Response time of global retail homepages slowing down

The global average retail homepage response time has risen seven per cent in the past year to 4.5 seconds, according to digital performance software firm Dynatrace. The results come after a year of tracking the response times of more than 300 retail websites in the US, UK, Australia, China, Germany, Spain and the Nordics.

The reason for the slowdown, says Dynatrace, is the increase in images and objects, as well as third-party plug-ins to social media sites. With consumers expecting websites to load in three seconds or less, it's important for retailers to stop site abandonment by minimising homepage load time.

Australia showed the worst response time with an 8.2 second wait, while Spain had the fastest at 3.3 seconds. Dave Anderson, VP of marketing, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia Pacific, Dynatrace, pointed out that US retailer Nordstrom identified a 0.5 second slowdown in site load time equating to an 11 per cent reduction in site conversion.

"This is precisely where retailers need to focus internal conversations: looking at site performance and how it impacts revenue. Otherwise, they're choosing to leave money on the table."