A slow-loading homepage can make or break the success of an eCommerce site, especially on mobile, where users demand speed and seamless navigation. In this case study, we explore how we optimized a WooCommerce store with 37,786 products, reducing its mobile homepage load time from 30 seconds to just 3 seconds while improving the user experience and boosting engagement.
The Challenge: A 30-Second Mobile Load Time
The client approached us with severe performance issues on their WooCommerce store:
- Homepage Slowness on Mobile: The homepage took 30 seconds to load on mobile devices.
- High Bounce Rates: Users abandoned the site before interacting with any content due to slow loading speeds.
- Cluttered UI: The homepage was overloaded with products, causing confusion and poor navigation.
- Low Mobile Conversion Rates: Visitors on mobile devices struggled to shop efficiently, resulting in lost sales.
The Audit: Identifying the Bottlenecks
We began with a performance audit using tools like Google Lighthouse, GTmetrix, and browser developer tools, uncovering the following issues:
- Excessive Product Loading: The homepage displayed 6 sections, each loading 49 products, totaling 294 products. This resulted in a massive DOM size and long JavaScript execution times.
- Unoptimized Product Images: Product images were large and not optimized for mobile devices, leading to heavy payloads.
- No Lazy Loading: All images and product content loaded at once, even for content outside the user’s viewport.
- Unnecessary CSS and JavaScript: Unused CSS and JavaScript files were loaded globally, increasing the render-blocking time.
- Inefficient Layout: The design overwhelmed users with too many products per section, reducing clarity and usability.
The Solution: Optimizing Design and Functionality
To address these challenges, we implemented a strategic combination of design improvements and technical optimizations:
1. Reduce the Number of Products on the Homepage
Original Setup: 6 sections × 49 products = 294 products.
Optimized Setup: 6 sections × 10 products = 60 products total. This significantly reduced the initial page load size and created a cleaner, more focused design.
2. Enable Lazy Loading
Implemented lazy loading for all images and products using the Intersection Observer API. This ensured that only images and content within the user’s viewport were loaded initially, deferring the rest until needed.
3. Optimize Product Images
Converted product images to the WebP format, reducing their size by up to 80% without compromising quality. Used responsive image sizes (srcset) to serve appropriately sized images based on the user’s device.
4. Simplify the Homepage Design
Adopted a clean grid layout with 5 products per row for better visual clarity. Added intuitive CTAs, like “View More” and “Shop Now,” to encourage deeper engagement without overwhelming users.
5. Remove Unused CSS and JavaScript
Used WP Rocket to:
- Minify and combine CSS and JavaScript files.
- Remove unused CSS with its Remove Unused CSS feature.
- Defer JavaScript execution to eliminate render-blocking issues.
6. Improve Mobile Responsiveness
Customized mobile-specific CSS to simplify styles and reduce unnecessary assets for smaller screens. Preloaded critical assets, such as fonts and above-the-fold images, to speed up the Largest Contentful Paint (LCP).
7. Optimize Database Queries
Used WP-Optimize to clean up transients, orphaned metadata, and unused database entries, reducing query load. Implemented object caching with Redis for faster repeated queries.
The Results: Dramatic Performance and UX Improvements
Our optimizations led to remarkable improvements in both performance and user experience:
Performance Metrics
| Metric | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile Homepage Load Time | 30 seconds | 3 seconds |
| Google PageSpeed Score (Mobile) | 20 | 88 |
| Google PageSpeed Score (Desktop) | 45 | 95 |
| Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) | 8.5 seconds | 2.2 seconds |
User Engagement Metrics
- Bounce Rate: Decreased by 52%.
- Time on Page: Increased by 70%.
- Mobile Conversions: Increased by 35%.
Key Takeaways
- Design Impacts Performance: A cluttered homepage with excessive products is not only confusing for users but also a major performance bottleneck.
- Lazy Loading is a Game-Changer: Deferring the loading of images and content outside the viewport is essential for improving mobile performance.
- Image Optimization is Crucial: Converting images to WebP and using responsive sizes can drastically reduce page size and load times.
- Simplifying the User Experience Helps: Showing fewer products with clear CTAs improves navigation and keeps users engaged.
- Technical and Design Optimizations Go Hand-in-Hand: Performance isn’t just about server power—it requires a balance between efficient design and technical improvements.
Conclusion
This case study demonstrates that solving performance issues requires a holistic approach. By focusing on both design and technical optimizations, we transformed a WooCommerce site with 37,786 products from a sluggish, 30-second mobile load time to a lightning-fast experience under 3 seconds.
If your website is suffering from slow load times and poor mobile performance, it’s time to take action. Let us help you optimize your site for speed, engagement, and conversions!
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