A
Algorithm - A set of rules search engines use to rank web pages in response to a search query.
Alt Text - Required to meet accessibility guidelines, this is the descriptive text used in HTML to describe images, helping search engines understand the content of images.
Analytics - Google Analytics can provide insights into user behaviour, popular pages, and areas for improvement, helping you refine your SEO strategy.
B
Back Links - These are hyperlinks from other sites that direct users to your site, also known as Inbound Links. A link from one website to another. High-quality backlinks can improve a site’s search engine ranking.
Bot - Bots are used to scour the internet to find content. Also known as crawlers or spiders.
Bounce Rate - The percentage of visitors who leave a website after viewing only one page. A high bounce rate may indicate that the content is not engaging.
C
Caching - This cuts future loading time to your site by temporarily saving your content such as images to the users' local machine.
Canonical URL - An HTML element used to prevent duplicate content issues by specifying the preferred version of a web page.
Cloaking - Website content is different from what is presented in the search engine results. Doing this violates Google's Webmaster guidelines.
Crawling - The process by which search engines discover new or updated web pages through automated bots called crawlers or spiders.
D
De-Index - The removal of a web page or a group of pages from search engine results.
Domain Authority (DA) - A metric that predicts how well a website will rank on search engine result pages (SERPs).
Duplicate Content - Content that is very similar or the same to another page on your site, or content that matches closely to that of another website.
E
Engagement - Data that measures how your users interact with your website.
F
Featured Snippet - A summary or answer to a user's search engine query, which is displayed at the top of the results page.
G
H
Header Tags: HTML elements (H1, H2, H3, etc.) used to define headings and subheadings on a webpage, helping to organize content and signal its structure to search engines.
HTML - Hypertext Markup Language. Coded tags that are used to create websites and helps to improve SEO effectiveness.
I
Indexing - The process of storing and organizing the content found during crawling so that it can be retrieved quickly in response to search queries.
Internal Links - These are links on your web page that direct users to other pages on your website.
J
JavaScript - A programming language. JavaScript can make it difficult for crawlers to find your content as it has a slower load-up time.
K
Keyword - A word or phrase that users enter into search engines when looking for information. Keywords are crucial for SEO as they help search engines understand the content and relevance of a webpage.
Keyword Density - The percentage of times a keyword appears on a page compared to the total number of words on the page.
KPI - Key Performance Indicator. A performance measuring tool that determines if a target is being achieved.
L
Link Building - The practice of acquiring hyperlinks from other websites to your own, which can improve your site’s authority and search engine ranking.
M
Meta Description - A summary of a webpage’s content that appears in search engine results, helping to inform and attract potential visitors.
Mobile Optimization - The process of ensuring that a website is accessible and provides a good user experience on mobile devices.
N
NoIndex Tag - A meta tag that tells search engines not to index a specific webpage.
O
On-Page SEO - Optimization techniques applied directly to a webpage, including content, HTML elements, and internal linking.
Organic Search Results - Listings on search engine results pages that appear because of their relevance to the search terms, as opposed to paid advertisements.
P
Page Speed: The amount of time it takes for a webpage to load. Faster pages are favored by search engines and provide a better user experience.
Q
Query - The words, or query that a user enters into a search engine.
R
Rankings - The position at which a particular site appears in the search engine results pages (SERPs) for a given query.
S
Search Engine - A computer program that allows users to search for information by entering a keyword or query. Examples of Search Engines include: Google, Yahoo and Bing
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) - The practice of improving a website to increase its visibility for relevant searches.
SERP (Search Engine Results Page) - The page displayed by a search engine in response to a query by a user.
Sitemap - A file that provides information about the pages, videos, and other files on a site, and the relationships between them, to search engines.
T
Title Tag: An HTML element that specifies the title of a webpage, which is displayed on SERPs and in the browser’s title bar.
Traffic - The visitors who come to a website. Traffic can be organic (from search engines), direct (typing the URL), or referral (from other websites).
U
URL (Uniform Resource Locator) - The address of a web page. SEO-friendly URLs are short, descriptive, and include relevant keywords.
User Experience (UX) - The overall experience a user has with a website, including its usability, design, and how easily they can find information.
V
W
White Hat SEO - Ethical SEO practices that comply with search engine guidelines, focusing on providing value to users.
X
XML Sitemap - A file that provides information about the pages, videos, and other files on a site, and the relationships between them, to search engines.
Y
Z