Web Development
Why is my Shopify site slow? 7 fixes that make a real difference
Most people won’t tell you your website is slow. They’ll just leave. On a phone, every extra second of loading is another chance for a customer to give up before they’ve seen a single product.
The good news is that most Shopify sites aren’t slow because of one big problem. They’re slow because of lots of small ones that build up over time. These are the fixes we use on the LYNOTT website, and most of them you can do yourself.
1. Shrink your images
Large photos are the most common reason a Shopify site is slow. Before uploading, resize each image to the size it will actually show at, then compress it. As a rough guide, aim for under 200 KB per image. WebP files are usually much smaller than JPEGs or PNGs at the same quality.
2. Re-export your videos
Video banners look great, but a video straight from a phone is often far bigger than it needs to be. At LYNOTT, one homepage banner video was 10.5 MB. Re-exported as an MP4 at the right size, with no sound, it came down to 2.7 MB and looked sharper on both phone and desktop.
3. Remove apps you no longer use
Every app you install can add code to your store, and uninstalling one doesn’t always remove all of it. Go through your apps, remove anything you’re not actively using, and check your theme for leftover code from apps you’ve already deleted. It’s also a good chance to cut costs, and a place where AI tools can help you review what each app actually does.
4. Keep your homepage focused
Slideshows, multiple videos, pop-ups and long product carousels all add weight. Pick the few things that matter most to your customers and let the rest go. A clear homepage is usually a faster one, and it’s easier to shop from too. If you’re not sure what to prioritise, that’s where a second pair of eyes helps.
5. Limit your fonts
Each font, and each weight of that font, is another file your site has to load. Two font families, using only the weights you need, is plenty for most brands.
6. Let images load as people scroll
Images further down the page don’t need to load straight away. Most modern Shopify themes support lazy loading, which loads images as the customer scrolls. Check that it’s switched on in your theme settings.
7. Test regularly, on your phone
Run your homepage and a product page through Google’s free PageSpeed Insights tool, then go through your own site on your phone, start to finish. Do it once a month and after any big change, so nothing quietly slows down without you noticing. A faster site also makes your marketing work harder, because more of the people you send there stay long enough to buy.
Speed is one part of how we approach Shopify website development at Rasberri: sites that convert, and connect to the rest of your business. See what that looked like for LYNOTT in our case study, or if you’d like a hand with your own site, we’d love to hear from you.
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10 tasks small businesses can hand over to AI this week
Most small teams don’t need more people. They need fewer repetitive jobs. That’s where AI is genuinely useful: not replacing anyone, but taking the slow, routine work off your plate so you have time for the work that needs you.
You don’t need a tech team to start. Here are ten tasks you can hand over to an AI tool this week.
1. First drafts of customer replies
Give it your most common customer questions and your tone of voice, and let it draft replies you can check and send. It’s a quick win for any customer service inbox.
2. Product descriptions
Share the key details and a few