From backlink to traffic, from conversion to SEO – the key terminology in digital marketing is now easy to understand.
Ad impression
Ad impressions (or ad view) indicates the number of times a certain advertising measure (e.g. banner) has been broadcast on a website. The number of ad impressions plays a role when it comes to the payment of advertising space on the Internet and is an indicator for the reach of a campaign.
Affiliate marketing is a form of online marketing based on a partner programme for which the merchant (the company advertising) is advertised on the website of an affiliate (provider of the advertising space) via a link or ad (search engine advertising). Payment is usually in the form of a commission based on success, which is agreed in advance.
Backlink
Backlinks are digital links from external, in other words third-party, websites to the own website. The more backlinks which lead to the website of a company, the more relevant the company’s website is in the Google search – and the higher it is listed in the search results.
Bing Ads
Bing Ads is the former name of what is today Microsoft Advertising.
Bounce rate is the number of visitors to a website who then leave the website without performing an action (lead generation). The rate is provided as a percentage. If 60 visitors out of a total of 100 page views leave the website without interacting with it, the bounce rate is 60 per cent. The bounce rate provides important information on how attractive a website is and how user-friendly the navigation is. If a website does not have any subpages or does not include any Calls-to-action, the bounce rate is meaningless. In this case, the users’ dwell time on the website provides important feedback regarding its effectiveness.
Brand awareness
Brand awareness is one of the more subtle goals of online marketing. It does not result in a direction action (e.g. lead or deal closure), but it is important for creating an image and increasing the awareness of the brand.
Call to action (CTA)
A call to action serves to inspire the user to do something. On a simple level, this could be a click on a link, but it also covers a download, subscribing to a newsletter or requesting information.
Customer journey
The customer journey describes all the stations which a user goes through on their path to purchasing a product or service. It begins with collecting information and the user’s initial contact with the company or brand.
Content hub
A collection of content, which is clearly focused on the same or similar topics, and text on a website that is available to visitors.
Content marketing
Content marketing speaks to the target group of a company using useful or entertaining content which matches the company and its products or services. It ultimately aims to convince the user to become a customer of the company. Direct advertising is avoided.
Conversion
Changing, for instance, a visit to a website into a concrete request – for material, an appointment, a purchase or a business contract. The precise definition of a conversion therefore depends on the concrete marketing measures, which vary depending on the company’s goals.
Earned media
Earned media is the name given to the digital or analogue presence of a company or a product in the media and which the company has “earned”. This can be name mentions, tips, reports or recommendations which are created by editorial offices (e.g. Internet or print articles), organisations (with a mention on a website) or users (blogs, social media posts) and shared. The company has little or no direct influence on earned media (see also Paid media).
Google Ads
Online advertising that uses the advertising offers from Google, mainly in the form of broadcasting ads which appear at the top or bottom of the hits list during a Google search.
Influencers
Influencers are the main players of a social media appearance (e.g. on Instagram, in blogs, on YouTube) who are highly popular amongst a target group and whose reports are regularly and intensively adopted. The fact that influencers serve as multipliers, presenting products and services on which they report and are paid to do so, is known by the majority of their audience.
Keyword
A key element of search engine optimisation. Important keywords are determined based on an analysis of Internet users’ search behaviour. An optimal placement of the most significant keywords on a website is a key measure for improving a company’s position in the search results.
Keyword potential analysis
A Keyword potential analysis serves to identify a number of keywords which a website might be able to rank for on a search engine's SERP. Due to a high search volume, it promises higher traffic when the website is optimised to include these keywords or keyword combination.
Knowledge graphs
Knowledge graphs are based on the culmination of Google search results regarding certain places, names or things and are presented graphically in an own area of the SERPs. These are often excerpts from the respective Wikipedia article.
KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
KPIs indicate the predefined performance figures of an online marketing measure or campaign which are defined by the company itself. These include, amongst others, the number of page impressions, the number of subpages visited by users, the click-through rate, the bounce rate, the dwell time of the user on the website and the number of leads or conversions.
Landing page
A special website which is created to communicate a certain product or service and that leads the user directly to the content they are searching for. Landing pages increase awareness and visibility of new product highlights and special promotions.
Lead
The contact information willingly provided by a visitor to a website, usually in the form of an email address. The success of online marketing measures is frequently measured according to the number of leads gained.
Meta description
Short descriptive text which appears in the hits list on the search engine, below the à meta title, and that aims to animate the user to click to visit the website, often with the help of a call to action.
Meta title
The title of a main page or sub-page which appears in the hits list of a search engine and that briefly describes the content of the page. It must contain the main à keyword for the purpose of search engine optimisation.
On-page optimisation
Measures which are taken to optimise the awareness of the company’s own website, such as technical, content or structural changes. These allow the website to be found and used more easily.
Off-page optimisation
Measures that take place on an external website which aim to achieve a better placement of the company’s own website. This is mainly through creating links; in other words, organising backlinks, a high number of which has a positive impact on the search engine’s ranking.
Owned media
Owned media are all media which “belong” to the company, as well as channels such as a website, blog and social media sites. They do not require any additional fees to be paid within the scope of marketing campaigns (see also earned media, paid media).
Page visits
General, non-qualified number of visitors to a website within a certain period of time. Compare to page impressions.
Page impressions (PI)
Number of times an individual page – main page or sub-page – on a website has been visited. It provides an indication of the page’s appeal and its visibility. The user remains anonymous within this analysis.
Paid media
Paid media encompasses all forms of media on which a company broadcasts paid media, including search engine advertising. Paid media, together with earned media and owned media, is an important part of traditional marketing campaigns.
Post
A post can be content or comments on a website or a social media channel.
Publisher
Publishers (or affiliates) are partners inaffiliate marketing who provide space for ads or links on their website for a fee.
Ranking
The ranking is the position of a website on the hits list of a search engine (SERP). The ranking is determined based on parameters chosen by the search engine algorithm and can be improved through the use of SEO measures. In general, a ranking on the first result page is ideal, since most users do not visit the other result pages.
Retargeting
Targeting the user again. This is advertising which appears, for instance on news portals or a free email account, to advertise a website which the user previously visited. The identification of the user takes place based on the cookies stored during their first visit to the website.
Search engine advertising (SEA)
The broadcasting of fee-based advertising (digital ads) on search engine results lists, usually Google (Google Ads). The ads are labelled as such and appear at the top or bottom of the search results.
Search engine optimisation (SEO)
The optimisation of the company’s own website content to ensure it is easier to find and rank by search engines. Important SEO measures are the use of important keywords in the text or the generation of backlinks from high-reach or credible sources.
SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages)
SERPs are result pages from a search on a search engine. The result pages provide a list in the form of snippets and knowledge graphs of the matching websites based on the keywords entered. In addition to organic search results, paid text or image ads are also shown. The ranking of a website on this list is determined by the search engine provider’s algorithm and can also depend on cookies, the location of the search and the type of device used. Measures for search engine optimisation (SEO) can influence the website’s ranking.
Traffic
The frequency of visits to a website. The intensity of the traffic influences the ranking of the website in the Google hits list. Compare to page impressions.
Usability
Usability stands for the user-friendliness of a website or of a digital product in general. In concrete terms, the design and ability of the user to understand the content are most important for ensuring the user can achieve their desired goals on the website (e.g. information or interaction). Good usability leads to a longer dwell time on a website or a lower bounce rate. Usability plays an especially important role for mobile device users.
