Reference
The jargon, explained.
Every word the web industry uses at you, in one place, with what it actually means for a small service business and whether you need to do anything about it. This is the one part of the website where jargon is allowed, because every word is defined the moment it appears.
Being found
SEOSearch engine optimisationAEOAnswer engine optimisationGEOGenerative engine optimisationAI OverviewsGoogle’s AI-written answers at the top of resultsAI visibilityWhether AI assistants know and recommend a businessStructured dataSchema markup, JSON-LDMap packThe three local businesses Google shows on a mapGoogle Business ProfileYour free listing on Google Search and MapsIndexingGoogle reading a page and adding it to its listSitemapThe list of pages you hand to Googlerobots.txtThe file that tells crawlers where they may goCanonical tagTelling Google which copy of a page is the real oneMeta title and descriptionThe blue link and the line under it in GoogleBacklinksOther websites linking to yoursE-E-A-TExperience, expertise, authority, trustZero-click searchWhen the answer appears without anyone visiting a websiteFeatured snippetThe boxed answer at the top of GoogleNAPName, address, phone, identical everywhereKeywordsThe words people actually typeSERPThe search results page
The website itself
Core Web VitalsGoogle’s three speed and stability measuresStatic websitePages served as finished files, not built on the flyDomainYour web address, and who really owns itDNSThe settings that point your domain at thingsHostingThe computer your website lives onHTTPSThe padlock, and why a website without it is marked unsafeCDNCopies of your website kept close to the visitorCMSContent management systemPage builderDrag-and-drop website toolsResponsiveA website that fits any screen301 redirectForwarding an old address to a new one404 pageWhat a visitor sees when a page does not existNoindexTelling Google to leave a page outAlt textThe words attached to a pictureAccessibilityA website everyone can use
Measuring it
Google AnalyticsGA4, the visitor counting toolSearch ConsoleGoogle telling you how it sees your websiteConversionA visitor doing the thing you wantedLeadAn enquiry with a name and a way to replyBounce rateVisitors who leave without doing anythingClick-through rateHow many who saw you actually clicked
Email and trust
DMARCWith SPF and DKIM, the records that stop email being faked in your nameCookie consentAsking before a website sets tracking cookiesSPFThe list of servers allowed to send your emailDKIMA signature on every genuine email you sendUK GDPRThe data protection law behind the privacy policyPECRThe rules on cookies and marketing messagesPrivacy policyThe page that says what you do with people’s details
The money words
Nothing matches that. Try a shorter word, or ask me and I will add it.