Glossary of Key SEO Terms

in #seo • 16 hours ago

Glossary of Key SEO Terms

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Before moving into implementation, this glossary standardizes the terminology used throughout the guide. Use it as a quick reference whenever you encounter an unfamiliar SEO term.

Table of Contents

Algorithm

The ranking logic (rules + models) a search engine uses to select and order results for a query. It evaluates multiple signals (relevance, links, performance, trust) and is continuously updated.

Alt Text (Alt Attribute)

An HTML attribute that provides a text description of an image. It supports accessibility (screen readers) and provides machine-readable context to help search engines interpret image content.

Anchor Text

The clickable text of a hyperlink. It acts as a semantic label for the destination URL and helps users and crawlers infer the topic and intent of the linked page.

Backlink (Inbound Link)

A hyperlink from an external domain pointing to your site. Backlinks are authority signals; quality is determined by relevance, credibility, and context—not volume alone.

Black Hat SEO

Manipulative tactics designed to exploit ranking systems and violate search engine guidelines (e.g., cloaking, keyword stuffing, link schemes). These can trigger demotions, deindexing, or manual actions.

Bounce Rate

The percentage of sessions where a user lands on a page and exits without additional interaction/navigation. A high bounce rate can indicate intent mismatch, UX friction, or weak content/performance—depending on the page purpose.

Canonical Tag (rel="canonical")

A directive that declares the preferred (primary) URL when multiple URLs serve duplicate or near-duplicate content. It consolidates indexing and ranking signals to a single canonical target.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

The ratio of clicks to impressions in search results for a listing. CTR is influenced by the title, snippet, perceived relevance, and SERP layout/features.

Conversion

Completion of a desired action (purchase, signup, form submission, inquiry). SEO is successful when it attracts qualified traffic that converts—not just raw visits.

Crawl (Crawling)

Automated discovery of pages by search engine bots that follow links and fetch resources. Crawling is the acquisition step before indexing and ranking.

Crawl Budget

The effective crawl capacity a search engine allocates to your site over time. It matters most for large sites; improving internal linking, removing low-value duplicates, and optimizing server performance helps allocate crawls to priority URLs.

Index (Indexing)

The search engine’s stored database of processed pages eligible to appear in results. A page must be indexed to rank; crawling alone does not guarantee indexing.

Domain Authority (DA)

A third-party comparative score (e.g., by Moz) estimating ranking potential based largely on link and domain signals. It is not a Google metric, but it can be useful for benchmarking.

Duplicate Content

Substantially similar content accessible via multiple URLs. It can split signals and reduce ranking efficiency; typical mitigation includes canonicalization, redirects, and clean URL strategy.

E-E-A-T

Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness—quality concepts referenced in Google’s rater guidelines. In practice, it means demonstrating credible authorship, accurate content, transparent sourcing, and trust signals (especially for sensitive topics).

Google Analytics

A measurement platform that tracks user sessions and behavior (acquisition channels, engagement, conversions). It supports performance analysis and ROI measurement for SEO and content.

Google Search Console (GSC)

A diagnostic and performance tool for how Google sees your site (indexing status, query impressions/clicks, coverage issues, sitemaps, enhancements, security/manual actions). It’s a primary source for search performance telemetry.

Internal Link

A hyperlink between pages within the same domain. Internal links define site architecture, distribute link equity, and guide crawlers to important content.

Keyword

A query term users type into search engines. In SEO, targeting a keyword means aligning a page’s content and intent to rank for that query cluster.

Long-Tail Keyword

A longer, more specific query (typically 3+ words) with clearer intent and often lower competition. Long-tail queries commonly convert better because the user’s requirement is more defined.

Meta Tags

HTML metadata that describes page content to search engines and social platforms. Key SEO-related tags include the title tag, meta description, and robots directives (e.g., noindex, nofollow).

Noindex

A directive via a meta robots tag or HTTP header instructing search engines not to index a page. Useful for admin pages, duplicates, staging pages, and low-value utility endpoints.

On-Page SEO

Optimizations applied within the page/site boundaries: content quality, headings, titles, URLs, internal linking, structured data, media optimization, and intent matching.

Off-Page SEO

External signals influencing perceived authority and trust—primarily backlinks, mentions, citations, reviews (local), and brand presence across the web.

Organic Traffic

Visits originating from unpaid search results. This excludes paid ads and typically reflects visibility earned through relevance, quality, and authority.

Page Speed

Page load and usability performance (especially on mobile). Speed impacts user experience and can affect rankings; it is influenced by images, scripts, server response, caching, and rendering efficiency.

SERP

Search Engine Results Page—the output interface for a query. SERPs can include classic links plus features (snippets, maps, videos, shopping, news) that change click behavior.

SSL / HTTPS

Transport encryption that secures data between browser and server. HTTPS is a baseline trust requirement, improves security posture, and is a lightweight ranking signal.

White Hat SEO

Best-practice SEO aligned with search engine guidelines and user value. It prioritizes sustainable growth through quality content, sound technical architecture, and legitimate authority building.

Download also the full handbook here:
seo and digital marketing
SEO Principle Handbook
seo marketing digital
website seo ranking
top search engines
seotools
generate backlinks
seo website
Domain Authority (DA)
Crawl (Crawling)
Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Bounce Rate
Alt Text (Alt Attribute)
seotools
Google Analytics
Google Search Console

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