What Is A Content Delivery Network (CDN)?

Basically, a content delivery network, or CDN, is about having a network of servers located around the world or at multiple locations to improve streaming or delivery of static content.

If you have a server located closer to you geographically, access tends to be faster than with a server located halfway across the globe. You might have noticed that when you try to download a large file, you are sometimes asked which server you would like to download it from.

People generally choose the server closest to them, and this makes sense, but it is not always the best option. For instance, if you are located in Italy, you might opt for a server in Greece. Unfortunately, what you might not know at the moment is that you are not the only one.

There might be plenty of others who choose the same server, and the end result is an unhappy experience. A content delivery network or CDN makes use of routing algorithms that factor in web traffic and optimizes delivery.

So a server in Iceland might be able to deliver faster and better, even though it is farther than the one in Greece. You are not allowed to choose, the Content Delivery Network does this job for you.

Advantages of Content Delivery Networks

• Better SEO: Search engines are increasingly becoming more human-like, and sites that load slowly are penalized with a drop in the rankings. A content delivery network can help avoid this pitfall.

• Better sales: There are studies that show that a faster website results in greater sales. This is a psychological effect, a slow website might lead visitors to question why you haven't invested in technology if you are so professional (as a lot of content on the website would indicate).

• File mirroring: If there is an earthquake that affects Internet connectivity in your area or even your data, the servers in the content delivery network act as backup. This way, your website is always up, 100% of the time.

• Better streaming of video: Video is becoming the most consumed form of content online. In fact, Cisco estimates that by next year, video streaming will constitute 69% of all Internet traffic. With this kind of user preference, websites that use video are also ranked higher. So you need to include video on your site to help with your search engine rankings, and a content delivery network to ensure that it streams smoothly, without buffering. You could also include live events on your site (these tend to attract more visitors) and a CDN can minimize data packet loss - this means no drop in audio/video quality - and also see to it that the audio and the video are in sync with each other. Content delivery networks are also recommended if you have an audio-rich site that is geared towards audiophiles and music lovers.
• Free and easy to setup options are becoming more and more available. Nowadays web hosts like SiteGround include a free CDN from CloudFlare that can be easily setup with a click of a button.

There is also another reason why you need to include video on your site, and a content delivery network to support seamless delivery - Axxon Research reports that seven out of every ten consumers view brands more favorably after watching an interesting video about it.

And nowadays, you do not need to hire a professional crew to shoot a promotional video, you can do it with your smartphone and edit it using free tools online. With attention spans on the decline, the shorter the better.

A six-second Vine video can do wonders for your business. Nielsen estimates that 64% of all marketing strategies would include video in the near future. Such is the power of video content.

What you need to watch out for

An expanded network of servers also means additional possible points of failure - both at the server nodes as well as along the network. Having a content delivery network also means having to monitor it - you are paying for it after all!

How to choose a good CDN

• The future of video is Full HD (1020 pixels) - because HD (720 pixels) is already here, and has become the standard. You need to choose a content delivery network that supports Full HD.

• 30-50% of Internet access happens over mobile devices. You also need to check if the CDN you are considering is optimized for mobile devices.

• Because monitoring the performance of your CDN is essential, you need to choose one that provides you with analytics data, either real-time or in the form of reports. These should be able to help you manage your CDN better - if that server in Switzerland doesn't serve many requests, it would be a good idea to drop it. In that sense, a CDN should also be scalable - you should be able to add or remove servers according to web traffic trends.

• You should also check if the CDN you are considering can accommodate changes to your website because no website can afford to remain stagnant.

Is a CDN for you?

A content delivery network can undoubtedly lead to a better, faster and more uniform experience for all visitors to your website. But whether you really need one in the first place depends on your budget, and what your priorities are.

If you have a shopping site, a content delivery network can help avoid instances of potential customers not completing their checkout, but abandoning their shopping carts midway. Even if your budget is limited, it might still be possible to have a CDN.

For instance, if there aren't many visitors from Asia, you could omit servers in Asia. If your website is not a high-security site, doing away with SSL brings the costs further down.

There are even free content delivery networks like Incapsula, FreeCast, and Coral Content Distribution Network. Some of the commercial ones include MaxCDN, KeyCDN, CloudFare, Amazon CloudFront, and Akamai.

If none of them meet your requirements, you can always have your own content delivery network. This is otherwise called a private CDN. Private CDNs services for customers requiring additional customization. Edge resources are not shared with any other users.