SEO
.htaccess File
The .htaccess file is a concatenation of the term “hypertext access” and is used to enable high-level configuration of a website, allowing the website administrator to make changes without the need to edit the server configuration files. As such, the .htaccess file may be a valuable tool for SEO purposes, when used appropriately.
SEO
301 Redirects
The HTTP status code which automatically redirects users and search engines from loading one URL to another URL. It is mainly used when the original page no longer exists and its contents have been moved to another URL. The process happens so quickly that users rarely notice the transition.
SEO
404 Errors
A 404 error is part of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) standard response code and indicates that a given webpage URL cannot be found on the server. Usually this means that the page either no longer exists or the URL has changed (see Broken Link). Most web servers will generate a standard 404 Not Found Webpage but it’s not uncommon for websites to redesign their own bespoke 404 pages.
PPC
A/B Testing
A/B testing is used to compare two versions of a website, a webpage or an app to assess which version performs better. It does this by measuring conversions and other metrics like dwell time and consumer feedback.
PPC
Ad Extension
An Ad Extension is essentially an additional piece of information which enhances an advert and increases its value. In today’s competitive online marketplaces, businesses need to actively take steps to provide potential visitors with as many reasons as possible to click through and engage with the content they are presented with.
Web Design
AJAX
AJAX works by allowing a web page to send and receive information from a server asynchronously, without refreshing the entire page. This process is done using JavaScript, enabling web applications to update dynamically by exchanging small amounts of data with the server in the background.
SEO
Anchor Text
The clickable text that appears on a hyperlink, directing the user to another page on the website (internal link) or another website entirely (external link). It is useful for inserting links into sentences without having to type out the entire URL of the page being linked to. Anchor text is also a ranking influence to search engines as it gives context to the page being linked to.
SEO
Backlinks
From the perspective of one website, a backlink is a link that originates from another website pointing to that website. For example, Wikipedia having a link to Superb Digital is a backlink from the perspective of Superb Digital. Superb Digital having a link to Wikipedia is a backlink from the perspective of Wikipedia. Also known as an inbound link.
SEO
Black Hat SEO
SEO techniques that don’t follow search engine guidelines and seek to manipulate search results to gain high rankings. Black hat SEO practices are generally considered to be spammy tactics, such as participating in link schemes, doorway pages or spinning out poor-quality content. Websites caught employing black hat SEO are usually penalised.
SEO
Broken Links
A link to a webpage or website that is not working correctly. Clicking a broken link usually leads to a 404 “Not Found” webpage. Broken links can happen for a number of reasons. It could be because the page that is being linked to no longer exists, there is a typo in the HTML, or the website owner hasn’t implemented a 301 redirect after removing the page or changing its URL.
SEO
Business Directories
Dating back to the early days of the internet, directories are websites dedicated to listing business websites, which can then be sorted by category. Some allow businesses to be listed for free and others require payment. Links from directories no longer provide much value for improving search rankings as they once did, but the business name, address and phone number information are extremely important for local SEO.
Web Design
Caching Plugins
Caching plugins are tools designed to enhance the performance of websites by saving a static version of your website’s pages and posts when they’re first loaded. Then, instead of generating each page from scratch every time it’s requested, the plugin serves this saved version to your visitors.
SEO
Click Through Rate (CTR)
The percentage of users that click on a link. The term is most often used in SEO circles to refer to the rate at which people click on a search result, whether it’s paid or organic. The higher up the search results the higher the CTR is likely to be. CTR is calculated by dividing the number of clicks a link gets by the number of times it was seen (impressions) and multiplying that figure by 100.
SEO
Competitor Research
A deep dive into your online competitors websites, in order to gain a competitive advantage and understanding of the current market, so you can better craft your own SEO strategy by emulating and improving on what others have done and avoiding their mistakes. The process involves analysing the keywords your competitors are targeting, where they are ranking for those keywords, the content they’re creating and who they are reaching out to for link building.
SEO
Content Audit
The process of inspecting and keeping an inventory of all the online content created by an individual or organisation. It involves analysing each piece of content, to understand it’s search performance and user engagement. Insights gained from a content audit can then help plan for future content creation as well as update existing content. Content audits can also identify content that isn’t performing or is irrelevant so it can be removed, making the site more lean and crawlable.
Web Design
Content Delivery Network (CDN)
A content delivery network is a group of proxy servers and data centres in different geographical locations, the purpose of which is to deliver fast and reliable internet content at high speeds. This cuts down the bandwidth needed for high-traffic sites, avoids service interruption and increases security.
SEO
Content Optimisation
A vital part of SEO, content optimisation is about improving the content produced on a website to help with its search rankings. This includes targeted keyword usage, multimedia integration, internal linking, and the creation of valuable, in-depth content. The idea is to provide users the topics and services they are looking for—all while structured in a search engine-friendly way.
PPC
Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO)
Conversion Rate Optimisation is a strategy that aims to increase the percentage of conversion from visits into desired actions on a website or app. Most commonly it involves the development of improvements to sites or apps which can then be assessed by A/B testing or other methods of measurement.
SEO
Crawl Errors
Search engines add websites to and update their database or Index by “crawling” through a website’s pages with “bots”. Crawl errors occur when search engine bots fail to crawl a page. This could be due to connectivity issues with the server hosting the website or if a website does not have the resources that allow bots to crawl it properly. See Indexing.
Web Design
CSS
Cascading style sheets (CSS) is a style sheet language used to set out the way in which a website is visually presented online, for example with the use of headers, footers, and navigational indicators. A website or document using CSS will be written in a markup language such as HTML, XHTML, plain XML, SVG or XUL.
Web Design
DNS
Domain Name System (DNS) is a decentralised naming system that turns domain names into IP addresses. It has often been compared to the internet’s phonebook. However, instead of a phone number assigned to a person, DNS assigns a unique IP address to every device that connects to the internet.
SEO
Domain Authority
How well a website is perceived to be authoritative, relevant, and credible. Domain Authority (DA) was created by SEO company Moz. It is represented as a logarithmic score on a 100-point scale, with 100 being the highest. A website with a high DA score generally means its webpages are likely to rank high in search engines, even for pages that are new and have yet to gain a lot of traffic or backlinks themselves.
Web Design
Domain Name
A domain name is an alphanumeric string typed into a piece of client software, such as a web browser’s URL bar, in order to access a specific website or network. For example, the domain name for Superb Digital is: superb.digital
SEO
Duplicate Content
Text-based content that is significantly similar or identical to content on the same website or a completely different website. Google does not penalise websites strictly for having duplicate content, unless it sees it as blatantly trying to manipulate ranking results. However, it can still cause problems with pages not being indexed properly and keyword cannibalisation. All of which can be avoided with proper SEO.
SEO
Dwell Time
Refers to how long a user stays on a webpage after clicking on a search result before going back to the search result page. If the dwell time on a search result is low, that’s generally an indication that the content is not what the user is looking for or it’s of poor quality. It could also indicate a technical or UX issue, such as the page not loading fast enough or it not being formatted properly for the user’s device.
Web Design
Dynamic Checkouts
Dynamic checkouts are a streamlined payment solution offered by e-commerce platforms that allow customers to purchase products directly from product pages, bypassing the traditional cart page. This feature is designed to simplify the checkout process, reducing the steps a customer must take to complete a purchase.
SEO
E-E-A-T
E-E-A-T is shorthand for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness – four elements that Google uses to evaluate the quality of a website’s content. While these four go hand-in-hand, they have notable nuances.
SEO
Faceted Navigation
Faceted navigation is feature often found on ecommerce sites that allows the user to sort or filter web pages based on set criteria, such as price, colour, brand, etc. This allows users to personalise pages from potentially thousands or even millions of other pages, allowing them to quickly find what they’re looking for. Publishers and classified ads sites also tend to use faceted navigation.
PPC
Google Ads Quality Score
Quality Score is the rating system used by Google to evaluate the relevance and quality of PPC ads and keywords. This system is also used to determine cost-per-click (CPC) and to establish ranking positioning in the ad auction process.
SEO
Google Analytics
Google’s website analytics tool that tracks your website visitor data. Users can access a diverse and comprehensive array of metrics, including site traffic, demographics, traffic sources and visitor behaviour including pages visitors go to and how long they spend on these pages. Google Analytics is one of the most important tools in any SEO’s toolbox, as it is the most accurate way of gauging campaign success.
PPC
Google Display Network
The Google Display Network has been designed to help businesses reach specific audiences using highly targeted display advertisements. These ads will be displayed when people are browsing online, watching YouTube video content, or checking their email.
SEO
Google My Business
Organisations that want to appear on Google as a genuine business need to create a Business Profile. With Google My Business, users can control how their Business Profiles will look on the search engine results pages, including their logo, address, phone number, customer reviews, opening hours, and photos. This can also be used for local search SEO and customer engagement.
SEO
Google Penalty
Websites that do not follow Google’s Webmaster Guidelines can find themselves with a Google Penalty. It results in either a reduced ranking for Google search results or a complete removal from search results, depending on the severity of the infraction. Penalties can either be algorithmic (assigned automatically by Google’s algorithm) or manually when a human Google reviewer determines a site is violating Google’s guidelines.
SEO
Google Search Console
Google’s main webmaster platform. With Google Search Console set up, users can submit sitemaps, run site maintenance, as well as check on analytics and searcher behaviour of their websites. Google Search Console also gives data on what search terms a site is ranking for and as such is one of the most important tools in an SEO’s toolbox. Was previously called Google Webmaster Tools.
PPC
Google Shopping
Google Shopping displays products to users on the Google Display Network (e.g. Gmail, YouTube, etc) and Google Search through the carousel, ads at the top of SERPs, the Shopping tab, or the Images tab. It can also be accessed by going to shopping.google.com.
SEO
Google Tag Manager
Google’s official tool that lets users easily manage tags on their website or mobile app. Tag management is done through a web-based user interface, allowing users to add and update tags without having to do any editing at the code level. It can be used with Google tags for Google Ads, Google Analytics, and non-Google tags.
SEO
Grey Hat SEO
Grey hat SEO refers to the blurry line between black hat and white hat SEO. It can be thought of as bending the law instead of breaking it. A grey hat tactic is something you wouldn’t inform Google you were doing but which won’t automatically get you penalised. Because Google’s algorithm is constantly updating, the space that grey hat occupies is prone to shifting.
SEO
Guest Blogging
The process of creating thought leadership content for websites other than one’s own website. The goal is to get exposure from new relevant audiences, forge relationships with influencers, and often gain backlinks to your own website’s content. Also known as guest posting, it is a staple link building tactic.
Web Design
HTML
HTML, or Hypertext Markup Language, is a standardised markup language used for describing the content and hierarchical structure of pages that are displayed in a web bro
Web Design
HTTPS
HTTP stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol, the primary protocol for the exchange of data between a website and a browser. HTTPS adds an ‘S’ onto the acronym, which stands for ‘secure’ and this is the encrypted form of the protocol.
SEO
Indexing
The process where a search engine crawls a website’s pages to add new ones to its database or update information regarding that website. A website has to be indexed by a search engine before it can show up as a result on that particular search engine. The frequency with which websites are crawled and new pages indexed varies from a few hours to a few days or even weeks, depending on how regularly they publish fresh content.
Web Design
JavaScript (JS)
development and much more. For many years it has been ranked as the most widely used programming language in the world. It should not be confused with Java, with which it has no real connection.
SEO
Keyword Cannibalisation
Keyword cannibalisation happens when two or more webpages begin ranking for the same keyword and begin to compete with each other in the search pages. The result is usually that both pages suffer as Google cannot decide which page to show. Websites that grow in size are more likely to encounter keyword cannibalisation simply because of the fact that there are more pages to manage.
SEO
Keyword Research
The vital process of establishing which keywords need to be targeted for an SEO campaign. It involves determining relevant search queries your target audience type into search engines, how many searches are made with these keywords over a given timeframe, and how many other sites come above yours for these keywords. Various tools and techniques can be employed in this strategic exercise, including using Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, and Google Search Console.
SEO
Link Bait
Content that has been created with the intention of getting as many backlinks possible. While all content is generally made to gain links, link bait achieves this by making the content as attention grabbing as possible. This could mean tackling a contentious topic, creating highly visual content or producing well-researched studies that your target audience would be interested in.
SEO
Link Building
Link building refers to any tactics which seek to increase the number or quality of inbound links to a given webpage. It is effective in SEO as links are an important offsite signal and the more links from relevant authoritative sites a website or webpage has, the more authoritative it too is seen as by Google.
SEO
Local Pack
A Google Maps listing of the first three businesses shown by Google based on the search term used and the user’s location or a specified location. It lists information submitted via your Google My Business listing, such as business name, an aggregate of user reviews, physical address, business type. It is accompanied by a Google Maps snippet showing where each is located. Also known as the 3 Pack.
SEO
Local SEO
SEO focused on optimising a website to appear higher in local organic search results and local packs. Because Google will serve up local businesses in its search results on relevant searches, a lot of SEO is done with the relevant location in mind, such as targeting a specific city during keyword research or building links with websites of local businesses. Local SEO also makes sure that a business’s name will rank properly if searched for, as it is associated with that business’s Google My Business page.
Web Design
Mega-Menus
Mega-menus are large, expanding menus that offer a broad range of options, making them ideal for e-commerce sites with extensive product categories. They extend from the site’s main navigation bar, presenting users with a comprehensive overview of available content and products.
SEO
Mobile First Index
When Google indexes a website, it prioritises that site’s mobile version over its desktop version. Google started mobile first indexing in 2016 as it was pivoting to better cater to the growing majority of its users searching on mobile devices, and the process is still ongoing. It is automatically applied to websites created on 1st July, 2019 and onward. Google states it is best for websites to present similar experiences to users for both their mobile and desktop versions.
SEO
NAP Information
NAP stands for name, address, and phone number. NAP information is a unique identifier for a business or organisation for search engines. Having consistent NAP information across multiple sites (often directories), as well as your Google My Business page, factors into ranking for local searches. It is important, therefore, to list these details consistently to establish presence in a specific location that search engines can easily recognise.
PPC
Negative Keywords
In PPC marketing negative keywords are used to prevent adverts that aren’t directly related to the products or services a business offers from being returned in the search results.
SEO
Off-Page SEO
Off-page SEO covers any activities taking place outside a target website that creates or optimises ranking signals to improve that target website’s rankings. Off-page SEO is usually a byword for link building as links are how Google establishes trust in your website from other websites. Off-page SEO can include indirect tactics to help boost these signals though, like social media marketing, influencer marketing and non-linking brand mentions.
SEO
On-Page SEO
A broad term that encapsulates all optimisation work for elements that can be found on the webpages of a website. On-page SEO centres around creating quality content and optimising existing content but also includes improving a website’s technical performance, optimising metadata, and streamlining site structure, among a host of other activities. Sometimes called On-Site SEO.
Web Design
Page Load Speed
The amount of time it takes for a webpage to load completely for users. Page load speed is an integral part of the user experience, but it is also a ranking factor for Google, so it is important to optimise a website’s technical aspects to ensure it loads quickly. Poor page load speed can occur for a number of reasons, from poor server response time to uncompressed on-page images.
PPC
Pay Per Click (PPC)
Pay per click (PPC) is a form of online marketing wherein advertisers pay their chosen advertisement platform host every time someone clicks on one of their advertisements. PPC essentially provides advertisers with a way to buy online traffic as opposed to earning traffic via organic search.
Web Design
PHP
PHP is a recursive acronym for ‘Hypertext Preprocessor’ although the origin of the name is disputed (see below). It was one of the first web scripting languages with code that could be easily embedded into a web page’s HTML, enabling the addition of functionality without recourse to external data files.
SEO
Private Blog Networks (PBN)
A group of websites created for the sole purpose of generating links to boost search rankings. The majority of PBNs contain poor quality content, as they are primarily designed to build links to other websites, which are often sold to third parties, leading to a broad range of content and a lack of relevancy. Links from PBNs are often disregarded as Google considers them spam and websites involved in PBNs are penalised.
SEO
Ranking Signals
Also known as ranking factors, these are the individual elements, both onsite and offsite, that search engine algorithms consider when deciding how well a webpage will rank in its organic search results for a given search term. It’s often stated that Google’s algorithm factors in over 200 unique signals in order to serve up its users the best possible results. Two of the most important sets of ranking signals revolve around backlinks and on-page content.
PPC
Remarketing
Remarketing uses information received by a visit to a website to re-engage with the users by showing them targeted advertisements. It is a common experience for consumers to browse a website on one day and then be shown ads the next day directing them to precisely the products they were looking at the day before.
SEO
Return on Investment (ROI)
The monetary measurement of how well implemented SEO methods perform. The basic formula for ROI is dividing the additional revenue gained through a specific marketing activity by the amount of money invested into applying it and then multiplying that value by 100. For many marketing activities, return on investment can be hard to measure, but because organic SEO and PPC are data driven, they can be fairly well measured if enquiries and leads are properly tracked.
SEO
Search Engine Results Page (SERP)
A search engine results page is the page of results that a search engine returns when a user keys in a given search term. Unless the search is particularly obscure, the results are usually spread across hundreds, if not thousands, of SERPs.
SEO
SEO Audit
An SEO audit involves a comprehensive analysis of a website’s individual pages, structure, search rankings, traffic, visitor behaviour and backlinks. It should be thorough, resulting in a comprehensive report that provides insights on what can be improved with actionable steps. An SEO audit is the first step in establishing an SEO strategy and will help uncover any technical issues that may be holding the site back.
SEO
SEO Tools
The tools SEO specialists use to implement and track SEO campaigns. There is a huge assortment of tools out there and every SEO expert or agency will have their preferences. Third party tools vary from free apps with limited functionality, paid programmes with full feature suites, and open-source DIY kits. Two of the most important tools in any SEO’s armoury though – Google Analytics and Google Search Console – are free.
SEO
Structured Data
Website data that has been organised to let search engines easily identify a website’s contents and display relevant information on search results pages. In practice, the source code of a webpage is annotated with the proper labels associated with a particular markup language. See Schema.
Web Design
Subdomain
A subdomain – or child domain – is a part of a website’s domain that sits under the main ‘parent domain’. Subdomain can be used for any number of reasons, such as organising certain sections away from the main site, to make navigation easier or more intuitive, or simply to distinguish it as having a separate function from the main site
SEO
Thin Content
Content that has little to no value to the user. Quantity is not a determining factor on whether or not content is thin. An article that is over a thousand words long but does not have any real value can still be considered thin content. Whilst Google cannot ‘read’ in the traditional sense of the word, it has become very good at distinguishing good content from thin content.
Web Design
User Experience (UX)
User experience (UX) is a broad term covering the ways in which a user interacts with a business, product or service. Good UX requires businesses to have a comprehensive understanding of its audience. This is often done through market research.
SEO
Voice Search
A method of conducting searches on search engines using a voice-activated device, with the user speaking into the device. The device will then say the top result out loud. Voice search is typically used with mobile devices to give users a hands off experience. There are limits to voice search compared to traditional typed search, such as not being able to use search operators.
Web Design
Website Scripts
Website scripts are pieces of code that add functionality or interactive features to web pages. They’re essential for creating dynamic and engaging user experiences online. Scripts can vary widely, from simple tasks like form validations to complex functionalities like real-time data display.
Web Design
Website Structure
How a website and its pages are organised. Website structure should be designed so that users can easily navigate a website and find exactly what they are looking for through an intuitive interface. They should also account for search engines being able to naturally crawl a website and easily distinguish various areas or topics across that site. Creating a URL structure that does this is called content siloing.
SEO
White Hat SEO
SEO techniques that follow search engine guidelines. Examples of white hat SEO are designing a user and search-friendly site structure and creating fresh, high-quality content. Websites that practice white hat SEO set a solid foundation for improving their organic search rankings.
SEO
XML Sitemap
A file or collection of files that contains all the pages of a website, including important information such as the page URLs, when these pages were last updated, and how often they are updated. An XML sitemap can be submitted to search engines for indexing purposes. Today’s content management systems (CMS) typically generate and update XML sitemaps automatically.