SEO Glossary
A comprehensive glossary of SEO, link building, and digital marketing terms.
3
A
A/B Testing
A method of comparing two versions of a webpage or element to determine which performs better
Anchor Text
The visible, clickable text of a hyperlink that provides context about the linked page
Attribution Model
A framework for assigning credit to marketing touchpoints that contribute to a conversion
B
Backlink
A hyperlink from one website pointing to another website, also known as an inbound link
Backlink Growth Rate
The speed at which a website acquires new backlinks over a specific time period
Bounce Rate
The percentage of visitors who leave a website after viewing only one page
Brand Mention
Any reference to your brand name on external websites, with or without a hyperlink
Broken Link Building
Finding broken links on other websites and suggesting your content as a replacement
C
Canonical URL
The preferred version of a webpage specified to prevent duplicate content issues
Case Study
An in-depth analysis of a specific project, campaign, or client success story used as marketing content
CDN
A network of distributed servers that delivers web content to users based on their geographic location
Citation Flow
A Majestic metric that measures the quantity of links pointing to a website
Click-Through Rate
The ratio of users who click on a link compared to the total number who view it
Cold Outreach
Contacting website owners or editors with no prior relationship to request a link or collaboration
Content Audit
A systematic review of all content on a website to evaluate its performance and identify opportunities
Content Calendar
A scheduling tool that plans when and where content will be published
Content Collaboration
Working jointly with another website or creator to produce content that benefits both parties
Content Distribution
The process of sharing and promoting content across various channels to reach a wider audience
Content Gap
Keywords and topics that competitors rank for but your website does not cover
Content Marketing
A strategic approach focused on creating and distributing valuable content to attract and engage an audience
Content Promotion
Active efforts to increase the visibility and reach of published content
Content Refresh
The process of updating existing content to improve its accuracy, relevance, and performance
Content Strategy
A plan for creating, publishing, and managing content to achieve specific business goals
Content Syndication
The practice of republishing content on third-party platforms to reach a broader audience
Contextual Link
A backlink placed within the body content of a page, surrounded by relevant text
Conversion Rate
The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action on a webpage
Core Web Vitals
Google's metrics measuring user experience through loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability
Cost Per Link
The average expense incurred to acquire a single backlink through link building efforts
Crawl Budget
The number of pages a search engine will crawl on your site within a given timeframe
Crawlability
The ability of search engine bots to access and navigate through a website's pages
D
Data Study
Original research content based on proprietary data analysis that provides unique industry insights
Digital PR
Using public relations strategies online to earn backlinks and media coverage
Disavow File
A file submitted to Google requesting that certain backlinks be ignored when assessing a site
Dofollow
A link attribute that allows search engines to follow the link and pass link equity to the target page
Domain Authority
A search engine ranking score developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank
Domain Authority Score
A numerical score predicting how likely a website is to rank in search engine results
Domain Rating
An Ahrefs metric that measures the strength of a website's backlink profile on a 0-100 scale
Dwell Time
The amount of time a user spends on a page before returning to search results
E
E-E-A-T
Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness — Google's content quality framework
Editorial Link
A backlink earned naturally because the linking site found your content valuable enough to reference
Editorial Workflow
A structured process for planning, creating, reviewing, and publishing content
Email Deliverability
The ability of your outreach emails to successfully reach recipients' inboxes
Evergreen Content
Content that remains relevant and valuable to readers over an extended period of time
Expert Roundup
A content format that compiles insights from multiple industry experts on a specific topic
F
G
H
HARO
Help A Reporter Out, a platform connecting journalists with expert sources for stories
How-To Guide
Step-by-step instructional content that teaches readers how to accomplish a specific task
Hreflang
An HTML attribute that tells search engines which language and region a page targets
HTTP Status Codes
Standard response codes returned by web servers indicating the result of a browser's request
HTTPS
A secure version of HTTP that encrypts data transmitted between a website and its visitors
I
Indexability
Whether a webpage can be stored and displayed in search engine results
Influencer Outreach
Connecting with industry influencers to earn backlinks through endorsements or content features
Infographic
A visual representation of data or information designed to make complex topics easily understandable
Internal Linking
The practice of linking from one page on a website to another page on the same website
J
K
Keyword Cannibalization
When multiple pages on the same website compete for the same keyword, diluting ranking potential
Keyword Difficulty
A metric estimating how hard it would be to rank on the first page for a specific keyword
Keyword Ranking
The position a webpage holds in search engine results for a specific keyword
L
Lead Magnet
A valuable free resource offered in exchange for contact information from potential customers
Link Building
The practice of acquiring hyperlinks from other websites to improve search engine rankings
Link Equity
The ranking value passed from one page to another through hyperlinks
Link Exchange
The practice of trading backlinks between two or more websites to improve search rankings
Link Farm
A group of websites created solely to link to each other or to a target site to manipulate rankings
Link Gap Analysis
Identifying websites that link to competitors but not to your site
Link Insertion
Adding a backlink to an existing published page on another website
Link Intersect
Finding websites that link to multiple competitors, indicating high-probability link opportunities
Link Juice
An informal term for the ranking power or authority passed through hyperlinks between pages
Link Placement
The specific location and context where a backlink is positioned on a web page
Link Placement Rate
The percentage of outreach attempts that successfully result in a placed backlink
Link Profile
The complete collection of backlinks pointing to a website, including their attributes and characteristics
Link Prospecting
The process of identifying and qualifying potential websites for link building opportunities
Link Quality Score
A composite metric evaluating the overall value and trustworthiness of a backlink
Link Reclamation
The process of recovering lost backlinks or claiming links from unlinked brand mentions
Link Scheme
Any manipulative practice designed to artificially inflate a site's backlink profile to improve rankings
Link Velocity
The rate at which a website acquires new backlinks over a given time period
Linkable Asset
A piece of content specifically designed to attract backlinks from other websites
Listicle
An article structured as a numbered or bulleted list covering a specific topic
M
Media Database
A searchable directory of journalists, bloggers, and publishers used for targeted outreach
Media Pitching
Presenting story ideas to journalists and media outlets to earn coverage and backlinks
Meta Robots
An HTML meta tag that instructs search engine crawlers how to index and follow links on a page
Mobile-First Indexing
Google's practice of primarily using the mobile version of a page's content for indexing and ranking
N
Natural Links
Backlinks that are earned organically without any direct solicitation or manipulation
Newsjacking
Leveraging breaking news or trending topics to earn media coverage and backlinks
Niche Edit
A link placed within existing content on a relevant website, often through outreach
Nofollow
A link attribute that tells search engines not to pass link equity through the hyperlink
Noindex
A directive that tells search engines not to include a specific page in their index
O
Organic Keywords
The search terms for which a website ranks naturally in unpaid search results
Organic Traffic
Website visitors who arrive through unpaid search engine results
Organic Visibility
A metric measuring how prominently a website appears in organic search results across all tracked keywords
Original Research
Unique data-driven content produced through surveys, experiments, or proprietary data analysis
Orphan Page
A webpage that has no internal links pointing to it from other pages on the same site
Outreach at Scale
Running high-volume link building email campaigns while maintaining quality and personalization
Outreach Cadence
The timing and frequency pattern of sending outreach emails in a link building campaign
Outreach Personalization
The practice of customizing outreach messages to individual recipients for higher response rates
Outreach Template
A pre-written email framework used as a starting point for link building communications
P
Page Authority
A Moz metric that predicts how well a specific page will rank in search results
Page Speed
How quickly a webpage loads and becomes interactive for users
Paid Links
Backlinks acquired through direct monetary payment, which violate search engine guidelines when used for ranking manipulation
Partnership Outreach
Approaching complementary businesses or organizations to propose mutually beneficial link arrangements
PBN
A private blog network, a collection of websites used to build links to a main site
Personalization
Customizing outreach emails with recipient-specific details to increase engagement
Pillar Page
A comprehensive content page that broadly covers a core topic and links to detailed subtopic pages
Pitch Email
A carefully crafted email proposing a specific link building opportunity to a website owner
Press Release
An official statement distributed to media outlets to announce newsworthy information
R
Rank Tracking
The practice of monitoring a website's search engine positions for specific keywords over time
Reciprocal Links
A mutual linking arrangement where two websites agree to link to each other
Redirect Chain
A series of multiple redirects between the original URL and the final destination URL
Referring Domain
A unique domain that contains at least one backlink pointing to your website
Rel Canonical
An HTML element that specifies the preferred version of a webpage to prevent duplicate content issues
Relationship Building
Developing ongoing connections with website owners and editors for sustained link building success
Render Budget
The limited resources search engines allocate to rendering JavaScript-heavy pages on a website
Resource Page Link Building
Earning backlinks by getting your content listed on curated resource pages
Response Rate
The percentage of outreach emails that receive a reply from recipients
Rich Snippet
An enhanced search result that displays additional information beyond the standard title and description
Robots.txt
A text file that instructs search engine crawlers which pages or sections of a site to crawl or ignore
ROI of Link Building
The return on investment generated by link building activities relative to their cost
S
Schema Markup
Structured data code that helps search engines understand and display your content more effectively
Search Console
Google's free tool for monitoring and maintaining a website's presence in search results
Search Intent
The underlying purpose behind a user's search query
Search Visibility
A metric measuring how often a website appears in search results for its tracked keywords
Search Volume
The average number of times a specific keyword is searched for in a given time period
Semantic SEO
Optimizing content around topics and meaning rather than individual keywords
Sender Reputation
A score assigned to your email sending domain that affects whether your emails reach inboxes
SERP
Search Engine Results Page, the page displayed by a search engine in response to a query
SERP Feature
Any element on a search results page beyond standard organic listings
SERP Position
The specific rank a webpage holds on a search engine results page for a given query
Server-Side Rendering
A technique where web pages are rendered on the server before being sent to the browser
Share of Voice
A metric measuring a brand's visibility in search results compared to competitors
Site Architecture
The structural organization of a website's pages and how they are linked together
Skyscraper Technique
Creating superior content to outperform existing popular pieces and attract their backlinks
Spam Score
A metric indicating the likelihood that a website is penalized or banned by search engines
SSL Certificate
A digital certificate that enables encrypted HTTPS connections for a website
T
Tiered Link Building
A strategy of building links to pages that link to your site, amplifying their authority
Topic Cluster
A content strategy organizing related articles around a central pillar page connected by internal links
Topical Authority
The degree to which a website is recognized as an expert source on a specific topic
Toxic Backlinks
Harmful inbound links from low-quality or spammy websites that can negatively impact rankings
Traffic Value
The estimated monetary value of organic traffic a website receives based on equivalent paid search costs
Trust Flow
A Majestic metric measuring the quality and trustworthiness of links pointing to a website