The verdict in three sentences
A business travel agency website in Amsterdam that takes 6 seconds to load on mobile loses part of its quote requests before the buyer even sees the offer. A performance audit costs, as a 2026 order of magnitude, EUR 2,500 to 5,000 excluding VAT, and the fixes range from EUR 6,000 to 15,000 depending on the state of images, third-party scripts and hosting. The target is clear: an LCP under 2.5 s and an INP under 200 ms for at least 75 % of real visits, which commonly lifts quote requests by 15 to 25 %.
What a serious audit measures
A useful audit goes beyond a PageSpeed Insights screenshot. It cross-checks lab data (Lighthouse, WebPageTest) with field data from the Chrome UX Report, which reflects real visitors, often executive assistants and travel managers on 4G between meetings.
| Metric | Google "good" threshold 2026 | Common value on a travel agency site | Usual cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| LCP (main element rendering) | Under 2.5 s | 4.5 to 6 s on mobile | Uncompressed 2 to 4 MB destination hero image |
| INP (interaction responsiveness) | Under 200 ms | 350 to 600 ms | Heavy booking engine and chat widgets |
| CLS (visual stability) | Under 0.1 | 0.2 to 0.35 | Cookie banner and images without dimensions |
| TTFB (server response) | Under 0.8 s | 1.2 to 2 s | Shared hosting, no caching |
| Total home page weight | Under 1.5 MB | 5 to 9 MB | Background videos, multiple fonts, marketing scripts |
| Number of third-party scripts | Under 10 | 20 to 35 | Ad pixels, duplicate analytics tools |
The expected deliverable includes a list of fixes ranked by gain and effort, an effort estimate for each and a before-and-after measurement plan. Without that costing, the audit remains a diagnosis without a decision.
What the fixes cost, item by item
Fixes fall into independent work packages. The agency can start with those offering the best gain for the cost.
| Fix package | 2026 budget (order of magnitude) | Typical gain on mobile LCP |
|---|---|---|
| Images: WebP or AVIF conversion, responsive sizes, lazy loading | EUR 1,500 to 3,500 | 1.5 to 2.5 s |
| Third-party scripts: cleanup, deferred loading, clean tag manager | EUR 1,500 to 3,000 | 0.5 to 1.2 s |
| Fonts and CSS: subsetting, inline critical CSS | EUR 800 to 2,000 | 0.3 to 0.6 s |
| Hosting: CDN, server cache, HTTP/3 | EUR 1,000 to 3,000, plus EUR 30 to 150 a month | 0.4 to 1 s on TTFB |
| Lighter booking engine or quote form | EUR 1,500 to 3,500 | Gain mainly on INP |
| Total fixes | EUR 6,000 to 15,000 | LCP brought from 6 s down to 2 to 2.5 s |
Beyond EUR 15,000 of fixes, a rebuild on a modern architecture often makes more sense than patching a WordPress theme overloaded with plugins. The audit should say so plainly.
Why speed drives B2B quote requests
A travel manager usually compares three agencies before requesting a proposal for an offsite or an annual travel contract. If the "Business travel" page or the quote form takes more than 3 seconds to respond, a large share give up and move on to the next agency. The SEO gain comes on top: Core Web Vitals are part of the page experience signals, and a fast page gains positions against competitors with equivalent content.
Once speed is fixed, it must be maintained: every new ad pixel or campaign visual can degrade it. Monthly monitoring of these metrics is part of Kolonell's SEO plans, from 100,000 to 350,000 FCFA a month (about EUR 150 to 530) depending on the level.
Mini case study
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
Daan, sales director of a business travel agency in Amsterdam (fictional illustrative case), receives 40 quote requests a month through his website, with a 25 % close rate and an average margin of EUR 1,800 per signed deal. His site shows a mobile LCP of 6 s.
He orders an audit at EUR 3,500 and then EUR 9,500 of fixes, i.e. EUR 13,000. LCP drops to 2.3 s. Assuming a cautious 15 % rise in requests, he gains 6 requests a month, i.e. 1.5 signed deals and EUR 2,700 of monthly margin. The investment pays back in under 5 months, then brings in about EUR 32,000 of margin a year.
FAQ
Is a performance audit enough to improve the site?
No, the audit identifies and prices the problems, but the fixes deliver the gain. Allow EUR 2,500 to 5,000 for the audit and EUR 6,000 to 15,000 for fixes as a 2026 order of magnitude, delivered in 3 to 6 weeks.
How long before the effect shows in Google Search Console?
The Core Web Vitals report relies on 28 days of rolling field data. Expect 4 to 6 weeks after the fixes go live before the URL moves to "good" status.
Can booking engine scripts be optimized if they come from a vendor?
Rarely in their code, but they can be loaded only on the relevant pages and after user interaction. This single change often improves INP by 150 to 300 ms on content pages.
Should we change hosting provider?
Not always: if TTFB exceeds 1 s despite server caching, better-sized hosting with a CDN costs EUR 30 to 150 a month as a 2026 order of magnitude. It is often the most profitable fix for a site receiving visitors from several countries.
What target should we aim for on mobile?
Aim for an LCP under 2.5 s, an INP under 200 ms and a CLS under 0.1 for at least 75 % of visits, matching Google's "good" thresholds. A home page weight under 1.5 MB is a useful benchmark to get there.
Let's scope your project. Send us your website address and your quote request volumes: we will price the audit, the priority fixes and the delivery timeline. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
