The use of digital technology has brought a whole new dynamic to marketing, particularly when it comes to the jargon used in this cutting-edge field. Modern-day marketers will often use terms like CRM, CTA, bounces and blogging when discussing marketing strategies. Do you know what all of these concepts mean, and will you be able to join in the conversation?

To help you come to grips with the most important concepts and terms used in the field today, have a look at the glossary we compiled below:

  • A/B Testing: A way to compare two different versions of a webpage to find out which one performs best. The two pages are shown to users, and metrics such as page visits, average time spent on the page and clicks are then analysed in order to determine which page has performed better.
  • Ad Tracking: A method used to record the effectiveness of advertising efforts. In digital marketing, this could include the number of views and clicks that the ad generates.
  • Analytics: Marketing analytics involves measuring and managing marketing performance to make it more effective and to give the best possible return on the money invested in marketing.
  • B2B (Business-to-Business): B2B marketing involves the marketing of products to other businesses. For example, a wholesaler promoting its products to a retailer, who then sells them to consumers.
  • B2C (Business-to-Consumer): B2C marketing is when a company focuses on marketing its products to individuals. 
  • Blog: A web page that is regularly updated with written content and other sources of information such as videos or infographics. Blogs are written in order to inform or entertain users, while also adding to marketing efforts. 
  • Bounce: When a user enters a site and leaves again, without moving on to other pages, this is referred to as a bounce. Bounce rates are used in web traffic analysis as a percentage of total visits. The term is also used in email marketing to describe an email that is not successfully delivered to a recipient.
  • Brand Identity: The overall impression that a brand gives to consumers, as a result of various marketing practices and customer relations efforts. It includes the visual identity of the brand, customer service, advertising, content, product quality and unique selling points.
  • CMS (Content Management System): A software application or set of applications used to create and manage digital content. Examples include Joomla! and WordPress.
  • Conversion: A conversion is counted when someone takes a specific action or performs a desired action. These could include a number of outcomes, for instance form completions, email signups or successful product purchases.
  • CPC (Cost-Per-Click): The amount of money spent by an advertiser for each click on online adverts. This is calculated by dividing the total cost spent by the number of clicks received.
  • Cost-Per-Lead (CPL): The amount of money an advertiser spends on generating each lead. It is calculated by dividing the total cost of marketing efforts with the number of leads generated.
  • CRM (Customer Relationship Management): A strategy that focuses on building customer relationships and loyalty for a brand.
  • CTA (Call to Action): A piece of content that encourages potential customers to take action. For example, in an email or blog, a call to action could be a sentence encouraging readers to visit the company’s website or contact the company for more information.
  • CTR (Click-through Rate): A way of measuring the success of online advertising or email campaigns by calculating the percentage of people who clicked on your ad or call to action.
  • Demographic: A specific section of the consumer market, based on characteristics such as age, gender, race, income, education and interests. Demographics are used to identify target market more accurately.
  • Direct Marketing: Marketing products or services directly to individual customers. SMS campaigns are a good example of this.
  • Email Marketing: A type of direct marketing whereby emails are sent to members of the target market or to current customers.
  • Engagement Rate: Measures the level of engagement that a particular piece of content receives from an audience. This term is often used in social media, gauging the number of likes, shares or comments that a post receives.
  • Inbound link: A hyperlink on a third-party web page that links to your own website. Inbound links from high authority sites are very useful for search engine optimization, as Google will view the linked website as credible and thereby rank your site higher up on result pages. 
  • Inbound marketing: A strategy that focuses on attracting leads through content, rather than directly approaching customers.
  • Intent: A person identified during marketing efforts as showing intent to purchase a product or service.
  • Keyword: A particular word or phrase used on a web page. Applied in SEO, keywords assist with summing up the content of a page. This help search engines to match the page to users’ search queries.
  • Landing Page: A standalone web page where a user “lands” on once they have taken a call to action, for instance clicking on an advert or link.
  • Lead: A person or organisation who has voiced some interest in what you are selling. They may, for example, have shared contact information with you or clicked on an advert. Lead generation is one of the overarching goals of marketing.
  • Meta Description: A short snippet of words which summarises the content of a page. These descriptions are important in SEO, as search engines often display results based on what phrases are used in the meta description.
  • Mobile Marketing: Adapting marketing mediums so that they can easily be viewed and used on a mobile phone.
  • Organic Marketing: Getting customers to come to you naturally over time, instead of via paid strategies.
  • PPC (Pay-Per-Click): The overarching term to describe marketing in which advertisers pay a fee every time an ad is clicked.   
  • Prospect: A potential customer that fits your target market.
  • ROI (Return on Investment): The amount of profit generated from marketing campaigns, compared to the amount invested.  
  • SEO (Search Engine Optimization): A technique to increase the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results.
  • Smarketing: Collaboration between sales and marketing teams to reach specific targets such as leads and conversions. 
  • Social Media Marketing: Marketing your products or services through social media, through free posts, boosted posts or advertisements. 
  • Traffic: The number of visits or visitors a website receives.
  • Unique Visitor: A person who visits your website at least once during a reporting period. 
  • UI (User Interface): The visual elements a user interacts with on a website or app. Refers to the overall visual appeal, functions and user experience of a page.
  • Viral Marketing: Marketing products through popular messages or content that are shared multiple times and spread rapidly across the internet. This is most commonly seen on social media. 
  • Workflow: A series of automated actions that take place to firstly engage potential customers, and then guide them through the buying process.

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