When we design websites for clients we always add a plugin called Shortpixel.
Tip: Do not buy this directly from the authors it will cost you way more we have a great deal for you on this at the end of the article.
If we are currently designing your site and we sent you to this page please read on so that you know what Shortpixel is and why you need it. If you already have a site and are looking to add image compression you will also find this article useful and you can always ask us to add this to your site for you.
Shortpixel provides your WordPress site with a plugin that will compress all the images on your site to the smallest size they can be without any loss in quality to the human eye.
After setting up the plugin all the current images and thumbnails on your site will be compressed. Once this is done any images you may upload in the future will be automatically compressed without any extra action needed by you.
Why do you need this?
1. Page speed for search engines. I am sure we do not have to tell you that page speed is VITAL these days. If you want your site to do well in search engines it HAS to be fast. Lots of large images can slow down your site’s pages and negatively affect your page load times.
2. Page speed for customers. This is a proven and well-researched FACT if your pages take much more than 2 seconds to load you start losing visitors before they even see your site. This is lost sales, lost sign-ups lost income. Is it worth losing even one sale to uncompressed images?
3. Webspace. Like all websites you have to pay for your web space, so why waste it on images that could be much smaller?
Image Sizes
Now just to be clear here there are TWO types of sizes when it comes to images. There are the physical size EG 800×600 pixels then there is the FILE size EG 1Mb.
For physical size, you should never really be uploading images that are more than 1900 pixels wide unless you need ultra-high-quality images. For example, a photographer may use larger image sizes.
Regarding the file size read on…..
What Will This Plugin Do To My Images?
Shortpixel will drastically reduce the FILE SIZE of your image without altering the dimensions or the quality of the photography. This is called lossless compression.
Couldn’t I Do This With A Program On My Computer?
Yes you could but that is time-consuming to do correctly, in addition, most compression software will degrade the visual quality of your images.
Is There Any Cost?
This depends on how many images you upload. Shortpixel offers 100 images free every month after that they DO charge. Bear in mind that every time you upload an image, WordPress will create at least five different sizes to fit different devices, so 100 credits can run out very quickly leaving you with uncompressed images that can slow down your website.
Shortpixel's regular pricing options are as follows:
One-time credit packs for $10. The challenge with these is obviously they constantly need to be topped up as they run out. Alternatively, they offer an unlimited account which is normally $9.99 per month.
Our Deal For You (No brainer)
Obviously, because we design and host so many websites and so many of our clients use this plugin, we can harness a little bit of bulk buying and save you considerably. We have a special deal for you where we can provide you with the unlimited account for just £9.99 per year (plus a one time £5 set up fee) instead of the usual $9.99 per month you would pay direct at their site. That's a huge saving of £79 per year. You can order that here
What About The Images That Are Already On My Site?
They will also be compressed once the plugin is installed.
Set this up now and you never have to worry about wasting webspace or slowing your site down with badly compressed images.