When should speed become a development priority?

An old computer science adage correctly states that developers will happily take any resources they are given and will always want more. While this is not a bad thing per se, it can cause issues when there is a disparity in resources between users.

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There can come a point at which developers need to be reined in and made to focus on speed, efficiency and usability. Here are a handful of signs that you may need to consider prioritising speed and efficiency for a few development cycles.

When users start to complain

The most obvious sign that you need to pare down some features or invest in efficiency is when users start to complain about the speed of your site or app.

A web development rule from the 90s that many developers need to be reminded of is the so-called ‘three second rule’. Although the precise number varies, this rule states that if a user cannot load your site and find what they are looking for in a very short period of time, they will leave and probably never come back.

When you are expanding into lower-bandwidth markets

If you have long-term users, you may get complaints; however, you will simply miss out on new users if they cannot quickly gain access to your platform.

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While you can assume a fairly high level of bandwidth in urban areas of developed countries, the bandwidth availability drops very quickly when moving into rural areas. When consulting a professional web development company in London or elsewhere, such as https://www.redsnapper.net/, be sure to communicate that you need a site that will work well in a lower bandwidth environment.

When you are focusing on mobile platforms

Mobile devices are increasingly people’s primary method of accessing websites, with this number doubling when it comes to apps. Mobile devices will tend to have less available bandwidth, less processing power, and much higher data charges. Speed and efficiency are therefore doubly important when focusing on the mobile market.

When your data costs are spiralling out of control

Lastly, if you hosting and data costs are increasing, it may be time to look into increasing efficiency. When your site is small, inefficient data calls can be largely ignored; however, when user growth explodes, small inefficiencies can snowball into out-of-control costs.