Web users do not like slow-loading web pages, a fact confirmed by a lot of research over recent years. But now, it’s not just web users who don’t like them. Facebook recently announced an algorithm change that will prioritize web pages that load faster in its mobile app.

According to Facebook, the social media platform’s users have complained about Facebook links that directed them to slow-loading pages. Facebook also said that for as many as 40% of users, three seconds is the extent of their patience before abandoning a page that is slow to download.

The algorithm change, which will take a few months to completely roll out, will mean a decrease in referral traffic to slow-loading web pages. If this all sounds familiar, Google made a similar move in 2016 that affected slow-loading web pages.

Once the update is in place, the estimated load time of a page that is linked from the news feed of the Facebook mobile app will be taken into account, as will the network connection. Pages determined to have a faster load time will be given higher priority in the news feed.

There are steps your organization can take to improve download times, such as:

• Take advantage of free tools such as Page Speed, YSlow, WebPagetest or PageSpeed Insights to evaluate your site and get suggestions for improvements.
• Work on mobile optimization, as discussed in last month’s edition of GreyMatters.