What Does The SEO Jargon Actually Mean?

SEO Words Glossary

SEO Glossary for Business Owners Who Want To Understand What The Search Engine Optimisation Words Actually Mean.

Understanding SEO (Search Engine Optimization) can be daunting, especially with all the jargon. Here’s a handy glossary of basic SEO terms to help business owners navigate the essentials:

A

Algorithm: A set of rules or a formula that search engines use to rank web pages in search results. Google’s algorithm is constantly updated to improve the relevance and quality of search results.

Alt Text (Alternative Text): A description of an image that helps search engines understand what the image is about. It also assists visually impaired users who rely on screen readers.

B

Backlink: A link from one website to another. Backlinks are crucial for SEO because they signal to search engines that your content is valuable and trustworthy.

Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your website after viewing only one page. A high bounce rate may indicate that your site content is not engaging or relevant to your visitors.

C

Canonical URL: The preferred version of a web page when there are multiple pages with similar content. Using canonical URLs helps prevent duplicate content issues.

Crawl: The process by which search engines discover new and updated content on the web. They use bots (called spiders or crawlers) to scan websites and index them.

D

Domain Authority (DA): A score (on a 100-point scale) developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank on search engines. Higher scores indicate greater ability to rank.

Duplicate Content: Content that appears on more than one web page, either on the same website or across different websites. Duplicate content can negatively impact search rankings.

E

Engagement: The level of interaction visitors have with your website. This includes metrics like time on site, pages per session, and social shares.

External Link: A link on your website that points to a page on a different website. External links can add value to your content by providing additional resources.

F

Featured Snippet: A summary of an answer to a user’s query, displayed at the top of Google’s search results. Featured snippets are often called “Position Zero.”

Footer Link: Links found in the footer section of a webpage. These are often used for site-wide links to important pages like contact information, privacy policy, and site map.

G

Google Analytics: A free tool offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic. It provides insights into how users find and interact with your website.

Google Search Console: A free tool that helps you monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot your site’s presence in Google Search results.

H

Header Tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.): HTML tags used to define headings and subheadings on a webpage. They help structure your content and improve readability and SEO.

Hyperlink: A clickable link that directs users from one web page to another or to another section of the same page.

I

Index: The database where search engines store all the information they have about web pages. Being indexed means that a page can appear in search results.

Internal Link: A link from one page on your website to another page on the same website. Internal links help users navigate your site and distribute page authority.

K

Keyword: A word or phrase that users enter into search engines to find information. Keywords are crucial for SEO because they help search engines understand the content of your page.

Keyword Stuffing: The practice of overloading a webpage with keywords in an attempt to manipulate search rankings. This is considered a black hat SEO tactic and can result in penalties.

L

Landing Page: The first page a visitor sees when they arrive on your website, often designed for a specific marketing campaign or keyword.

Link Building: The process of acquiring backlinks from other websites to improve your site’s authority and search engine rankings.

M

Meta Description: A brief summary of a webpage’s content that appears under the page title in search results. It should be compelling and include relevant keywords.

Mobile Optimization: The process of ensuring that your website performs well on mobile devices. Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in its rankings.

N

NoFollow Link: A link attribute that tells search engines not to pass any link authority or ranking credit to the linked page. Often used for paid links or user-generated content.

NoIndex: A meta tag that instructs search engines not to index a specific page, meaning it won’t appear in search results.

O

Organic Traffic: Visitors who come to your website through unpaid search results. High organic traffic indicates effective SEO.

Outbound Link: Another term for external link, a link that directs users from your site to a different site.

P

Page Speed: The amount of time it takes for a web page to load completely. Faster pages generally rank higher in search results.

Pay-Per-Click (PPC): An online advertising model where advertisers pay a fee each time their ad is clicked. It’s not part of SEO but is often used in conjunction with it.

R

Rankings: The position of a website in search engine results pages (SERPs). Higher rankings mean more visibility and traffic.

Robots.txt: A file on your website that tells search engine crawlers which pages they can or cannot crawl and index.

S

Schema Markup: Code that you put on your website to help search engines return more informative results for users. It enhances snippets displayed in SERPs.

Search Engine Results Page (SERP): The page displayed by search engines in response to a user’s query. It includes organic results, paid ads, and other features like featured snippets.

Sitemap: A file that lists all the important pages on your website, helping search engines crawl your site more efficiently.

T

Title Tag: An HTML tag that defines the title of a webpage. It’s displayed in search engine results and is crucial for SEO.

Traffic: The visitors that come to your website. Traffic can be categorized as organic, direct, referral, or paid.

U

URL (Uniform Resource Locator): The address of a web page. A well-structured URL can improve SEO by making it easier for search engines to understand the content of the page.

User Experience (UX): How users interact with your website. Good UX can improve engagement and rankings.

V

Visibility: The extent to which your website can be found in search engines. High visibility means more potential traffic and leads.

W

Webmaster Tools: Another term for Google Search Console, a tool that helps you monitor and maintain your site’s presence in search results.

White Hat SEO: Ethical SEO practices that follow search engine guidelines and aim to improve user experience. Examples include quality content, keyword research, and proper link building.

Understanding these basic SEO terms can help business owners make informed decisions about their SEO strategies and better communicate with SEO professionals. For more information or to get started with SEO services tailored to your business needs, contact SEO Pros today.