The 15 Best Website Optimization Blogs

The 15 Best Website Optimization Blogs

And just like any eco-system, before you start fiddling around, you need to understand how your actions will affect the entire mechanism.

First, we need to break down our eco-system into four parts: SEO, User Experience, Web Development, and Monetization. Sure, there are more aspects to consider but we’ll just focus on these for now.
Actually, this post is dedicated to the first three since monetization tips, best practices, and case studies are available in most of the blog posts we publish.
Search Engine Optimization
Search Engine Optimization or SEO is a collection of strategies for getting ranked higher in search engines like Google. Better rankings lead to more hits. The ultimate goal is more organic (i.e. non-paid) web traffic. It’s an advanced field.
However, the basics are centered around how to compose search engine ready content, linking strategies, and website structure. All of these play a role in how search engines rank your blog.

Search Engine Round Table
Search Engine Journal
Ahrefs
GotchSEO
Graywolf SEO

User Experience
User Experience or UX is everything the user experiences once they arrive at your website. Are they motivated to stay? Is the site navigation clear? Does the user know what they are supposed to do and how to go about doing it? These are all considerations that are part of building a better user experience. If you can keep them from bouncing, you’ve passed the first hurdle. But there is much more to it than that.
UX Pin
UX Myths
UX Booth
Smashing Magazine
pttrns

BTW – Check out our full entry on some of the best user experience blogs. We covered 9 in total including our favorites shared here today.

Web Development
Web development is the process of putting your entire site together – including your blog software and additional plugins and services. It’s all the digital nuts and bolts type stuff, and occasionally some remnant bits of garlicky hummus leftover from developers with the munchies (not mentioning any names here, Adngin). Yes, we’ve outgrown twinkies. Geek snacks have gotten increasingly hipster. Where have you been for the last five years?

GitHub Blog
Coding Horror
JNCZOnline
DZone
CSS Tricks

Don’t Get Info Overload, Just Try Something
We just shared a lot of resources with you. So it’s probably a good idea for us to offer up a disclaimer for those of you with a touch of OCD.

These sites are some of the best we’ve found for website optimization – including SEO, UX, and general web development topics. But just mix them into your reading rotation. There’s way too much content here for you to consume on a day to day basis. We check in every few weeks and search as needed. That’s the only way to avoid getting completely overwhelmed.

More importantly than reading about optimization endlessly is actually putting some optimization strategies in play. You’re going to end up with some great ideas on these sites. No doubt. So experiment with the ones you think might work for you. Get them in place, observe and test the results.

What great sites are we missing? What blog is on your absolutely must-read list?