| Algorithm |
A set of rules used by a search engine to determine which web pages are listed in response to a query, as well as the ranking of those listings. The mathematical formulas behind these rules are trade secrets for many search engine companies. |
| Alt Tag |
Alt text is alternative text, used when an image is not being displayed. The ALT text is intended to be a suitable textual alternative to the image’s purpose. |
| Backlinks |
Backlinks are defined as all of the links on other pages that, when clicked on, take the user to a specific web page. For that specific web page, call it Page A, each link linking to page A is called a backlink. Many search engines allow the user to view a page’s backlinks so that user’s can understand what web sites deem it a relevant web page. Also called Inbound Links. |
| Blog |
A blog is a site that operates as a user’s personal web site, and is usually made up of journal entries, links and articles as well as message board and chat functions. The word blog is an abbreviated form of “web blog.” |
| HTML |
HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language. HTML is read by the web browser and HTML “tags” are used to structure the information and features within a web page. |
| Keyword Density |
The number of times a keyword is used on a webpage divided by the total number of words on the page. |
| Keyword Phrase |
Two or more keywords combined to form a search query, such as “new homes Atlanta.” Keyword phrases are often simply referred to as keywords in Professional SEO, as one keyword phrase makes up only one possible query that could be used to optimize a web page. |
| Link Popularity |
The raw number of backlinks to a web page, used in most search engines’ algorithms to determine ranking. |
| Meta Description Tag |
The Meta Description Tag contains a short paragraph describing the content of a web page. Search engine results generally use this tag’s content as the text snippet under the link if it contains the keyword of the search. A search engine’s crawler will also use the Meta Description Tag to deduce the topic of the page. |
| Meta Keywords Tag |
The Meta Keywords Tag contains a list of certain words and phrases (keywords) that are emphasized within a web page in order to improve search engine ranking. This tag should use keywords that best represent how the page’s content should be indexed. Excessive repetition of keywords in this tag may be considered spam by the search engine, and could result in lower ranking or penalties. |
| Meta Tags |
Meta Tags are tags meant to convey behind-the-scenes information about a web page, such as its keywords or page description information. Meta Tags tell a search engine’s crawlers whether a page is allowed to be indexed and whether the links on a page are allowed to be followed. |
| Organic Search |
Organic search listings are results based on factors such as keyword relevancy within a Web page. These are the listings generally found on the left hand side in search engines, and are not influenced by direct financial payments, only by effective search engine optimization. |
| PageRank |
A method of ranking results for a search engine, developed by Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin while at Stanford University. PageRank gives a unique ranking to every web page on the Internet based on the number and quality of the page’s backlinks. |
| Reciprocal Link |
A reciprocal link involves one web site agreeing to link to another site on the condition that the favor is returned. |
| Search Engine |
A program that allows a user to search for information stored on a computer system or network, most commonly the Internet. A web search engine uses programs called spiders or crawlers to regularly search the Internet, create copies of all pages and index them in a database. When a user queries this database by entering terms into the search engine, he or she will receive a list of web sites ranked by relevancy (as determined by the engine’s algorithms). These are called organic listings. Many search engine databases also contain paid listings, which are typically purchased by commerce sites. |
| Search Engine Optimization (SEO) |
Creating or altering a webpage to increase the amount of traffic to the website by ranking high in the search results of a search engine. The higher a website ranks in the results of a search, the greater the chance that site will be visited by a user. A properly optimized website is important because many Internet usually do not click through many pages to find the object of their search. |
Industry Directory Submissions
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These are internet directories that target only specific industries of business. These directories will separate companies into separate division of a particular industry. It is a tactic that promotes linking to a website as well as local search prominence. |
Optimization Analysis
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An analysis report displaying data on how a website is optimized for certain criteria that search engines look for to rank it for a certain keyword or phrase. |
Competition Optimization Analysis
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An analysis report comparing your website to a completion website of your choice targeting search engine ranking and optimization analysis by a given keyword or phrase. |
Aggregate Reporting
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Building reports of ranking indexing and linking to show increases in keyword position accumulation of links and indexing to search engines. |
Strategy Sessions
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A strategy session to determine where you are currently positioned in your industry as well as your short term and long term goals. |
Internal Linking
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A technique using placing links inside the content to internal pages of the website with keywords and the anchors. |
Header & Footer Optimization
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Optimization that targets the meta tags and bottom navigation of a website for keywords or phrases. |
Press Release Optimization & Submission
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A press release is a public relations announcement issued to the news media and other targeted publications for the purpose of letting the public know of company developments. It can be optimized by placing links with keyword anchor text to promote linking to your website. |
