Meet Aleksandr

Hi everyone, I’m Aleksandr, the Co-Founder & Head of Technology at the FastPixel.

Interest in computers and programming sparked in me when I was 11. It all started with the ZX Spectrum computer my parents bought me, for which I’m eternally grateful to them. Thanks, mom and dad, I love you! It all started with ZX Spectrum Basic, then I switched to assembler. Eleven years and a university degree later, I started working as a web developer in 2000, creating sites in Perl and HTML and running Linux as my desktop OS. Since then, I have worked at multiple companies, and in 2006, I landed a job at IPonWEB, a global leader in real-time advertisement. This diverse experience has shaped my expertise in web development and digital marketing technologies.

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What inspired the creation of FastPixel and can you give us an overview of its main features?

I left IPonWEB in 2011 to join the digital agency Darwin Agency as a co-founder and lead engineer, and for the last 5 years, I have served as the CTO. I had firsthand understanding of the issues our customers face. The vast majority of our customers are marketing departments, so the sites are heavily instrumented with marketing tools integrations like Marketo, Hubspot, Salesforce, various ad tracking tools like Facebook, Amazon, Google, as well as tons of third-party services that improve lead identification and tracking.

With the introduction of the page speed ranking factor in 2010, requests for page speed optimizations became so common that I decided a general solution for page speed optimization was needed. Thus, I created the WP Meteor plugin for WordPress (https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-meteor/). It was obvious that while WP Meteor greatly improves page speed by enhancing LCP, delaying the execution of JavaScript, and prioritizing the loading of images in the viewport, it didn’t address all the other important aspects of page speed.

So, with the experts from ShortPixel, who are pros in image optimization, we decided to merge our efforts and build a plugin that covers all aspects of page speed optimization, including image optimization and caching.

How does FastPixel differentiate itself from other WordPress optimization plugins on the market?

FastPixel sets itself apart from other WordPress optimization plugins with its simplicity and user-friendliness. Unlike most plugins, which require technical expertise and multiple settings adjustments to achieve optimal results, our plugin is pre-configured and ready to use immediately, eliminating the need for advanced technical knowledge.

It also packs the functionalities of more plugins in a single one: it has native CDN integration, images are automatically optimized and served as WebP depending on the browser capabilities, Critical CSS along with adaptive HTML is created for each page for maximum performance.

What kind of performance improvements can users typically expect after implementing FastPixel?

Well, all the page optimization plugins try to optimize one or more google page speed metrics, that you see on each pagespeed results page, eg First Contentful Paint (FCP), Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), Total Blocking Time (TBT), Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS), and, lately Interaction to Next Paint (INP).

FastPixel is an all-round attempt to optimize them all. As a result, users can expect improved performance scores in all the metrics. The ultimate goal of the FastPixel is not to game the tests like Google PageSpeed or GTMetrics, but instead, provide real improvements in page load times that users experience, improving in-field data collected from the users visiting the optimized site.

Can you discuss the importance of CDN delivery and how FastPixel integrates with CDNs?

Serving static assets such as CSS, JavaScript, and images from CDN is only one of the key speed optimizations FastPixel brings to the table. FastPixel seamlessly integrates with our CDN to enhance the performance and reliability of our users’ WordPress sites. Our CDN delivers content from 120 locations geographically closest to visitors using the latest HTTP protocols, including HTTP/3 and QUIC, even if the original server doesn’t support them, ensuring faster load times and improved performance scores.

How does FastPixel ensure compatibility with various WordPress themes and plugins?

FastPixel ensures compatibility with various WordPress themes and plugins through rigorous testing, regular updates, fallback mechanisms and community feedback. We also offer three different configuration presets, allowing you to test and determine which one is the safest and most compatible one, without the need to adjust multiple settings individually.

What are your thoughts on the current state of the WordPress ecosystem and its future?

The WordPress ecosystem is thriving, with continuous improvements aimed at making it faster and more efficient. Recent updates and advancements in Gutenberg and lazy loading have already significantly boosted page speed. Looking ahead, the focus will likely remain on enhancing speed and efficiency, driven by growing demands for faster websites and better user experiences. 

What advice would you give to new entrepreneurs entering the SaaS industry?

There is no silver bullet, but it is probably worth starting with scratching your own itch. Most likely, there are other users who are frustrated with the same problem that you or your customers have.

Begin with a minimum viable product (MVP) to validate that the problem truly exists and that your solution resonates with potential users. Feedback is crucial, so iterate quickly based on what your customers tell you. Leverage your unique expertise – this is your superpower and can set you apart in the industry. Finally, don’t be afraid to pivot or even abandon an idea if it’s not working out.

What impact do you think AI and machine learning will have on the future of web optimization?

I believe AI and ML will play an increasingly significant role in everything web-related. For web optimization we already use ML for image optimization and we’re looking into ways to integrate different ML models in different parts of the website acceleration process. 

Did you enjoy our interview? Do you have anything to say to our community?

Thanks for having me and for the opportunity to connect with the SaaSPirate community. Your platform is a fantastic resource for discovering and leveraging the best SaaS tools at unbeatable prices. It’s inspiring to see how SaaSPirate helps both entrepreneurs and developers by offering lifetime deals that make high-quality software accessible and affordable. 

To the SaaSPirate community, I want to say a big thank you for using FastPixel, your support and feedback, which are invaluable in improving our products. Thank you again for this opportunity, and I look forward to continuing this journey with all of you.