WordPress is an excellent platform for some website applications, and WordPress is very adept at providing SEO support, but there are always some tweaks that you can make to improve your WordPress SEO. Website operators need to remember that websites that load faster are more likely to make an impact on visitors. Here are a few WordPress SEO tips to help ensure that your website loads quickly.
Improve your WordPress SEO
Avoid database calls when possible. Each time you need to perform a database call, the page loading process will slow down. If you can design your site to make only those database calls that are absolutely necessary, and make your code as efficient as possible, you can improve the load time of your site. This might involve reducing the number of items in your header and using static URL’s for things like your stylesheet and RSS feed. You can find similar savings in your footers.
Consider caching! If your site is large or content-rich, your WordPress SEO may benefit from adding a caching plug-in to your site. Caching information that your site uses regularly can make it readily available to your site and speed up page loading and functionality. There are a few excellent WordPress caching plug-ins. If your site is content-rich, consider using a cache to make site operation smoother!
Choose your plug-ins and functions carefully. WordPress themes can be indispensible, but to add functionality to your website, you may want to add plug-ins. If you go this route, make sure that your theme is plug-in friendly, and that it can recover easily if a function isn’t supported by your theme. If you don’t look for these potential gaps in your theme, your site could get stuck trying to recover when a plug-in calls an unsupported function. The watchword here is test, test, test your themes and plug-ins together, and make sure you give your theme a recovery option for unsupported functions.
Think about your web hosting.There are many tweaks you can make to decrease the load time on your WordPress site, and this tip isn’t specific to WordPress SEO, but it makes sense to spend some time thinking about your website hosting. Understand how your web host plans to throttle your traffic, especially if you’re operating a large or busy site. Knowing how your web host will react to your traffic can help you choose the right hosting package for you. If you have a large, complex website, you may find that spending a few extra dollars for premium web hosting services will improve your site loading times immensely.
If you would like more information about WordPress SEO, WordPress websites or website optimization, please contact our Creative Director Dave Ramsell or give Dave a call at (330) 243-0651 to set up a consultation.
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