If you’ve ever run your website through Google PageSpeed Insights and found yourself spiraling into a pit of red errors and conflicting advice, congratulations—you’re just like the rest of us.

Let’s be real: PageSpeed Insights is like that overly honest friend who points out a wrinkle in your shirt and then recommends you change your entire outfit. It’s not wrong… but it’s also not always helpful.

First: What Google PageSpeed Is

Google PageSpeed Insights is a performance analysis tool that tells you how fast your website loads on both mobile and desktop. It gives you a shiny little score out of 100, which, let’s face it, is basically the SAT for websites—stressful, often misleading, and sometimes based on things you can’t change.

The tool runs audits using Lighthouse, Google’s own performance engine, and checks things like:

• Time to First Byte (TTFB)
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
• And a laundry list of code-related recommendations

Sounds helpful, right? Well… mostly.

Not All Warnings Are Created Equal

Here’s the kicker: some of the things PageSpeed flags are completely out of your control. In fact, we’ve seen it call out Google’s own tools—like Google Analytics or Tag Manager—as performance issues.

You read that right: Google complains about Google.

So before you fire your dev team or rip apart your plugins, know this:

🛑 You Can’t Always Fix	✅ You Should Fix
Google Analytics scripts	Uncompressed images
Core website assets	Lazy loading missing
Third-party embed code	Render-blocking CSS/JS you added
Fonts hosted externally	Unused plugins/themes

If it’s hard-coded by a plugin, theme, or necessary third-party integration, chances are it’s not worth obsessing over. Your goal is real-world speed, not hypothetical perfection.

The Easy Wins That Do Matter

Here’s where we shift from doomscrolling red flags to taking smart action. These are the things PageSpeed flags that are actually worth your time:

✅ Image Optimization

Compress large images and use WebP where you can. No one needs a 5MB hero banner.

✅ Reduce Unused Plugins

You don’t need five different slider plugins. If you’re not using it, lose it.

✅ Enable Browser Caching

Make it easier for repeat visitors to load your site quickly.

But Don’t Stop There…

PageSpeed is a decent starting point, but it’s not the whole picture. We also use WebPageTest.org because it shows you things like:

• Your load waterfall (fancy way of saying what loads, when, and how much it slows things down)
• Time to Interactive (TTI)
• What’s really bloating your site

Sometimes, it’s not one big issue—it’s a hundred little ones throwing a party and not cleaning up after themselves.

Final Word: Fix What Matters, Ignore the Noise

If your PageSpeed score is making you question all your life choices, take a breath. Scores are helpful—but context is better.

Focus on:

• Making your site usable and fast for real humans
• Prioritizing issues that actually affect user experience
• Ignoring the stuff no one on Earth can control (looking at you, Google Fonts)

And if you want help figuring out what to fix first?
📬 We’re just a message away. Let’s take the guesswork out of speed and get your site humming like it should.

Let’s get one thing straight: website accessibility isn’t just about compliance. It’s about people.

Real people. With different devices, different abilities, different ways of navigating the web—and every single one of them deserves a site that doesn’t make them want to chuck their phone out the window.

At RPS, we don’t just optimize for speed and SEO. We care about making the web better—and that includes making it usable for everyone.

So, What Is Website Accessibility?

Accessibility means your site can be used by all people, including those with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive impairments. That includes:

• Screen reader users
• Keyboard-only users
• People with color blindness or low vision
• Folks who need more time or clearer navigation

It’s not just about building for “them.” It’s about building better for everyone.

Here’s the Big Misconception

A lot of businesses think accessibility means slapping an ADA plugin in the footer and calling it a day.

Spoiler alert: It’s not.
(And those plugins? Often a band-aid. Sometimes a lawsuit magnet.)

Accessibility Is Performance

Did you know that many accessibility improvements also improve your site’s speed and SEO?

• Using proper HTML headings = better for screen readers and search engines
• Image alt text = helpful for vision-impaired users and Google indexing
• Clear navigation = helpful for motor-impaired users and bounce rates
• Faster load time = better for everyone (especially those on mobile or assistive tech)

It’s all connected. Fixing accessibility often means you’re also creating a smoother, faster, and more user-friendly site. Win-win.

Common Accessibility Issues We See All. The. Time.

Here’s a quick list of things we (lovingly) roast in audits:

• Missing or duplicate <h1> tags
• Buttons with no labels (looking at you, hamburger menus)
• Text with terrible contrast ratios (grey-on-grey crime scenes)
• Forms that can’t be submitted with a keyboard
• Images with no alt text
• No skip links or accessible navigation paths

Accessible Design Is Better Design

Here’s the thing: when you build with accessibility in mind, everyone benefits.

• Your site is easier to navigate
• Your bounce rate goes down
• Your conversions go up
• You avoid legal risk (yep, that too)

Oh—and your site won’t feel like it was built in 2010 by a guy named Jeff who only tested it on a single desktop browser.

Want Help Making Your Site More Accessible?

We’re not here to shame. We’re here to help you fix what matters—so your site works for more people, loads faster, ranks higher, and leaves a better impression.

📥 Reach out for a friendly audit. We’ll show you what needs attention, what’s working well, and what you can ignore (for now).

Let’s make the web a little more human—together.

Let’s start with a thought: a Google PageSpeed score is like a first date. It’s great, and it gives you a general vibe—but it doesn’t always tell you everything going on under the hood. And it skews toward, well, Google.

You want a real performance audit? One that tells you what’s slowing down your site, what’s worth fixing, and what’s just a bunch of technical fluff? You’ve come to the right nerds.

At RPS, we don’t just chase numbers. We dig into the guts of your site to figure out what’s actually causing problems—and how to fix them.

So, What Is a Website Performance Audit?

It’s a full breakdown of how your site performs in the real world. Not just how it scores on a test, but how fast it loads, how stable it is, and whether your visitors are having to fight a digital boss battle just to reach your contact form.

Key Metrics We Look At:

• Time to First Byte (TTFB) – How fast your server responds.
• First Contentful Paint (FCP) – How quickly something (anything!) shows up.
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) – When the main stuff is fully visible.
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) – Does your content jump around like it’s had too much coffee?
• Time to Interactive (TTI) – How fast your site actually lets people use it.

The Tools That Matter

Sure, you can use Google PageSpeed—but we pair it with some real-deal diagnostics.
Enter: WebPageTest.org. This is our favorite tool for good reason.

Why? Because it shows things like:

• Waterfall charts (what loads when, and what’s hogging the party)
• Visual load progress (how your site actually appears to users)
• Global testing locations (how your site performs around the world)

We also like:

• Lighthouse reports for technical flags
• GTmetrix for quick breakdowns
• Chrome DevTools for in-depth code-level audits

Each tool gives us a different lens to look through—and together, they tell the full story.

What’s Slowing Down Your Site?

Here’s where it gets spicy. Common culprits include:

• Oversized images (because your homepage doesn’t need a 12MB PNG)
• Poorly coded themes or page builders
• Too many plugins doing the same job
• No caching, or the wrong kind
• Third-party scripts running wild in the background (hello, chatbots and trackers)

What We Actually Fix First

Every site’s different, but generally we look for:

1. Quick wins – Compress images, enable caching, clean up scripts
2. Structural issues – Is your theme bloated? Are you loading 14 fonts for no reason?
3. Server-side problems – Bad hosting? Slow TTFB? Let’s talk migration.
4. Mobile problems – Because your site should work everywhere, not just on desktop.

TL;DR? Here’s Your Audit Game Plan

1. Don’t just look at your PageSpeed score.
2. Run your site through WebPageTest and Lighthouse.
3. Identify bottlenecks using waterfall charts.
4. Prioritize changes that improve real user experience.
5. Fix the easy stuff. Then tackle the big stuff.
6. Still stuck? That’s why we exist.

Ready for a Performance Audit That’s More Than a Score?

We offer performance scans that go beyond the numbers—and give you clear, human-friendly next steps. No BS. No “just install this one plugin” advice.

📥 Drop us a message, and let’s dig in.

You Can’t Just “Set It and Forget It.”

When you first launched your website, it was exciting, right?
Fresh design. Clever copy. Buttons that worked. Dreams of new customers rolling in. 

But fast-forward a year (or three)…

-A few broken links here
-A plugin held together with duct tape there
-A homepage that loads slower than your uncle’s dial-up in 1998
Yeah. Not quite the dream anymore.

Here’s the thing: Websites are living, breathing parts of your business.
Not fine china that you stuff on a shelf and admire once a year.
Not a crockpot you leave alone for 12 hours hoping dinner doesn’t catch fire.

If you want your website to actually work for you, you have to take care of it.

Here’s what regular maintenance actually does:

Keeps You Safe from the Internet Boogeymen:
Outdated plugins and ignored security updates are basically an open invitation to hackers. (“Come on in, the firewall’s fine!”)

Keeps Your Site Fast:
Spoiler alert: nobody waits 10 seconds for a homepage to load. They’re gone faster than you can say “broken cache.”

Boosts Your SEO:
Search engines want fresh, functional websites. If your site is broken, outdated, or otherwise crying for help, Google notices. And not in a good way.

Makes You Look Like You Actually Care:
Because nothing says “trust us with your business” like a 404 error on your services page.

Saves You Big Money Later:
Tiny problems turn into giant problems when ignored. Regular maintenance prevents costly rebuilds, SEO penalties, and tech emergencies later on.

Keeps Your Customers Happy:
Fast, intuitive websites = happy users = better sales.
(Also fewer angry emails about how your “contact us” form mysteriously vanishes halfway through filling it out.)

The good news?
You don’t have to channel your inner IT wizard to keep things running.

At Rock, Pixel, Scissors, we offer website maintenance packages that handle all the boring (but crucial) stuff — so you can focus on, you know, running your business.

This month, we’re offering a Spring Website Refresh Special — because your website deserves a little self-care too.

✅ Routine updates
✅ Security patches
✅ Speed optimization
✅ Broken link repairs
✅ Plugin tune-ups
✅ An overall health check (minus the awkward small talk)

If your site is starting to feel like a haunted house of glitches and broken links…
It’s time.

There are many conversations about Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and its ongoing relevancy. SEO at its root tends to be a very long-term strategy. It is rare that a new website that is just getting started with SEO and creating will outrank competitors immediately, but it doesn’t mean that it will stay that way forever. SEO will always be important as long as humans are searching for things whether it be on-page information, a video online, or a social media post. 

One area of SEO that we work with consistently is on-page SEO and head tags. When it comes to optimizing a website for search engines, heading tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.) play a vital role in organizing your content and enhancing your site’s readability and SEO performance. But how exactly does the hierarchy of heading tags affect SEO, and why should you care about their proper usage? 

Today we are talking about hierarchy, and not in a way that resembles every high school movie ever. No matter how fetch they were.

What are Heading Tags?

In the simplest terms (with the most convenient definitions), heading tags are HTML elements used to designate headings on a web page. They range from <H1> to <H6>, with H1 being the most important and H6 the least. These tags not only structure the content for your readers but also signal to search engines what the page is about, helping with content ranking. They help prevent Google from totally buggin.

The Hierarchy of Heading Tags

The hierarchy of heading tags follows a logical order:

• H1: This is the main title or heading of your page and should be used once per page. It tells both users and search engines what the main topic is.
• H2: These tags are used for section headings and can be used multiple times on a page. They typically break the content into digestible subtopics.
• H3: These are used for subsections under H2 headings. They go into more detailed breakdowns of the content.
• H4 to H6: These are used for further subdivisions within the page if necessary, though they are less commonly used. In almost 30 years of making web pages, I am not sure I’ve even seen an H6 in the wild.

To best showcase this in practice, please notice our own heading tags matching the color coding established above. Fancy.

Why is Heading Tag Hierarchy Important for SEO?

Improved Readability and User Experience

 A well-structured webpage is easy to scan. Most visitors won’t read every word on the page, so clear headings help them quickly find the information they need. When users stay longer on your page due to easy navigation, it reduces bounce rates, which is a positive SEO signal.

Search Engine Crawling and Indexing 

Search engines, such as Google, use heading tags to understand the structure and content of a webpage. Proper heading tag hierarchy helps search engines determine the relevance and importance of different sections. For instance, an H1 tag signals the main topic, while H2s and H3s break it down into subtopics, allowing search engines to better interpret the content’s organization.

Keyword Optimization 

Heading tags offer a strategic place to include your target keywords. By using primary keywords in your H1 tag and secondary or related keywords in H2 and H3 tags, you reinforce the relevance of your content for those search terms. However, avoid keyword stuffing; use them naturally to maintain a good user experience.

Featured Snippets and Ranking Opportunities 

Google often pulls content for featured snippets from well-structured pages with a clear heading hierarchy. Pages that use properly formatted H2 and H3 tags for specific sections or questions are more likely to be highlighted in featured snippets, increasing visibility in search results.

Best Practices for Using Heading Tags

Use Only One H1 Tag Per Page 

Every page should have a single, clear H1 tag that describes the page’s main topic. Avoid multiple H1 tags, as they can confuse search engines about the primary focus of the page.

Use Headings to Create Logical Structure 

Follow the natural flow of your content. Use H2 tags for main sections, H3 tags for sub-sections, and so on. Don’t skip levels; for instance, don’t jump from an H2 to an H4 without an H3 in between. Think of a term paper outline. (Do they still teach that? It’s been a while.)

Include Keywords Strategically 

Incorporate relevant keywords into your heading tags without forcing them. Ensure they align with the content beneath each heading to maintain a natural flow for both users and search engines.

Keep Headings Concise

Use short, descriptive headings that clearly summarize the content. This helps users quickly understand the topic of each section and enhances the user experience.

Use Headings for Both SEO and Usability 

While SEO is important, headings should primarily be used to improve the readability and navigation of your content. Don’t over-optimize or create unnatural headings solely for ranking purposes.

How to work with Heading Tags in WordPress

In WordPress, the page title will turn into the H1 tag.

You can turn something into a heading by clicking this paragraph symbol-

And set H2 through H6 with the heading tool in the text editor-

One last H2

Heading tags are a crucial aspect of both user experience and search engine optimization. Properly implementing a heading tag hierarchy improves the structure of your website, making it easier for visitors to navigate and for search engines to understand your content. By using clear, keyword-optimized heading tags, you not only enhance readability but also boost your chances of ranking higher in search results. Keep your headings logical, concise, and relevant to strike the perfect balance between SEO and usability.

Your pages will be a lot cooler if you do.

A slow website can drive visitors away before they even get a chance to see what you have to offer. 

Many people know this, and with this in mind, run automated tests at Google or Hubspot or wherever, and then want to take action to speed things up.

Which is great, but, what I am finding more and more is that these reports are not always practical. More than once I’ve had Google PageSpeed flag Google Tag Manager and other Google code as problems. Not always an option to remove that, Google.

To help cut through some of the noise and anxiety that these reports can cause business owners, we created a list of some of the top things that you can control and take a look at on your WordPress website to improve performance. 

1. The Host With The Most 

Your web hosting service plays a crucial role in the speed and performance of your WordPress site. Opt for a hosting provider that specializes in WordPress hosting and offers robust server resources, storage, security, and scalable solutions with enough support from the host itself in case any technical issues do arise. While our personal favorite is WP Engine, other hosting platforms such as SiteGround and Kinsta also offer secure web hosting and remain on the list of “hosting companies I am willing to deal with.”

2. A Picture Holds … Way Too Much Data 

Large image files are one of the most common culprits of slow-loading websites. By optimizing your images, you can significantly reduce load times. Use tools like TinyPNG or PhotoShop or Canva to compress images without losing too much quality. A good rule of thumb is to keep your image file size as small as possible while still looking OK on the screen sizes you are targeting. Even a full screen photo can be compressed while still looking great. And beware of uploading photos straight from your phone, camera, or stock photo site. Some of those can run large. It is better to compress the images offline, and not rely on WordPress or plugins to “help” because you can have unintended consequences, from crappy looking graphics, to hundreds of extra files in the site.

3. Video Killed The Speed of Your Website

Hosting videos on your website server can consume a lot of bandwidth and slow down your site. Instead, use external video hosting services like YouTube or Vimeo or Wistia. These platforms not only handle the heavy lifting of streaming video content but also provide additional exposure and audience engagement opportunities.

4. Unplug Those Out of Date Plugins

Outdated plugins can not only slow down your site but also pose security risks. Regularly updating your plugins ensures they are optimized for performance and compatible with the latest version of WordPress. Consider performing a plugin audit to identify any that are no longer needed or that can be replaced with more efficient alternatives. Waiting too long to update plugins can cause further issues down the line such as the plugin becoming so inoperable that updating or removing it could break your site in its entirety.  

5.  Caching Up with the CDN’s 

I hate cache. The computer kind, not the money kind. I do. Really. But caching can improve your site’s load times by storing a static version of your site for visitors to access. Use caching plugins like WP Rocket can also help remove some of the hot button triggers that Google PageSpeed and Hubspot complain about. Additionally, a Content Delivery Network (CDN) like Cloudflare distributes your site’s content across multiple servers worldwide, reducing latency and speeding up load times for visitors regardless of their geographical location.

The down side of all this cache is, you may never see edits that you make on your site. Maybe ‘never’ is the wrong word, but, it can take a while for edits to show up. This is especially frustrating during development or any period of many edits. So have patience, if you have a lot of cache.

6. Comments and Data and Media, Oh My

An excessive number of comments and outdated data or even too many media items can bloat your database, slowing down your site both on the front end (your customers) and the back end (your marketing and web team). If having comments on your blog posts won’t make or break your users ability to understand the content, then it is best recommended to simply turn off commenting. Because the bots will fill it right up. If you do need to keep comments on so you can engage with a user, looking into tools such as Akismet to manage comments can be useful. Regularly clean up your database using plugins like WP-Optimize, which can help you remove unnecessary data and keep your database streamlined.

While these items are all pertaining to WordPress sites, in the future we will give more knowledge about other website builders such as Wix and SquareSpace and the things that you CANNOT fix or control on these platforms so you have a more informed decision about where you want your site to be developed. Different platforms do different things, and not even all WordPress sites are equal.

Keep it fast, folks.

All in all, A fast-loading WordPress site is essential for providing a great user experience and achieving better search engine rankings.

By investing time and resources into your WordPress site you can ensure that it runs as efficiently as possible. If you have any further questions about your WordPress site we are always happy to help and you can book with us using the following link https://calendly.com/robert-lodi/30min-intro.