Font Loading Strategy: Techniques for fonts fast and does not affect UX.

Beautiful website ... but why the letters are up slowly? Problems that cause customers to "press off" immediately

Have you ever been? You enter the website that is beautifully designed. But instead had to sit and stare at the free space That should be a message Or see the strange face (Like a basic system font) showed first And another second, it "flashing" changed to a beautiful font according to the design ... What is your first feeling? "The website is so slow." "Look, don't pro", right? This problem is not a small matter. It is the "real killer" of the user experience (User Experience) and conversion rate that many people may overlook. You may lose customers from the first 3 seconds without knowing it. Just because of the "font" story

Prompt for illustrations: Comparison images before the website screen One side shows an empty space with Foit icons and the other side shows the basic fonts that do not match the design (FOUT) with the face that looks irritated of the user.

Behind the scenes: Why the font makes our website "stumble"?

The heart of this problem is caused by the browser method, when the user opens your website. The browser will start reading the HTML code to create a webpage. When I found the command that I have to use "Web Font" (a special font that is not installed in every user's device), it is like getting a new mission immediately: "Stop first! I have to download the font file from the server first. To show the message here! "

The process of "Stop to download" This is the 2 classic problems that web developers know well:

• Foit (Flash of Invisible Text): or "The letters disappear" is the symptoms that the browser chooses to "hide" all the text first. Wait until download the correct font file. And then show the results Causing the user to see as an empty space for a moment
• FOUT (Flash of Unstyled Text): or "strange faces" are the symptoms that browsers choose to display text with the font font that has previously been in the system. For users to read the content immediately And when downloading the correct Web Font Switch to use that font instead. Which causes the "blink" or the annoying layout shift

Both of these symptoms are a warning sign that your website is having a problem with Render-Blocking Resources, which is something that must be resolved. Understanding how to solve the Render-Blocking Resources is the first step that is important to improve the web speed.

Prompt for illustrations: simple infographic Show the work process of the browser: 1. Read HTML -> 2. See commands. Use Web Font -> 3. Stop Render and send Request to Server -> 4. Wait for download file -> 5. Show text.

Leave ... damaged than you think! The effect of "slow download font" on business

Slow download problems are not just beauty. But it directly affects your business goals:

• Break the user experience (Bad UX): No one likes to wait. The feeling "delay" or "twitching" makes your website look unreliable. And causing irritability for users at first sight
• Core Web Vitals points down the abyss: FOUT problem causes severe Layout movement which directly affects the Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) . The Foit problem may result in Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) slower if your main message is the largest on the screen. All of this is an important factor that Google uses SEO rankings.
• Bookce Rate is rising: when the user feels that the website is slow and unfriendly. The opportunity for them to press off and escape to the competitors will rise immediately.
• Conversion rate decreased: Imagine that the customer is about to press the "paid" button, but the messages and buttons Pushing or moving back and forth The hesitation and instability immediately occurred. And that may mean the lost sales

In the end, a small problem called "font" may cause you to lose both the rankings on Google, the trust of customers and income. This improvement is a worthwhile investment. And paying attention to the Design UX/UI. A good heart is the key to helping to prevent these problems.

Prompt for illustrations: 3 graph images showing the impact: The first "Bounce Rate" pointed up, the second rod "Core Web Vitals Score" points down, the third "Conversion Rate" listed.

Open the game to fix the game! How to download fonts quickly, attach a rocket and be friendly to UX.

The good news is that we have a way to deal with this problem efficiently. And most of them are not as complicated as you think Try to start from here:

• The easiest ultimate set: Used `` Font-Display: SWAP`
  This is the easiest and most effective way to start. It's just adding code. Display = SWAP` At the URL, when we call the font from Google Fonts or adding Property `font-display: swap;` in our own code. "Show basic fonts first. Do not wait. If the real font is finished, then switch to" this method helps to get rid of the Foit problem immediately and allows users to read the content faster.
• Enhance the control: Self-HOST Web Fonts
  instead of calling the font from an external server like Google Fonts. We can download font files. (Suggest to use the Fort. Woff2 is the smallest size) to keep in our own server. This helps to reduce connection to the external domain (DNS Lookups), allowing the browser to work faster. And we can fully control the Caching
• Queue Techniques: Preload Critical Fonts
  for very important fonts, such as the font of the main topic (H1) at the top of the web (Above The Fold). "Hurry and download this font to prepare. Because you have to use it urgently! "This method will make the fonts most importantly ready to use faster.
• Choose only necessary: ​​Subsetting Fonts
  Font File There may be letters for all languages ​​around the world. Which makes the files unnecessarily large. "Subsetting" is the technique of cutting the characters that we really have to use (such as English and Thai) into a new file that is small. Makes the load more faster The tools from Google Fonts tend to subsetting the basics automatically when we choose the language.

Choosing these techniques will help your website to download a lot faster. Which has a direct good effect on Core Web Vitals, especially inp and the overall user For the best practices Can be studied from Font Loading Best Practices of Web.dev .

Prompt for illustrations: beautiful infographic shows 4 main techniques with icon: 1. CSS icon icon `SWAP`, 2. Server icon with font, rocket` `prelad 'icon`

Examples from the real thing: when the E-Commerce website turns sales by adjusting the font.

The company "Aroma Beans", which sells online coffee beans There is a beautiful website using a vintage font to create a branding. But they encountered a big problem "The rate of departure from the payment page is abnormal." The team found that in the checkout page, many web fonts are used, causing the Foit to make the "confirmation button confirming" and the summary of the financial amount disappeared for a moment. Create confusion and not confident for customers.

Following mission: The development team has been resolved using 3 main techniques.

1. Change all fonts to have `` & Display = SWAP` Late
2. Self-HOST. The main font used with the price of the product and the payment button.
3. Add commands to the font of the button. "Confirm the order" in particular

Tangible results: Only one week after improvement They found that the CLS score is better than 70%, the Render-Blocking problem. That has previously been alerted in Pagespeed Insights and most importantly "Cart Abandonment in the checkout page decreased by 25%", resulting in significant overall sales. This is a proof that the improvement of small things like fonts can really create a great business impact.

Prompt for illustrations: The Before & After CHECKOUT page on the left mobile phone shows the price and the missing button. Loading icon is rotating on the right (After) showing the perfect webpage. Clear text and button With a rising sales graph

It's your eyes! Checklist 4 steps upgrade the web to download fonts faster.

Ready to make your website faster? You don't have to wait! Try to follow this easy checklist.

1. Check the current status: Go to Google Pagespeed Insights and put URL your website. Looking for the suggestions that "Ensure Text Remains Visible During Webfont Load" If you find that you are right!
2. Increase the Display = Swap` (The Quick Win): If you use Google Fonts, go back to the code '' which is used to call the font and add `` & Display = SWAP` ending at URL. This is the easiest and fastest editing.
3. (For advanced) Self-HOSLOAD:
   • Download the Font File. The .woff2 surname you want from copyrighted sources.
   • Upload your font files up to your host.
   • Use the code '@font-face` in your CSS file to run the font ready to enter the' Font-Display: SWAP; ``
   • In the HTML file at the `` `` add `` `` `" for the most important font
4. Measure and appreciate: Go back to Pagespeed Insights again and run テスト new. You will see that the advice is gone. And the overall score is better!

The improvement of efficiency is not just font. But also including the use New format pictures And creating a sustainable website, which is part of the Sustainable Web Design

Prompt for illustrations: CHECKLIST images with 4 items with icons in each item (magnifying glasses, codes, rockets, graphs) and has a cheap tick -green mark.

Questions that people tend to wonder (FAQ) clear all issues on font loading.

Q1: Between `` Font-Display: Swap` and `` optional` Should I use?
A: For most websites `` SWAP` is the best option. Because it guarantees that the user will see the content immediately with basic fonts And will switch as a beautiful font when with `` optional` is stronger Meaning that if the font is not loaded in a short time (about 100ms), it will use the basic font all the time Which may not match the design that we want Suitable for the case of really important speeds over anything else.

Q2: Self-Host font faster than using the Google Fonts CDN?
A: Not always, but better "control". Google fonts have a powerful CDN and spread all over the world. Makes the load very fast But the call from the website, we still have to do the DNS Lookup to the Google server. Self-HOST will cut this step out. But you must be sure that your own server is fast and has a good enough Caching.

Q3: One website should have a Web font not more than a few weights?
A: The less the better! According to the principle Try to limit only 1-2 font family (such as 1 for topics, 1 for content) and choose only the necessary weights such as Regular (400), BOLD (700). Using 5-6 fonts on one page will create enormous downloads.

Q4: Is it necessary to Preload every font on the web?
A: Not necessary and shouldn't be done! Preload is suitable for fonts that "Important and must be used immediately" Which is usually the font of the main headline or the menu displayed in the top half of the screen (ABOVE The Fold). The Preload. Everything will cause the browser to work too hard and may have a negative effect.

Prompt for illustrations: Question icon-Answer that looks clean and easy to understand.

Summary: Do not let "font" be a hindrance of your website.

We have seen that The story looks like a little like "Font loading" has a direct impact on the user experience, Core Web Vitals, SEO ranking, and the most important thing is the "income" of your business, allowing users to encounter the problem of missing or flashing (FOUT), it is like opening the door and telling the customer "Wait.

But the good news is Solving this problem is not too difficult. Beginning with simple techniques like using `` Font-Display: Swap` can make a lot of differences. And if you need the maximum efficiency, making Self-Hosting and Preload. The important fonts will help upgrade your website to stand out above the competitors.

It's time to do it! Don't wait for your beautiful website to break because of fonts. Try to take 10 minutes. Check your website with Pagespeed Insights and start editing today. Today's investment Is to build a stable foundation for growth in the future!

If you need experts who understand both technical and User experience design (UX/UI) to help improve your website efficiency in every dimension. Consult the Vision X Brain team today! We are ready to help your website fast and create amazing business results.

Prompt for illustrations: graphics that show font icons are being put in a rocket that is soaring up to the sky with the message "Unlock Your Website's Potential!"

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