Website Optimization
Here's how I actually think about website optimization when I'm in the middle of a real project.
What I’d do first
- Clarify the outcome
- Check the live SERP
- Change one thing, then measure
- Clarify the outcome you need this week
- Check the live SERP for the query
Plain-English take
Website optimization is the process of improving a site’s speed, technical health, usability, and content effectiveness so it performs better for users and search engines.
What I got wrong
- Treating it as a one-off task
- Copying someone else's playbook without checking intent
- Measuring vanity metrics instead of the job-to-be-done
Next step
Sources
Primary documentation is linked directly. Anything commercial is marked nofollow.
- Google Search Central — Primary Google documentation for crawlability, indexation, structured data, and technical SEO best practices.
- Google PageSpeed Insights / Lighthouse — Standard tools and guidance for measuring performance and identifying render-blocking or inefficient assets.
- Google Core Web Vitals — Official guidance on the user-centric performance metrics that strongly influence optimization priorities.
Notes from Callum Bennett.