The Proof is in the Performance: Benchmarking Our Platform Against a Traditional Blogging Solution

Introduction

In an era where online presence is crucial, search engine optimization ("SEO"), page speed, and, sadly often overlooked, accessibility ("a11y") are not just buzzwords, but the pillars of a successful and inclusive online strategy. Many businesses rely on popular platforms like WordPress for their blogging needs. However, these traditional solutions often fall short in meeting the continuously developing standards of the digital world.

Today, we present a revealing comparison that illustrates the transformative benefits of switching to our advanced and highly optimized blogging software.

Why traditional solutions fall short

The right blogging platform is one of the keys to success. However, traditional options often fall short in critical areas:

• SEO: Traditional blogging platforms such as WordPress, despite their user-friendly nature and popularity, often reveal limitations, particularly in how they are utilized by users for SEO optimization. While WordPress offers a plethora of plugins designed to enhance SEO, the challenge lies in the correct application of these tools. Many users, due to a lack of expertise or understanding, fail to leverage these plugins effectively, resulting in less than optimal search engine visibility. This misapplication underscores the gap between the potential of these platforms and the actual performance achieved.
• Page speed, a critical factor in user retention and search ranking, is another area where such platforms struggle, primarily due to bloated code and an overreliance on plugins that can slow down load times. We follow the unix philosophy "do one thing and do it well" and concentrate on what really matters for you, the user!
• Accessibility, a crucial aspect in creating inclusive, digital content, is frequently underprioritized. Many WordPress themes and plugins don't adhere to web accessibility guidelines, potentially cutting off a significant portion of your audience.

In contrast, our advanced blogging software is specifically engineered to excel in these key areas, ensuring that your online content is not only visible and fast, but also universally accessible. And, most importantly, you don't have to be an expert to leverage it!

Another significant advantage for you is the elimination of the need for additional plugin purchases or manual updates in general, a common necessity on others platforms. Our streamlined approach not only aligns perfectly with the current and future demands of the online world but also offers a zero-maintenance and cost-effective solution for operating a top-performing blog.

Now, let's continue to a real world example, our case study!

The comparison study

Our study involves a direct comparison between three articles from a typical WordPress-based small company blog (the "legacy solution"), set up independently by the customer, as is often the case with many small businesses. This self-setup approach reflects a common scenario where users with limited technical and SEO knowledge configure their sites.

We then compare these pages with the exact same content hosted on our advanced blogging platform. Our evaluation focused on standardized, critical performance metrics: SEO efficiency, page speed, and accessibility standards, areas where user-configured sites often face challenges to say the least.

This comparison not only highlights the technical differences but also underscores the impact of expert setup and optimization in achieving superior online performance.

Practical Benchmarking with PageSpeed Insights

To ensure a practical, transparent and thorough comparison, we use PageSpeed Insights, a trusted source for website performance analysis. For this study, we benchmarked together with the customer, then carefully migrated their content to our platform together, ensuring no duplicate content was created.

To get a well-rounded view, each article was tested three times on PageSpeed Insights, acknowledging that performance results fluctuate. This step isn't about adhering to the most sacred scientific precision, but about getting a practical, everyday performance picture.

By averaging these results, we gain a dependable understanding of how each platform typically performs. This simple and effective method clearly highlighted the everyday performance benefits of our blogging software, showcasing its practical advantages in real-world website optimization. You still have to write awesome content yourself, though 🙂

Results Overview

The results were eye-opening. While the WordPress articles averaged a decent page speed score of around 72 (we've seen way worse), our platform consistently hit the mark with scores around 97. These numbers are more than just digits; they represent a significant leap in website performance and user engagement. But see yourself, a representative sample in this study:

Comparison of the legacy solution vs. our blogging platform. We achieve "all greens" easily 🎉

The compiled numbers and what they mean

Let's check the details with a comprehensive comparison table that illustrates just how our platform excels in key performance metrics over the legacy solution. From responsiveness to accessibility, check the tangible evidence of our platform's superior performance and low variability:

This is what the numbers mean:

First off, think of 'Performance' as the overall scorecard of a website's efficiency

Our solution achieved an impressive 97.2 out of 100, a substantial leap from the legacy solution's 75.7. This jump isn't just a number - it means a noticeably smoother, faster, and more responsive website for users.

Accessibility is at the heart of what we do. Our solution significantly enhances this aspect, making websites more user-friendly for everyone. It's designed with inclusivity in mind, ensuring that people of all abilities can easily navigate and interact with the site. While our technology lays a solid foundation for top-notch accessibility, the ultimate score depends on the user's content, which is beyond our control. In instances where the score isn't perfect, it often relates to factors like brand colors not having enough contrast against the background. Additionally, certain details, such as how links are presented, also play a part, although these are elements we leave to the user's discretion. The great news is that by following best practices for accessibility, users have the power to achieve a perfect score of 100. Our platform provides all tech necessary make this possible. Together, we can make the web a welcoming place for everyone!

SEO, or how well a site ranks on search engines, is crucial for visibility. Here, we hit a perfect 100! It's a big deal because it means our solution is expertly tuned to appear higher in search results, potentially drawing more visitors. But there's more to it than just this number.

With the digital world being heavily influenced by AI technologies, aspects like machine readable sitemaps and structured data are more important than ever. They not only help search engines understand and categorize your content more effectively, but also play a crucial role in how AI systems interact with and present your site in various online contexts. Ensuring your site is well-structured and easily navigable by AI algorithms / crawlers is essential for maintaining relevance and visibility.

Now, let's talk about speed, a make-or-break factor for websites. Our solution dramatically reduces the time it takes for the first content (FCP) and the largest content (LCP) to appear on the screen. With scores of 1.7s and 2.0s respectively, compared to the legacy's 3.4s and 4.6s, we're talking about a website that loads content almost in the blink of an eye. This speed is crucial in an era where every second counts for keeping a visitor's attention.

But there's more to speed. The Speed Index measures how quickly a site becomes visually complete. Our solution scores a brisk 1.8 seconds, almost twice as fast as the legacy system. Imagine opening a website and having everything you need appear almost instantly—that's the kind of experience we're delivering.

One point of curiosity is Total Blocking Time (TBT). It's slightly higher in our solution, but it's a complex metric that we're continually working to optimize. It's about refining the balance between a site being fully interactive and all its elements being perfectly in place.

Lastly, Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). Ever had text or buttons move around while you're trying to click them? Annoying, right? Our solution's near-zero CLS means that won't happen, ensuring a frustration-free browsing experience.

Error-Free Ease

We also get you rid of all the errors and warnings you might have on your content platform. This is what it typically looks on customers selfmade pages vs. our product:

Comparison of the legacy solution vs. our blogging platform. Errors are gone 🥳

Summary

In summary, our solution is not just an upgrade; it's a transformation. It's faster, more accessible, and SEO-optimized, ensuring that websites are not only high-performing but also inclusive and user-friendly. This isn't just about keeping up with the times; it's about setting new standards in the digital world.

Implications for Businesses

The implications are clear: if your company is striving to step up its search engine rankings, improve user experience, and accessibility, our platform offers a tailored and streamlined solution. Our platform's intuitive design is easy to use and focussed, to help you maximize the efficiency of your digital campaigns. Whether it's for a large corporation, a small business or startup, our solution is engineered to drive your company's digital success and ensure you stay ahead without having to worry about technical details.

Conclusion

Our comparison study clearly demonstrates that when it comes to blogging and publication in the modern web environment, the platform you choose can make all the difference. With our blogging software, you're equipped with a tool that not only seamlessly integrates the latest web standards, but also simplifies and streamlines your content creation and management process.