Ever wondered how websites get to the first page of Google? Well, it’s all about Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This blog post will cover key SEO vocab terms to help you understand how it works. Whether you’re a beginner or just refreshing your knowledge, this guide will make SEO easy to grasp. Let’s dive into SEO and learn how it can boost your website’s visibility online!
SEO Foundations
10 Blue Links
The first ten website links that appear on a search engine results page. These links are often the main sources of information on a topic. They are ordered by how relevant and useful they are.
Black Hat SEO
The use of tricky methods to improve a website’s ranking in search results. These practices can fool search engines but often break their rules. Websites using black hat SEO might get punished.
Crawling
When search engines look through the internet to find and read websites. They use special programs called crawlers or spiders. This helps them index the web and show users relevant results.
De-Indexed
When a search engine removes a website or page from its list of search results. This can be due to rule violations or poor website quality. A de-indexed page won’t appear in search results.
Featured Snippets
Special boxes that appear at the top of some search results. They give quick answers or summaries directly on the search page. They are meant to provide users with fast information without needing to click a link.
Google My Business
A free tool from Google that lets businesses manage their online presence. It helps businesses show up in search results and on maps. You can add details like location, hours, and services.
Image Carousels
Slideshows of images that appear in search engine results. They let users see different images that relate to their search. Users can click through the images to find more information.
Indexing
When search engines save information from websites in their database. It helps search engines quickly provide relevant web pages in search results.
Intent
The reason why someone makes a search online. Search engines try to figure out whether users want to learn something, find a website, or buy a product.
KPI
Shorthand for Key Performance Indicator. It’s a measure used to check how well something is doing. For websites, KPIs can include numbers like website visits or sales.
Local Pack
A section in Google’s search results that shows local businesses related to your search. It usually displays businesses on a map and includes their names, ratings, and locations.
Organic
Search results that come naturally, not from paid advertising. These results are ranked by how relevant and useful they are to the search query.
People Also Ask Boxes
Boxes that appear in search results and show common questions related to the search query. Each question in the box can expand to show an answer.
Query
The term or phrase someone types into a search engine when they’re looking for information.
Ranking
The position of a website on a search engine results page. A higher ranking means the website appears closer to the top of the page, which is usually better.
Search Engine
A tool that helps people find information online by typing keywords. It looks through billions of web pages and shows the most relevant results.
SEO Audit
A process where experts check a website to see how well it can rank on search engines. They look for improvements to attract more visitors. An effective SEO audit identifies issues with website structure, content, and more.
SERP Features
Special elements like image carousels, ads, or featured snippets that appear on search results pages. They help users find information faster and more directly.
SERP
SERP stands for Search Engine Results Page. It’s the page you see after you search for something online. It lists all the websites that match your search.
Traffic
The number of people who visit a website. More traffic usually means more people are looking at the website’s content.
URL
Short for Uniform Resource Locator. It’s the address you type in the browser to visit a website.
Webmaster Guidelines
Rules provided by search engines that tell website owners how to make their sites easier to find and index.
White Hat SEO
The use of good practices that meet search engine guidelines to improve a website’s ranking. It’s the opposite of Black Hat SEO.
How Search Engines Work
2xx Status Codes
Codes that web servers use to say that a website was successfully found and loaded for the user.
4xx Status Codes
Codes mean there was an error, usually because the webpage was not found or the link was broken.
5xx Status Codes
Codes tell that there is a problem with the server where the website is stored, making the website unavailable.
Advanced Search Operators
Special commands you can type into search engines to make your searches more specific. They help narrow down the results.
Algorithms
Complex formulas that search engines use to decide the order of search results. They consider many factors to determine which pages are most relevant.
Backlinks
Links from one website to another. Having many backlinks from reputable sites can improve a website’s search ranking.
Bots
Programs that perform tasks automatically on the internet, like crawling websites to help search engines index the web.
Caching
When parts of a website are saved by a browser or server. This makes the website load faster the next time you visit.
Caffeine
Google’s search indexing system. It allows Google to index the web faster, helping newer content show up quicker in search results.
Citations
Mentions of a business or website on other web pages, even if there’s no link. They usually include the business name, address, and phone number, and can help improve local search rankings.
Cloaking
A deceptive technique where a website shows different content to search engines than to users. It violates search engine rules and can lead to penalties.
Crawl Budget
Crawl budget is the number of pages a search engine decides to scan or “crawl” on a website within a certain time. It helps manage the search engine’s resources.
Crawler Directives
Rules set by a website to tell search engine bots what they can and can’t crawl and index. This is done using files like robots.txt.
Distance
How closely content on a page matches or relates to a search query. It also can mean the physical distance in local searches.
Engagement
Measures how users interact with a website. High engagement is when users spend a lot of time on the site, click on links, or leave comments.
Google E-A-T
This concept assesses the quality of content on websites. It stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. High scores in these areas help a website rank better in search results.
Google E-E-A-T
This concept builds upon E-A-T- and measures the quality of web pages. It stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. Web pages that score high in these areas are more likely to rank well in search results.
Google Quality Guidelines
Rules set by Google for what a website should do to rank well in search. They encourage useful, accessible content and discourage tricks meant to manipulate rankings.
Google Search Console
A free tool by Google that helps website owners understand how their site performs in Google Search. It provides data on search traffic, problems, and helps optimize the site.
HTML
Shorthand for for HyperText Markup Language. It’s the code used to create and structure content on the web, like pages and apps.
Index Coverage Report
A report in Google Search Console that shows which pages on a site have been indexed and any problems that might prevent indexing.
Index
A database used by search engines that contains information from all the websites they have visited and deemed good enough to serve up in search results.
Internal links
Internal links are links that go from one page to another within the same website. They help users and search engines find content on a site.
JavaScript
A programming language that lets developers create interactive effects within web browsers. It’s often used to improve the functionality and user experience of websites.
Login Forms
Areas on websites where users can enter a username and password to access restricted content.
Manual Penalty
When a human reviewer at Google decides that a website violates their guidelines. The site might lose search ranking or be removed from search results as a result.
Meta Robots Tag
A piece of HTML code that tells search engines what to do with a webpage. It can tell them not to index the page or not to follow links on it.
Navigation
The means by which people move around a website. Good navigation helps users find what they need quickly and easily.
NoIndex Tag
A command you can put in the HTML of a webpage to tell search engines not to include that page in their index. It’s useful for pages you don’t want showing up in search results.
PageRank
A system used by Google to help decide how important a webpage is. The more high-quality links a page has pointing to it, the higher its PageRank.
Personalization
When search results are tailored to the individual user based on their past behavior, such as previous searches or clicks.
Prominence
How well-known a site or business is. Factors like links from reputable sites, positive reviews, and local search results contribute to prominence.
RankBrain
A part of Google’s algorithm that uses machine learning to decide the most relevant results for a search query. It helps Google handle new or unique queries.
Relevance
Measures how closely the content on a page matches a search query. High relevance means the page provides the information or answer the searcher was looking for.
Robot.txt
A file at the root of a website that tells search engine bots which parts of the site they should not crawl. It helps manage crawl budget and keep unwanted pages out of the index.
Search Forms
Input fields on websites where users can type in a query to find specific information within the site. They help improve the user experience by making site content more accessible.
Search Quality Rater Guidelines
Instructions used by people who evaluate how well Google’s search results are doing. They help ensure the results are useful and trustworthy.
Sitemap
A file that lists all the pages on a website. It helps search engines find and index all the content of the site more easily.
Spammy Tactics
Tricks websites use to try and cheat their way to higher search rankings. They include things like hiding text on the page or using irrelevant keywords.
URL Folders
Parts of a website’s URL that organize the site’s content into different sections. They help both users and search engines understand the structure of the site.
URL Parameters
Parts of a URL that provide extra information about the page content or track information like clicks. They often start with symbols like “?”, “&”, or “=”.
X-Robots-Tag
Part of the HTTP header used to control how search engines index a page’s content. It can block pages from being indexed or links from being followed, similar to a meta robots tag.
Keyword Research
Ambiguous Intent
Search queries that are unclear and could be interpreted in multiple ways. Search engines have to figure out what the user might be looking for.
Commercial Investigation Queries
Searches done by users who are thinking about buying something and want to compare products or find the best options.
Informational Queries
Searches where users are looking for information. They might want to know something or learn how to do something.
Local Queries
Search queries that include a location or imply that the user is looking for something nearby, like a restaurant or a store.
Long-Tail Keywords
Longer and more specific search phrases that usually have less competition. They often lead to higher conversion rates because they target people who are closer to a purchase.
Navigational Queries
Searches done to find a specific website or webpage. For example, someone might type “Facebook login” to go directly to the Facebook login page.
Regional Keywords
Keywords that include specific regions, such as cities or countries, to target local audiences. They help businesses attract customers who are searching for services in their area.
Search Volume
Measures how many times a specific keyword is searched for in a given period. High search volume indicates a lot of interest in that topic.
Seasonal Trends
Changes in search behavior that happen at certain times of the year, like increased searches for “Christmas gifts” in December.
Seed Keywords
Basic, broad keywords that are used as the starting point for longer, more detailed keyword research. They help in identifying more specific long-tail keywords.
Transactional Queries
Searches done by users who are ready to buy a product or service. For example, “buy running shoes online” is a transactional query.
On-Site Optimization
Alt Text
A description of an image on a webpage, used by search engines and screen readers (tools for the visually impaired) to understand the image content.
Anchor Text
The visible, clickable text in a hyperlink. Good anchor text tells both users and search engines what to expect on the linked page.
Auto-Generated Content
Content that’s created automatically by a computer program, often without human review. It can range from useful, like weather forecasts, to low-quality content that’s not very helpful.
Duplicate Content
Blocks of content that are identical or very similar across different webpages. It can confuse search engines and dilute search rankings.
Geographic Modifiers
Words added to searches to specify a location, like ‘near me’ or ‘in New York’. They help users find local results more relevant to their needs.
Header Tags
HTML tags used to define headings and subheadings on a webpage, like H1, H2, etc. They help organize content and improve SEO by highlighting key topics.
Image Compression
Process used to reduce the file size of images without significantly affecting their quality. It helps webpages load faster, improving user experience and SEO.
Image Sitemap
A sitemap specifically for images. It helps search engines find all the images hosted on a website, potentially improving their visibility in search results.
Keyword Stuffing
When too many keywords are crammed into a webpage’s content or meta tags. It can make the content difficult to read and harm the site’s SEO because search engines may see it as manipulative.
Link Accessibility
How easy it is for users and search engines to follow links on a website. Good link accessibility helps ensure that all content is reachable and can be indexed effectively.
Link Equity
A measure of how much a link from one webpage to another can pass authority and improve ranking. High-quality links from reputable sites provide more equity.
Link Volume
The number of links on a webpage. While having more links can provide more paths for users and search engine bots, too many links can dilute link equity and impact user experience.
Local Business Schema
Structured data markup that you can add to your website to help search engines understand more about your local business, such as address, phone number, and business hours. It can enhance visibility in local search results.
Meta Descriptions
Short summaries of webpages that appear under the title in search results. They tell searchers what the page is about and can influence whether they click.
Panda
A Google algorithm update that aims to lower the rank of low-quality sites and bring higher-quality sites to the top. It focuses on content quality.
Protocol
A set of rules for data transmission between devices. The most common are HTTP and HTTPS, with HTTPS being secure.
Redirection
A way to send users and search engines from one URL to another. It’s used when a page moves to a new URL or for merging websites.
Rel=Canonical
A way to tell search engines that a specific URL represents the master copy of a page. It helps prevent problems caused by duplicate content.
Scraped Content
Content taken from other websites and posted on a different website without permission. It can lead to penalties from search engines if not used properly.
SSL Certificate
A digital certificate that provides authentication for a website and enables an encrypted connection. It’s a part of using HTTPS and is important for website security.
Thin Content
Webpages with very little or low-quality content. They don’t provide much value to users and can negatively affect a site’s ranking.
Thumbnails
Small images that represent larger images or videos. They help speed up page loading times and improve user engagement by giving a preview.
Title Tag
An HTML element that specifies the title of a web page. Title tags are displayed on search engine results pages as the clickable headline for a given result and are important for usability, SEO, and social sharing.
User Experience (UX)
User Experience (UX) refers to how people feel when they use a website, app, or product. It aims to make using these as easy and enjoyable as possible. Good design considers a user’s needs and ensures satisfaction.
Technical Optimization
AMP
A project designed to make web pages load faster on mobile devices. It uses a simplified version of HTML and prioritizes speed to improve user experience.
Async
Term is used in web development to describe operations that occur independently of the main program flow, allowing the web page to load other elements without waiting for the operation to complete.
Browser
A software application used to access and view websites. Common browsers include Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
Bundling
The process of combining multiple files like scripts or stylesheets into a single file. It reduces the number of requests a browser makes to a server, speeding up load times.
ccTLD
A domain name that ends with a code specific to a country, like .uk for the United Kingdom or .de for Germany. It helps indicate the geographic targeting of a website.
Client-Side & Server-Side Rendering
Client-side rendering is when web pages are processed in the browser using JavaScript. Server-side rendering is when web pages are processed on the server before being sent to the browser. Each method impacts how quickly users see content.
Critical Rendering Path
The sequence of steps the browser takes to convert HTML, CSS, and JavaScript into a visual display on your screen. Optimizing this path can make web pages load faster.
CSS
A language used to style the appearance of web content. CSS controls layouts, colors, fonts, and more, allowing for more attractive and functional web pages.
DNS
DNS is like the phone book of the internet. It helps your browser find websites by translating domain names (like www.example.com) into IP addresses that computers use to identify each other on the network.
DOM
A programming interface for web documents. It represents the page so that programs can change the document structure, style, and content. The DOM provides a representation of the page as a structured group of nodes and objects, facilitating scripting languages to interact and manipulate the content.
Domain Name Registrar
A company that lets you register a domain name. Once registered, the domain name becomes your website’s address on the internet.
Faceted Navigation
A way to sort and filter products or information on websites. It helps users narrow down their choices by categories like size, color, or price.
Fetch and Render Tool
A tool provided by search engines like Google that lets website owners see how their site appears to the search engine and to visitors. It helps identify any issues with accessibility or visibility.
File Compression
This process reduces the size of files on a website, such as images or scripts. Smaller files load faster, improving website speed and user experience.
Google Lighthouse
Google Lighthouse helps improve the quality of web pages by checking their speed, accessibility, and search engine optimization. It offers suggestions on how to make web pages work better and load faster. You can run it right in your web browser.
Hreflang
An HTML attribute used to specify the language and geographical targeting of a webpage. It helps search engines serve the correct language or regional URL in search results.
IP Address
Short for for Internet Protocol Address. It’s a series of numbers assigned to each device on the internet. IP addresses allow devices to send and receive data over the network.
JSON-LD
A method used to structure data related to websites, making it easier for search engines to understand and index the content.
Lazy Loading
This technique delays the loading of certain parts of a webpage, such as images or videos, until they are needed. It speeds up the initial load time of the page.
Minification
This process reduces the size of code files on a website by removing unnecessary characters, such as whitespace. It helps to decrease loading times and improve site performance.
Mobile-First Indexing
A strategy used by search engines like Google to primarily use the mobile version of the content for indexing and ranking. It reflects the growing use of mobile devices for accessing the internet.
Pagination
A method used to divide content into separate pages, which makes it easier to browse through long lists of items like search results or product categories. It helps users navigate more efficiently by breaking content into smaller, manageable sections.
Programming Language
A set of instructions and rules that tell a computer what to do. Languages like Python, Java, and C++ are used to write programs that can perform various tasks.
Rendering
The process of a browser converting HTML, CSS, and JavaScript into a visible page that users can interact with. It involves loading, parsing, and displaying the content.
Render-Blocking Scripts
JavaScript files that need to be processed before the browser can start rendering the page. If these scripts are too heavy, they can delay the page display, affecting how quickly content becomes visible to users.
Responsive Design
An approach to web design that makes web pages look good on all devices, from desktops to smartphones. It uses flexible layouts and images that adjust to fit different screen sizes.
Rich Snippet
Enhanced search results that include extra information like ratings, prices, or author details. They are created using structured data and can increase visibility and click-through rates from search engine results.
Schema.org
A collaborative community activity with a mission to create, maintain, and promote schemas for structured data on the Internet. It helps search engines understand the information on websites and provide richer results.
SRCSET
This attribute in HTML allows developers to specify different images for different screen sizes or resolutions. It helps ensure that images look their best on all devices, contributing to faster page loads and improved user experience.
Structured Data
Any data that is organized in a predefined format, making it easier for search engines to categorize and index content accurately. It’s often used to provide clear information about a page’s content and enhance SEO.
Link Building & Establishing Authority
10x Content
Content that is ten times better than the best result currently available on the search engine results page for a given keyword. It’s typically more comprehensive, useful, and high-quality, making it stand out to both users and search engines.
Amplification
Strategies used to increase the reach of content through sharing, advertising, and promoting. It helps content be seen by a larger audience beyond its initial posting.
Brand Authority
Indicates how reputable and trustworthy a brand is considered, both by consumers and within its industry. Higher brand authority often leads to better search engine rankings and more customer trust.
Domain Authority
A score that predicts how well a website will rank on search engine results pages (SERPs). It is based on factors like link profiles and site age. Higher scores suggest a greater ability to rank.
Deindexed
When a webpage or site is removed from a search engine’s index, it no longer appears in search results. This can happen due to penalties or because the site violates the search engine’s guidelines.
Directory Links
Llinks from directory websites, which list websites by category and are often used to help users find relevant sites. Quality directory links can help improve SEO, but poor-quality directories may harm it.
Editorial Links
Links that come naturally from other website owners who reference your content because it is valuable or informative. These are highly beneficial for SEO because they are earned, not bought or traded.
Follow
A ‘follow’ link is one that allows search engine bots to follow the link and pass link equity to the linked site. These are the default type of links and are valuable for SEO.
Google Analytics
A free tool provided by Google that tracks and reports website traffic. It helps website owners understand how visitors interact with their site, providing data on visitor behavior, traffic sources, and more.
Google Search Operators
Special characters and commands that you can add to your search terms in the Google search box to help refine and focus your search queries. They enable more precise searches.
Guest Blogging
A method where you write a blog post to be published on another person’s website. It can help build relationships, exposure, authority, and backlinks, which are beneficial for SEO.
Link Building
The process of getting other websites to link to your website. Good links can help improve your site’s SEO, increasing its visibility and authority.
Link Exchange
This involves two websites agreeing to link to each other. While it can be beneficial, excessive link exchange can be seen as manipulative by search engines and might harm your SEO.
Link Profile
The overall assessment of all the links that point to your website. A healthy link profile has a variety of links from trustworthy and relevant sources, which can boost your site’s credibility and ranking.
Linked Unstructured Citations
Mentions of your business that include a link but are not in a structured directory. Examples include blogs or news articles mentioning your business and linking to your website.
NoFollow
An attribute that can be added to links to tell search engines not to follow them or pass on any link equity. It’s often used in situations where links are not editorially given, like in comments or sponsored posts.
Page Authority
A score that predicts how well a specific page will rank on search engine results pages. Like domain authority, it considers factors like link data and content quality, but it applies to a single page rather than an entire site.
Purchased Links
Links that you buy from other websites. Buying links can be risky as search engines, especially Google, view them as attempts to manipulate search rankings and may penalize your site.
Qualified Traffic
Visitors who are likely to benefit from and engage with your site because they are interested in your products or services. Higher qualified traffic usually leads to better conversion rates.
Referral Traffic
Traffic that comes to your site from links on other websites, as opposed to direct traffic or traffic from search engines. It can help increase your site’s visibility and authority.
Resource Pages
Web pages that provide valuable resources related to a specific topic, including links to other websites. They are often used in link building by getting your website included as one of the resources.
Sentiment
The overall emotion or opinion expressed in a message or a series of messages. It can be positive, negative, or neutral and is often analyzed to gauge public reaction.
Unnatural Links
Artificial links that are intended to manipulate a page’s ranking in search results. Search engines like Google may penalize sites that use unnatural links because they violate guidelines.
Measuring, Prioritizing & Executing SEO
API
A set of rules that allows different software programs to communicate with each other. APIs let developers integrate and allow functionalities from one software product into another.
Bounce Rate
The percentage of visitors who leave a website after viewing only one page. A high bounce rate might indicate that the site’s landing pages are not engaging or relevant to visitors.
Channel
The different methods or platforms used to reach and communicate with potential customers, such as social media, email, search engines, or direct traffic.
Click-Through Rate
How often people who see your ad or search engine result end up clicking on it. It’s used to gauge how well your keywords and ads are performing.
Conversion Rate
The percentage of visitors to your website that complete a desired goal (a conversion) out of the total number of visitors. A high conversion rate indicates successful marketing and web design.
Qualified Lead
A prospective customer who has been evaluated and is deemed to have a strong potential to become a customer based on specific criteria set by the business.
Google Analytics Goals
Specific actions that you set up in Google Analytics to track when they are completed by users, such as making a purchase or signing up for a newsletter. Goals help measure how well your site fulfills your target objectives.
Google Tag Manager
A free tool that allows you to manage and deploy marketing tags (snippets of code or tracking pixels) on your website without having to modify the code. It’s helpful for tracking conversions, site analytics, and more.
Googlebot
The web crawling bot used by Google. It scans and indexes websites, helping Google update its search content.
Kanban
A method used in project management to help visualize work, maximize efficiency, and maintain ongoing projects. It involves cards and boards to track progress and tasks.
Pages Per Session
A metric that measures the average number of pages viewed during a session on your website. Higher numbers often indicate more engaging content or effective site navigation.
Page Speed
How quickly a webpage loads. Faster page speeds improve user experience and can positively impact search engine rankings.
Pruning
Removing content that is outdated, underperforming, or irrelevant in order to improve the quality and relevance of a website.
Scroll Depth
Tracks how far visitors scroll down individual webpages. It’s used to measure engagement and how well content captures the interest of readers.
Scrum Board
A tool used in the scrum project management methodology to track tasks and progress during a sprint. It visually displays all tasks and their status within the sprint process.
Search Traffic
Visitors who arrive at your site through a search engine, such as Google or Bing. It’s a common way to measure how well a site is performing in organic search results.d
Time on Page
Metric that measures the average amount of time a visitor spends on a particular webpage. More time on a page can indicate more engaging or comprehensive content.
UTM Code
Short for Urchin Tracking Module code. It’s a simple code that you can attach to a custom URL to track a source, medium, and campaign name. This enables Google Analytics to tell you where searchers came from as well as what campaign directed them to you.
