Core Web Vitals are marginal gains!

Core Web Vitals for SEO Optimisation: What do we need to know first?

The theory of marginal gains in sport is an old theory but one that still retains all its appeal. In a nutshell, the idea behind marginal gains is that by making a series of small changes in different areas, a significant cumulative advantage can be achieved.

This concept became particularly well known thanks to the British Cycling Team, who adopted it as a key approach in their Olympic and road cycling successes. During Sir Dave Brailsford’s time as the British team’s sports director, he introduced the philosophy of marginal gains. He emphasised the importance of improving every aspect of the cycling experience, including training, diet, equipment, recovery, technology and rider mentality.

For example, improvements could be made in riders’ posture, the aerodynamic shape of bicycles, optimising diet, and designing specific equipment to improve performance. None of these individual improvements could have a revolutionary impact, but when combined, they can lead to a significant competitive advantage.

Let’s take the 2020 Tour de France as an example: between Pogacar and Roglic there was only 59″ at the end after 87 hours and 20′ of racing. The 100 metre final at the 2022 World Athletics Championships? Between Fred Kerley and Marvin Bracy the difference was 2 hundredths of a second (9″86 versus 9″88). And the marathon in the 2021 Olympics? Between Eliud Kipchoge and Abdi Nageeye there was ‘only’ 1′ and 20″, which seen from the comfort of the sofa also seems like an eternity. But what is 1′ and 20″ after 42 km spent running at the limit of one’s abilities?

Two tenths of a second over 100 metres or 59″ at the end of a Tour de France? 1′ 20″ in an Olympic marathon? At first glance they are the difference between winning, and going down in history, and not winning and being (almost) forgotten.

But what does all this have to do with web performance? And in particular with Web Vitals?

SEO and other creatures of the undergrowth

Google:

…great page experience involves more than Core Web Vitals. Good stats within the Core Web Vitals report in Search Console or third-party Core Web Vitals reports don’t guarantee good rankings. — Understanding page experience in Google Search results

It is a fact that SEO optimisations help us get people to our site but what really makes a difference, the most important deciding factor for whether these surfers turn into customers or not, is their experience while there.
Improving Core Web Vitals will probably improve our site’s ranking in search results, but there are countless other reasons to focus on site speed beyond the SEO aspect alone.

That said, I am very happy that Google with the Core Web Vitals has put web performance on the agenda of so many people and organisations, but I would like to emphasise that SEO optimisation is only the tip of the iceberg, the beginning of the journey.

The best content always wins!

Google Search always seeks to show the most relevant content, even if the page experience is sub-par. But for many queries, there is lots of helpful content available. Having a great page experience can contribute to success in Search, in such cases. — Understanding page experience in Google Search results

If your site is insecure, slow and offers a bad mobile experience, it doesn’t matter! It will be shown first if it is exactly what the user is looking for. This statement may sound a bit harsh but it is reality. No matter how hard you try to make your site fast and relevant to standards what matters above all else is the content!
One must keep in mind that Google’s mission is ultimately not to show the user the list of the fastest sites ever, but to respond as comprehensively as possible to the user’s requests.
This means prioritising relevant content above all else.

Core Web Vitals are important

Although it is true that we must prioritise the best and most relevant content, Google still emphasises the importance of the site’s web performance:

We highly recommend site owners achieve good Core Web Vitals for success with Search… — Understanding Core Web Vitals and Google search results

This in itself is a strong indicator that Google prefers faster websites. Furthermore, they add:

Google’s core ranking systems look to reward content that provides a good page experience. — Understanding page experience in Google Search results

Which indicates that Core Web Vitals are also an important part of the user experience as well as SEO, which is then what turns occasional users of the page into our customers.

With this in mind, we can return to the starting concept, i.e., Core Web Vitals are important, but alone they are not enough.

…for many queries, there is lots of helpful content available. Having a great page experience can contribute to success in Search, in such cases.
— Understanding page experience in Google Search results

Core Web Vitals therefore shine in extremely competitive environments and when users are not looking for something that only you could provide. When Google can rank a high number of URLs high, victory, and thus ranking, is determined by marginal gains.

From the perspective of SEO optimisation the Core Web Vitals are those marginal gains that really make the difference between winning or losing and it is therefore this part that needs to be taken care of if you have already done your best on content and want to be able to compete on a par with the best to metaphorically have a chance of winning the Tour De France, the 100 metres or the Olympic marathon!

Sources - Sitography

For this post, I have considered the following official Google publications.