Start with the user-facing targets
Focus on Largest Contentful Paint, Interaction to Next Paint and Cumulative Layout Shift. Test representative page types—not only the homepage—and compare field data with laboratory diagnostics.
Optimize the main visible content, server response, hero media and render path.
Reduce long JavaScript tasks and unnecessary event-handler work.
Reserve dimensions for images, embeds and ad slots before they load.
Images
Resize images to their display dimensions, use modern formats where supported, provide responsive srcset options and lazy-load only below-the-fold media. Do not lazy-load the likely LCP image.
Advertising layout
Reserve stable space for ads. Avoid inserting an ad above already-rendered content. Ensure sticky formats do not cover navigation or content and remain consistent with applicable publisher policies.
JavaScript and tags
Remove duplicate tags, defer nonessential scripts, audit third-party widgets and avoid loading every marketing integration on every page. Validate that consent logic runs before dependent advertising or analytics behavior.
Caching and compression
Use long-lived caching for versioned static assets, compress text resources and avoid redirect chains. Confirm that HTML itself is not cached in a way that serves stale personalized or consent-sensitive responses.
Fonts
Use a limited number of WOFF2 files, preload only fonts needed immediately and choose fallback metrics that reduce text movement.