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Our topics

Seven areas we return to again and again, each one written so you can act on it without technical background.

Topic 01

Core Web Vitals & Metrics

This is where most of our detailed explainers live. We cover what Largest Contentful Paint, Interaction to Next Paint and Cumulative Layout Shift actually measure, how Google's published thresholds work, and how to read the colour-coded score you get back from a free test without needing a technical background to interpret it.

We also look at the gap between "lab data" from a single test and "field data" gathered from real visitors over weeks, since the two can tell quite different stories about the same website.

Topic 02

Image & Media Optimisation

Photos are usually the heaviest files on any small business site. We walk through resizing images to the dimensions they're actually displayed at, choosing between JPEG and newer formats, and understanding when lazy loading helps versus when it works against you, particularly for whatever sits at the very top of the page.

Topic 03

Platform-Specific Guides

Squarespace, Wix and WordPress each handle performance differently under the hood. This category breaks down what's worth checking on each platform specifically, from Squarespace's image settings to Wix's App Market and WordPress's plugin and hosting combination.

Topic 04

Plugins, Apps & Extensions

We look at categories rather than naming specific products: page builders, sliders, chat widgets, SEO plugins and font libraries. Each guide includes a simple way to test what happens when something is temporarily disabled, before deciding whether to remove it for good.

Topic 05

Free Testing Tools

A comparison of the free tools available to anyone, what each one is best suited to checking, and how to read the report each one returns without getting lost in unfamiliar terminology.

Topic 06

Caching & Hosting Basics

Caching lets a browser remember parts of your site instead of downloading them again on every visit. We explain how that works, why it matters more for repeat visitors, and how a WordPress hosting plan's quality can set a ceiling on how fast your site can realistically become.

A person checking their small business website's loading speed on a smartphone while sitting at a cafe table
Topic 07

Mobile Performance

Mobile devices often run on slower connections and less processing power than the desktop most site owners use to check their own work. We explain why Google tests mobile and desktop separately, and what tends to hit mobile scores harder specifically.

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