I was approached recently by the owner of a popular blog using Wordpress software. This blog gets a lot of traffic on a regular basis but also has articles that reach the front page of Digg.com on a regular basis. For those of you not familiar with social media, this translates to very large traffic peaks. He wanted to know if there was anything he could do. As usual, Josh Can (and did) Help.
Step 1: Assess the situation
Wordpress is notorious for being a big server resource hog but there is little else out there that provides the kind of flexibility and extensibility on such an easy-to-use platform. I’m sure there are debates to be had but I’m a huge fan of Wordpress and that’s not likely to change anytime soon.
In this case, the Wordpress core along with several essential but potentially resource-heavy plugins were causing the server to become unresponsive and, at times, crash for several minutes. This happened during short periods of intense traffic caused by the aforementioned temporary Digg.com front page position (called “the Digg effect”).
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If I could recommend one skill to business owners with a website it would be a solid understanding of their site analytics and they are affected. So many people treat their website as something they need to have “just because.” If you build a site for services you offer or products you sell, what people see and how they interact is directly related to how much money your site pulls in.
Knowing what pages are the most popular, what keywords people are using to find you, and where people are going paint a picture about your customers, one that you might not be aware of. You probably want people on your product pages and your sign-up sheets, right? How do you know they’re getting there? How do you know they don’t get there and leave? How many leads are you missing?
This post outlines the very basics of Google Analytics and what it can tell you about your website.
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I have, accidentally and otherwise, come across several articles about content creation and information architecture lately. I am fascinated by how people are able (or unable) to consume the amount of information that is available on so many topics. I am also perpetually interested in improving my own ability at presenting information. These two things together keep me reading about this topic.
The articles I’ve been reading, particularly lately, do two distinct things for me:
- They show me how often I get it wrong and exactly where I can improve (example: I write too much)
- They show me how often I get it right by just planning, thinking, and iterating (example: the transparency and accessibility of what I write)
It occurred to me recently that the content I write ranges broadly from senseless, boring drivvel to concise and insightful statements. It got me thinking about how I, personally, arrive at either end of this spectrum and the mitigating factors for creating the content that I do.
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Once again, here are my Friday web strategy links. Lots going on right now and more to report soon but here are a few resources I found particularly relevant to me and what I do. Sometimes in amazing to me that I can even compile a list like this every week but I follow some great people on Twitter and find even more great stuff through Popurls. It’s all about information reservoirs!
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This week I’ve got some great links about SEO, Twitter, and marketing. I save and send out a lot of links during the week and I like going back through them and explaining why I think they are important. Hopefully you’ll find these useful and, if so, share this with a few people, I’d appreciate it!
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I talk about Delicious.com a lot because I’ve found it very critical for my own web strategy and organization. Saving links is incredibly easy with a Firefox browser plug in, the tag organization works very well for me, the site is easy (for me) to use, and, above all, I LOVE being able to share certain categories of links with people. I left Google Bookmarks several months back and do not regret it.
The more I use Delicious, the more I like it (and the more I appreciate its sparse, utilitarian design). The other day, however, I “discovered” something pretty incredible.
The Search Function
You see, I was looking for a link in my own bookmarks and, being the efficient web browser that I am, I decided to use the search function. I was looking for a privacy policy generator link so I searched “privacy policy.” right at the top was my link but below it was, basically, the best information out there on privacy policies. Not even just the best, the ones people find the most useful. Whoa.
I assume that most people use Delicious how I do: as a bookmarking platform first (because it’s great) and as a social platform second (because the bookmarking is so good). I’m picky about what I bookmark… not because I’m picky about casting a vote but because I’m always wary of information overload. So, what ends up in Delicious is likely something I will want to use again later, not just a nice tidbit.
This means that Delicious is very powerful but certainly not suited for everything. I still use Google 90% of the time because I’m not entirely sure what I want but, in certain cases, Delicious search is an amazing resource. Here are a few scenarios that work great:
- Learning a new skill: I’m trying to learn JavaScript beyond my very basic comprehension. I could Google “JS tutorials” or comb through some great development blogs… or I could type “learn javascript” into Delicious. I get W3Schools (perfect), several beginners guide, and a few advanced options. A perfect place to start!
- Finding tips or tricks: Various lists and tips and tricks find their way into my Delicious account… but only the best ones. Let’s say I was buying a house and didn’t know where to start. Searching “buy a house” gives me an awesome first-time buyers guide, a great WikiHow article, a piece on negotiation, and several other good links. And this is only the first page!
- Getting information about technical topics: It’s safe to assume a lot of geeks (cough) use this service so if it’s a technical thing you’re looking for, this is probably the best place to start. Try a search on “spyware” or “algorithm” or “windows.” You’ll not only find some excellent resources but you’ll probably come across at least one link that will blow your mind.
