What are the first technical steps that will create the highest impact in e-commerce site performance improvement efforts?

Question

Samer Allaham · Accepted Answer

When starting performance improvement efforts on an e-commerce site, you should first purge unnecessary JavaScript libraries and convert images to the WebP format. These technical steps dramatically reduce page load time, directly improving user experience and conversion rates. Initial Technical Steps to Kickstart Performance OptimizationSolving speed issues on your e-commerce site starts with clearing technical debt. Instead of randomly changing themes or installing new plugins, you should prioritize these three steps that have a direct impact on performance:Purging Unnecessary JavaScript (JS) and CSS: Most e-commerce sites load dozens of unused script files in the background. Use the Lighthouse tool to review the 'unused JavaScript' report and disable all non-interactive libraries.Image Modernization: Images in JPEG or PNG formats unnecessarily increase your page size. By converting all product images to the WebP format, you can reduce file sizes by 30% to 50% and implement 'Lazy Loading' to optimize initial page load speed.Checkout Page Optimization: Every extra form field in the checkout step can deter users from completing a purchase. Transition to a 'One-Page Checkout' structure to reduce form clutter. There is an inverse correlation between the number of form fields and conversion rates; reducing fields by 15% can directly yield a 10-15% increase in conversions.While implementing these steps, taking into account the infrastructural advantages of both local and global platforms, you should aim to reduce the 'First Contentful Paint' (FCP) time on mobile devices to under 1.5 seconds.