Performance of our website

Topic summary

A Shopify store owner is experiencing regional performance issues in South Florida, including slow loading times and intermittent shopping cart malfunctions, despite favorable performance tests in other regions. They’re questioning whether regional factors, ISPs, or Shopify’s infrastructure could be causing these problems.

Key Technical Issues:

  • Homepage slider image (1024x683 jpg) loads only 10% before freezing, requiring a refresh to complete
  • Shopping cart functionality inconsistent in South Florida specifically
  • Banner appears across all pages when it should be page-specific

Expert Recommendations Provided:

  • Performance diagnostics: Use Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, or Shopify’s speed report to identify region-specific bottlenecks
  • Image optimization: Compress images and ensure high-quality visuals throughout the site
  • Design improvements: Reduce announcement bar size, implement sticky header, replace low-quality hero banner, and add countdown timer for FOMO effect
  • Troubleshooting steps: Test in incognito mode, try different ISPs/VPN, clear browser cache, check for conflicting third-party apps
  • Escalation: Contact Shopify Support to investigate potential CDN or regional server issues

Regional Performance Factors Explained:
Distance from data centers, ISP quality/throttling, and CDN load can all impact regional performance. While Shopify monitors overall infrastructure, they don’t directly track individual ISP interference.

The discussion remains open with the owner seeking guidance on page-specific banners and hyperlink implementation.

Summarized with AI on November 2. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.

Please tell me what you think of our website www.airbyccsquared.com

Performance reviews (ChatGPT and professional) are favorable, although I find in our region (South Florida) that the website has troubles loading sometimes and that the shopping cart is not always functional, although performance tests in other regions are always good. How strongly does region effect performance of Shopify? Do Shopify users experience regional preferences? Is it possible for a local ISP to interfere with a specific shop and does Shopify monitor this type of activity?

Hi @WilliamHC ,

I’m Kate from PageFly - Shopify Advanced Page Builder App.

I’m impressed with your specialty tights store’s clean design. Based on my CRO expertise, here are my suggestions to help optimize your conversion rate:

  • Reduce the announcement bar size

The announcement bar with the current content take significant space, enough to create the 1st impression for your visitors. So I would like to suggest that you reduce the size of the message to save more space to showcase the products below.

And to create a FOMO effect, you can consider adding a countdown timer to the announcement bar to support for the keyword “limited time offer”

  • Have a sticky header

If your website visitors are looking for a particular product while browsing, what’s the usual action they would take? They might have to scroll all the way up to the page’s top to find the search bar, which can be a bit of an inconvenience. However, this issue can be addressed by introducing a sticky header, significantly improving the ease of navigation for your customers.

  • Change hero banner

The banner is very significant in hero material. It is the first thing customers see when they visit your website. Let’s get consumers to know exactly what you’re having in 5 seconds first.

Unfortunately, the current banner cannot describe exactly what you are selling, not to mention it’s of low quality.

I would like to recommend you change this banner asap.

  • Recheck image quality

In summary, incorporating high-quality images increase conversion rates. You can effectively enhance conversions and drive business success by leveraging visual appeal, establishing trust, and creating an emotional connection with your visitors.

So please recheck these images - The middle one still has copyright trademark on it.

  • Keep styling consistent

A crucial element for an online store’s homepage is the primary call-to-action button. This button serves as a direct link to the specific page where you want customers to take action, such as a collection or product page.

You’ve done a great job by putting the CTA button right where it should. But it’s more important to maintain consistent styling for all call-to-action buttons to maximize the conversion rate.

Here is an example:

As you can see in my screenshot, one CTA button has a hover effect while the other does not.

  • Make sure the information is readable

As you can see in my screenshot of the “Diacetyl and Related Diones” product, the Product Specifications is not well displayed and you should recheck this part.

Experiencing regional performance issues with your Shopify store, particularly in South Florida, can be influenced by several factors:

1. Regional Impact on Shopify Performance:

Shopify utilizes a global Content Delivery Network (CDN) to ensure fast loading times across various regions. However, localized issues can still occur due to factors such as:

  • Local Internet Service Providers (ISPs): ISPs may have varying routing efficiencies, affecting how quickly data travels from Shopify’s servers to users in specific areas.
  • Regional Network Congestion: High internet traffic in a particular region can lead to slower connection speeds during peak times.

2. Regional Preferences Among Shopify Users:

While Shopify’s infrastructure aims to provide consistent performance globally, user experiences can vary based on:

  • Localized Content: Tailoring content to regional preferences can enhance user engagement but may also introduce additional resources that impact load times.
  • Third-Party Apps and Integrations: Some apps may not be optimized for all regions, potentially affecting site performance.

3. Potential ISP Interference and Shopify’s Monitoring:

It’s uncommon for local ISPs to interfere with specific websites deliberately. However, network issues or misconfigurations can inadvertently impact access to certain sites. Shopify continuously monitors its platform’s overall performance but may not detect isolated regional issues without specific reports.

Recommendations to Address Regional Performance Issues:

  • Monitor Site Performance: Utilize tools like Google PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix to assess your site’s performance from various locations. These tools can help identify if the issues are region-specific.
  • Consult with Shopify Support: Reach out to Shopify’s support team to report the regional issues. They can provide insights and assist in diagnosing the problem.
  • Consider Third-Party Monitoring Services: Services like “Out Of The Blue” offer real-time site health monitoring, including visibility into errors and tracking key events. Such tools can help you stay informed about your store’s performance across different regions.
  • Optimize Your Store: Ensure that your website is optimized for speed by compressing images, minimizing the use of heavy scripts, and regularly reviewing installed apps to remove any that are unnecessary or causing slowdowns.

By taking these steps, you can better understand and address the regional performance challenges affecting your Shopify store.

And that’s my feedback! Hope it helps you boost the conversion rate.

Cheers!

Kate | PageFly Team

Thnaks Kate for the through review of our website. I greatly appreciate it. The banner is an issue, and what’s written on it applies to the veterinary page only, amnd maybe the websites landing page if I can use hyperlinks, but it’s not apparently how to do this. The banner appears on all pages however. How do I make a banner that is page specific? Also, can I put hyperlinks in the banner?

The photo that we have placed on the first page has difficultly loading and often prevents the home page from loading. As far as I can tell this image is correctly sized, but maybe that’s not correct. 1024X683 jpg. It’s loaded into a “sllider” that will allow the display of many different photos on the home page. I have only one now becasue fo the downlaod problem. The first 10% downloads and then it gets stuck. Refreshing downloads that photo completly.

Hi @WilliamHC

Thanks for sharing your website and the details about its performance. I checked out www.airbyccsquared.com, and overall, it looks sleek and professional—great branding and an easy-to-navigate layout! That said, based on your concerns about regional performance and the shopping cart issues, here’s my take:

1. Regional Performance on Shopify

Yes, region can affect Shopify’s performance. Shopify hosts its websites on a global network of servers, but users’ experiences might vary due to factors like:

  • Distance from Servers: If South Florida users are farther from Shopify’s nearest data center, they might experience slower loading times.
  • Internet Quality: Regional ISPs may throttle or experience network congestion, which can affect browsing speeds.
  • Localized Content Delivery Network (CDN): Shopify uses CDNs to speed up content delivery, but if a particular region’s CDN is overloaded, it could impact performance.

In short, regional preferences and internet infrastructure can create minor differences, though Shopify generally aims for consistent performance worldwide.

2. Issues with the Shopping Cart

The shopping cart issue could stem from:

  • Cache or Browser-Specific Bugs: Encourage users to clear their browser cache or try a different browser to see if the issue persists.
  • Third-Party Apps or Custom Code: If you’re using apps or custom scripts, some might cause conflicts that affect the cart functionality. Running a Shopify diagnostic or temporarily disabling apps might help isolate the problem.
  • Shopify Theme Updates: If you haven’t updated your theme or Shopify itself in a while, certain features—like the cart—might not function as expected.

3. Local ISP Interference

It’s rare, but it’s possible for an ISP to interfere with website performance, either due to:

  • Routing Issues: ISPs might not route traffic efficiently to Shopify’s servers.
  • Network Throttling: Some ISPs throttle certain types of traffic, though this is less common today.

Shopify does monitor server performance, including CDNs and regional connectivity issues, to ensure they deliver consistent service. However, they don’t directly monitor ISP behavior. If this seems to be a recurring issue, you can report it to Shopify Support—they may investigate further or recommend specific troubleshooting steps.

My Suggestions for Improvement- Test in Incognito Mode and Different ISPs: Sometimes local ISPs can cache old versions of your site. Using incognito mode or a VPN can help determine if the issue is ISP-related.

  • Optimize Your Store’s Speed: Run a performance check through Google PageSpeed Insights or Shopify’s Online Store Speed Report and implement optimizations (e.g., compressing images, minimizing code).
  • Consult Shopify Support: They can check if the cart issue is tied to your region or theme.

If you’re still noticing consistent problems with South Florida users, a CDN-specific issue could be at play. In that case, Shopify’s support team can escalate this to their technical team.

If you need any other assistance, I am willing to help!

Best regards,
Daisy