A slow website is something that no one enjoys having, including your users, Google, and your online ad budget.
If you’ve ever questioned why your Google Ads CPC continues to rise or why, even though you’re doing SEO correctly, your rankings continue to stagnate, you could have the correct keywords, and creative, but still be missing something; for example, your website speed and Core Web Vitals.
The great news? By fixing performance issues on your website, you will improve your organic performance and lower your Google Ads costs, simultaneously. Let me explain how.
Why Website Speed Is No Longer “Just a Technical Thing”
Website speed is no longer something that only developers worry about; speed is now a direct effect on:
User experience
SEO rankings
Google Ads Quality Score
Conversion rates
Cost per click (CPC)
Google's message is clear - Faster websites will always win, in paid ads and organic search results. This is where Core Web Vitals SEO enters the picture.
What Are Core Web Vitals (In Simple Terms)?
Google has developed a method of assessing actual end-user experiences through Core Web Vitals. Core Web Vitals consists of three measurement components that inform you regarding your site's overall user experience:
LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): How fast your main content loads
INP (Interaction to Next Paint): How quickly users can interact
CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): How stable your layout is while loading
While the terms may sound difficult to understand, there really isn't much to understand. It may simply be summed up by saying if you have improved Core Web Vitals, then your website will perform at a higher level than it would have without an improvement to its Core Web Vitals.
Because of the direct correlation between your site's performance and both organic search and Google Ads Quality Scores.
Core Web Vitals SEO: How Speed Impacts Rankings
According to Google’s official position, Core Web Vitals are now part of their ranking criteria.
How this affects website SEO:
1. Faster web pages \= better page speed seo
2. Higher user engagement = higher rankings
3. Lower bounce rates \= stronger organic signals
If your website has slow loading times, users will abandon your site before viewing your content.If users are leaving your site before viewing your content, Google will take notice of your slow website.
Use an online SEO speed test or website page speed test tool to help determine what parts of your website are causing it to perform poorly.
SEO Core Web Vitals Tip: Speed can’t save poor quality content, but a slow loading website can destroy quality content.
Google Ads, CPC & Website Speed: The Hidden Connection
Your landing page experience in Google Ads, which contributes significantly to your Google Ads Quality Score, is probably the most exciting thing for advertisers right now.
Quite a significant portion of your Google ads Quality Score is determined by the landing page's speed. A slow landing page can lead to:
Lower Quality Score
Higher CPC
Fewer impressions
Wasted ad spend
On the flip side, improving website speed can:
Improve Google Ads Quality Score
Reduce CPC
Increase conversion rates
Stretch your ad budget further
The exact same ads, same targeting, and better results, simply by making your ads load more quickly.
Landing Page Experience in Google Ads: Why Speed Matters
Google aims to provide its users with a positive experience when they click on an ad. One of the areas of focus that Google Ads examines to ensure a good landing page experience is the following:
Load time
Mobile responsiveness
Content relevance
Ease of navigation
If a user clicks on a page and it takes more than 3 seconds to load, then that user is likely to bounce from the page, which will lead to Google penalizing the advertiser.
Therefore, website speed optimization has a direct impact on how much you will pay for your advertising.
How to Improve Core Web Vitals (Without Overthinking It)
You don’t need to rebuild your website from scratch.
Start with these basics:
1. Run a Website Performance Check
Use:
Google PageSpeed Insights
Lighthouse
Any reliable SEO speed test site
This will give you the right directions going forward.
2. Optimize Images & Media
Large files are possibly one of the biggest factors for site slowdowns.
Compress images
Use modern formats like WebP
Lazy-load below-the-fold content
3. Improve Server & Hosting
Cheap hosting often slows the performance.
Better hosting can dramatically improve website speed.
4. Clean Up Code
You should minify all CSS, JavaScript, and HTML. Remove any unnecessary scripts.
5. Focus on Mobile First
Most traffic (and ad views) will be from mobile devices.
Mobile speed will have a large impact on organic performance and ad success.
These steps alone can significantly improve Core Web Vitals.
Final Thoughts: Speed Is a Growth Strategy, Not a Checklist
If your site isn't ranking in the search engines as you expected or is costing more than anticipated per click in your paid advertising campaigns, don't just criticize your keywords, your ad copy, or your budget as the reason for poor performance. Instead, take a minute to ask yourself:
How quickly does my website load?
What are the results from my web page speed test tool?
Do I have Core Web Vitals with decent SEO scores?
Website speed optimization is a competitive advantage in today's digital world; therefore, it should never be seen as an option.
A Faster Website gives A Better User Experience
A Better User Experience gives A Higher Search Engine Rank
A Higher Ranking Ad and a Higher CTR Ad gives A Better Return on Investment (ROI); therefore, better returns.
So, let's be honest, there is enough reason to improve website speed. Our website development team builds fast, conversion-ready websites optimized for Core Web Vitals, SEO, and Google Ads performance. Let’s develop a website that actually helps you grow.
By Shafaq - ScaleOXperts