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SEO Glossary

168 SEO terms,
plain English.

Every SEO term you'll ever need, explained clearly, with context. Click any letter to jump to that section.

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# 5 terms

301 RedirectA permanent redirect that passes full link equity to the new URL→ 302 RedirectA temporary redirect that tells search engines the move is not permanent→ 3XX RedirectsHTTP status codes in the 300 range that send users and search engines from one URL to another→ 404 ErrorAn HTTP status code meaning the requested page was not found→ 4XX ErrorsHTTP client-side error codes including 400 Bad Request, 403 Forbidden, and 404 Not Found→

A 8 terms

Above the FoldThe visible portion of a web page before the user scrolls→ AEOAnswer Engine Optimization — optimizing for direct AI answers→ AI OptimizationTailoring content and structure for AI-driven search results→ AI OverviewGoogle's AI-generated summaries shown above organic results→ AlgorithmThe rules and systems search engines use to rank pages→ AllowRobots.txt directive that permits crawlers to access specific paths→ Alt AttributeHTML attribute describing an image to search engines and screen readers→ Anchor TextThe visible, clickable text of a hyperlink→

B 8 terms

BacklinkA link from one website pointing to another→ BERTGoogle's NLP model that understands context and query intent→ Black Hat SEOManipulative tactics that violate search engine guidelines→ BotsAutomated programs that crawl, index, and interact with websites→ Bounce RateThe percentage of visitors who leave after viewing only one page→ Brand MentionAny reference to a brand online, linked or unlinked→ BreadcrumbsNavigational trail showing a user's location within a website→ Broken LinksHyperlinks that lead to non-existent or unavailable pages→

C 15 terms

Canonical TagHTML tag that designates the preferred version of a page→ CitationAn online mention of a business's name, address, and phone number→ ClicksThe number of times users click your result in Google Search→ CLSCumulative Layout Shift — Core Web Vital measuring visual stability→ CloakingShowing different content to users versus search engine bots→ Content GapTopics your competitors rank for that your site does not cover→ Content PruningRemoving or consolidating low-quality pages to strengthen a site→ Conversion RateThe percentage of visitors who complete a desired action on your site→ Core Web VitalsGoogle's key metrics measuring real-world user experience→ Crawl BudgetThe number of pages Googlebot will crawl within a given timeframe→ Crawl DelayA robots.txt setting controlling the pause between bot requests→ Crawl StatsData on how Googlebot crawled your site in a given period→ CrawlingThe process by which search engine bots discover and scan pages→ CROConversion Rate Optimisation — increasing the % of visitors who convert→ CTRClick Through Rate — percentage of impressions that result in a click→

D 8 terms

DisallowRobots.txt directive blocking crawlers from specific paths→ DisavowAsking Google to ignore spammy backlinks pointing to your site→ Do Follow BacklinkA standard backlink that passes link equity to the target page→ Domain AuthorityMoz's 0-100 score predicting how well a domain will rank in search→ Domain RatingAhrefs' 0-100 score measuring the strength of a website's backlink profile→ Doorway PagesLow-quality pages created to rank for specific queries then redirect users→ Duplicate ContentIdentical or near-identical content appearing at multiple URLs→ Dwell TimeThe time a user spends on a page before returning to the SERP→

E 4 terms

EEATExperience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness→ Ecommerce SEOSEO strategies tailored for online stores and product pages→ Entity SEOOptimizing around distinct real-world concepts Google understands as entities→ EventA tracked user interaction (click, scroll, form submit) in analytics→

F 3 terms

Faceted NavigationFiltering systems on large sites that can create duplicate URL and crawl issues→ Featured SnippetA highlighted answer box shown at the top of Google search results→ FredInformal name for Google updates targeting low-quality, ad-heavy content→

G 11 terms

GEOGenerative Engine Optimization — optimizing for AI-generated answers→ Google AnalyticsGoogle's free platform for tracking and analyzing website traffic→ Google Business ProfileGoogle's free tool for managing a business's presence in local search→ Google Core UpdateMajor changes to Google's ranking algorithm released periodically→ Google DiscoverGoogle's personalized content feed on Android and mobile Chrome→ Google Looker StudioGoogle's free data visualization and reporting tool→ Google Ranking SystemsThe collection of algorithms Google uses to rank search results→ Google SandboxAn informal filter that delays new sites from ranking competitively→ Google Search ConsoleGoogle's free tool for monitoring and troubleshooting site search performance→ Google Tag ManagerA tag management system for deploying marketing and analytics tags→ Guest PostAn article written for another site to earn backlinks and reach new audiences→

H 7 terms

H-TagHTML heading elements (H1-H6) that structure page content→ Helpful Content SystemGoogle's system rewarding content made for people, not search engines→ HreflangAn HTML attribute that tells search engines about language and regional targeting→ HTML SitemapA page listing all links on a website for users and search engines→ HTTP Status Codes3-digit server responses telling browsers and search engines the result of a request→ HTTPSSecure protocol encrypting data between browser and server→ Hummingbird2013 Google update focused on conversational and semantic search→

I 8 terms

Image SEOOptimizing images for Google Image Search and page ranking signals→ ImpressionsThe number of times your page appears in Google search results→ Inbound LinksLinks pointing to your site from other websites — same as backlinks→ IndexNowOpen protocol letting website owners instantly notify search engines of content changes→ IndexingThe process by which search engines store and organize discovered pages→ INPInteraction to Next Paint — Core Web Vital measuring responsiveness→ IntentThe underlying goal behind a user's search query→ Internal LinkA hyperlink pointing from one page to another on the same website→

J 2 terms

JavaScript SEOEnsuring JavaScript-rendered content is properly crawled and indexed→ JSON-LDGoogle's preferred format for adding structured data markup to pages→

K 7 terms

KeywordA word or phrase that users type into search engines→ Keyword CannibalizationWhen multiple pages on the same site compete for the same keyword→ Keyword DensityThe percentage of times a keyword appears relative to total word count→ Keyword ResearchThe process of finding and analyzing search terms people use→ Keyword StuffingOverloading a page with keywords in an attempt to manipulate rankings→ Knowledge GraphGoogle's database of billions of entities and their real-world relationships→ Knowledge PanelAn info box in Google search results showing key facts about an entity→

L 8 terms

Landing PageA standalone page designed to convert visitors from a specific campaign→ LCPLargest Contentful Paint — Core Web Vital measuring load speed→ Link BuildingThe process of acquiring hyperlinks from other websites to your own→ Link JuiceThe ranking power passed from one page to another via backlinks→ Link VelocityThe rate at which a website acquires new backlinks over time→ Local PackThe three local business listings shown at the top of location-based searches→ Local SEOOptimizing a website to appear in local and map-based search results→ Long-Tail KeywordA specific, multi-word search phrase with lower competition→

M 7 terms

Manual ActionA human-applied Google penalty for violating webmaster guidelines→ Meta DataHTML tags providing information about a page to search engines→ Meta DescriptionA brief HTML summary of a page shown in search results→ Meta TitleThe HTML title tag that appears as the headline in search results→ Mobile-First IndexingGoogle's practice of using the mobile version of a page for indexing and ranking→ Mobilegeddon2015 Google update boosting mobile-friendly pages in mobile search→ MUMMultitask Unified Model — Google's AI for understanding complex queries→

N 6 terms

NAPName, Address, Phone — the consistent business info used in local SEO→ Neural MatchingGoogle's system for understanding the meaning behind search queries→ NLPNatural Language Processing — AI that understands human language→ No Follow BacklinkA backlink with rel="nofollow" that doesn't pass link equity→ NofollowHTML attribute that tells search engines not to follow a link or pass link equity→ NoindexA meta tag telling search engines not to include a page in the index→

O 6 terms

Off-Page SEOSEO activities done outside your website, like link building and PR→ On-Page SEOOptimizing content and HTML elements within individual webpages→ Open GraphMeta tags that control how your page appears when shared on social media→ Organic TrafficVisitors who arrive at your site from unpaid search engine results→ Orphan PagesPages with no internal links pointing to them from other site pages→ Outbound LinksLinks from your site pointing to external websites→

P 15 terms

Page Experience Update2021 Google update incorporating Core Web Vitals as ranking factors→ Page SpeedHow fast a webpage loads and becomes interactive for users→ PageRankGoogle's original algorithm measuring a page's authority via backlinks→ PaginationSplitting content across multiple pages and handling it correctly for SEO→ Panda2011 Google update targeting thin, duplicate, and low-quality content→ Parasite SEOPublishing on high-authority platforms to rank faster via borrowed domain authority→ PBNPrivate Blog Network — a black hat link-building scheme→ Penguin2012 Google update targeting manipulative link-building practices→ People Also AskSERP feature showing related questions with expandable answers→ Pigeon2014 Google update that improved local search results→ Pillar PageA comprehensive page covering a broad topic and linking to cluster pages→ PositionThe average ranking position of your page in Google search results→ Press ReleaseAn official statement distributed to media to announce news→ Programmatic SEOAuto-generating large numbers of pages from structured data to rank at scale→ Public RelationsManaging a brand's reputation and media coverage to support SEO→

Q 1 term

QueryThe word or phrase a user types into a search engine→

R 8 terms

RankBrainGoogle's machine learning system for interpreting search queries→ Redirect ChainA series of multiple redirects between the original URL and the final destination→ Referring DomainsUnique websites that link to your site — a key backlink metric→ RenderingThe process of executing JavaScript so search engines can index page content→ Review SnippetsStar ratings and review data displayed in search results→ Review SystemsGoogle's algorithms for evaluating and ranking review content→ Rich SnippetEnhanced search results with extra data like ratings, prices, or images→ Robots.txtA file that tells search bots which pages to crawl or skip→

S 15 terms

SchemaStructured data markup that helps search engines understand content→ Search EngineA system (like Google or Bing) that indexes and ranks web pages→ Search VolumeThe average number of times a keyword is searched per month→ SemanticRelating to the meaning and context of words in content→ SEOSearch Engine Optimization — improving visibility in search results→ SERPSearch Engine Results Page — the page displayed after a search query→ SERP FeaturesSpecial result types beyond standard blue links on the search results page→ SitelinksExtra inner-page links Google shows below branded search results→ SitemapA file listing all pages of a website to help search engines crawl it→ Skyscraper TechniqueFind top-linked content, create a better version, outreach to earn those links→ SlugThe URL-friendly part of a web address identifying a specific page→ Social GraphThe network of relationships between users on social platforms→ SpiderAnother name for a search engine bot that crawls the web→ SSL CertificateA digital certificate enabling HTTPS and encrypting connections→ Structured DataCode added to pages to help search engines understand content meaning→

T 8 terms

TagA code snippet used to track user behavior or fire marketing pixels→ Technical SEOOptimizing the infrastructure of a website for search engine crawling→ Thin ContentPages with little or no valuable content for users→ TitleThe HTML title tag identifying a page's topic in search results→ Topic ClusterA group of interlinked pages covering a broad topic and its subtopics→ Topical AuthorityA site's depth of expertise and coverage on a specific subject area→ Toxic LinksSpammy or manipulative backlinks that can trigger Google penalties→ TriggerA rule in Google Tag Manager determining when a tag fires→

U 2 terms

URLUniform Resource Locator — the web address of a specific page→ UTMURL parameters used to track traffic sources in analytics tools→

V 1 term

Voice Search OptimizationOptimizing content to appear as spoken answers in voice search results→

W 2 terms

Web 2.0The era of user-generated, interactive web content→ Word CountThe total number of words on a page, used as a content depth signal→

X 1 term

XML SitemapA machine-readable sitemap for search engine consumption→

Y 1 term

YMYLYour Money or Your Life — pages Google holds to the highest quality standards→

Z 1 term

Zero-Click SearchA search query answered directly on the SERP without any website click→