Automatic Web Image Optimization with LiquiFire® Resolve™

By: LiquidPixels | March 1, 2022 | 4 Min Read

In 2022, there is no excuse for a slow website.

Text loads quickly, even on low bandwidths. Slow page load times are usually due to heavy images, which drag down the load speed.

HTTP Archive’s Web Almanac reveals median values currently indicate images are still the heaviest website resource (about 982KB for desktop and 877KB for mobile).

Web image optimization is a key ingredient in a website’s success, including web search page ranking and the overall customer experience. With the right tools, website imagery can be fully automated to deliver optimally-scaled images to any device while also achieving rapid page load times.

LiquiFire Resolve: Your Automatic Optimization Solution

LiquidPixels addresses the complex challenges of website image optimization through our suite of dynamic imaging solutions.

In this blog, we will look at one of those web image optimization tools: LiquiFire® Resolve™. These are the key features and benefits:

1. HiDPI Displays
   With LiquiFire Resolve, you can deliver optimal images on any device without the need for more bandwidth. LiquiFire Resolve can automatically identify the display capabilities of the device, including those with HiDPI Retina® Displays.
2. Automatic Size Determination
   Liquifire Resolve also eliminates the need for hundreds of variations of the same image, as well as the requirement to choose a fixed image size. You only need one master image and LiquiFire Resolve will automatically do the rest.
   LiquiFire Resolve inspects your website’s design and determines the appropriate variation of the image on demand. No additional assets are required.
3. Format Negotiation
   Not only does LiquiFire Resolve account for image quality and size, it also takes advantage of the unique capabilities of the browsers that your customers are using. Website image optimization is realized in full as LiquiFire Resolve leverages (and will continue to take advantage of) browser-specific settings and formats, like WebP.
4. Page Weight Optimization
   Without sacrificing fidelity, LiquiFire Resolve automatically sets an appropriate image format and compression ratio. It also efficiently reduces the weight of the image, so your customers always see the clearest image possible without strain on your resources.
5. Automatic Lazy Load
   In addition to optimizing page weight, LiquiFire Resolve also leverages automatic lazy load capabilities. So, as customers scroll through your website, your images are dynamically loaded and optimized on demand.
6. LiquiFire Image Chains™
   LiquiFire Image Chains are additional functionality that work in tandem with LiquiFire Resolve. They allow you to deliver images customized to the user’s real-time input.
   
   For example, do you need a navy blue version of a curtain? Done. Looking for a finer cut of that diamond ring? No problem. Just write the variables into the LiquiFire Image Chain and present personalized images to your customers without the need for a large, duplicative library of images. One library, zero effort.
   
   

Outdated Traditional Methods

You may be thinking, “Well, I’m sure the traditional web image optimization tools and techniques will still work just fine.”

The hard truth is: They don’t. At least, not like they used to.

The speed and volume of data and imagery we experience as we browse the internet every day now massively outweighs what it did just a decade ago. According to the Web Almanac:

“In the past decade, average web page weight has grown a whopping 356 percent, from an average of about 484 kilobytes to 2,205 kilobytes.”

Traditional optimization techniques can no longer keep up with this exponential development. Here are some examples of alternative optimization methods that most web developers used to use:

1. Resolution Switching
   How it is done: Using srcset requires hard-coding breakpoints into your website, by which images are then selected from a set. Every image variation needs to be manually crafted and preset, which also forces the logic to be based on window size and not the browser’s computed viewport.
   Challenges: It is a tedious, subpar process. Not only does it force you to constantly maintain every breakpoint and size of each image, it also adds tremendous burdens on your website design.
2. Manual Page Weight Management
   How it is done: Manual page weight management can come from utilizing your CDN to enable switching among image variations within a set or collection.
   Challenges: All asset creation will require a rigid targeting of sizes and formats. Furthermore, like resolution switching, rules must also be predetermined to facilitate breakpoints when choosing the images.
3. Traditional Lazy Load
   How it is done: Lazy load is a method of reducing page load time by only loading resources when they are needed, typically as users scroll.
   Challenges: Lazy load requires manual management of browser compatibility, as well as loading multiple libraries. Additional markup is also needed for the code base. All of this adds more burden on website development and slows time to market.

Web Image Optimization Requires Innovation

Automatic optimization with the right tools can help businesses move on from traditional methods that are time consuming, disruptive, and inferior.

Additionally, managing the complexity of multiple libraries and techniques slows down your workflow. It reduces your time to focus on other important things, like developing the product(s), testing marketing techniques, and growing your business.

The speed of a website also has a direct bearing to revenue, especially with e-commerce sites. Top marketer and influencer Neil Patel reveals:

“If an e-commerce site is making $100,000 per day, a one-second page delay could potentially cost you $2.5 million in lost sales every year.”

LiquiFire Resolve automatically renders the sharpest images, delivered on demand, regardless of device. This allows you to allocate resources to other issues that need your attention. Display fully responsive, high-quality images, optimally scaled to every device, while also maintaining rapid page load times on your website.

Experience unparalleled web image optimization with LiquiFire Resolve. Contact us here to see it in action.