Zenith PA - Website Report

The website has significant performance and SEO challenges, with slow loading times, unoptimized assets, and a weak backlink profile. Addressing issues such as JavaScript and CSS efficiency, image optimization, and content strategy can substantially enhance user experience, boost search rankings, and improve site engagement.

Issues and Recommendations

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Optimize the largest visible elements, such as images or text, to improve load time (currently 2,280 ms).
• Properly Size Images: Resize images to match their display size, saving 740 KiB of data.
• Serve Static Assets with Efficient Cache Policies: Set long cache durations for static files to reduce repeat visit load times (47 resources found).
• Serve Images in Next-Gen Formats: Convert images to WebP or AVIF, saving 957 KiB.
• Reduce the Impact of Third-Party Code: Defer or asynchronously load third-party scripts to avoid blocking the main thread for 3,170 ms.
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Stabilize dynamic elements and reserve space for images and ads to reduce layout shifts (current CLS: 0.433).
• Reduce JavaScript Execution Time: Minify and defer non-critical JavaScript to reduce execution time (currently 5.5 seconds).
• Reduce Initial Server Response Time: Optimize server-side performance to reduce the root document load time (currently 1,040 ms).
• Add Descriptive Text to Links: Improve SEO and accessibility by using meaningful text for hyperlinks.
• Address Third-Party Cookies: Evaluate the necessity of five detected third-party cookies and remove unnecessary ones.
• Reduce Unused JavaScript: Eliminate unused JavaScript to save 1,932 KiB and enhance load speeds.
• Minimize Main-Thread Work: Optimize JavaScript and task prioritization to reduce main-thread processing time (currently 7.1 seconds).
• Avoid Serving Legacy JavaScript: Use the module/nomodule pattern to deliver modern JavaScript to compatible browsers.
• Reduce Unused CSS: Remove unnecessary stylesheets to save 134 KiB.
• Eliminate Render-Blocking Resources: Inline critical CSS and defer non-critical scripts, saving 340 ms.
• Efficiently Encode Images: Compress images to save 529 KiB.
• Avoid Enormous Network Payloads: Streamline resources to reduce the total network size of 6,507 KiB.
• Total Blocking Time: Reduce script execution and optimize task handling to decrease blocking time (currently 2,470 ms).
• Time to Interactive (TTI): Streamline critical resource loading to reduce time to interactivity (currently 9.3 seconds).
• Avoid Large Layout Shifts: Implement fixed-size containers and predict dynamic content sizes to address five detected layout shifts.
• Enhance Backlink Profile: Build high-quality backlinks from authoritative and relevant domains (currently 59 referring domains).
• Expand Keyword Coverage: Identify high-volume, low-competition keywords to improve ranking (currently 17 organic keywords).
• Address Weak Domain Rating: Strengthen the domain rating (currently 0.2) by improving content quality and earning credible backlinks.
• Competitor Strategy Analysis: Study competitors’ keyword strategies to identify gaps and create unique content.
• Optimize Content for Regional Traffic: Adapt content to target additional regions beyond the United Kingdom, which currently contributes 100% of traffic.
• Paid Search Campaigns: Introduce targeted paid search campaigns to drive immediate traffic and complement organic efforts.

By addressing these issues systematically, the website can improve performance, engagement, and search visibility, ensuring a more competitive and user-friendly online presence.

Summary

The website performance analysis reveals several areas needing improvement to enhance speed and user experience. Key issues include slow loading times, inefficient image handling, and excessive JavaScript execution, which collectively contribute to longer wait times for users accessing the site. Addressing these issues with targeted optimizations can significantly improve the overall effectiveness and speed of the site.

Key Recommendations

• Optimize Image Sizes and Formats:
• Issue: Large images are impacting load times.
• Solution: Use appropriately sized images and adopt next-gen formats like WebP or AVIF to reduce data consumption and accelerate download speeds.
• Improve Caching Strategies:
• Issue: Static assets lack efficient cache policies.
• Solution: Implement long cache lifetimes for static resources to improve load times for repeat visits.
• JavaScript Optimization:
• Issue: JavaScript files are excessively large and slow to execute.
• Solution: Minimize unused JavaScript, optimize execution times, and avoid serving legacy JavaScript to modern browsers to enhance performance.
• Reduce Third-Party Code Impact:
• Issue: Third-party scripts are significantly delaying interactivity.
• Solution: Limit and prioritize the loading of third-party scripts, using lazy loading where possible, to reduce their impact on load times.
• Enhance Server Response Times:
• Issue: Initial server responses are slower than ideal.
• Solution: Optimize server configurations and processes to decrease the time taken for the root document to load.
• Address Layout Shifts:
• Issue: Visible elements on the page are shifting, affecting user experience.
• Solution: Identify and minimize layout shifts by stabilizing dynamic content and improving CSS practices.
• Reduce Total Page Weight:
• Issue: The total size of network payloads is large, leading to slow load times.
• Solution: Streamline resources by eliminating duplicate modules, reducing unnecessary bytes, and optimizing asset delivery.
• Improve First Input Delay and Total Blocking Time:
• Issue: Users experience delays before interacting with the page.
• Solution: Decrease main-thread work by optimizing JavaScript execution and prioritizing critical tasks to enhance interactivity.

By addressing these key areas, the website can achieve faster loading times, improve user engagement, and deliver a more seamless browsing experience.

Summary

The technical SEO analysis, based on Screaming Frog data and PageSpeed Insights scores, highlights several performance and optimisation issues impacting the website’s user experience and search engine rankings. Key areas of concern include image optimisation, JavaScript execution, server response time, and layout shifts. Immediate attention to these issues can significantly improve the site’s performance metrics, user engagement, and overall SEO effectiveness. Below are detailed findings and recommendations for each identified issue.

—

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

• • Issue: LCP element is taking 2,280 ms to load.
  • Impact: Affects user perception of load speed, potentially leading to higher bounce rates.
  • Fixes:
  • Optimise the largest content element by compressing images or text.
  • Implement lazy loading for off-screen images.
  • Upgrade server response times for faster content delivery.

Properly Size Images

• • Issue: Images are not appropriately sized, with potential savings of 740 KiB.
  • Impact: Increases load times and data usage, especially on mobile devices.
  • Fixes:
  • Resize images to fit within the display areas on different devices.
  • Implement responsive images using the `` or `` HTML tags.

Serve Static Assets with an Efficient Cache Policy

• • Issue: 47 resources lack efficient caching.
  • Impact: Slower repeat visits due to unnecessary re-downloading of resources.
  • Fixes:
  • Set long cache lifetimes for static assets like images, CSS, and JavaScript files.
  • Use cache-control headers to manage caching policies.

Serve Images in Next-Gen Formats

• • Issue: Not using modern image formats like WebP or AVIF, with potential savings of 957 KiB.
  • Impact: Slower image loading times and increased data consumption.
  • Fixes:
  • Convert images to WebP or AVIF formats for better compression.
  • Use fallback formats for browsers that do not support these formats.

Reduce the Impact of Third-Party Code

• • Issue: Third-party code blocked the main thread for 3,170 ms.
  • Impact: Increases load time and impacts user interaction negatively.
  • Fixes:
  • Defer or asynchronously load third-party scripts.
  • Remove redundant third-party scripts where possible.

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

• • Issue: CLS score of 0.433 indicates significant layout shifts.
  • Impact: Causes a poor user experience by moving elements unexpectedly.
  • Fixes:
  • Reserve space for images and ads to avoid layout shifts.
  • Ensure dimensions are set for all media.

Reduce JavaScript Execution Time

• • Issue: JavaScript execution time is 5.5 seconds.
  • Impact: Delays page interactivity and increases loading time.
  • Fixes:
  • Minimise and defer JavaScript to reduce execution time.
  • Split large JavaScript bundles and load them asynchronously.

Reduce Initial Server Response Time

• • Issue: Initial server response time is 1,040 ms.
  • Impact: Delays the loading of all subsequent resources.
  • Fixes:
  • Optimise server configurations and use faster servers.
  • Implement server-side caching and reduce database query times.

Links Do Not Have Descriptive Text

• • Issue: 1 link lacking descriptive text.
  • Impact: Reduces accessibility and SEO effectiveness.
  • Fixes:
  • Use meaningful, descriptive text for hyperlinks to improve accessibility.

Use of Third-Party Cookies

• • Issue: 5 third-party cookies found.
  • Impact: Potential privacy concerns and future browser restrictions.
  • Fixes:
  • Evaluate the necessity of third-party cookies and remove unnecessary ones.
  • Transition to first-party cookies where possible.

Reduce Unused JavaScript

• • Issue: Potential savings of 1,932 KiB from unused JavaScript.
  • Impact: Wastes bandwidth and increases load times.
  • Fixes:
  • Remove or defer unused JavaScript.
  • Use dynamic imports for non-critical scripts.

Minimise Main-Thread Work

• • Issue: Main-thread work takes 7.1 seconds.
  • Impact: Delays page readiness and interactivity.
  • Fixes:
  • Optimise and split JavaScript to reduce main-thread burden.
  • Prioritise critical tasks and defer non-critical ones.

Avoid Serving Legacy JavaScript to Modern Browsers

• • Issue: No savings identified, but potential improvements.
  • Impact: Unnecessary code bloat for modern browsers.
  • Fixes:
  • Implement module/nomodule pattern to serve only necessary polyfills to legacy browsers.

Reduce Unused CSS

• • Issue: Potential savings of 134 KiB from unused CSS.
  • Impact: Increases page load and render times.
  • Fixes:
  • Remove unused CSS rules and defer non-critical styles.
  • Use tools to identify and eliminate redundant styles.

Eliminate Render-Blocking Resources

• Issue: Render-blocking resources with potential savings of 340 ms.
• Impact: Delays page rendering and increases time to first paint.
• Fixes:
• Inline critical CSS and defer non-critical CSS.
• Load JavaScript asynchronously using `` or ``.

Avoid Large Layout Shifts

• Issue: 5 significant layout shifts identified.
• Impact: Leads to a jarring user experience.
• Fixes:
• Predict and reserve space for dynamic content.
• Use fixed-size containers where possible.

Additional Recommendations

• Efficiently Encode Images: Potential savings of 529 KiB by optimising image encoding.
• Avoid Enormous Network Payloads: Total network payload size of 6,507 KiB needs reduction.
• Total Blocking Time: Improve by optimising script execution and reducing main-thread work.
• Time to Interactive: Currently at 9.3 seconds; focus on reducing script load and execution.

---

In conclusion, addressing these issues with the recommended fixes will significantly enhance the website's performance, improve user experience, and boost SEO effectiveness. Prioritising tasks based on their impact and potential savings will ensure efficient use of resources and time.

Summary of Feedback

The website is built on a robust technology stack that includes popular tools and services for analytics, content management, and web performance. However, there is room for improvement in optimisation, especially in terms of load speeds and potential plugin bloat. Outdated platforms should be updated, and redundant services should be eliminated to enhance performance. The following sections provide a detailed analysis and specific recommendations for improvement.

Technology Stack Overview

Analytics and Tracking

The website employs various analytics tools, including HubSpot, Google Analytics, and Google Analytics 4. These tools provide comprehensive insights into marketing performance and user behaviour. However, it is essential to ensure that tracking codes are not duplicated, which can lead to inaccurate data and increased page load times.

Content Management and Plugins

The site runs on WordPress (version 6.6), utilising several plugins such as Yoast SEO, Contact Form 7, and the HubSpot WordPress Plugin. While these plugins offer valuable functionality, they can also contribute to plugin bloat, affecting site speed. It is crucial to regularly audit these plugins to ensure they are up-to-date and necessary.

Frameworks and Libraries

The technology stack includes frameworks like jQuery (version 3.6.0) and libraries such as Popper.js and core-js. These libraries are essential for interactive elements but should be updated to the latest versions to avoid security vulnerabilities and performance issues.

Performance and Security

Cloudflare is used for DNS and CDN services, which enhances site security and performance. The website also uses an SSL certificate by default, ensuring secure data transmission. However, further optimisation can be achieved by leveraging additional Cloudflare features like automatic image optimisation and caching strategies.

Recommendations for Improvement

Plugin Management

• • Audit Plugins: Regularly review and remove any unused or redundant plugins. Consider consolidating functionalities where possible to reduce bloat.
  • Update Plugins: Ensure all plugins are updated to the latest versions to improve security and performance.

Performance Optimisation

• • Leverage Browser Caching: Use caching strategies to reduce load times for returning visitors.
  • Minify CSS and JavaScript: Optimise CSS and JavaScript files to reduce their size and improve loading speeds.
  • Implement Lazy Loading: Use lazy loading techniques for images and videos to enhance page load times, particularly on mobile devices.

Analytics and Tracking

• • Consolidate Tracking Codes: Ensure that tracking codes are not duplicated to avoid skewed analytics data and unnecessary resource usage.
  • Migrate to GA4: If not fully transitioned, ensure a complete migration to Google Analytics 4 for more advanced insights and future-proofing analytics capabilities.

Security Enhancements

• Regular Security Audits: Conduct periodic security audits to identify and address vulnerabilities.
• Implement Two-Factor Authentication: Add an extra layer of security for admin logins to protect against unauthorised access.

Conclusion

By addressing the identified areas for improvement, the website can achieve better performance, enhanced security, and more accurate analytics insights. Regular audits and updates will ensure the site remains competitive and meets evolving user expectations.

Summary

The website currently exhibits significant SEO weaknesses, with a very low Domain Rating (DR) of 0.2 and a minimal URL Rating (UR) of 8. The backlink profile is notably weak, with only 59 referring domains and 47 backlinks, resulting in a low organic search performance. The site ranks for only 17 organic keywords, none of which are in the top 3 positions, and attracts negligible organic traffic. The site has no paid search activity. To improve SEO performance, the website needs to bolster its backlink profile, enhance keyword targeting, and optimise its content for better user engagement and technical performance.

Backlink Profile

The website’s backlink profile is underdeveloped, with just 59 referring domains and 47 backlinks. The Domain Rating (DR) of 0.2 and URL Rating (UR) of 8 suggest a weak authority in search engines’ eyes. To strengthen the backlink profile, the website should focus on acquiring backlinks from reputable and relevant websites. Strategies could include guest blogging, creating shareable content, and engaging with industry influencers to attract more high-quality backlinks.

Organic Search Performance

The website’s organic search metrics highlight room for improvement. With only 17 keywords and no rankings in the top 3 positions, the site is not effectively capturing search engine traffic. The organic traffic is minimal, with an average of just 5 visitors. Enhancing keyword research to identify high-volume, low-competition keywords and optimising existing content to target these keywords can improve rankings. Additionally, enhancing on-page SEO elements such as meta titles, descriptions, and alt text can provide better clarity to search engines.

Paid Search Performance

Currently, the website does not engage in any paid search activities. Although not essential, initiating a targeted paid search campaign could drive short-term traffic improvements and help identify effective keywords for organic efforts. This strategy should be considered if budget allows and if immediate traffic increases are necessary.

Performance by Location

The website’s traffic is predominantly from the United Kingdom, accounting for 100% of the organic visits. Expanding keyword targeting to include regional and international terms, where relevant, could diversify and increase traffic sources. Additionally, ensuring that content is culturally relevant and optimised for local search behaviours can enhance visibility in other locations.

Competitor Analysis

The website faces competition from domains such as zenithpa.co.uk, greatbritishbusinessshow.co.uk, and mapcommunications.com. These competitors have a larger keyword overlap and share of the market. Analysing their strategies, such as the types of content they produce and the keywords they target, can provide insights and opportunities for growth. Emulating successful strategies and differentiating the site’s unique value propositions could enhance competitive positioning.

Technical SEO and PageSpeed Insights

While detailed PageSpeed Insights scores are not provided, ensuring that the website is technically sound is crucial. This includes optimising page load speeds, ensuring mobile responsiveness, and fixing any crawling errors such as redirects and server errors. A fast, user-friendly site will not only improve user experience but also contribute positively to SEO rankings.

Conclusion

To improve the website’s SEO performance, a comprehensive strategy focusing on enhancing the backlink profile, optimising for better keyword targeting, and improving technical aspects is necessary. By addressing these areas, the website can increase its visibility, attract more organic traffic, and achieve a stronger competitive position in its market.