Optimization Week Magazine - web performance tips fast web site speed optimization news & views

What's New

Issue 136 is out, featuring more PPC optimization tips and techniques, plus The Best Travel Tripod and Case Study: Teachthought.com Dedicated Server Upgrade. Jan. 3, 2018.

Issue 135 is out, featuring numerous PPC optimization articles on squeezing more leads out of your budget, including

PPC Optimization: Gender Targeting and PPC Optimization: Age Range Targeting. Dec. 21, 2016.

Issue 134 is out, featuring three Wordpress speed optimization articles and details on Google's adding mobile responsiveness as a ranking factor. June 18, 2015.

Issue 133 is out, featuring Empirical Study of Web Site Speed on Search Engine Rankings, Case Study: Responsive Design of PhillyDentistry.com Results, Healthcare.gov One Year Performance Review, Case Study: PhiladelphiaOrthodontists.com Mobile Responsive Redesign, Case Study: Walkerworldtrade.com Server Upgrade, Form Conversion Rate Optimization, Upgrade to a Faster Server: Results, Feb. 25, 2015

Issue 132 is out, featuring a Velocity NYC Contest, HTTPS Ranking Factor, Website Speed & SEO, and Average Web Page Breaks 1600K, August 20, 2014

Issue #131 is out, featuring a discussion of design complexity and conversions, Avoid Mass Web Hosting, Install mod_pagespeed, and Beware HTTP Redirects, March 26, 2014.

Issue #130 is out, featuring Speedy Mobile Sites Impact Google Search Rankings, Use a Website Accelerator, and Velocity NYC Highlights, November 29, 2013.

Issue #129 is out, featuring Healthcare.gov Performance Review, Mexico Tops in Broadband Growth, Optimize Start Render Time, October 5, 2013.

Issue #128 is out, featuring Speed Up Your Netbook, and Broadband Trends, March 25, 2013.

Issue #127 is out, featuring Localize External Resources, Average Number of Web Page Objects Breaks 100, Average Web Page Size Triples Since 2008, FCC Tests Broadband Performance Among Large ISPs, Part II, FCC Tests Wired Broadband Performance Among Large ISPs, Part I, Newsletter Delivery Change, December 3, 2012.

Issue #126 is out, featuring Blocking JavaScript with Web Page Test, Blocking CSS with Web Page Test, 2012 Olympics to Strain Broadband Networks , and a newsletter devivery change, April 30, 2012.

more issues »

New Internet Marketing for Dentists, and SEO Analysis Tool, Case Studies Section, Adaptive Multivariate Testing, CMS Performance Analysis, Website Spell Checker, and Conversion Rate Optimization services. We work for a Philadelphia Invisalign Orthodontist, Dumpster Rental, a Manhattan Cosmetic Dentist and a Roofing Company.

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Optimization Week

What's happening in the web performance industry? What sites are fast? What sites are slow? Learn the latest news and views and some low-speed reviews in our free weekly magazine, Optimization Week. Along with slow-loading sites we'll feature the speed tweak of the week, where you'll learn the latest standards-based technique you can use right now to speed up your site. In addition, you'll keep up with the latest news from WSO, LLC including the latest on our free Web Page Analyzer.

Optimization Week Issues

The Best Travel Tripod: Optimizing a Gitzo GT4552TS

You can tailor your tripod to your own needs with third party parts.

PPC Optimization: Ad Text

Learn the best practices of PPC ad text optimization.

PPC Optimization: Ad Extensions

Adding ad extensions to Call Only campaigns can boost click-through and conversion rates by 15% or more.

PPC Optimization: Early Warning

In Google Adwords, you can use phone call metrics as an early warning system to optimize text ad conversion performance.

PPC Optimization: Wordplay & Humor

Humor and wordplay can make your advertising stand out from the crowd.

PPC Optimization: Strange Attraction

Learn how using strange attraction in your ad text can lower CPC and boost CTR and conversions.

Teachthought.com Dedicated Server Upgrade

In this case study, moving from a shared to dedicated server improved TTFB by 75% and repeat view load times by 70%.

PPC Optimization: Gender Targeting

Learn how to squeeze more leads out of your PPC spend by targeting high performing demographics singly or in combination.

PPC Optimization: Age Range Targeting

You can target specific age ranges in Google Adwords to optimize conversion rates.

PPC Optimization: ZIP Code Targeting

Learn how to add ZIP code targeting to your PPC campaigns to boost conversion rates.

Using a Wordpress Caching Plugin for Website Speed

Learn how a caching plugin can speed up your site by 22% to 58%.

Optimizing Youtube Video Loading Speed

We show a JavaScript technique that substitutes static "poster" images for the videos speeding up page load times by nearly a factor of 5.

Optimizing the Arca Swiss B1 Ball Head

Extend the life of your ball head and save weight by rebuilding with lightweight components.

PPC Optimization: Average Income Targeting

Targeting your desired audience within particular geographic area using income is a powerful tool you can use to improve your conversion rates.

Call Only PPC Optimization II

Learn how adding more Call Only PPC ads can increase your conversion rate and reduce the cost of phone calls.

Optimizing a Complex Site for Pagespeed II

In Part II of our series on speed optimizing a complex site we explore caching plugins.

Optimizing a Complex Site for Pagespeed

In this article we show how to boost the Pagespeed scores of mymanhattancosmeticdentist.com with mod_pagespeed, some manual tweaks, and the WPOptimize Speed Plugin.

Google adds Mobile Responsive Ranking Factor

With Google now factoring in mobile responsiveness to search rankings, making your site mobile responsive has just become more important.

Case Study: WordPress Theme Optimization

This article tests the benefits of optimized WordPress themes and hosting.

Empirical Study of Web Site Speed on Search Engine Rankings

This empirical study found that website crawl time and its variability strongly correlates with search engine position.

Case Study: Responsive Design of PhillyDentistry.com Results

A new responsive design improved key metrics for both desktop and mobile visitors.

Case Study: PhillyDensitry.com Responsive Redesign

A new responsive design for PhillyDentistry.com tested about twice as fast.

Healthcare.gov One Year Performance Review

After one year of improvements, how fast is the healthcare.gov website?

Case Study: PhiladelphiaOrthodontists.com Mobile Responsive Redesign

What happens when you convert a site to be mobile responsive?

Case Study: Walkerworldtrade.com Server Upgrade

Moving to a faster server can cut page load times by more than half, and improve behavior metrics like conversion and exit rates.

Form Conversion Rate Optimization

Learn how a combination of form optimization and speed improved conversion rates by more than 92%,

Upgrade to a Faster Server: Results

We further explore the results of upgrading to a faster server. Overall the site showed improved response speed and website "stickiness."

Upgrade to a Faster Server

Upgrading to a faster server can improve web page speed significantly, up to 66% faster for first paint time and 29% for load times.

CONTEST: Free Pass to Velocity NYC

We've teamed up with O'Reilly to offer subscribers a chance to win a free 2-day pass to the O'Reilly Velocity Conference in New York, a $1650 value.

NET NEWS: Google Uses HTTPS as Ranking Factor

Google has announced that they are now using HTTPS as a search ranking signal. In an effort to make the Internet safer, Google is now factoring in HTTPS encryption as a ranking signal to about 1% of global queries. WSO is rolling out a faster server service with optional HTTPS to keep pace.

Website Speed and SEO

Having a consistently "responsive" site will ensure that your site will be crawled and fully indexed, and will not suffer slow-loading ranking penalties.

Average Web Page Breaks 1600K

The size of the average web page passed 1600K for the first time in July.

Beware HTTP Redirects for SEO and Performance

Standardizing on an authoritative URL form is a best practice for search engine optimization and performance.

Why Simple Websites are Scientifically Better

In short, visual complexity gets in the way of conversions.

Install Mod_Pagespeed

Installing mod_pagespeed can make significant improvements in web page performance. We test the module on an example site.

DC Tops in US Broadband Speed

The District of Columbia had the fastest average broadband speed in the USA.

Avoid Mass Web Hosting

We investigate moving an example site from a slow mass host to a lightly loaded host.