways to reduce server response times and power up the performance of your WordPress website.
To recap, here are six ways to improve your site performance, TTFB, and server response times:
No matter your site, you can always benefit from a quick boost in performance. If you’re on WordPress, that power comes in a handy plugin. Get Jetpack Boost today!
Using web fonts, CSS, and JavaScript can make your website more unique and interactive. But waiting for these file types to load can be frustrating for your site’s visitors.
This is where preloading key requests in WordPress can come in handy. By telling browsers to download these file types earlier in the request chain, they’ll be on hand when the browser is ready to render the content. In turn, this can speed up your perceived page load time and provide a better overall web experience.
In today’s guide, we’ll discuss what preloading key requests means, along with the potential performance benefits for your website. Then, we’ll explain how to do this on your WordPress site with Google Fonts, Font Awesome, CSS, and JavaScript.
What does “preload key requests†mean in WordPress?
When someone visits your website, their browser will send multiple HTTP requests to your site’s server, asking it for the files that make up your content. The server will take a certain amount of time to start responding to these requests and sending information to the browser, which is referred to as the Time to First Byte (TTFB).
Next, the browser will start downloading content (PHP, JavaScript, and CSS) from your site files and rendering it to display viewable pages (HTML) on the front end. Once this process has been completed, the visitor can see your fully-loaded webpage.
A browser will use a ‘request chain’ to ask for and render content in a sequence. That means there are multiple steps of smaller requests within the larger ones, with the end result being that a visitor can view the content on your site.
Essentially, ‘preloading’ means telling a user’s browser to download essential files first instead of waiting until the end of the loading process. These are typically fonts (particularly web fonts), CSS, JavaScript, and sometimes images.
Key requests are unique because your browser wouldn’t typically request these files until later in the loading process. So, there will be a delay when the browser gets to that point and discovers that it must request the files. By telling the browser to load these files first, it will have them handy when it needs to render them.
What are the benefits of preloading key requests?
The main benefit of preloading key requests is improving the perceived performance of your site. This means that a user’s browser can render your content more quickly, and visitors will feel like your site is faster. But, your site is really just preloading essential content to make it appear that way.
Furthermore, preloading requests is essential to your Core Web Vitals scores. These Google metrics measure your site’s loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability, giving you a score that signifies your website’s overall user-friendliness.
These are the three Core Web Vitals:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): How long it takes for the largest element on your page to load.
First Input Delay (FID): How long it takes for the browser to respond to user interaction with your content.
In particular, preloading key requests can have a significant impact on your LCP score. By preloading images, fonts, and other large files, you’ll be able to reduce the time it takes for them to render.
Additionally, preloading can affect your First Contentful Paint (FCP) score. This metric measures how long it takes for the first HTML element on your page to be displayed. If you can preload that element, the browser will be able to show the initial parts of your content more quickly.
What’s more, search engines, like Google, favor fast-loading and interactive content. Therefore, beyond providing a better user experience, improving these performance metrics can boost your website’s Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
Essentially, performance improvements can help push your site’s pages up in the rankings and get your content in front of more users. Plus, preloading key requests is relatively easy. Later on in this post, we’ll show you exactly how to do it!
Are there disadvantages of preloading key requests?
Preloading requests might sound like a great idea from a performance perspective. That being said, trying to preload too many elements can work against you.
A browser can only process so many requests at once. So, if you tell it to preload multiple elements, it could create a ‘bottleneck’ that works against your site’s page load time.
Therefore, it’s worth carefully choosing which elements should be preloaded for the greatest impact. In most cases, these will be web fonts, CSS, and JavaScript, since these tend to be the heaviest files.
How to check if your site is preloading key requests
A couple of different tools can identify whether your site is preloading requests and suggest elements that could benefit from this optimization technique. For example, PageSpeed Insights is one of the most popular options for identifying performance problems on your website.
To use this free tool, simply enter your site’s URL and click on Analyze. This will generate a detailed performance report.
Scroll down to see the performance opportunities, diagnostics, and passed audits. You should be able to find the Preload key requests suggestion in one of these sections.
If you prefer not to navigate back and forth between your site and PageSpeed Insights, consider installing the Google Lighthouse Chrome extension. It enables you to generate reports from within the browser and view a page’s performance metrics.
Similarly, GTMetrix can generate detailed performance reports for any site. It lets you analyze pages from multiple locations and track their performance over time.
Under GTMetrix’s Structure tab, you’ll be able to see whether preloading key requests could help your site’s performance.
How to preload key requests in WordPress
Before making any significant changes to your WordPress site, like adding custom code, it’s always worth making a complete backup. This safety precaution means you’ll have a functional version of your website on hand if you make any mistakes.
This is where Jetpack VaultPress Backup comes in handy. This user-friendly plugin automatically creates comprehensive backups of all your data, including its files, database tables, and WooCommerce product information. These backups are saved in real time and stored securely in the cloud. You can restore them in just a few clicks — even if you’re on the go or can’t access your site at all.
1. Fonts
Sometimes, fonts can get buried within other files on your website, including CSS and JavaScript files. Unfortunately, this can slow down the page rendering process.
To preload requests with fonts in WordPress, copy and paste this code into the <head> section of your page:
Remember to substitute “Font-Name†for the name of your font. Furthermore, including “crossorigin†is essential if your font comes from a third-party source because it tells the browser that it needs to load the file from an external server.
2. Google Fonts
Google Fonts includes an open-source library of nearly 1500 font families. If you’re looking for custom web fonts to use on your site, you can likely find one there.
Using Google Fonts can help bring a unique design to your site, but the browser must also download the font files when rendering the content. Depending on your font, this can increase your page load time.
When preloading Google Fonts, it’s also a good idea to ‘preconnect’ them first. This step tells the browser in advance that it will need to connect to a third-party site (e.g., Google Fonts) to retrieve a resource.
Additionally, after adding your preloading code, it’s worth including a link to its stylesheet. That way, if your user’s browser is unable to preload the font in question, it will still be able to render it.
Font Awesome is a great resource for custom icons and fonts, with both free and premium options within its library. You might use some of these icons to supercharge the design within your menus, headers, footers, and content areas.
Like Google Fonts, preloading Font Awesome icons can be a good idea for speeding up the perceived page load time. Just add this code to the <head> section of the page:
You’ll need to swap out the file path for the font or icon you’re using on your website. Then, save your changes!
4. CSS
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a design language that works together with HTML to determine a web page’s style and presentation. With custom CSS, you can quickly change the appearance of different elements.
Each styled HTML page on your website will have a corresponding stylesheet with all of your CSS. A browser needs to load this file when rendering a web page, so it’s worth telling the browser that it should preload this resource.
Fortunately, there’s an easy way to preload CSS. Simply add this code to the <head> section of your page:
Make sure to substitute “styles.css†for the name of the stylesheet. Additionally, keep in mind that while this code will work in Google Chrome, it isn’t supported by all browsers.
5. JavaScript
JavaScript is another one of the common scripting languages used in WordPress. It lets you create dynamic content like animations, moving carousels of images, and automatically-updating feeds.
Rendering JavaScript is typically more complex because its files are comparatively heavy, requiring a longer process to display content. That’s why telling a browser to preload heavy JavaScript can be beneficial for speeding up page load time.
Like with CSS, you’ll just need to add this simple line of code to the <head> section of the page:
As before, substitute “ui.js†for the name of the JavaScript file, and save your changes.
Bonus: Install a free plugin to improve Core Web Vitals
Preloading requests is just one technique you can use to improve your WordPress site’s Core Web Vitals scores.
If you’re looking for a more comprehensive (and free!) solution, consider installing Jetpack Boost. This tool is developed by Automattic, the same company behind WordPress.com.
This user-friendly plugin scans your entire website and gives you a score on desktop and mobile devices. Furthermore, Jetpack Boost isn’t just useful for the three Core Web Vitals. Its optimization methods can improve other metrics, including Time to Interactive (TTI) and Total Blocking Time (TBT).
Alternatively, Jetpack Complete can take your WordPress site to an entirely new level. This plan contains multiple tools for performance, including access to Jetpack’s image Content Delivery Network (CDN), which can both save bandwidth and improve your page load time. Plus, you’ll get advanced WordPress security and growth tools.
Frequently asked questions about preloading key requests
At this point, you should have a good understanding of how to preload key requests in WordPress. Still, we’ll go over some frequently asked questions just to be sure!
Does preloading requests improve user experience?
Preloading requests can improve the user experience by decreasing your site’s perceived loading times. Since visitors won’t have to wait as long for your content to render, they’ll be less likely to feel frustrated and potentially leave your website for a different one.
Does preloading requests improve Core Web Vitals?
Preloading key requests in WordPress can improve your Core Web Vitals scores, particularly, when it comes to Largest Contentful Paint (LCP). In fact, when you decide on which elements to preload, it would be wise to include your ‘largest’ or ‘main’ content, as this is what would likely benefit most from it.
Preload key requests vs. preload critical assets
It’s worth noting that preloading key requests means the same as preloading critical assets. Both terms refer to telling a browser to load particular resources in advance to render a page’s content more quickly.
Preload vs. preconnect vs. prefetch
Preloading, preconnecting, and prefetching might seem like similar concepts, but they actually mean slightly different things. They are all tags that instruct a browser in which order to load content, but they serve distinct functions.
First, preloading involves loading content needed to render the page within a user’s browser. It’s a high-priority tag that will get a resource ready within a few seconds.
By contrast, prefetching concerns the subsequent elements that might need to be loaded. The browser will look for resources in advance and store them in its cache. It’s a very low-priority tag, so you shouldn’t use it for urgent resources.
Finally, preconnecting is used when you want to tell a browser to connect to a particular domain. If your site uses a resource from a specific third-party site (like Google Fonts), preconnecting tells the browser that it will need to connect to that domain at some point in the loading process.
What else can I do to improve my site’s performance?
Various tasks can help improve your WordPress site’s performance, including:
Using a CDN to serve your content to visitors worldwide
It’s also worth choosing a high-quality WordPress host that will provide you with performance-optimization features like dedicated caching, an uptime guarantee, and a vast network of data centers worldwide.
Improve your WordPress site’s performance by preloading key requests
Page load times can significantly impact your website’s user experience and search engine rankings. So, you’ll want to do everything in your power to speed up the time it takes for a browser to display your site’s content.
When you preload key requests within your pages, a visitor’s browser will have resources (like fonts, CSS, and JavaScript) at the ready. Then, there won’t be a delay while loading your content and making it accessible to users.
Preloading key requests is just one step toward improving your site’s performance. Using Jetpack Boost, you can easily configure your website to lazy load images, defer non-essential JavaScript, and more. Better yet, the plugin is free to use. Check out Jetpack Boost today!
We are excited to present the Jetpack AI Assistant, our latest feature aimed at enriching your WordPress experience. Available today on WordPress.com and all Jetpack-powered sites, this tool utilizes the potential of artificial intelligence, adding a formidable ally to your writing process.
Let’s explore the Jetpack AI Assistant and see how it can make your writing more efficient and engaging.
Seamless Integration with WordPress
The Jetpack AI Assistant effortlessly integrates with the WordPress Editor, offering an intuitive interface to interact with AI. This powerful block lets you generate diverse content at your command, significantly reducing the time and effort required in content creation.
AI-Powered Content Generation
Simply provide a prompt, and watch as Jetpack AI Assistant crafts compelling blog posts, detailed pages, structured lists, and comprehensive tables — all customized to match your unique requirements.
Adaptive Tone Adjustment
Tailor the tone of your text to match your desired style. Make your writing humorous, confident, or empathetic. Whether you aim for a formal tone or a conversational one, Jetpack AI Assistant adjusts to your goals.
Title & Summary Generation
Struggling to find a good title or summary? Jetpack AI Assistant has you covered. It will create fitting titles and concise summaries for your posts.
Translate Effortlessly
Reach audiences in 12 languages like Spanish, French, Chinese, and Hindi. Or if English is your second language, write in your native language and translate to English. AI‑powered translations are at your fingertips so you can break down language barriers.
Superior Spelling and Grammar Correction
Avoid those embarrassing mistkaes mistakes with Jetpack AI Assistant’s spelling and grammar correction features.
Conversational UI
It’s just like sitting with a co-author. Communicate with the Jetpack AI Assistant as if you were chatting with a colleague.
And this is just the beginning! We’re working to expand Jetpack AI Assistant’s capabilities, so stay tuned for even more exciting features in the coming weeks.
Give the Jetpack AI Assistant block a whirl! It’s ready for you to explore, with 20 free requests on us. After that, it’s just $10 per month.
Also, exciting news for WordPress.com users — the Jetpack AI Assistant is available free of charge on all WordPress.com sites for a limited time. Note that Jetpack AI is an experimental feature, so pricing may change in the future.
To get started, just add the AI Assistant block to any page or post. Pro-tip: type “/ai†to use the block shortcut.
We’re thrilled to announce some major enhancements and exciting new features that will revolutionize the way you work and interact with your audience. Jetpack is here to supercharge your online presence, boost your productivity, and help you reach new heights of success. Let’s dive right into the change log and explore what’s in store for you!
New AI Assistant Block: Unleash the Power of AI Directly from Your Editor!
Imagine having an intelligent assistant right at your fingertips, ready to assist you in creating captivating content. Well, now you can! Introducing the AI Assistant block, a groundbreaking addition to Jetpack. With this powerful feature, you can harness the extraordinary capabilities of artificial intelligence directly from your editor. Whether you need help with writing, research, or generating creative ideas, the AI Assistant is here to make your life easier and your content even better. Say hello to your new writing companion!
Monetize Your Content with Donations, Paid Content, and Payment Buttons!
We believe that your valuable content deserves recognition and rewards. That’s why we’re excited to announce that Donations, Paid Content, and Payment Buttons blocks are now available to all. Monetizing your passion has never been easier. Whether you’re accepting donations, selling exclusive content, or offering products or services, Jetpack provides you with the tools you need to effortlessly integrate these features into your website. Please note that a commission is charged (depending on your plan). Start earning what you deserve today!
Social Sharing Made Effortless: Mastodon and Instagram Integration
It’s time to take your social media game to the next level! We’ve made it even easier for you to connect with your audience by automatically sharing your new posts to Mastodon and Instagram. With just a few clicks, you can effortlessly expand your reach and engage with your followers across multiple platforms. Share your latest articles, updates, and insights with the world without any hassle. Get ready to make a lasting impression on your audience!
Enhancements
We’ve carried out numerous updates on different features. Including being able to see your site’s speed performance score from your Jetpack dashboard.
Speed scores in dash
Enhancements also include renaming the “Premium Content” block to “Paid Content” block, improving spam filtering on Contact Forms, and a visual refresh to the Modules list to make it easier to turn on or off any modules you’d like.
Modules refresh
We’ve added lots of new features to Newsletters including enabling on self-hosted environments, adding misconfiguration warning functionality, and much more.
Improved Compatibility
We’re committed to keeping Jetpack compatible with other services and plugins. This includes allowing disabling Jetpack’s Image CDN in requests made for the ActivityPub plugin, avoiding errors when using non-official Bit.ly plugins alongside Jetpack, and enhancing PHP 8 compatibility.
Bug Fixes
Your feedback has been invaluable in helping us identify and address various bugs. We’ve fixed a race condition bug in the Plugin update endpoint, fixed styling for the Stats banner in the At-a-Glance feature, ensured the correct file path for all images in the “My Plan” screen, among many other fixes.
A big thank you to everyone who contributed to this release:
Social media is an integral part of our lives, and it’s impossible to ignore its impact on nonprofits. These organizations can leverage social media to build relationships, spread awareness about their cause, and increase donations.
Social media platforms provide an avenue for organizations to connect with their supporters and share their mission with the world. In this guide, we’ll explore the benefits of social media for nonprofits, the unique challenges these kinds of organizations face, and how they can create an effective strategy.
We’ll also cover best practices for nonprofit social media management and content creation. And, of course, we’ll share how Jetpack Social can help fuel success.
Is social media important for nonprofits?
Social media is a vital tool for nonprofits to reach a wider audience and cultivate support. With over four billion social media users worldwide, it’s hard to ignore.
Social media platforms can help nonprofits build their brand, share their mission, and engage with their audience. Nonprofits that leverage social media effectively can increase their reach, raise more funds, and drive more action towards their cause.
Benefits of social media for nonprofits
There are many benefits of social media for nonprofits. Some of the most significant benefits include:
Increased visibility. Social media allows nonprofits to reach a wider audience and increase their visibility. With the right content and strategy, nonprofits can gain more followers, improve engagement, and build awareness.
More donations. By sharing compelling stories, statistics, and campaigns, nonprofits can inspire followers to support their cause.
Improved engagement. Social media allows nonprofits to engage with their audience in a more personalized way. By responding to comments, sharing user-generated content, and thanking donors, nonprofits can foster a sense of community around their cause.
Greater volunteerism. Nonprofits can share job and volunteer opportunities, and highlight the work of existing team members to inspire others to get involved.
Challenges of social media for nonprofits
While social media offers many benefits for nonprofits, there are also challenges to using it successfully. Some of the most common ones include:
Limited resources. Many nonprofits have limited resources, including staff and budget. Social media can be time-consuming and requires a lot of effort to manage effectively.
Limited reach. While social media platforms have a large user base, it can be challenging for nonprofits to reach their target audience. To be successful, nonprofits need to continually create compelling content that resonates with their followers.
Negative feedback. Nonprofits need to be prepared to handle negative feedback and criticism on social media. It’s essential to respond professionally and handle issues quickly to avoid damaging their reputation.
What can a nonprofit social media strategy be used for?
The reach that social media provides makes it an essential tool for nonprofits to communicate with their audience and mobilize support. By having a clear and effective social media strategy, nonprofits can maximize their impact, reach new audiences, and build long-lasting relationships with supporters. In this section, we’ll explore the ways in which a nonprofit social media strategy can help further the mission.
1. Support fundraising efforts
Social media is a great tool for nonprofits to raise funds and support their cause. Without spending a ton of money, they can share their fundraising campaigns, calls to action, and success stories with a wide audience. They can also promote crowdfunding campaigns or donation-matching challenges to inspire their followers to donate more.
By leveraging the right platform, nonprofits can reach potential donors where they spend most of their time. Social media can also be used to engage with donors and supporters, thank them for their contributions, and build better relationships.
2. Promote events and advocacy campaigns
Social media provides an opportunity for nonprofits to promote their events and advocacy campaigns. They can share information about events, create buzz around their campaigns, and invite their followers to participate.
Nonprofits can also use social media to showcase past event highlights, share photos and videos from activities, and thank supporters for their attendance. By leveraging social media, nonprofits can increase event attendance and raise awareness about their advocacy campaigns.
3. Share milestones and success stories
Social media can be used to help keep supporters encouraged, engaged, and motivated. By sharing updates on the nonprofit’s impact or recent milestones surpassed, organizations can build long-lasting momentum.
From creating graphics that summarize accomplishments to showcasing success through video interviews with beneficiaries, volunteers, and partners, there are plenty of ways nonprofits can demonstrate the impact of their work.
4. Engage and cultivate relationships with donors
It’s not all about finding new supporters — social media can be used to bolster relationships with existing donors and volunteers as well. Nonprofits can thank their donors for their contributions, and share updates and individual stories about the impact their donations have had in the real world.
Organizations can use social media to provide behind-the-scenes glimpses of their work, showcase the people behind their organization, and offer exclusive opportunities for supporters.
By leveraging social media, nonprofits can build lasting relationships with their donors and increase the likelihood of future donations.
5. Recruit board members, volunteers, and staff
Social media can be a powerful tool for nonprofits to recruit board members, volunteers, and staff. They can post new job openings and volunteer opportunities, as well as showcase the work of current team members.
Nonprofits can also use social media to highlight the benefits of working for their organization, share testimonials from current and past staff, and provide a glimpse into the culture. By leveraging social media, nonprofits can attract the right talent and build a strong team to support their mission.
6. Drive website traffic
Driving more website traffic is often a top goal for nonprofits, and social media provides plenty of opportunities to help meet that objective. Organizations can share links to their website, blog posts, and other content to encourage followers to abandon scrolling and explore more about them.
Many social media platforms also allow nonprofits to create targeted, paid ad campaigns to collect new email subscribers, find leads for potential donors or volunteers, or simply drive site traffic on a pay-per-click basis.
7. Engage with media outlets and personalities
Social media can be used to engage with media outlets and build relationships with key reporters and contributors. Nonprofits can connect with journalists, bloggers, and other media influencers, share their story ideas and news releases, and establish themselves as an expert in their field.
Organizations can also use social media to respond to media requests, share relevant content, and thank outlets for their coverage.
The amplification of their message through the media relationships built on social media is an indirect benefit of using social platforms, but it’s one that can’t be ignored.
8. Build relationships with key stakeholders
Nonprofits need the support of many different key stakeholders, such as policymakers, community leaders, and influencers. Through social media, organizations can engage with these stakeholders, share relevant information, and build rapport.
Nonprofits can also use social media to demonstrate their impact and effectiveness, highlight accomplishments, and advocate for their cause.
9. Collaborate with other nonprofit organizations
Social media can be used to collaborate with complementary organizations and form partnerships to increase each other’s reach and impact, share resources, and support each other’s missions.
They can promote joint events, campaigns, and initiatives, and encourage their followers to get involved.
10. Foster a sense of community
Nonprofits can use social media to foster a sense of community around their cause and mission. By sharing their stories, accomplishments, and impact on social media, nonprofits can inspire followers and create a sense of belonging.
Nonprofits can also use social media to engage with their followers, respond to comments and messages, and recognize their support.
How to create a nonprofit social media strategy in ten steps
With so many social media opportunities available, it can be overwhelming to know where to start. That’s why we’ve put together this step-by-step guide to help you create a successful social media strategy for your nonprofit:
1. Define your organization’s social media goals
Before you start creating your nonprofit’s social media strategy, it’s crucial to define your goals. What do you hope to achieve through your efforts? Are you looking to raise awareness, build relationships, or promote your campaigns? Having clear goals in mind will help you stay focused and measure your success.
Once you’ve defined your goals, think about how social media fits into your overall strategy. Are there specific, existing campaigns or initiatives you want to promote through social media? Are there certain audiences you want to target?
2. Identify your strengths and unique value proposition
Next, take a step back and think about what sets your nonprofit apart. What are your strengths and unique value proposition? How can you use your strengths to achieve your social media goals? This will help you identify the messaging and content that will resonate with your target audience and make your organization stand out.
Think about the values and mission that drive your nonprofit. Use this to inform the messaging and content that you share on social media and make sure your online presence accurately reflects your organization.
3. Research what other organizations are doing
Once you clearly understand your strengths and unique value proposition, it’s time to research what other organizations in your sector are doing on social media. What strategies are they using? What seems to be working well for them? This research can provide valuable insights into best practices, as well as areas where you can differentiate yourself and stand out.
Take the time to review the social media profiles of other nonprofits in your sector, and make note of what you like and what you think could be improved.
Here’s what your research process could look like:
Review the social media profiles of 5-10 other nonprofits.
Take note of what they’re posting, how often they do so, the days of the week and times they post, and what seems to be resonating with their followers.
Write down what you like about their strategy and what you think could be improved.
Analyze their engagement metrics (likes, comments, shares, etc.) to see what kinds of content seems to work best.
Consider how you can incorporate elements of their successful strategies into your own plan.
Look for areas where you can differentiate yourself from what they’re doing.
4. Choose the right social media platforms
Next, it’s time to choose the right social media platforms for your nonprofit. Consider your goals, target audience, and resources when making your decision. Each platform has its unique features and audience, so choose the ones that make the most sense for your organization.
Identify where your target audience is spending their time online, and make sure you have a presence on the platforms that are most relevant. It’s usually best to start small and focus on a few platforms at first. You can always expand later as you grow your following.
Here’s how to determine which social media platforms to use:
Research your target audience to determine where they’re spending their time online.
Consider platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Make sure you fully understand each platform’s unique features and audience.
Choose the platforms that are most relevant to your goals and target audience.
Determine what kind of content works best on each platform. For example, images are a great fit for Pinterest and Instagram.
Keep in mind that your target audience and the platforms they use may change over time, so be prepared to adjust your strategy as needed.
WooCommerce has a great guide to help you choose the right social media platforms. While it focuses on ecommerce stores, there’s a lot of great information for nonprofits, too!
5. Develop brand guidelines for content creation and curation
With your social media platforms in place, it’s time to develop brand guidelines for content creation and curation. These guidelines should outline the tone, style, and messaging that should be used across all of your social media profiles. This will help ensure consistency and coherence in your messaging and make it easier for your team to create and curate content.
Focus on the image you want to project through your social media presence, and make sure your brand guidelines reflect this. Ensure that all content created for your social media channels aligns with your brand guidelines, and consider hiring a professional to help with content creation, if necessary.
Here are some tips related to developing social media brand guidelines for a nonprofit:
Define the tone and voice you want to use on social media.
Determine the style of content that will best represent your brand.
Decide on the messaging you want to convey through your social media channels.
Make sure your brand guidelines are clear, concise, and easily accessible to your team.
Make sure all team members involved in social media management are trained on the brand guidelines and understand how to apply them in their work.
Regularly review and update your brand guidelines as needed to ensure they remain relevant and effective.
Create or highlight real-world examples of posts that you want to emulate. Do the same for posts whose content, tone, or imagery goes against what you want for your organization. Make notes on why these examples are good or bad.
6. Choose the right automation tools to increase efficiency
There are a variety of automation tools available that can help increase efficiency and save time. Tools such as Jetpack Social can help you automate your social media posting and streamline your efforts by auto-sharing your website content on social media and scheduling posts in advance.
When choosing tools, consider taking the following steps:
Research and compare different automation tools to determine which ones are the best fit for your organization.
Consider factors such as ease of use, cost, and the specific features offered by each tool.
Make sure your top choice integrates with your existing tools and systems.
Take advantage of free trials or demos to test out the tool before making a decision.
Consider how the automation tool will impact your team’s workflow and whether it will save enough time to warrant any expenses.
Make sure the automation tool you choose offers analytics and reporting capabilities so you can track your social media performance.
Take advantage of the support and resources offered by the tool to ensure you’re making the most of its features.
7. Create a content calendar
Once you have your brand guidelines and automation tools in place, it’s time to build a content calendar. This calendar should outline the content you plan to post on each of your social media platforms and when those posts should be distributed. This will help ensure that you’re consistently sharing engaging and relevant content. It will also make it easier to plan and schedule posts in advance.
Having a content calendar in place can help you stay organized and avoid last-minute scrambling to create posts.
To create a content calendar for your nonprofit:
Start by mapping out important events, campaigns, and milestones for your organization.
Plan content around these events in advance to make sure you are capitalizing on opportunities to engage with your audience and that your social media efforts are purposefully contributing to your goals.
Consider the different types of content you want to create and when each type of content is best shared.
Make sure you include a mix of promotional, educational, and engaging content in your calendar.
Use your brand guidelines to inform the tone, style, and messaging of your content.
Use analytics and insights from past posts to inform the content you include in your calendar.
Make sure you’re scheduling posts at optimal times for each platform.
Consider using a shared calendar or project management tool to keep your content calendar organized and accessible to your team.
8. Leverage social media influencers and advocates
Social media influencers and advocates can help spread your message and reach a wider audience. Partner with individuals who are passionate about your cause, have a large following on social media, and whose reputation will reflect positively on your organization.
Research potential influencers and advocate partners by looking at their social media presence, following, and engagement levels. A smaller audience that’s heavily engaged is often better than a large group of followers who never pay attention.
Reach out to individuals who align with your mission and values and see if they would be interested in partnering with you.
Create a clear agreement outlining the terms of the partnership, including the type of content you want them to create, the compensation you can offer, and the expected outcomes from the partnership.
Provide influencers and advocate partners with the resources and information they need to create effective content.
Make sure you’re tracking the impact of your influencer and advocate partnerships and adjusting your approach as needed.
Consider offering incentives to your influencer and advocate partners, such as exclusive access to events or early access to new campaigns.
Foster ongoing relationships with influencer and advocate partners to ensure that the partnership continues to be mutually beneficial.
9. Integrate social media into your broader strategy
Social media should be integrated into your broader communications and fundraising strategy. Make sure your efforts support your overall goals and objectives. For example, you can use social media to promote your fundraising campaigns, thank donors, and share updates on your progress.
Things to keep in mind when integrating social media into your broader strategy:
Make sure your social media profiles are connected to your website, email, and other communication channels so that you can drive traffic and conversions from social media to other parts of your organization.
Develop a cross-promotion strategy that takes advantage of the strengths of each channel. For example, you can promote your social media channels through email and vice versa.
Use social media to build relationships with donors and supporters by responding to comments and messages, publicly recognizing their contributions, and sharing updates on the impact of their donations.
Use social media to promote fundraising campaigns and events by creating compelling visuals and videos that highlight the impact of the campaign and the reasons why people should donate.
Keep your supporters informed and engaged with regular updates on your progress by sharing success stories, impact updates, and other content that highlights the impact of their contributions.
10. Analyze and adjust your social media strategy
Finally, regularly analyze the success of your social media efforts and make adjustments. Continuously iterate and improve your strategy to ensure that you’re making the most of your social media presence. Use analytics tools to measure the reach and engagement of your posts and identify areas for improvement. This will help you make informed decisions about how to adjust your strategy and achieve your goals more effectively.
It’s important to remember that social media is constantly evolving, and your strategy should be flexible and adaptable. Be open to trying new tactics, experimenting with different types of content, and adjusting your approach as needed. By continuously refining your strategy, you can ensure that your social media efforts are making the biggest impact possible for your nonprofit.
Best practices for nonprofit social media management and content creation
Social media is a powerful tool for nonprofits to engage with their audience, build relationships, and increase their impact. Here are 12 best practices for nonprofit social media management and content creation:
1. Optimize your content for each platform
To maximize the impact of your social media efforts, you should optimize your content for each platform. Consider the unique features and audience of each one and adjust your content accordingly. For example, on Instagram, visual content like images and videos tend to perform well, while on others, short, concise updates are often the most effective.
Take the time to understand what generally works best for each platform, and experiment with different types of content to see what resonates with your specific audience.
2. Experiment with different types of content
Don’t be afraid to try new things. Experimenting with different types of content can help you find what works best for your audience and make the most of your social media presence. Try incorporating images, videos, live streams, and other types of content into your strategy to see what gets the most traction.
Think about the different ways you can tell your nonprofit’s story, and consider how each type of content can help you achieve your goals. For example, visual content like images and videos can help create emotional connections with your audience, while live streams can help you engage with your followers in real time.
3. Use storytelling to create emotional connections
Storytelling is a powerful tool for creating emotional connections with your audience. Share stories that demonstrate the impact of your work and inspire others to get involved. Think about the different ways you can bring your nonprofit’s stories to life, and how you can use storytelling to engage and inspire your audience.
Humanize your nonprofit and make a personal connection with your audience. Share stories about the people you serve, the impact of your work, and the challenges you face. Make sure your stories are relatable, inspiring, and memorable.
4. Incorporate user-generated content from supporters and advocates
Incorporating user-generated content from supporters and advocates can help build a sense of community and create a more authentic and engaging presence on social media. Encourage your followers to share their own stories and experiences related to your nonprofit’s cause, and feature this content on your social media channels.
Consider using contests, challenges, and campaigns to encourage your supporters to share their own stories and experiences.
5. Create social media content that’s accessible to all
It’s essential to ensure that your social media content is accessible to all, including individuals with disabilities. Use alternative text for images and closed captioning for videos to ensure that everyone can access and enjoy your content.
Also, make sure your social media content is easily understandable, regardless of the language or culture of your audience. Use clear and concise language, and avoid jargon and technical terms whenever possible.
6. Use visual and video content to tell your nonprofit’s story
Visual and video content are a powerful way to tell your nonprofit’s story and create emotional connections with your audience. By incorporating images, videos, and other types of visual content into your social media strategy, you can bring your story to life and engage your followers in new and exciting ways.
Consider using a variety of types of visual content, including photos and videos of your staff and volunteers in action, graphics and infographics to explain complex concepts, and behind-the-scenes glimpses of your work. You can also showcase the impact of your work, share inspiring stories from your supporters, and connect with your audience on a deeper level.
When creating visual content, focus on high-quality images and videos that clearly communicate your message. Use compelling captions, hashtags, and other creative elements to make your visual content stand out on social media.
7. Leverage tools to automate social media posting
Automating your social media posting can save you time and increase efficiency, allowing you to focus on creating and curating the most engaging content. There are a variety of tools available, including Jetpack Social, that can streamline your efforts.
When choosing a tool for automating your social media posting, consider your goals, target audience, and resources. Make sure the tool you choose is easy to use and integrates seamlessly with your existing systems and processes.
Once you have a tool in place, consider how you can put it to work to automate your social media — including scheduling posts in advance, creating and publishing content at optimal times, and tracking your performance and engagement metrics.
By leveraging tools to automate your social media posting, you can increase your efficiency, save time, and make the most of your social media presence.
8. Develop a social media ambassador program
Developing a social media ambassador program is a great way to engage your supporters and encourage them to share your message with their own followers. People who are both passionate about your cause and have a large following on social media are incredibly valuable assets for your nonprofit.
To develop a social media ambassador program, consider how you can involve your supporters and advocates in your existing efforts, and think about what types of recognition and rewards you can offer. You can also provide ambassadors with training and resources to help them effectively share your message.
By working with the right people, you can make a bigger impact through your social media. And by recognizing and rewarding their contributions, you can create a sense of loyalty and teamwork that can further help your efforts thrive.
9. Recognize and thank supporters, donors, and partners
Regularly recognizing and thanking your supporters, donors, and partners on social media is a powerful way to build a sense of community and strengthen your relationships with key stakeholders. Whether you’re thanking a donor for their contribution, recognizing a volunteer for their service, or acknowledging someone for their support, this is an important part of building a strong and engaged community.
When recognizing and thanking your supporters, focus on personalizing your messages and making them feel valued. Use images and other types of visual content to increase the impact of your messages, and consider offering exclusive opportunities or rewards to those who are recognized.
10. Highlight the work of your staff and volunteers
Your staff and volunteers are the backbone of your nonprofit, and highlighting their work on social media can help create a more personal and engaging presence. By showcasing their work, you can create a more human and relatable presence on social media and connect with your followers on a deeper level.
Plus, it can invigorate and encourage your team, so they remain productive and motivated in their day-to-day work.
Here are some ways to highlight the work of your staff and volunteers:
Share updates on what they’re doing. Whether it’s about specific projects or initiatives, or just a general overview of what they’re working on, talking about the work of your staff and volunteers can help followers get a better understanding of the impact of your nonprofit.
Highlight the impact of their efforts. Consider how you can showcase the impact of the work of your staff and volunteers. This could be in the form of stories from people whose lives have been positively impacted by your nonprofit’s work, or data and statistics that demonstrate the progress made by their efforts.
Share behind-the-scenes content. People love to get a behind-the-scenes look at organizations, and your staff and volunteers are a great way to give followers a sneak peek into your nonprofit. Consider sharing photos and videos of your team in action, or hosting a Q&A session with your staff or volunteers on social media.
Recognize and reward their efforts. Donors aren’t the only ones who deserve recognition. Regularly recognizing and thanking your staff and volunteers on social media can help build morale and encourage them to continue their great work. Consider how you can reward their efforts, whether it’s through shoutouts on social media, special events, or other forms of recognition.
11. Respond to comments and messages promptly and professionally
Responding to comments and messages is an essential part of social media management. By focusing on quick, respectful responses, you can build stronger relationships with followers and create a more engaging presence on social media.
Here are tips to help you respond to comments and messages:
Train your team. Make sure your team is trained to handle comments and messages in a professional and consistent manner. This could involve creating a set of guidelines or providing training on how to handle difficult or sensitive situations. Newer members of your team should defer tricky responses to senior staff until they’ve gained full confidence.
Set a response time. Ensure that all comments are responded to in a timely fashion. Consider setting a target response time, such as within 24 hours, to ensure that you’re meeting the expectations of your followers.
Be proactive. Don’t wait for comments and messages to come to you — be proactive and reach out to your followers on social media. This could be in the form of asking for feedback, hosting Q&A sessions, or simply checking in with your followers to see how they’re doing.
Respond professionally. When responding to comments and messages, make sure you’re doing so in a professional and consistent manner. This could involve using a specific tone or style in your responses or making sure that your team is trained on how to handle difficult or sensitive situations.
12. Highlight the work of other nonprofits and organizations
Collaboration and community-building are key components of any successful nonprofit strategy, and social media is a powerful tool for achieving these goals. By highlighting the work of complementary nonprofits and organizations, you can demonstrate your commitment to the common good and help build relationships with other organizations. This can lead to increased opportunities for partnerships and joint initiatives, which can help you achieve shared goals and make a bigger impact.
To get started, consider the following tips:
Identify other organizations that are making a difference. This can include nonprofits with similar missions, as well as organizations that are addressing related issues in your community.
Follow these organizations on social media and engage with their content. Share their posts, comment on their updates, and participate in their initiatives.
Collaborate on social media to achieve shared goals. Share each other’s campaigns, promote each other’s initiatives, and work together on joint projects.
Highlight the work of other organizations in your posts and updates. This can include showcasing their initiatives, sharing their success stories, and recognizing their contributions to the community you’re serving.
Consider hosting joint events or initiatives with other organizations. Work together on social media campaigns, live events, or fundraising initiatives.
Frequently asked questions about social media for nonprofits
Do nonprofits need social media?
Yes, social media is essential for nonprofits. It provides a platform for organizations to reach a wider audience, engage with supporters, promote their cause, and raise awareness about their work. Social media also offers an opportunity for nonprofits to build relationships with their stakeholders, share their impact, and develop a greater sense of community.
What should a nonprofit post on social media?
A nonprofit should post content that aligns with its goals and objectives, and is relevant and engaging to its target audience. Some examples of the types of content that nonprofits can post on social media include:
Updates on their work and impact
Stories and testimonials from beneficiaries and supporters
Behind-the-scenes videos that highlight the work of staff and volunteers
Calls to action and fundraising campaigns
Success stories and achievements
Behind-the-scenes content that provides a glimpse into the day-to-day work of the nonprofit
Inspiring quotes and messages
Relevant news and articles related to their cause
Images and videos that showcase their work
How often should a nonprofit post on social media?
The frequency of posting will depend on a variety of factors, including your goals, target audience, and resources. On average, it’s recommended that nonprofits post one to two times per day on each of their social media platforms. However, it’s essential to find the right balance between frequency and quality and not to compromise on the quality of your content for the sake of posting more frequently.
When are the best times for nonprofits to post on social media?
The best times to post on social media will vary depending on your target audience and the platform you’re using.
On Facebook, the morning usually works best. On platforms like Instagram, users tend to be more active throughout the daytime hours.
Consider using a social media management tool, like Jetpack Social, to schedule your posts in advance and optimize for the best times.
Jetpack Social: Fueling your nonprofit’s social media success
With Jetpack Social, nonprofits can schedule and share their content across multiple social media platforms, auto-share their website content, and manage their social media presence from one convenient dashboard.
If your nonprofit has a website on WordPress, then Jetpack Social is the perfect solution to help you achieve your social media goals. By leveraging the power of Jetpack Social, you can focus on what you do best — making a difference — while leaving your social media management in the capable hands of Jetpack.
To learn more about Jetpack Social and start fueling your nonprofit’s social media success today, visit the following page: https://jetpack.com/social/
Earlier today, we released a new version of Jetpack, 12.1.1. This release contains a critical security update. While we have no evidence that this vulnerability has been exploited yet, please update your version of Jetpack as soon as possible to ensure the security of your site.
To help you in this process, we have worked closely with the WordPress.org Security Team to release patched versions of every version of Jetpack since 2.0. Most websites have been or will soon be automatically updated to a secured version.
During an internal security audit, we found a vulnerability with the API available in Jetpack since version 2.0, released in 2012. This vulnerability could be used by authors on a site to manipulate any files in the WordPress installation.
Here is a full list of the 102 different versions of Jetpack we’ve released today:
If your site is running any of these versions, your website is not vulnerable to this issue.
We have no evidence that this vulnerability has been exploited in the wild. However, now that the update has been released, it is possible that someone will try to take advantage of this vulnerability.
We apologize for any extra workload this may put on your shoulders today. We will continue to regularly audit all aspects of our codebase to ensure that your Jetpack site remains safe.
The domain name system (DNS) is one of the cornerstones of the web. Without DNS lookups, it would be impossible to know which domain corresponds to which IP address (the location where a website’s files are hosted). As it is, these lookups can happen in milliseconds, allowing you to jump from website to website almost as quickly as you can click on a link.
Reducing the number of DNS lookups can help keep your website loading times in check. It’s a simple process you can undertake in a number of ways, but it can have a significant positive impact on the user experience.
Below, we’ll go over the basics of DNS lookups, how they work, and how to measure response times. Then, we’ll discuss how to reduce DNS lookups in WordPress.
What is a DNS lookup?
The DNS is a distributed system that maintains records of which domains correspond to which IP addresses. This is essential to the modern web because it enables you to visit sites without needing to remember complex strings of numbers (google.com sounds a lot better than 64.233.160.0!).
A DNS lookup refers to the process of translating a domain name into an IP address. When you enter a URL in your browser or click on a link, a DNS lookup occurs in the background. The browser sends a request to a DNS ‘resolver,’ typically hosted by your Internet Service Provider (ISP). The resolver then looks in its local cache to see if it has the corresponding record, and if it doesn’t, it contacts a DNS server.
All of that process should happen rather quickly. If a website takes only a second or two to load, that means the DNS lookup occurs in just a fraction of that time. But, in some cases, DNS lookups can take an excessive amount of time. If that happens, you’ll want to optimize the process to avoid long loading times for your site.
What is a good DNS response time?
A good DNS response time is typically under 100 milliseconds (ms). But, response times can vary depending on a variety of factors, including:
The location of the DNS server. The further away the DNS server is, the longer it takes for the query to reach it. The same is true for the time it takes to return the information you’re requesting.
If the server is under heavy load. A DNS server can take longer to respond to requests if it’s getting a lot of them simultaneously, just as with a normal site-hosting server. This is not a problem you can fix by optimizing your website but by changing DNS providers.
How complex the DNS query is. Not all DNS queries are the same in terms of complexity. If a URL has multiple subdomains or multiple IP addresses associated with it, a DNS lookup can take longer.
In general, faster DNS response times can result in faster website loading times, as the DNS lookup is the first step in connecting to a website. To put it another way, slow DNS response times can lead to a poor user experience.
How to measure your DNS lookup time on WordPress
There are a lot of ways to measure DNS lookup times for any website, including those built with WordPress. Generally, the easiest way to measure these times is with a third-party tool, which typically works similarly to page-speed-measurement software. Some popular options include:
DNS Speed Benchmark. This is a free tool that allows you to test DNS lookup times from multiple locations around the world. Simply enter the domain name you want to test, and the tool will show you DNS lookup times in milliseconds for multiple locations.
Dot-Com-Tools.This DNS checker enables you to run tests using servers from around the globe. It’s a helpful option because it provides you with an average DNS lookup time.
Browser Developer Tools. Most modern web browsers have developer tools that allow you to analyze network performance, including DNS lookup times. Accessing developer tools in Chrome, for example, is simple. Just right-click on a webpage and select Inspect or press F12 on your keyboard. Then, navigate to the Network tab and reload the page to get results.
It’s important to reiterate that DNS lookup times can vary a lot depending on where the original query comes from. You might get amazing lookup times from your computer if your web hosting server is close to you. But that might not be the same experience for users in other locations.
That type of variation will always exist. Still, if you’re seeing big differences in DNS lookup times after testing them using the tools above, that isn’t normal. Ideally, DNS lookup times shouldn’t vary too much, and if they do, you can optimize them to reduce loading times.
How to reduce DNS lookup time on WordPress
There are many ways to reduce DNS lookup times on WordPress. A lot of these methods will also improve overall site performance. So, if your website is loading slowly, you might want to implement as many of these strategies as possible.
1. Install a reliable CDN plugin
Using a quality Content Delivery Network (CDN) can help you improve DNS lookup times thanks to DNS prefetching. This is a feature that prioritizes DNS lookups and then caches that information. Since the server only needs to check the cache for the IP address, the process is much faster than running a regular DNS lookup, at least for the end user.
CDNs typically have many servers located in different regions around the world. Each of these servers maintains a cache of frequently accessed domain names and their corresponding IP addresses.
By reducing the time it takes to perform DNS lookups, CDNs can improve website performance and the user experience. This way, visitors can access web pages more quickly, and you can reduce the load on your servers.
Overall, there are many reasons to use a CDN beyond reducing DNS lookup times. So, the decision isn’t so much whether to get one, as it is about deciding what the best option is for your website.
If you’re using WordPress, Jetpack offers an easy way to implement a CDN on your website. In fact, the CDN is available with the free plugin. You can enable it from Jetpack’s Performance & speed settings by selecting the option that says Enable site accelerator.
There are plenty of other CDN options available for WordPress, but they can be a bit more complicated to install and activate.
2. Defer loading of JavaScript
Typically, a web page needs to load all JavaScript before it renders fully. Since JavaScript files can be quite large, this can significantly impact loading times. So, if you’re trying to reduce DNS lookups and improve site speed, you can also defer the loading of JavaScript. Or for that matter, any element that can delay the website from rendering.
But before we explore this option, it’s important to understand the difference between local and external JavaScript files. Essentially, deferring the loading of JavaScript files on your server won’t impact DNS lookup times.
That’s because with these local files, the DNS lookup happens before a page starts to load at all. On the other hand, any external JavaScript files you call from your site involve their own DNS lookups.
Therefore, the ideal solution here is to defer JavaScript altogether, so that even third-party files won’t impact the user experience with additional DNS lookups.
There are several ways to defer the loading of JavaScript. Jetpack Boost is an excellent option, since it enables you to defer all non-essential files by toggling one setting.
If you have Jetpack Boost installed, go to Jetpack → Boost and look for the option that says Defer Non-Essential JavaScript. Simply enable that option, and you should see an immediate improvement in your site’s performance score at the top of the screen.
Keep in mind that deferring JavaScript manually involves editing your site code to add the defer attribute to script tags. Therefore, if you’re not comfortable dealing with code, a plugin might be the easiest option for you.
3. Enable DNS prefetching
DNS prefetching enables a server or browser to perform a DNS lookup in advance and to store or cache that information. That way, when a visitor tries to access the website, the information is available faster. This is because the lookup occurs locally instead of having to go through the full traditional route.
Most modern web browsers use DNS prefetching to some degree, but this doesn’t occur with all websites. For your website, you’ll need either the DNS resolver or a CDN to prefetch DNS lookup results.
Since you can’t ask a DNS resolver to prefetch results only for your site. Your best bet is to focus on the CDN side of things. Using a CDN, like the one available with Jetpack, will let you enable DNS prefetching for your site.
As we mentioned, the CDN is available with the free plugin, and you can enable it from Jetpack’s Performance & speed settings by toggling the option that says Enable site accelerator.
There are some other plugins that offer DNS prefetching. Still, it’s likely better to use a tool that can do more than just that. A CDN solution is an excellent choice, since it will also help improve your website’s performance in general (due to the reduced load on your servers).
4. Consider using a faster DNS provider
Using a different DNS provider can also help you reduce DNS lookup times. Some DNS providers may have faster and more reliable servers, better network connectivity, or more advanced caching techniques. All of this can lead to quicker DNS resolution times.
Your first step is to use a tool like DNSPerf, which shows you a list of the fastest and most reliable DNS providers. Once you decide on a new tool, you’ll need to create an account on their platform. The specific transfer process will depend on the DNS provider you’re currently using, as well as the one that you’re switching to.
Bluehost, for example, outlines the process of moving a domain to their platform in three steps:
Prepare your domain. Disable any privacy settings, confirm contact information, obtain an authorization code, etc.
Initiate the transfer. This requires a relatively straightforward process within your Bluehost dashboard.
Check the progress from within your dashboard.
The process, in its entirety, usually takes a few days. It’s important that you also update any applicable nameservers and DNS settings with the new provider to ensure that your website and any additional services — like email accounts — work properly.
5. Minimize the number of CNAME records
CNAME (Canonical Name) records are DNS records used to map one domain name to another. These records can help you create aliases for existing domain names, like subdomains or alternative domain names for a website.
When you try to access a web page like blog.example.com, the browser needs to perform a DNS lookup to resolve the domain name. If there’s a CNAME record involved, the browser needs to follow that chain until it hits an A name record.
Those are the types of records that map actual domains to their final IP addresses. The more CNAME records you create for your website, the longer the lookup chain becomes, which means it takes longer to resolve the DNS.
To minimize the number of CNAME records, you can rely as much as possible on A records instead. Here are some guidelines to help you achieve that:
Use A records for root domains. When configuring your domain, use A records to map the root domain to the IP address of your website’s server rather than using a CNAME record.
Use CNAME records for subdomains. Use CNAME records for subdomains that point to other domain names, like a CDN or third-party service. This can simplify DNS management since those third-party services may change IP addresses.
Avoid chaining CNAME records. If you need to use a CNAME record, that’s fine. But, you should avoid CNAME record chains since they only add to DNS lookup times.
Use TTL wisely. Set the Time-to-Live (TTL) value of your DNS records appropriately. A longer TTL can reduce the number of DNS lookups required, but it can also increase the time it takes to update DNS records.
Changing all of these settings involves accessing your domain registrar or web host. The service you used to register your domain should provide you with options to change its corresponding records. If you’re not sure how to do this, you can contact the registrar or the web host for help.
6. Reduce the number of external hostnames
A hostname is a unique identifier that is assigned to a device or a service on a network. Hostnames are used to identify and locate network resources, like websites, servers, and devices, using the domain name system (DNS).
On your website, there are two types of hostnames, internal and external. Internal hostnames include links that point to other pages on your site. External hostnames refer to links that point to pages and resources outside of your website.
Every time a visitor clicks on an external link, that involves a DNS lookup. This shouldn’t be much of a concern to you, since you have no control over how long DNS lookups take for other sites. What you should care about are hostnames pointing to external files your site needs to load.
These files can be scripts, fonts, tracking pixels, and other resources your site relies on for critical features. Whenever possible, your goal is to host these files locally to reduce DNS lookups on your site.
Earlier in this article, we talked about deferring non-critical JavaScript until pages on your site render. That technique, in combination with reducing hostnames by hosting files locally, should have a significant impact on reducing DNS lookups and loading times.
7. Host third-party resources locally
Most modern websites rely heavily on third-party resources. That includes scripts, fonts, embedded videos, tracking pixels, and more.
All of these tools are useful, but they come with a trade-off: Every third-party resource you add to your website means one or more additional DNS lookups that users have to deal with.
The solution to this problem is not to do away with third-party resources. What you want to do is host them locally whenever possible. This is perfectly workable when it comes to scripts and files like fonts, since they usually occupy very little space.
On the other hand, videos and tracking pixels are larger and more complicated. Tracking pixels, by their nature, need to connect with third-party platforms like Meta. But, you can reduce the impact of this third-party connection by loading them all at once using tools like Google Tag Manager. You can even opt to defer the tags until the page is loaded.
Moreover, when it comes to more top-heavy resources like videos, hosting them locally can have a significant impact on your server’s resources and performance. Having several users loading videos from your site can slow it down much more than a few DNS lookups.
To find out what third-party resources your website relies on, you can use a tool like PageSpeed Insights. When you run an analysis with PageSpeed Insights, it’ll return a list of suggestions on things you can do to improve your website’s performance. Here, you’ll find an entry that reads Reduce the impact of third-party code.
That list will show you which third-party scripts are slowing down your site. Each of those scripts involves DNS lookups, so you’ll need to determine which ones you can host locally and which ones are worth keeping as external.
8. Deactivate plugins that perform DNS lookups
Some WordPress plugins (e.g. tools that use tracking scripts, like live chat and analytics plugins) may perform DNS lookups depending on their functionality and how they’re coded. The plugins that do this typically require the use of external resources — like images, scripts, or other assets — which point to different hostnames.
To load these resources, the plugin may need to perform a DNS lookup to resolve the domain name into an IP address. Similarly, some WordPress plugins may interact with external services, like social media platforms or analytics tools, which could require DNS lookups to establish connections and retrieve data.
If a plugin performs DNS lookups, it can have an impact on your site’s performance. You can minimize this impact by using DNS caching techniques as well as opting to use plugins that don’t rely heavily on third-party resources.
The problem with this is that it can be hard to determine which plugins perform DNS lookups. This involves either analyzing the plugin’s code or monitoring the network activity of the website while the plugin is active. Tools like browser developer consoles, network analysis tools, or server logs can be used to track the DNS queries and network connections made by the plugin.
Another alternative is to use a staging site to conduct a test. You could deactivate plugins one by one and see if it makes an impact on your site’s DNS lookup times. You can find instructions on how to do this in a previous section on measuring DNS lookup times.
Frequently asked questions about reducing DNS lookups
At this point, you likely have a good understanding of DNS lookups and their impact on site speed. But, just in case you have any lingering doubts, we’re now going to answer some of your most frequently asked questions about how to reduce DNS lookups in WordPress!
Why is it important to reduce DNS lookups?
The more DNS lookups a browser has to perform to visit a website, the longer it will take to load. Long loading times can have a negative impact on the user experience.
In turn, this can make your website less effective, hurting things like sales and conversions. Therefore, reducing DNS lookups is key if you want your website to perform well.
Do DNS lookups impact user experience?
The short answer is yes. DNS lookups can impact the user experience if they take too long or a browser has to perform too many lookups to access any given page on your website.
As the number of DNS lookups increases, so does the time it takes to load a page. Users can be notoriously impatient when it comes to loading times, so it’s in your interest to reduce them as much as possible.
Do DNS lookups impact Core Web Vitals?
Google takes a lot of factors into consideration when measuring Core Web Vitals. Significant DNS lookup times can contribute to worse scores when it comes to First Input Delay (FID) and Largest Contentful Paint (LCP).
That impact is due to the fact that pages may not start or finish loading before the browser completes every associated DNS lookup. Therefore, by reducing the number of lookups, you can likely improve Core Web Vitals scores for your website. You can easily optimize your site’s Core Web Vitals using a plugin like Jetpack Boost.
What else can I do to improve my site’s performance?
Reduce DNS lookups to improve your website’s performance
DNS lookups are a core aspect of the web. Without lookups and the DNS system, we would have to memorize lengthy IP addresses instead of user-friendly domain names. But too many DNS lookups on a single website can negatively impact your website performance and user experience.
There are a lot of ways to reduce DNS lookups and speed up a WordPress website. Some of the best methods at your disposal include using a CDN and deferring the loading of JavaScript. Additionally, you can change DNS providers or make an effort to minimize your CNAME records and external hostnames.
Do you want to reduce load times, improve Core Web Vitals scores, and improve the overall performance of your WordPress site? Jetpack Boost can help in just a few minutes. Built by the people behind WordPress.com, this is the go-to WordPress speed plugin for serious WordPress pros.
If you’re a website owner, you’ve likely thought about site speed at least once in the past. After all, Google considers speed when determining where to place sites in search results. So, if your site is slow to load, you’re at a disadvantage when it comes to ranking. And we all know that higher rankings lead to more traffic.
So, how do you make sure your WordPress site is loading as quickly as possible? One way is to lazy load your images.
Lazy loading is a technique that delays the rendering of images and videos until they’re needed. Implementing this can speed up your site considerably, and the great news is that you don’t need to be a developer to put this to work.
Today, we’ll show you how to lazy load images and videos in WordPress using two methods: with a plugin and without.
What is lazy loading?
Lazy loading is a common technique used to improve page speed. The idea is simple: instead of loading all images on a page when a visitor first arrives, it only renders the images that are visible. Then, as the visitor scrolls down the page, more images are loaded as needed.
This means that if a visitor never scrolls down to the bottom of a page, images below the area of the page viewed are never loaded. Thus, lazy loading can save precious milliseconds (or even seconds) off your page load time.
Additionally, lazy loading can also help you conserve bandwidth. This is especially important if you have people who visit your site on a mobile device. By deferring the loading of images and videos that are not visible, you can decrease the amount of data used.
How does lazy loading work?
In general, lazy loading works in one of two ways. WordPress, starting with version 5.5, adds an HTML5 attribute called “loading.†In this case, the browser handles all parts of the lazy loading process without the need for any extra JavaScript.
Another method, developed before HTML5’s attribute, is through some creative JavaScript. In this case, an empty placeholder is served upon page load, then JavaScript is used to load images as they come into the viewport.
Either way, only the images that are needed by the browser are loaded. Other images are loaded once a visitor scrolls down the page.
There are a few different ways to do this, which we’ll discuss in more detail below. But that’s the gist of how lazy loading works.
What are the benefits of lazy loading?
There are three primary benefits to lazy loading images:
Increased site speed
Reduced bandwidth usage
Better user experience
Increased site speed is usually the primary motivation for implementing lazy loading. By waiting to render unnecessary images, you can decrease your page load time. This is especially true if you have a lot of images on a page, or if your images are large.
Next, lazy loading can help you conserve bandwidth. If visitors never venture down the page, there’s no wasted bandwidth loading images that they’ll never see.
Finally, lazy loading can improve your user experience. This is because visitors don’t have to wait for all the images on a page to load before they can start engaging with your site.
Does WordPress lazy load by default?
Yes, as of WordPress 5.5, lazy loading is enabled by default automatically upon installation. However, there are some ways to customize the experience that are pretty straightforward and intuitive. We’ll discuss these methods in more detail below.
Should I lazy load my images? Are there drawbacks?
In most cases, lazy loading your images is a great idea if you want to improve your page speed or conserve bandwidth. However, there are some potential drawbacks to consider as well.
Layout shifting
If you lazy load your images, the layout of your page may shift. For example, if you have a sidebar on the right side of your page, and you lazy load an image that’s located within it, the sidebar may move down to make room. This can be very disorienting for your visitors.
As a general rule, using placeholders is recommended to avoid this issue.
Potential hit to SEO
If you don’t do it properly, lazy loading images can cause search engines, like Google, to have trouble indexing them. Content is king when it comes to rankings, and in this case, you could lose valuable chunks.
Your images may no longer appear in search results and, depending on how important the images are in relation to the rest of the page content (like product images for an ecommerce listing), it could tank your regular search rankings as well.
That said, if you set up lazy loading properly, this won’t be an issue. That’s why, unless you’re a confident developer, your best course of action is to use a lazy loading plugin or stick with the default lazy loading included with WordPress.
Plugin conflicts
Additionally, lazy loading can cause issues with some WordPress plugins — like plugins that use images to generate social media previews.
Any time you make changes to your site, you should test them thoroughly to make sure everything is acting as it should.
Lazy loading is now enabled by default in WordPress. If you’re not using a modern WordPress iteration (though we recommend you do), or if you want more granular control over the lazy loading process, you can do so using one of two distinct methods: using a plugin or adding code to your site.
1. Lazy load with a plugin
If you’re not an experienced developer, we recommend using a plugin because any time you edit the code of your site, you risk running into issues. Even if you have backups on hand in case you break something, it still may be best to simply use a reputable plugin.
Jetpack Boost is a free plugin dedicated to helping you gauge and improve site performance. It offers functionality like:
Deferring non-essential JavaScript
Optimizing CSS loading
Lazy image loading
Site performance testing
To get started with Jetpack Boost, download it for free from the WordPress plugin directory.
Or, in your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins → Add New, then search for “Jetpack Boost†and click Install Now. Once installed, click Activate.
Next, go to the new dashboard menu option titled Boost. Then, click Start for free.
On the next page, scroll down to the large toggle that says Lazy Image Loading and turn it on. Now, take a look at your site and make sure that everything’s rendering properly and looks good. That’s it! Lazy loading is good to go with just a few clicks.
If you want to take things one step further and customize your site’s lazy loading, you can do so using code snippets, which you can add to your functions.php file. Or, you can insert them with a functionality plugin.
Here are just a few tasks you can accomplish:
Disable lazy loading on certain pages
Set a placeholder that displays until the image is loaded
Turn off lazy loading for specific images
Turn off lazy loading for a specific CSS class
For example, if you want to exclude a CSS class from the lazy loading process, you would use this code:
2. How to lazy load images in WordPress without a plugin
As we mentioned earlier, WordPress, by default, enables lazy loading for all images that have set dimensions. You don’t need to turn anything on or add any code to do this. However, there may be times that you want to customize how this functionality works.
For example, let’s say that you don’t want template images to be included. You would add this code to your functions.php file:
Or, perhaps you want to get super granular and turn off lazy loading for specific images. You can do this by assigning an extra image class to each image when added to a page or post and then adding that class to the following code in your functions.php file:
To add the image class skip-lazy in the above example to an image:
Add the image to the page or post via the Media Library.
After you’ve added the image, find your image settings. This may appear differently depending on whether you are using the Gutenberg Blocks editor, classic editor, or a site builder plugin. The ability to add a new CSS class is usually found in either the Advanced settings area (Gutenberg and classic editors) or towards the bottom of your image settings options (most other site builders).
Add the class skip-lazy to the image and save your update.
Frequently asked questions about lazy loading in WordPress
Want to learn more about WordPress lazy loading? We’ve answered some frequently asked questions below:
Is lazy loading and deferring offscreen images the same thing?
Deferring offscreen images means waiting to load images until the rest of the critical, above-the-fold content has loaded. There are several ways to do this, but WordPress sites typically use lazy loading.
Essentially, lazy loading is a method of deferring offscreen images.
Can I lazy load background images in WordPress?
Yes, you can lazy load background images if you’d like. Jetpack Boost turns on lazy loading for background images. However, depending on how your images are set up, it may not be able to identify all of them. For example, if the image is loaded through the background:url property, the plugin won’t read it as a picture and, therefore, won’t enable lazy loading for it.
In that situation, you can use a tool like Lazy Loader, which will allow you to select the specific background images you want to lazy load.
Can I lazy load a YouTube video?
Yes, you can! To do so, insert the following code snippet from WPOrbit into your theme’s functions.php file. If you’re not sure how to do this, check out our guide to accessing and editing the functions.php file.
<?php
// Do not include the above opening tag.
// WPOrbit code for lazy loading youtube videos. Visit: https://wporbit.net
function iframelazy($content) {
if(is_single()) {
$content = str_replace('src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/','class="klazyiframe" data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/',$content);
ob_start();
?>
<script>
var ytflag = 0;
var myListener = function () {
document.removeEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);
lazyloadmyframes();
};
document.addEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);
window.addEventListener('scroll', function() {
if(ytflag == 0){
lazyloadmyframes();
ytflag = 1;
}
});
function lazyloadmyframes(){
var ytv = document.getElementsByClassName("klazyiframe");
for (var i = 0; i < ytv.length; i++) {
ytv[i].src = ytv[i].getAttribute('data-src');
}
}
</script>
<?php
$jqueryappend = ob_get_contents();
ob_end_clean();
}
return $content.$jqueryappend;
}
add_filter('the_content', 'iframelazy');
Does lazy loading impact SEO?
Yes, lazy loading can have a positive impact on your search engine rankings. Google considers site speed when deciding where pages rank in search results. And since lazy loading improves performance, it can also increase Google’s perception of your site.
If you do it manually, instead of using a lazy loading plugin, and make a mistake, it can have a negative impact on SEO by hindering search engines’ abilities to recognize your images.
Does lazy loading impact user experience?
Yes, lazy loading can improve your user experience because it reduces your site’s load time, while still ensuring that visitors can view your content right away. This, in turn, can improve their perception of your brand.
Do I need a plugin to lazy load my content?
No, you don’t need a plugin to lazy load your content. Lazy loading is enabled in WordPress by default. However, if you want more control over the lazy loading process, you may want to use a plugin.
Is there a downside to lazy loading content?
There aren’t many downsides to lazy loading content. It improves your speed, user experience, and search engine rankings. However, it can occasionally cause odd shifting in your page layouts. Therefore, you should always test your site after enabling lazy loading.
Do I need to lazy load all my content?
No, you don’t need to lazy load all your content. You can choose to lazy load only specific elements, such as images, videos, or iFrames.
What else can I do to improve loading speeds?
In addition to lazy loading, there are a number of other ways you can improve the speed of your WordPress site, including:
Lazy loading your images is a great way to optimize your site’s performance and improve your overall user experience. Jetpack Boost offers the most convenient and robust way to enable lazy loading, while also providing other powerful speed tools. Ready to get started? Get Jetpack Boost!
