Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Glossary
Keep up with your digital advertising agency and know your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) terms. We even include tips and tricks!
- AI Citation
An AI Citation is a reference or link to a website used by an AI platform as a source when generating an answer.
- AI Mention
An AI Mention occurs when an AI platform references a brand, company, or product in its response, with or without linking to the original source.
- AI Mode (Google)
Google AI Mode is Google's conversational search experience that uses generative AI to answer complex queries through interactive, chat-like responses instead of traditional search results.
- AI Optimization
AI Optimization is the practice of structuring content so large language models can accurately interpret, summarize, and reference it in AI-generated responses.
- AI Overviews (Google)
Google AI Overviews are AI-generated summaries that appear at the top of certain Google search results and provide users with direct answers sourced from multiple websites.
- AI SEO
AI SEO is the practice of optimizing content to improve visibility in AI-powered search experiences like Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Perplexity.
- AI Search
AI Search uses artificial intelligence to understand user intent and generate direct answers instead of simply returning a list of web pages.
- AI Visibility
AI Visibility measures how often a brand, website, or content appears in AI-generated search experiences and responses across platforms.
- Alt Text
Alt text describes the appearance or function of an image on a page and is important for accessibility.
- Anchor Text
The word or phrase used when linking to another domain; anchor text is key to signaling the topic of a page.
- Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is the practice of creating content that helps search engines and AI assistants easily identify and surface direct answers to user questions.
- Backlinks
Backlinks are 'cosigns' from other websites that support/vouch for your site; backlinks help build domain authority.
- Conversions
Conversions for SEO can include Ranking KWs, Impressions, & Sessions.
- Crawlers
Crawlers (bots or spiders) visit and download a page and extract its links in order to discover additional pages.
Everyone has a crawl budget that can be burnt if the URL architecture is confusing.Domain authority is determined by relevance to a specific topic or industry. Google takes it into account when picking which pages to serve up to users.
- Generative Engine Optimization
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the process of optimizing content so generative AI platforms can discover, understand, and cite it in their responses.
- H1
H1 is the heading at the top of the page; it is key to use relevant KWs in your H1.
It doesn't have to be the same as the Title Tag.- Impression
Impressions are gained when your domain appears in the SERP for a query.
- Internal Link
Linking to other parts of your website can create association for Google; it also helps direct the user to the next stage in the decision funnel.
- Keyword
A keyword is a word or phrase that you can use to align your content. Each KW has different search volume and competition density.
- Large Language Model (LLM)
A Large Language Model (LLM) is an artificial intelligence model trained on vast amounts of text to understand, generate, and summarize human language.
- Meta Description
Meta descriptions allow you to describe the page's content in under 180 characters.
It is important to be precise and persuasive.- Organic
Organic is an umbrella term for users that come in from the search engine; it's a segment that can be compared to Paid or Direct.
- Pageview
A Pageview is counted every time a page is accessed or Javascript is fired.
Google Analytics is the "gold standard" for tracking Pageviews.- Ranking
Ranking Keywords determine your visibility and statistically how many users are likely to click.
Top 10 or bust.- Search Engine Result Page (SERP)
The page that lists the results returned by the search engine in response to a specific query. Each page has 10 results and some rich results like (FAQs or maps).
- Session
A session is started when a device (laptop/phone/tablet) requests a page from the site and ends when either the device goes inactive.
Sessions are typically considered inactive after 30 minutes.- Sitemap
Sitemap is a set of instructions for the crawlers; it indicates what exists on the domain and what is prioritized.
One sitemap per domain is considered best practice.- Structured Data
Structured data (or schema) is a form of code that describes to Google what sort of content is on the page.
- Title Tag
The title tag is what appears in the SERP. It's generally the first thing a user will read - so make it catchy and relevant.
- User Intent
User intent demonstrates the part of the journey that each user occupies, it informs the tone or content of each page on the domain.
Differentiate between Informational, Commercial, and Transactional.
