SEO Glossary
Your comprehensive guide to SEO and digital marketing terminology. Whether you're new to digital marketing or need a quick refresher, this glossary covers the essential terms you need to know.
A
AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation)
Getting your content picked as the direct answer inside AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews. AEO leans on clear definitional phrasing, structured data, and entity clarity, not keyword density.
AI Overviews
Google's AI-generated summary that sits above the organic results on many queries, citing several source URLs. Pages that earn citations in Google AI Overviews can win visibility even when they rank below the top blue links.
Alt Text
A short, descriptive attribute on an image's HTML tag that tells search engines and screen readers what the image shows. Good alt text improves accessibility and helps your images rank in Google Image Search.
Anchor Text
The visible, clickable text inside a hyperlink. Search engines read anchor text to understand the context and relevance of the linked page, so it matters for both on-page and off-page SEO.
Ask Maps
Google's conversational feature inside Google Maps that answers detailed, multi-condition questions (say, "a pet-friendly cafe open now with outdoor seating") using Google Business Profile data, reviews, and other signals. A complete, accurate profile is what makes your business eligible to appear in Ask Maps answers.
B
Backlink
A link from one website to another, also called an inbound link. Backlinks from authoritative, relevant sites signal trust to search engines and are one of the strongest ranking factors in Google's algorithm.
Bounce Rate
The percentage of visitors who leave after viewing one page and taking no further action. A high bounce rate can mean your landing page content or user experience is missing what visitors expected.
Brand SERP
The results page that shows when someone searches your brand name. A clean, controlled brand SERP (Knowledge Panel, sitelinks, accurate snippets) signals brand authority to both users and the AI engines that mine SERPs for context.
Breadcrumbs
A navigational trail showing the user's path from your homepage to the current page, usually a horizontal row of links. Breadcrumbs improve usability and can show up as rich results in search listings.
C
Canonical URL
An HTML element (rel="canonical") that tells search engines which version of a page is the preferred, authoritative one. Canonical tags stop duplicate content issues when the same content lives on multiple URLs.
Citation (Local SEO)
A mention of your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) on an third-party website, with or without a link. Consistent local citations across directories like Yellow Pages SG, Yelp, and industry-specific platforms strengthen your local ranking signals.
Click-Through Rate (CTR)
The share of users who click a link out of everyone who sees it, shown as a percentage. In SEO, CTR measures how well your title tags and meta descriptions pull searchers to your page.
Content Marketing
A strategy built on creating and distributing valuable, relevant content to attract and keep a clearly defined audience. Done well, it builds brand authority, earns natural backlinks, and drives organic traffic over time.
Content Pruning
Deliberately removing, merging, or noindexing weak pages to concentrate ranking signals on your strongest content. Common on aged sites where thin or outdated pages dilute topical authority.
Conversion Rate
The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action, like buying, filling out a form, or subscribing. Lifting conversion rate is often more cost-effective than chasing more traffic.
Core Web Vitals
A set of specific Google metrics that measure real-world user experience on a page: loading (LCP), interactivity (INP, which officially replaced FID in March 2024), and visual stability (CLS). These are confirmed ranking signals in Google's algorithm. Our guide on how to fix Core Web Vitals and site speed covers the practical playbook.
Crawling
How search engine bots like Googlebot browse the web, finding new and updated pages by following links. A page has to be crawled before it can be indexed and show in search results.
D
Disavow File
A text file you upload to Google Search Console listing backlinks you don't want Google to count. Rarely needed in 2026 since Google ignores most spammy links automatically, but still useful after a manual action or a hostile SEO attack.
Domain Authority
A proprietary ranking score built by Moz that predicts how likely a site is to rank. Google doesn't use it directly, so treat it as a relative benchmark for comparing domains, not a true read on Google's own authority signals. For proof of what moves it, see how we grew ours from 1 to 25.
Doorway Page
A low-quality page built mainly to rank for specific keywords and funnel users somewhere else. Doorway pages break Google's spam policies and trigger algorithmic suppression.
Duplicate Content
Substantially similar or identical content living at more than one URL on the web. It confuses search engines about which version to index and rank, and can dilute ranking signals across the copies.
E
E-E-A-T
Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness. The framework Google's Search Quality Raters use to judge content quality. The leading Experience criterion was added in December 2022 to stress first-hand familiarity with the topic. E-E-A-T matters most for YMYL topics, where accuracy can directly affect a reader's health, finances, or safety.
F
Featured Snippet
A special result at the top of Google's organic listings (often called "position zero") that pulls a concise answer straight from a web page. It can appear as a paragraph, list, table, or video.
G
GA4 (Google Analytics 4)
Google's event-based analytics platform that replaced Universal Analytics in July 2023. GA4 runs on an event-and-parameter data model, tracks across devices via Google Signals, and reports modelled conversions when consent is missing.
GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation)
Optimising your content and brand presence to shape how generative AI engines (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot) describe, recommend, and cite your business. GEO blends classic SEO with brand mention strategy, structured data, and direct outreach to dataset compilers.
Google Business Profile
A free Google tool for managing your presence across Google Search and Maps. Set yours up with our GBP setup guide for Singapore, then keep it sharp with ongoing optimisation so you stay in the local pack.
Google Search Console
A free Google service for monitoring, maintaining, and troubleshooting your site's presence in search results. It reports search queries, indexing status, crawl errors, and Core Web Vitals performance.
H
Helpful Content Update
A Google algorithm system (folded into the core algorithm in March 2024) that demotes content built mainly for search engines instead of humans. Sites hit by it usually need a sitewide content quality lift, not single-page fixes.
Hreflang
An HTML attribute that sets the language and geographic targeting of a page. Hreflang tags help search engines serve the right language or regional version to users in different countries.
HTTP Status Codes
Three-digit responses a server returns when a browser requests a page. Common ones: 200 (OK), 301 (permanently redirected), 404 (not found), and 500 (server error). Each carries different implications for SEO and user experience.
I
Impressions
How many times a URL from your site shows up in search results for a user. Impressions count whether or not the listing gets clicked, making them a handy gauge of search visibility and brand awareness.
Indexability
Whether a page is technically eligible to be indexed, once you check robots.txt, meta robots, canonical, X-Robots-Tag, and HTTP status. A page can be crawlable but not indexable, a common audit finding.
Indexing
How search engines store and organise the content they've crawled so it can be retrieved and shown in results. If a page isn't indexed, it won't appear for any query, no matter how good it is.
Internal Linking
Linking one page of your site to another page on the same site. A strong internal linking structure helps search engines find content, spreads page authority around the site, and improves navigation.
INP (Interaction to Next Paint)
A Core Web Vitals metric introduced in March 2024 that measures the time from a user's interaction (click, tap, keystroke) to the next visual update. It replaced FID as the official interactivity Core Web Vital.
K
Keyword Density
The percentage of times a target keyword appears on a page against total word count. There's no ideal density, and overusing keywords (keyword stuffing) can trigger penalties and hurt readability.
Keyword Research
Finding and analysing the terms people type into search engines to reach information, products, or services. Thorough keyword research is the foundation of any effective SEO strategy, showing you user intent and opportunity.
Knowledge Graph
Google's database of entities and how they relate, powering Knowledge Panels, rich results, and contextual understanding of queries. Earning a Knowledge Graph entry for your brand strengthens almost every other ranking signal.
Knowledge Panel
The info box on the right of desktop SERPs for entities Google recognises (brands, people, places). Knowledge Panels pull from the Knowledge Graph and authoritative sources like Wikipedia and your official website.
L
Link Building
Earning hyperlinks from other websites to your own to lift search rankings. Effective link building focuses on high-quality, relevant links won through content, outreach, and digital PR.
LLM (Large Language Model)
A machine learning model trained on massive text corpora that generates human-like text, answers questions, and reasons about content. LLMs power AI search engines, chatbots, and increasingly the AI Overviews in Google SERPs.
Local Pack
The grouped block of three local business listings (with a map) Google shows for local-intent queries. Ranking here comes mainly from Google Business Profile signals, reviews, proximity, and on-page local relevance. Our playbook on how to rank on Google Maps in Singapore covers the full process.
Local SEO
The branch of search engine optimisation focused on visibility for businesses that serve a specific geographic area. Local SEO tactics include optimising your Google Business Profile, earning local citations, and targeting location-based keywords.
Log File Analysis
Reading your web server's raw access logs to see exactly how Googlebot and other crawlers hit your site. It's the only fully accurate way to measure crawl frequency, crawl budget waste, and discovery of new URLs.
Long-Tail Keywords
Longer, more specific keyword phrases with lower search volume but higher conversion rates. They're easier to rank for and better match the precise intent of searchers further along the buying journey.
M
Manual Action
A penalty applied by a human Google reviewer, not an algorithm, and shown in Google Search Console. Manual actions need an explicit reconsideration request to lift, unlike algorithmic suppression.
Meta Description
An HTML element that gives a brief summary of a page's content, usually shown beneath the title in search results. It's not a direct ranking factor, but a compelling one can lift click-through rates. Preview yours with our free SERP simulator before publishing.
Meta Title
Also called the title tag, it's the HTML element that sets a page's title and appears as the clickable headline in search results. It's one of the most important on-page SEO elements for both rankings and CTR.
N
NAP Consistency
Keeping identical Name, Address, and Phone number across your website, Google Business Profile, and every third-party citation. Inconsistent NAP weakens local SEO and can stop Google confidently attributing reviews to your business.
Nofollow
A link attribute (rel="nofollow") that tells search engines not to pass ranking credit (link equity) to the linked page. Nofollow is common for sponsored content, user-generated links, and untrusted sources.
O
On-Page SEO
Optimising elements inside your own pages: title tags, headings, content, internal links, schema markup, and Core Web Vitals. It's the counterpart to off-page SEO (backlinks, brand mentions, citations).
Organic Traffic
Visitors who reach your site through unpaid search results rather than paid ads. Organic traffic is generally the most sustainable, cost-effective source of visitors over the long term.
Orphan Page
A page on your site that no internal link points to. Orphan pages usually get missed by crawlers, gather no internal link equity, and often signal broken information architecture.
P
Page Speed
A measure of how fast a page's content loads. Page speed is a confirmed Google ranking factor and shapes user experience directly. Slower pages tend to see higher bounce rates and lower conversion rates.
People Also Ask (PAA)
The expandable list of related questions inside Google SERPs. PAA boxes are a strong source of long-tail traffic and a handy research signal for content briefs.
PPC (Pay-Per-Click)
An online advertising model where you pay a fee each time your ad is clicked. PPC campaigns like Google Ads give you immediate visibility in search results and often run alongside SEO for a complete search strategy.
Programmatic SEO
Systematically generating large numbers of landing pages from a structured data source, usually targeting long-tail keyword variations. It works when the underlying data is genuinely useful (comparison pages, location pages) and turns spammy when the pages add no real value.
Q
Query Fan-Out
A retrieval technique in AI search engines where one user prompt is internally rewritten into several related sub-queries, each run against the index, then synthesised into a single answer. Optimising for AI search means earning visibility across the whole family of related queries, not just the user's literal prompt.
R
RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)
A technique AI search engines like Google AI Overviews use to ground answers in real, up-to-date web content. Rather than leaning only on what the language model already knows, the system pulls relevant pages from a search index in real time and uses them as source material for the answer. For SEO and GEO, that means traditional search ranking decides whether your page is even eligible for citation in AI answers.
Robots.txt
A text file in your site's root directory that tells search engine crawlers which pages or sections they can or can't crawl. It's a key tool for managing crawl budget and controlling indexation.
Rich Snippet
An enhanced search result showing extra detail beyond the standard title, URL, and meta description, like star ratings, prices, or recipe info. Rich snippets come from structured data (schema markup) on your page.
S
Schema Markup
A standardised vocabulary of structured data (from schema.org) you add to your HTML so search engines understand your content more precisely. Schema markup for SEO can unlock rich snippets, knowledge panels, and other enhanced search features.
SERP
Search Engine Results Page. The page a search engine returns for a query, holding organic results, paid ads, featured snippets, and other SERP features. Knowing the SERP layout helps you optimise for maximum visibility.
Site Architecture
How the pages, categories, and internal links across your website are organised. Strong site architecture and website structure concentrates link equity on commercial pages, clarifies topical relevance to search engines, and improves navigation.
Site Migration
Changing your site's domain, URL structure, CMS, or hosting in a way that affects URLs and SEO signals. It's a high-risk operation that needs comprehensive 301 redirect mapping plus pre and post-launch monitoring.
Sitemap
An XML file listing all the important pages on your site, helping search engines discover and crawl your content more efficiently. Each sitemap is capped at 50,000 URLs and 50 MB uncompressed; larger sites split content across multiple sitemaps referenced from a sitemap index file. Submitting your sitemap via Google Search Console is best practice for full indexation.
T
Technical SEO
Optimising your website's infrastructure so search engines can crawl, index, and render it more easily. Technical SEO covers site speed, mobile-friendliness, structured data, XML sitemaps, secure connections (HTTPS), and fixing the crawl errors that quietly kill rankings.
Title Tag
An HTML element that sets a web page's title, shown in browser tabs, search results, and social shares. Title tags should be concise (under 60 characters), include primary keywords, and describe the page's content accurately.
Topical Authority
The cumulative signal that your site is a credible, comprehensive source on a subject, built by publishing in-depth, well-linked content covering a topic from every angle. Topical authority is now a stronger lever than domain-level metrics for many queries.
U
Universal Analytics (UA)
The legacy session-based Google Analytics platform, sunset on 1 July 2023 and replaced by GA4. Noted for historical context: any "GA" reference before 2023 likely means UA.
URL Structure
The format and organisation of a web page's address. Clean, descriptive URLs with relevant keywords and a logical hierarchy improve both user experience and how search engines understand your content.
User Experience (UX)
The overall experience a visitor has on your website, spanning page speed, navigation, design, and content quality. Google increasingly uses UX signals, including Core Web Vitals, as ranking factors.
Y
YMYL (Your Money or Your Life)
Google's category for content topics that can seriously affect a user's health, finances, safety, or wellbeing. YMYL content is held to a higher E-E-A-T standard and faces stricter quality scrutiny in core updates. Common YMYL niches we work in include licensed money lenders and aesthetic clinics.
Z
Zero-Click Search
A search fully answered on the SERP itself (via featured snippet, Knowledge Panel, AI Overview, or direct answer box) without the user clicking through to any website. The rise of zero-click search is the single biggest reason traditional SEO traffic numbers are flattening even as visibility grows.
Knowing the terms is easy. Ranking is the hard part.
Get a team that does this daily.
Audit my site freeExplore More Free Tools
Grab our other free SEO and marketing resources and level up your digital strategy.