The Guide to SEO Terms

SEO or search engine optimization has become one of the foundations of building good content for your website, and also to share with your followers. If you are new to SEO, and even the technical world you can get easily confused with the technical jargon. Therefore we have put together the guide to SEO Terms to give you a helping hand. 

A

Anchor text 

The anchor text is the text of a link to a specific web page. Most websites will show their linked text in blue with an underline to help it stand out. And you will notice it changes to purple if you have clicked on it before. A good piece of Anchor text will help a search engine understand what the destination page is about.

B

Blog

A blog is a part of your website where you will find yourself regularly posting content. Each blog that you post will allow you to use SEO skills to ensure it is seen by a search engine. The better your SEO skills, the higher up the search engine your blog will appear.

C

Conversion Form

A conversion form is used to collate and collect information about the visitors to your site. A conversion form is a really great way to turn traffic into leads. You can utilise the information you have collected, and follow up with these people if they want to purchase your products or services. 

D

Domain

Your domain will be the main website address for your site. You can purchase domains from hosts such as TSO or GoDaddy. Ensure your domain is registered, and also you renew each year to be able to keep using your website.

F

The Fold 

The fold of your website is where the page gets cut off from the bottom of the users monitor or browser. Anything that is below the fold can be scrolled to but is not seen as easy. Your content above the fold is somewhat prioritised as it is seen easier. So make sure your key information is in the first part of the page.

H

Headings 

Text on your website, or in your blogs needs to include headings. These headings help to build some keywords in your SEO plan. Most headings will be in a H1 or H2 format. 

I

Inbound Link

One of the key elements to our guide to SEO terms is the inbound link. An inbound link is a link from one site to another. A link from another site can really help to boost your SEO. Some may see it as a negative as they feel they have to give something back. However if it comes from a high ranking page it really does benefit you.

J

Javascript 

Javascript is a coding language which is used to build content for your website. This coding language can help to build any of the visual elements. Search engines are often not able to read the content inside javascript but they are developing this function over time. 

K

Keyword

A keyword is what your searcher enters into the search engine. Knowing your keywords really does help your SEO, and will form a good structure for what you are going to be writing your content based on.

L

Long Tail Keyword

A long tail keyword helps to build an element of your SEO. The keyword is usually a search term made up of two or more words or phrases which people will tend to search for on a search engine. A long tail keyword is very specific in terms of search, so is a good thing to use if you are looking for a more qualified audience. 

M

Meta Description 

A meta description is used when uploading a piece of content to your website, or to describe different pages on your website. The description is made up of 160 characters, and in order to work with SEO needs to include your keywords. Your description will often be seen on the search engine so make sure it’s correct and engaging.

N

Nofollow 

A nofollow is when a link from one site does not pass SEO credit to another. Using a nofollow is to be used when linking to external pages that you do not want to endorse. Do not use it on an inbound link however.

P

PPC OR Pay Per Click

Moving a bit away from SEO however PPC does have elements of SEO included. PPC is a paid advertising model which has helped benefit many companies through adverts and click rates. PPC includes using keywords the same as SEO to target your audience.

R

Ranking Factor

One element of how a search engine determines where to rank a certain page is by using a ranking factor. This ranking factor is made up of many elements but will include inbound links to a page or the contents of the title tag on that page. And will also consider the quality of outbound links.

S

Social Media

Social Media is a great way to promote content, and will include using platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, SnapChat and YouTube to name a few. Link your social media to your website to create a more seamless process for your audience. Equally do the same from your social channels to your website.

T

Title

The title of your content is super important to being able to attract people to your website. Your title will also form a large part of your SEO as you will need to link that to your text. When considering a title think of search terms your audience will use, and will mostly likely look for. 

If writing a good title has always been an issue of yours then take a look at this article by HubSpot for some inspiration. How to Write Catchy Headlines and Blog Titles Your Readers Can’t Resist

U

URL 

Your URL is quite simply the web address of a page on your website. E.g. www.example.io/contactus

To Conclude

Our guide to SEO terms covers some very basic things you will need to know when looking to venture into the world of SEO and technical. Doing some research into SEO, and also looking at what your competitors are doing will always help you to make a more informed decision on what you need to be covering.

Take a look our ultimate guide to SEO.