Core Web Vitals | What they are and why they are important for SEO

Today one of the biggest questions for everyone is what Core Web Vitals are and why they are important for SEO.

And, with such a recent topic, the lack of information is understandable.

In this article we will not only tell you what these metrics are, but also all about their announcement and implementation, importance and how it can affect your website.

Core Web Vitals
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What are Core Web Vitals?

When we talk about Core Web Vitals, we are referring to a series of Google metrics, which are responsible for analyzing the experience a user has when browsing a web page. 

Among the factors taken into account by the Core Web Vitals we can mention the loading time, the interactivity offered by the page and also the visual stability.

The result of all this has a direct effect on the positioning that will be given to it.

The metrics that make up the Core Web Vitals have the ability to evolve as time goes by, with the intention of being able to adapt more and more to the need to improve their ability to analyze the user’s experience.

The way they were presented in 2020 it is known that the three aspects on which they focus will be the LCP (which is the same as the content load), the FID (which refers to the interactivity on the web page), and the CLS (acronym that refers to the visual stability).

As it is something very new, many people still do not understand what all this is about, but we simply have to get used to the idea that Google is increasingly looking for new ways to bring quality content to the user, in every sense of the word.

People who believe that, somehow, these new metrics that are having a lot of echo will negatively affect all the work they already have on their website can only do is look at the elements necessary to achieve a good score in Core Web Vitals.

Core web vitals diagram
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When does it become effective?

When we refer to it as something recent, which is causing a lot of buzz, we are talking about the announcement of its creation that was made only in 2020.

However, due to the delay created by the COVID-19 pandemic in all aspects, it was not put into effect by then.

Core Web Vitals go into effect only in 2021, about six months after Google decided to officially launch its announcement.

So, presumably, the implementation date has already passed.

That six-month time range was given so that everyone who wanted to be up to speed with the new standards would have a chance to plan what the application of the changes would look like moments before these new metrics went live.

That is why, even today, the invitation from Google is still to optimize more and more everything that is needed to have a good score based on the factors that are responsible for analyzing these metrics and, in this way, get a better position in their search results.

Why should Core Web Vitals be improved?

Perhaps we should start answering the question of why to improve Core Web Vitals by simply saying that these three factors we have been talking about will have a direct influence on the positioning of both new projects and those that already have their history on the web.

We all know that the aspects that have been considered by Google over the years when it comes to giving a certain score to a website so that it has the place it deserves in the search results have not stopped evolving over the years. 

From the beginning until today we have seen how we have reached an era where Google tells us that, in fact, what matters most when it comes to positioning our websites in their search results is the experience we are offering to the user.

Do you think it is difficult to improve the user experience, the truth is that it is a relative issue.

The elements that must be combined to offer a good experience will often depend on the intention they have when they click on your page and start browsing it. 

And this is not only something that we say, but Google also knows, and that is why it has released a kind of guide with specific variables that should be improved so that its algorithm gives the go-ahead to our sites and rate them according to its vision of efficiency.

Are these new metrics worth a rethinking of websites?

The fact that Google has decided to give us a warning prior to the implementation of their new metrics should tell us a lot about the importance of these metrics for their algorithm.

The next time you ask yourself why improve Core Web Vitals remember that a website is never stable in one position. 

And it can take just one change in what the algorithm may consider quality to move it down hundreds of positions, as well as up. 

The Core Web Vitals are not designed to get any site out of the way, only to ensure that all content displayed on the internet is not only of quality, but that it reaches the user in an enjoyable place where they can enjoy all the information. 

Although these are factors that were not given the attention they deserve today, that does not necessarily mean that they will be difficult to manage. It is enough to start rowing in the right direction to catch up with these new metrics and thus improve positioning.

What impact do they have on SEO?

We all know that one of the first questions that comes to mind when we hear about these metrics is what impact the Core Web Vitals have on SEO, since they are designed to serve directly to the search engines we already know.

Now, before trying to better understand what their effects will be, we must be clear that the only thing this metric will be based on when it comes to giving a score to a website is the experience through speed it offers to the user. 

We can see all this as an initiative by Google so that all websites that want to compete for those first places in its list of search results have a guide of essential quality factors so that all users who visit them have a good experience.

Understanding the above, we can then say that the objective of the Core Web Vitals is to simplify the work of optimizing a web page, as it seeks to bring the focus of attention to all those elements that are necessary to take into account to improve the  user experience.

SEO or search engine optimization concept

How do Core Web Vitals affect a website?

First of all, due to this new metrics system Google will be in charge of offering an index that will serve as a note of all those aspects that are essential when creating a quality website.

Therefore, all websites will have the need to review this list and work on each of the aspects that are pointed out, since the better score they have in relation to it, the better positioning they will be given in the search results.

So, what impact do the Core Web Vitals have on SEO, basically it will be a fundamental aspect when it comes not only to calculate what experience the user is having on a website, but also to help define the positioning of this page in search engines.

It is then where we begin to see how these metrics begin to be an indispensable factor for SEO, making all those specialists, or interested people, should hurry to optimize the factors that they are designed to analyze, or the positioning of their sites will be automatically affected. 

We can then affirm that it can be the case that a page before the implementation of these new metrics had a good structure and had a great impact in terms of SEO, but if with these new basic rules it no longer complies then all that will fall apart. 

That is why all of us users must adapt to Google’s vision regarding the Core Web Vitals SEO. These metrics will become a basic guide of everything a quality website must have to gain positioning, and it is better to comply with it.

Tips to Optimize WordPress Core Web Vitals for Better SEO

Optimizing the Core Web Vitals for WordPress SEO could be a though way to go.

There are plenty of Core Web Vitals blogs posts that don’t go deep on how to improve the Core Web Vitals for Search Console.

And honestly, trying to do things by your own might save you some money, but probably not that much time.

And it might get frustrating, as it was for me, that even when I changed my WordPress hosting from Siteground to Vultr High Frequency, my PageSpeed Insights numbers did improved, but not as much as I wanted.

I did had WPRocket as the speed optimization plugin, but it seem it was not the best solution.

It was good, but not the best.

So how to achieve better numbers? Well, accept that I am not fully software developer and look for some expert help.

And that is what I did.

I went into fiver and searched for Core Web Vitals Optimization.

There are plenty of Freelancers that will help you with WordPress Speed Optimization.

I hired a Freelancer, and after a few days, my numbers where achieving above 90s and even 100s in PageSpeed Insights.

I am still waiting to see the impact on Search Console, but looking forward to it.

So basically, that is the Tip.

Hire an expert.

Or if you are aiming to do it by your own, in the next section I will leave some other plugins that helped me to achieve better results.

Play Video
Pagespeed-Cloudways-Vultr
Before Optimization - January 2021
Pagespeed-cloudways-vultr-high-frequency-june-2021
After Optimization - June 2021

WordPress Plugins for Core Web Vitals Optimization

As previously mentioned, the WordPress Hosting that this Website is using is Vultr High Frequency.

It has been a really good WordPress Hosting, that indeed, improved the website performance, even better than Siteground.

Despite having Elementor and WPML, which are known for not being the very best when it comes to speed, the website had good results in PageSpeed Insights and Gtmetrix.

The following plugins are the ones lifting the websites Core Web Vitals.

WP Rocket

WP-Rocket

One of the plugins that was already installed was WP Rocket.

WP Rocket makes it easier to do website speed optimizations.

The maing configurations that were done were the ones on the Javascript minification and delays.

Also, it was set up with Cloudflare as CDN. 

Asset Cleanup

Asset-Cleanup

The CSS minification was done with this plugin, Asset Cleanup.

Also, Asset Cleanup helps to decide which scripts should be loaded and which one not.

This way, you reduce the code that should not be loaded to your webpage.

As well, in the case of Elementor, the Icons were set to not be loaded, and it is recommended to use SVGs.

Statically

Statically

As an extra support for static resources, Statically helps as a CDN.

As previously mentioned, the configuration was done by a Freelancer from Fiverr, therefore to give specific directions of how it works can’t be given, but we hope it gives you a headstart on keep improving your Core Web Vitals for your WordPress Website.

 

Core Web Vitals results months after optimization

Frequently Asked Questions
about Core Web Vitals

As recommended, you can start by improving your WordPress Hosting, Vultr High Frequency is one wordpress hosting that is fast and you can scale up as your website grows.

As well, there are other suggestions to fix you Core Web Vitals, such as the use of WordPress plugins for speed like WP Rocket, Asset Clean Up and Statically.

As recently announced by Google, Core Web Vitals are important in order to have a proof of good user page experience.

Fast and friendly websites will have a better performance for users.

Core Web Vitals affect SEO and is having now an impact on search engine rankings.

The Page Experience signals are an important ranking factor to be aware and take care of in order to also improve search rankings. 

More about SEO.