A Content Delivery Network (CDN) is a network of servers around the world that store and deliver your website’s content to users based on their location. So when someone visits your website, the CDN has the content from the server nearest to them, reducing latency and speeding up load times. But what does this mean for SEO and why should you care?
CDNs and Site Speed
Site speed is a key part of search engine optimisation (SEO). Google have been factoring site speed into their algorithm since 2010 so it’s non negotiable for SEO. The faster your site loads, the better the user experience and the higher you’ll rank in search results. By reducing the distance between your website’s server and the user, CDNs speed up your site, which impacts your SEO.
Reducing Bounce Rate
CDNs speed up your site and reduce bounce rate. Bounce rate is the percentage of visitors who leave a website after viewing only one page. High bounce rates can harm SEO as search engines see it as a sign of poor user experience. By delivering content quickly and efficiently CDNs can decrease your bounce rate and improve user experience and SEO.
Website Uptime
A CDN ensures your website is available to your audience no matter where they are in the world. This is done through a concept called ‘load balancing’. When a server is experiencing high traffic or an issue the CDN will redirect the user to another server so your website is always available. This uptime can benefit your SEO as search engines favour websites that offer a consistent and reliable user experience.
Extra Security
CDNs add an extra layer of security to your website. They can mitigate DDoS attacks and protect your website from malicious bots and scrapers that can harm your SEO. Plus CDNs can filter out bad traffic so only legitimate users can access your site. So these threats won’t impact your website’s performance and SEO.
Global Reach
A CDN allows your website to reach a global audience. It ensures your site loads fast for users no matter where they are in the world. This is especially useful for businesses that target a global audience as it can improve your visibility on international search engine results pages.
What to Look For When Choosing a CDN?
When choosing a CDN (Content Delivery Network) the main thing to check is speed vs your origin server. If it’s not faster it may not be worth it.
Check how the CDN delivers small files and large payloads. And can it handle different file sizes.
Before you decide try out the CDN solutions. Here’s a list of metrics to check:
- Last-Mile and End-User DNS Response Time: Testing in-house is not enough; you need to consider the end-user experience. A complicated DNS setup can result to longer wait times for your users which you want to avoid.
- Peak Hour Performance: If your website’s traffic varies greatly during different days or times it’s important to test the CDN’s performance during peak hours to ensure optimal performance.
- Connect Time: Look for good network connectivity, low latency and no packet loss. These are the factors that affect user experience.
- Wait Time on Less Popular Assets: Since CDNs are in a shared environment be aware of how less frequently requested assets are handled. For example you want to know if they are retrieved from the origin server or served from the edge like popular assets.
- Cache Hit/Miss Ratio: This should be visible in your dashboard. A high number of requests coming back to the origin is a red flag.
- Throughput: Make sure the CDN’s throughput is not lower than the origin for any asset size. It means the CDN is actually improving your site’s performance.
- API Integrations: To make your investment more future-proof verify that the CDN can be integrated with your current software and any future additions you might have.
By considering these factors you can choose a CDN that fits your needs and improves your online presence.
CDN for SEO
Following best practices for CDN implementation and configuration is important to get the most out of your CDN for SEO. Here are the key points to remember:
1. Correctly Setting the CDN Subdomain
When setting up a CDN it’s important to make sure it’s correctly configured to avoid duplicate content which can harm your SEO. Instead of having your CDN host your entire site you should use it to serve static content like images, CSS and JavaScript. Your primary domain should still use HTML. This way search engines can index your content correctly and avoid any duplicate content issues.
2. Use HTTP/2
HTTP/2 is a revision of the HTTP protocol that improves efficiency, speed and security. Most CDNs support HTTP/2 and you should enable it. HTTP/2 also allows multiple files to be transferred at once instead of one at a time which can significantly improve your site’s load time.
3. Use CDN Caching
One of the main benefit of a CDN is its caching capabilities. CDN caching is storing a copy of your website’s static content on the CDN’s servers reducing the load on your origin server and speeding up content delivery to users. Make sure to configure your CDN’s caching settings to optimize your website’s performance.
4. Enable Compression
Many CDNs have compression feature which reduces the size of your files before it’s sent to the user. It can significantly reduce load times and improve user experience which is good for SEO.
5. Use CDN’s SSL
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is a protocol that provides a secure connection between the user’s browser and your website. It’s a ranking factor considered by search engines. Most CDNs have SSL feature and enabling this can improve your SEO performance.
6. Consider SEO When Choosing a CDN Provider
When choosing a CDN provider it’s important to consider their SEO capabilities. Look for a provider that has HTTP/2 support, caching, SSL and easy integration with your existing web infrastructure.
A CDN is not a set-it-and-forget-it tool. It requires careful setup and ongoing optimization to get the most out of it for SEO. But with the right approach and best practices a CDN can be a great tool for your SEO journey. It can improve your site’s speed, security, reliability and reach – all key to a solid SEO strategy.
Get the most out of Content Delivery Networks for your SEO. Optimize your CDN and see your website climb up the search engines. Remember, it’s in the details and a well optimized CDN is one of them.
