Hi!
I have a problem regarding site speed. The site in question is this one: http://thegodrejgolflinks.com/
Google defines a host of problems with it: https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/?url=thegodrejgolflinks.com&tab=desktop
According to google, the most important solution is to enable compression: https://developers.google.com/speed/docs/insights/EnableCompression
When I spoke to the hosting service about enabling compression, I received a couple different answers, but amongst other things they were adament the slow response was caused by the theme. I am using Vantage (free).
What can we do about this? It’s very important to know since I’ve been using the same set up for a number of sites and slow or obstructed site loading is not just crap for usability, but also for google ranking.
Please advise, thank you.
Jele
Hi Jele,
For the most part, your page score is good. To fix Minify CSS and Eliminate render-blocking JavaScript and CSS in above-the-fold content, you’ll want to install a minify plugin that will allow you to move assets around manually. I recommend Beter WordPress Minify for this but a plugin that does something similar should work just as well. Once installed, please navigate to WP AdminBWP MinifyEnqueued Files and move scripts around based on what Google has stated – be sure to test often as Google cannot account for possible issues.
You need to exclude SiteOrigin Page Builder structure stylesheet which has the handle of siteorigin-panels-front from being minified.
[…] received a couple different answers, but amongst other things they were adament the slow response was caused by the theme. I am using Vantage (free).
Can you please clarify why they suspect this? What happens if you temporarily change to a non-Vantage theme? Who are you hosted with?
Hi Alex,
Thanks for the detailed explanation, unfortunately simply adding the plugin as you described messes up the entire site. I haven’t even begun trying moving scripts around according to google, and the site is fucked.
I deleted the plugin. Site looks ok again, google still ranks it really badly, now what.
^^ That screenshot is just half the page btw. No point in showing it all, it’s just a jumbled mess.
Hi Jele,
Yeah, that might happen at first which is why you’ll need to manage enqueued files. Certain things just can’t be minified so you need to exclude them. There’s no way to know what files they are so you have to go in and manually set things up. To clarify, this isn’t an install and forget type of plugin, you need to set it up and ensure things work correctly (in other words, it may require significant trail and error). Sadly, getting a page score about 90 (if not a perfect score) is more about how much time you want to invest in doing repetitive tasks (trying something, testing it and then acting upon the results) for the most part. There’s sadly no simple way of getting it.
To confirm, did you exclude siteorigin-panels-front from the minify list? If not, that needs to be removed.
Ok, but that effectively means that if I am not a professional, I can’t use the plugin. I mean to be honest I simply don’t understand 90% of what google lists as problems. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.
Hi Jele,
It’s an advanced plugin, yes, but overall, it’s an advanced subject so it will require some technical knowledge to accomplish. Overall though, if you give the Better WordPress Minify help links (it’s in the description of the plugin) a read over you should be able to pick up on how to what you’re after. It’s also quite good at explaining why things are done in certain ways.
Ok thanks. I was just going to read the description in detail and noticed the plugin hasn’t been updated in two years and is also not tested with the current wordpress version. Would it be wise to choose a different plugin?
Hi Jele,
I can assure you the developers are very active but sadly don’t have a reason to update it at this time (it’s pretty much issue free at the moment – it’s in a really good place). Sadly, to update the tested tag they need to release an update but I can assure you it works just fine with the latest version fo WordPress.
It’s up to you though. Most of the popular minify plugins are good but just try and avoid any minify plugin bundled with a cache plugin as that functionality is typically very basic.
I see. Thank you for the detailed explanation!
Can I use this plugin (or one like it) if I only have access to WordPress, not hosting or FTP or anything else? For instance, minify requires:
Make sure the cache folder is writable, by CHMOD it to either 755 or 777, depending on which one works for you.
I don’t even know what that means.
Hi Jele,
Yes. More often that you won’t have to worry about that as WordPress will be able to automatically do it for you.
CHMOD is a command to alter the permissions (who can read/write/execute) of a file.