Search Engine Marketing Glossary

Fed up to the back teeth with all the online marketing techno-babble? We're here to help!

Affiliate
A related site often linked to your own, to form a "partnership" in the broadest sense.
Affiliate Linking
The provision of reciprocal links between affiliates.
Algorithms
The rules by which search engines rank sites
Acquisition
The point of acquiring a client, i.e. where a site fulfils its role. Usually a sale, but sometimes a subscription or similar will count.
Automated Spider Engines
Engines which deploy an automated programme to visit and retrieve data from your site
Bid Capping
The technique of setting a limit for maximum bid for use by a bid-listing monitoring service, such as that offered by BMM.
Bidding Engine
Search engines that operate a bid-listing model, such as Overture of Espotting.
Bid Listing
The use of PPC models by search engines in a dynamic, real time auction for search listings. As the auction is never-ending and real time, your listings will change as the bidding level changes. Bids drop of as budgets run dry, or are cancelled, and new bids are added. This makes monitoring and changing of bids essential.
Bid-Listing Monitoring
The act of monitoring activity in bid engines in order to keep a bid listing campaign as competitive as possible.
Bookmarking
The action of marking a webpage in your browser, to make it easy to return to later. Most statistics packages will measure this a a new visitor, even though a loyalty relationship has been established.
Brand Infringement
The act of using another company's brand in a non-ethical way, such as inclusion in meta tags, claiming to be that company, or making false statements about that company.
Brand Intelligence
Bigmouthmedia's brand infringement detection and investigation service.
BMM
Bigmouthmedia
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
Files that instruct browsers on how to format a document (which fonts to use, how links should behave etc.) Some browsers treat CSS in different ways.
Click
Term used to describe when a user selects a link or search engine listing by pressing the mouse button while holding the pointer over the link
Client-Side
Web-coding that instructs the browser to undertake a task. Opposite to server-side
Cloaking
See IP Delivery
CPA
Cost per Acquisition
CPC
Cost per Click - The actual average cost incurred by the advertiser by the action of a potential customer following a link found on, for instance, a SERP.
CPM
Cost Per Impression (1,000 page views)
Creatives
Titles and Descriptions as they are submitted to directory editors
Data gathering
The process of building profiles of customers by collecting data by their activity. Knowing your customers better will allow you to provide better products and customer service.
Database Presence
The inclusion of database driven content within a site
Design Technology
Technology used in the design process
Directory Creatives
Text written by BMM and submitted to editors
Directory Search
A search made by clicking through directory categories without use of keywords or phrases
Domain
All devices connected to the internet are referenced by their IP address. To make using the internet easier, most will have IP addresses have names associated with them - for instance .com. a domain can have any number of sub-domains prefixed before it, to create a complete domain name
Domain Mapping
The server administration required to 'point' a domain at a specific location or "IP Address"
E-Commerce
The processes of selling online, via a website
Editorial Search Engine
Engines that rank sites using human editors and not by reading meta tags
Emergency Alerts
To signal that an event that is being monitored has occured, for instance, by email or SMS.
Featured Site
The term used by many portals, and other search properties, that incorporate some element of bid-listing results in their normal search results.
Feed
A file listing a large number of pages to be indexed or items for sale which spiders can download and read automatically from a website. Some feeds can be created easily using a spreadsheet. Others, such as RSS and Google SiteMaps may require some XML expertise.
Flash
Macromedia Flash Technology
Generic Keywords
General terms relating to subject matter, e.g. marketing (generic) search engine optimisation(specific)
Google PageRank
Goofle's own system for ranking web pages
Hit
An often mis-used word that refers to any file download from a website, including one hit for the HTML page, and one for each embedded file such as graphics, Flash movies, WAV files etc. Consequently, one page view can generate several hits. Often, the word hit is mis-used where the phrase "visitor session" would be more appropriate.
HTML Coding
HyperText Markup Language is a coding Language used to make HyperText documents for use on the Web.
IP Address
A four-byte numeral (bytes have a value between 0 and 255), which represents an exact address of an internet location, eg. 255.0.192.47. There are almost 4,300 million unique IP addresses, however this is currently not enough for global use, and often users share IP addresses through a proxy server.
IP Delivery (Cloaking)
A technique whereby false content is presented to search engine spiders in an attempt to gain ranking points. Search engine spiders are recognised by their IP Address.
IT
Information Technology
Javascript
A web coding language with different capabilities to HTML. Not recognised by Search Engine Spiders. Can be client-side, and sometimes server-side.
JHTML
Normal HTML that includes "server-side" JavaScript instructions.
Keyword Search
A search made by keying a keyword, or combination of words into a search box on a search engine, directory or portal.
Key Phrases
Combinations of keywords, also called "search terms"
Keyword Search Frequency
Number of search requests for particular keyword
Keywords
The actual words used to describe the site in meta tags and creatives and to find the site using "searches"
Links
An electronic connection between two Web sites (also called "hyper-link").
Link Farm
Web pages deliberately created to increase the number of links between sites and therefore link popularity. A dangerous technique, unpopular with the search engines.
Link Popularity
A method used by search engines to determine the importance of a listed site. Based on the idea that sites with many inbound links is more credible than one without
Message Boards
Websites that allow visitors to post messages, and for others to reply to them. Unlike email, all discussions take place in public, any anyone can join in. Usually, such discussions are themed by subject matter.
Meta Search Engine
A search Engine that simultaneously refers to several other search properties to retrieve search results. Copernic and Vivisimo are examples.
Meta Tag
HTML coding embedded in the site, to provide spiders with keyword information
Newsletter Marketing
The process of building relationships with existing customers and gaining new ones by publishing and mass distributing an email containing features and articles of interest to them.
Obfuscation
Using IP Delivery with intent to provide excellent SEO-content to search engine spiders, and deliberately poor SEO-content to users so that any content theft by competitors results in poor search engine listings. Uses IP delivery.
Paid Linking
The act of paying for another site to link to your own.
Page View (Impression)
One view of a web page (or banner ad) by a user.
Partner Sites (Bid Engines Terminology)
Relates to bid engines. Partner sites are sites that also display some or all of the bid listing results from that bid engine.
Pay Per Click
A charging model for search engine listings based on a set charge for users clicking on that search engine listing. This model is used by Overture and Espotting in the UK, in a bidding fashion (see bid listing)
Permission Based Email
Since late 2003, to email individuals in Europe as part of a mass distribution, the express, unequivocal permission of the recipient must be obtained first, and this should form basis of an ethical, permission based campaign.
Portals
web sites which offer some or all of the following: search, email, news, weather, shopping
PPC
See Pay per Click
PR
Public Relations - the process of maintaining and controlling your relationship with the public and your public persona.
Proxy Server
An internet server that allows several users to share one internet connection, reducing the number of IP addresses required. Users are assigned IP Addresses from a limited range, as and when they are required.
Rank
the position attained on the Search Engines, Directories and Searchable Portals
Rebrand
The process of changing the form of an established brand and managing that change effectively to avoid losing brand recognition.
Reciprocal Linking
The act of two sites linking to each other, for mutual benefit, and with no cost incurred by either site.
Robots
Programme which meta search engines send out to read the metas and/or body html of a submitted site
Robots Exclusion Protocol (REP)
Text file placed under e.g. www.example.com/robots.txt. Used to prevent spider trawls of private or sensitive areas and image folders/stats files etc
ROI
Return On Investment - A measure of the success of a marketing campaign in comparison to the money spent on that campaign.
Search Engine
A website that provides a list of useful links (SERP's) in response to a text query. Many Search engines have gradually evolved from pure search engines, such as Google, into portals, such as Yahoo!
Search Engine Optimisation
A crucial element of search engine marketing - the process of adapting web pages to maximise their effectiveness at matching (and occuring highly in the results pages for) common search phrases on search engines.
Search Engine Log Data
Actual search engine logs, from which BMM retrieve data on search frequency of particular keywords
Search Engine Results Page
The page on which search results are displayed in response to a query submitted by the user
Search Term Evolution
New words or phrases which are relevant to your industry
SEO
Search Engine Optimisation - the process of maximising search property driven traffic to a site by analytical means
SERP's
Search engine results pages
Semantic Web
Sometimes called Web2.0. This refers to the goal to make the information in world-wide-web understandable to computers, using technology such as XML and SOAP. Basically, web pages include information not only explaining how pages look, but what they actually mean. Search engines already make use of this in the form of information feeds, such as RSS and XML site maps
Server-Side
Web coding that instructs a server to undertake a task. Opposite to client-side
SHTML
Normal HTML that includes "server-side" instructions
Slang
The use of alternative or colloquial phrases. In terms of SEM, slang is important to take into consideration when formulating an optimisation strategy.
Spam/Spammed
General term relating to practices not approved by the engines and editors
Spiders
See Robots
Style Sheet Errors
Incompatibilities between Cascading Style Sheets designed for one browser, when viewed through another.
Submission
The act of making search engines aware of new web pages and sites. Each search engine will have it's own individual process for doing this.
Top Listings
Listings which rank in the top 30 of results
Targeted Traffic
The concept of directing traffic to a website based on the requirements of that traffic (i.e. matching user "wants" with site provisions.
Traffic Intelligence
Bigmouthmedia's web-traffic stats analysis service.
Unique User
One individual user to a site. This user may visit once or return often, but will still count as one unique user.
URL
Universal Resource Locator (address e.g. http://www.google.com)
User Agent Delivery
Similar to IP Delivery, except that Search Engine Spiders are recognised by their name (user agent) rather than by their IP address. This technique is spam.
Viral Marketing
A form of marketing that is self sustaining and self promoting. Ususally, the core idea is so appealing that the public take on the role of 'spreading the message' themselves. In it's favour is that it is incredibly effective, but control - and even 'ownership' - of the campaign is relinquished.
Visitor Session
A full and complete visit by a user to a website from start to finish of that visit. This is usually considered complete if a user is inactive for a set length of time, most commonly 30 minutes.
Web Trawler
See Robots
XML Trusted Feed Campaign Management
Instead of relying on spiders (robots) to create an index of your website, you can use a XML feed to take control of the process yourself by submitting a feed of your content in a particular format (XML) to participating search engines. It is particularly useful to web-sites whose content changes very quickly of cannot be accessed with conventional spidering technology.

Did we miss any? Email scoop@bigmouthmedia.com





This article was first published on 22 August 2002 and does not necessarily match current events or the current opinions and views of bigmouthmedia ltd.
Home | Careers | RSS | Contact Us | Newsletter
International sites:
bigmouthmediaPromotAltContact Us SEO Social Media Affiliates Analytics Display Usability PPC