With web users often leaving a site if it doesn't load in less than three seconds, having a slow blog not only harms your traffic, but it can have a detrimental effect on your business too.
This presentation shows you three simple steps to optimize your blog's load time, to ensure you not only keep new visitors happy, but ensure they join your existing community and keep coming back.
How to Optimize Your Blog for Faster Loading in Three Easy Steps
1. How
to
Optimize
Your
Blog
for
Speed
three
simple
steps
to
boost
your
load
times
and
keep
your
visitors
happy
By
Danny
Brown
2. What
slows
a
blog
down?
Web
host
Plug-‐ins
Design
“All
the
things
a
blogger
needs”
3. Why
does
speed
matter?
4
reasons
why
you
want
to
be
F.A.S.T.
F
• FACT
Almost
75%
of
web
users
expect
a
site
to
load
in
less
than
three
seconds
A
• AUDIENCES
are
increasingly
on
mobile
browsers
and
expect
a
seamless
experience
S
T
• SEO
Google
will
punish
slow
performance
sites
• TECHNOLOGY
is
evolving
and
HTML5
is
driving
performance.
Don’t
let
your
blog
be
leM
behind.
4. So
how
can
you
optimize
your
blog?
thankfully,
it’s
not
as
difficult
as
you
might
think
In
fact,
even
liPle
kiPens
could
probably
do
this!
6. Phase
one:
using
a
CDN
content
delivery
network
• Eases
load
on
your
web
host’s
server
• Offers
your
blog
speed
and
reliability
• Takes
care
of
a
blog’s
heavy
liMing
–
images,
media,
traffic
-‐
so
you
can
concentrate
on
the
content
And
the
best
CDN
partners
have
flat
rates
depending
on
your
needs
8. Step
one:
create
a
MaxCDN
account
it’s
as
easy
as
clicking
the
“Sign
Up”
buUon
9. Step
two:
Choose
payment
option
and
unless
you
have
a
lot
of
traffic
from
Asia,
remove
the
Asia
Zone
before
compleKng
payment
10. Step
three:
create
a
Zone
a
“zone”
is
your
blog
–
most
bloggers
will
be
good
with
a
Pull
Zone,
but
compare
the
different
zones
to
determine
your
need
11. Step
four:
this
is
your
Pull
Zone
URL
you
will
need
this
for
your
CDN
connecKon
to
your
blog
12. Step
Live:
enable
Robots.txt
for
SEO
this
will
ensure
Google
conKnues
to
index
your
blog
properly
13. Phase
two:
using
a
caching
plug-‐in
creates
staKc
HTML
files
to
show
visitors
instead
of
processing
heavier
PHP
scripts
(makes
your
blog
“lighter”)
• Offers
visitors
a
faster
load
• Reduces
the
amount
of
calls
your
blog
makes
to
web
servers
• Helps
keep
your
blog
running
if
you
experience
heavier
traffic
(a
viral
post,
for
example)
Most
caching
plug-‐ins
can
be
confusing
to
set
up
–
not
this
combinaKon,
though
14. Recommendation:
WP
Super
Cache
easy
set
up,
no
real
tech
knowledge
needed,
lighter
than
many
other
caching
plugins
www.wordpress.org/
plugins/wp-‐super-‐
cache
15. Step
one:
install
WP
Super
Cache
two
simple
choices
–
download
and
install
or
search
and
install
• Download
and
install
for
those
who
prefer
manual
FTP
uploads
• Search
and
install
for
those
who
prefer
auto
install
from
their
WordPress
dashboard
The
choice
is
completely
yours
16. Step
one:
download
and
install
manual
install
for
those
who
prefer
FTP
uploads
17. Step
one:
search
and
install
auto
install
for
those
who
prefer
the
WordPress
dashboard
18. Step
two:
activate
and
go
to
settings
make
sure
you
just
select
EASY,
Caching
On,
and
then
Update
Status
to
turn
on
caching
19. Step
three:
test
the
cache
is
on
click
the
Test
Cache
buUon
–
you
should
see
the
box
below
if
it’s
working.
If
not,
use
the
Support
Form
link
in
the
main
se^ngs
20. Step
four:
bypass
CDN
option
we’re
going
to
be
using
a
clean,
lighter
CDN
connecKon
than
WP
Super
Cache’s
own
built-‐in
opKon.
Make
sure
the
following
opKons
are
checked
on
the
CDN
tab.
21. Phase
three:
using
a
CDN
linker
a
CDN
linker
will
connect
your
MaxCDN
URL
to
WP
Super
Cache
for
a
lighter,
easier
set-‐up
• Easier
set-‐up
than
built-‐in
CDN
linkers
• Simple
install
and
URL
se_ng
• Bypasses
technical
knowledge
needed
to
op`mize
built-‐in
cache
plug-‐in
CDN
se_ngs
It’s
so
simple
even
I
can
do
it
–
and
that’s
saying
something!
22. Recommendation:
CDN
Linker
Lite
One
simple
install,
one
simple
copy/paste
MaxCDN
URL,
and
you’re
set!
www.wordpress.org/
plugins/ossdl-‐cdn-‐
off-‐linker
23. Step
one:
install
CDN
Linker
Lite
two
simple
choices
–
download
and
install
or
search
and
install
• Download
and
install
for
those
who
prefer
manual
FTP
uploads
• Search
and
install
for
those
who
prefer
auto
install
from
their
WordPress
dashboard
The
choice
is
completely
yours
24. Step
two:
activate
and
go
to
settings
copy
the
URL
from
your
MaxCDN
Pull
Zone
and
paste
in
the
Linker
Lite
CDN
URL
box
(including
the
hUp://
prefix)
and
save
changes
25. And
that’s
it!
you’ve
set
up
CDN
opKmizaKon
and
have
it
running
at
opKmal
performance
through
a
caching
set-‐up
• You
can
test
your
loading
`mes
immediately
–
you
should
see
a
major
improvement
• Within
a
couple
of
hours,
you
can
start
to
see
the
results
inside
your
MaxCDN
dashboard
• Once
you’re
comfortable
with
your
first
installa`on,
you
can
look
to
op`mize
other
domains
with
the
same
set-‐up
Of
course,
the
proof,
as
they
say,
is
in
the
pudding
26. Speed
test
one:
before
CDN
caching
Note
the
load
Kme
–
3.86
seconds.
This
is
NOT
good
27. Speed
test
two:
after
CDN
caching
Note
the
load
Kme
–
1.15
seconds.
A
reducKon
of
more
than
TWO
THIRDS
in
load
Kme!
28. So,
to
recap
–
to
optimize
your
blog
in
three
easy
and
non-‐technical
(for
the
most
part)
steps
• Create
a
MaxCDN
account
• Install
WP
Super
Cache
• Install
CDN
Linker
Lite
• Combine
the
three
together
And
the
result?
29. SUPER
HAPPY
BLOGGING
KITTENS!
(oh,
and
blog
readers
and
visitors
too…)
The
faster
the
site,
the
happier
the
kiPen.
True
story.
30. Thank
you,
and
happy
blogging!
Danny
Brown
www.dannybrown.me
@DannyBrown