For someone in pursuit of Web success it is crucial to invest time and money on those resources that will most positively – and consistently – impact your Web enterprises’ bottom line. This edition of Website Magazine’s Top 50 showcases the most important websites for Web professionals. Keep in mind that the sites on this Top 50 are not an acknowledgement of their effectiveness (the manner in which you approach them influences success, too) but rather their popularity among Web professionals, the business community and consumers.

What is most fascinating about a list of this nature is the variety of industries it spans and the type of marketing and development resources it highlights. Ten years ago you would have seen a much different landscape of the top sites for Web professionals. For example, while search engines still top the list of the most essential sites today, social networking sites are quickly gaining traction as they continue to garner more consumer, business and media attention.

From Facebook and Twitter to Ning and Yelp — social is increasingly working its way into the marketing and development efforts of many enterprises. It is important, however, to apply Pareto’s Principle of the 80/20 rule to this list of sites. The top 20 percent of these websites will arguably yield 80 percent of the results — website traffic or brand engagement.

But it’s not only the pure-play social sites that are making an impact on the Web. Video sites such as YouTube.com, Metacafe.com, Blinkx.com and others are also noteworthy standouts on the list and signify an interesting shift toward a truly interactive marketing environment. While still cost-prohibitive for many marketers, consumers watch video in vast quantities and at a rapid pace — that alone makes those websites important to your Web success.

Another fascinating trend in this edition of Top 50 is the number of job and career related sites such as SimplyHired.com and SnagAJob.com. While the economic realities might have brought these resources front and center, each can standalone as a vital resource regardless of what’s happening on Main Street USA.

And don’t even think about ruling out content and article marketing as a way to shore up brand visibility and drive website traffic. Longstanding success stories such as EzineArticles.com, FindArticles.com and ArticlesBase.com still generate the respect of many professional and aspiring Web professionals and will continue to do so until content is no longer king.

About This Ranked Data
Website Magazine’sTop 50 rankings are a measure of a website’s popularity. Ranks are calculated using a proprietary method that focuses on average daily unique visitors and page views over a specified period of time as reported by multiple data sources. The sites with the highest combination of factors are ranked in the first position. Website Magazine’sTop 50 List should influence your buying decision, but as in all things, perform necessary due diligence before investing your time and resources. Conducting research, making formal comparisons, and talking to existing clients and users before starting are always the best course of action. But let this act as an important starting guide for your Web success.