WSO - Web Site Optimization

Response Time: Eight Seconds, Plus or Minus Two

People hate to wait.

Slow response times and difficult navigation are the most common complaints of Internet users. After waiting past a certain "attention threshold," users bail out to look for a faster site. Of course, exactly where that threshold is depends on many factors.

How compelling is the experience? Is there effective feedback? We explore the psychology of delay in order to discover why we are so impatient, and how fast is fast enough.

Extreme WSO (WebSite Optimization)

Load in under 8.6 seconds (non-incremental display).
Decrease these load times by 0.5 to 1.5 seconds for dynamic transactions.
Minimize the number of steps needed to accomplish tasks to avoid cumulative frustration from exceeding user time budgets.
Load in under 20 to 30 seconds (incremental display) with useful content within 2 seconds.
Provide performance information and linear feedback.
Equalize page download times to minimize delay variability.