Web design & SEO glossary.
The jargon of web design and SEO, translated into plain English — every term you’ll actually come across, defined clearly.
Every industry hides behind jargon, and web design is one of the worst. Here is a plain-English glossary of the terms you’ll actually meet when getting a website built or improving your search rankings — no fluff, no upselling, just clear definitions.
SEO
Search Engine Optimisation — improving a website so it ranks higher in unpaid (organic) Google results and attracts more visitors.
Local SEO
Optimising a website and Google Business Profile to appear for location-based searches and in the local map pack — the biggest lever for local businesses.
Core Web Vitals
Google's metrics for loading speed, interactivity and visual stability. They affect both user experience and rankings.
Structured data (schema)
Code that describes your content to search engines so they can understand, display and cite it — powering rich results and AI answers.
Responsive design
A site that automatically adapts its layout to any screen, from a phone to a large desktop monitor.
CMS
Content Management System — software that lets you edit a website's content without touching code, such as WordPress.
Domain
Your website's address, like fisher.digital. You register it and it points visitors to your hosting.
Hosting
The server space where your website's files live so that anyone on the internet can load them.
SSL / HTTPS
The padlock in the address bar — encryption that secures data between a visitor and your website. Google expects every site to have it.
Backlink
A link from another website to yours. Quality backlinks are one of Google's strongest trust signals.
Title tag
The clickable headline that represents a page in search results and browser tabs.
Meta description
The short summary shown beneath a page's title in search results; it influences whether people click.
SERP
Search Engine Results Page — the page of results Google shows for a given query.
Alt text
A written description of an image, used by screen readers and by search engines to understand the picture.
Sitemap
An XML file listing your pages to help search engines discover and crawl them efficiently.
Robots.txt
A file that tells search engine crawlers which parts of your site they may or may not access.
Google Business Profile
Your free Google listing that powers the local map pack — the single most important factor for local visibility.
Conversion rate
The percentage of visitors who take a desired action, such as making an enquiry, calling, or buying.
CRO
Conversion Rate Optimisation — improving a website so more of its visitors become customers.
Landing page
A focused page designed to convert visitors from a specific source or campaign into a single action.
UX
User Experience — how easy, clear and pleasant a website is to use.
Call to action (CTA)
The prompt telling visitors what to do next, such as ‘Get a quote’ or ‘Book now’.
Above the fold
The part of a page visible before scrolling — prime space for your key message and call to action.
Bounce rate
The share of visitors who leave a site without interacting further; often a sign of slow speed or poor relevance.
DNS
Domain Name System — the internet's address book, connecting your domain name to the server that hosts your site.
Favicon
The small icon shown in a browser tab and bookmarks that represents your website.
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