The Google Core Update of December 2020 was only a small foretaste of the changes in the Core algorithm in May 2021. As early as December, website operators could therefore ask themselves the investigative question: "What substantial added value does the content of my website bring for my users? What unique selling points does content have compared to my competitors? Is my loading time speed really user-friendly?
The Core Web Vitals Update for May 2021 is to be seen as an improvement process of user experience and website performance. UX and loading speed will become an official ranking factor for Google - apart from high-quality content for the user. Furthermore, Google announces that websites that meet all the guidelines of the Core Web Vitals Update for May 2021will be highlighted in the SERPs. The effect: users are more likely to access these offers in organic search.
The upcoming Core Web Vitals Google Update 2021 addresses two key points: User experience and page experience. This is because over 80% of users do not return to a website if they have had a bad experience, for example due to excessive loading times or frequently changing layouts after loading a website. From May 2021, websites will rank positively on Google if three main factors are met:
The magic limit for Largest Contentful Paint for Core Web Vitals 2021 is 2.5 seconds. The value measures the time it takes for users to see the first relevant content on a website.
Previously, Google included technical performance metrics when evaluating websites. The DOM Content Loaded rating described when objects are loaded and visible to users. The Large Contentful Paint factor can be checked with the Google Lighthouse extension in Chrome, for example. With a few steps, a report is created here, comparable to Google Page Speed Insights. Thanks to this statement, website operators have an overview and which measures are also on the agenda for search engine optimization, for example.
For online retailers, the smooth path from the first touchpoints between customer and company is important. Depending on the competition, es it is crucial that the customer journey encourages interaction from the very first steps. The more user-friendly a website is, the better. In principle, the guideline value for Core Web Vitals 2021 is 100 milliseconds. The optimized FID value improves the user experience, especially for returning users.
An optimal first input delay value indicates how long the website takes to load after es has received the user's first interaction. While the website is loading, users click on a button. While the browser in the main thread is busy with resources and JavaScript files. The more in need of optimization the FID value is, the more extensive the delays are es when rendering the content. This is a bottleneck for many domains. The touchpoint between the interested party and the company is suboptimal.
The focus of the Core Web Vitals Update 2021 here is how long the Main Thread is busy. Because this forms the statement about processes that slow down the first user interaction. Too large JavaScript file can be responsible here. The rendering is thus delayed. Incidentally, the Core Web Vitals Updates 2021 differentiates between discrete interactions (keystrokes, touch inputs or clicks. Scrolling and zooming have no effect on First Input Delay. All factors can also be averaged in the Lighthouse reporter.
The CLS value indicates how layouts change again after the web page has been loaded. A good user experience means that the CLS value is close to zero, with a maximum of 0.1. Here's why: the quieter the web page behaves after loading, the better for the user experience. Buttons and other interaction options must change only minimally. In the Core Web Vitals Update 2021, the Cumulative Layout Shift value considers the size of viewports and the movement of unstable elements between rendered frames. Because otherwise, users may end up in an area of the web page they don't want to get to.