MovieListClub: SEO Audit & Website Performance Analysis

Overview:

In this self-directed SEO project, I conducted a website performance audit for MovieListClub, a WordPress website focused on movie recommendations. The project was designed to provide hands-on experience with technical SEO, website performance optimization, Core Web Vitals, and website auditing.

Using Google PageSpeed Insights, I analyzed website performance, identified opportunities for improvement, implemented optimization techniques, and measured the impact of those changes. The project provided practical experience improving website speed, user experience, and technical SEO performance.

What I Did

• Conducted a website performance audit using Google PageSpeed Insights.
  Analyzed Core Web Vitals, including Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), Total Blocking Time (TBT), and Speed Index.
• Identified performance issues related to image delivery, render-blocking resources, caching, and LCP optimization.
• Converted and optimized website images using WebP format to reduce file sizes.
  Resized oversized images to better match displayed dimensions.
• Configured LiteSpeed Cache settings to improve website performance.
  Implemented JavaScript deferral to reduce render-blocking resources.
• Adjusted image loading settings to improve Largest Contentful Paint performance.
  Tested website performance before and after optimization efforts.
• Documented optimization recommendations and measured improvements.
  

What I learned

• Developed practical experience conducting technical SEO audits.
  Improved my understanding of Core Web Vitals and their impact on user experience.
• Learned how image optimization affects page speed and website performance.
• Gained experience identifying and resolving render-blocking resource issues.
• Strengthened my understanding of caching and website performance optimization.
• Learned how to use PageSpeed Insights to diagnose technical SEO issues and prioritize improvements.
• Developed experience measuring and reporting performance improvements using data.

Tools Used

Google PageSpeed Insights, WordPress, LiteSpeed Cache, Squoosh.app

Project Goal:

To evaluate and improve the performance of MovieListClub by identifying technical SEO issues, optimizing website assets, and improving Core Web Vitals and PageSpeed performance metrics.

This project demonstrates my ability to analyze website performance, identify optimization opportunities, implement technical improvements, and measure results using industry-standard SEO tools.

Website Performance Audit

Google PageSpeed Insights was used to analyze website performance and identify optimization opportunities. The audit revealed several areas for improvement, including image delivery, render-blocking resources, caching, and Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) performance.

By reviewing diagnostic reports and Core Web Vitals metrics, I was able to prioritize optimization efforts and track improvements throughout the project.

Optimization Process

After completing the audit, I implemented several website performance improvements.

Key Optimizations:

• Converted images to WebP format to reduce file size.
• Optimized image dimensions to match displayed sizes.
• Improved image delivery and loading behavior.
• Configured LiteSpeed Cache performance settings.
• Enabled JavaScript deferral to reduce render-blocking resources.
• Reviewed caching recommendations and website asset loading behavior.

These improvements were designed to improve loading speed, user experience, and Core Web Vitals performance.

Results & Performance Improvements

Performance testing was conducted before and after optimization efforts.

Before Optimization:
Performance Score: 82
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): 4.3 seconds
Total Blocking Time (TBT): 70 ms
Speed Index: 5.0 seconds

After Optimization
Performance Score: 97
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): 1.9 seconds
Total Blocking Time (TBT): 0 ms
Speed Index: 4.3 seconds

Performance Comparison

Marketing Skills Demonstrated

• Technical SEO
• SEO Auditing
• Website Performance Optimization
• Core Web Vitals Analysis
• Website Analytics Interpretation
• Problem Solving
• WordPress Website Management
• Website Testing & Quality Assurance
• Data Analysis & Reporting
• User Experience (UX) Optimization
• Performance Monitoring
• Digital Marketing Analytics

Final Takeaway

This project allowed me to gain hands-on experience conducting a technical SEO audit and implementing website performance improvements in a real-world environment. By analyzing Core Web Vitals, optimizing website assets, and measuring results through Google PageSpeed Insights, I developed practical experience with technical SEO, website optimization, and performance reporting.

This project demonstrates my ability to identify website performance issues, implement data-driven improvements, and use SEO tools to enhance website speed, user experience, and overall search performance.