Vocabulary


Search-Engine Definitions


  • 404 page: A URL that tells the visitor that the webpage does not exist
  • Algorithm: An automated software that helps locate information to answer a user’s query
  • Bounce rate: The percentage of website visitors who view one page and then leave the site
  • Breadcrumbs: A row of internal links at the top or bottom of the page that allows visitors to quickly navigate back to a previous section or the homepage
  • Broken link: A link that leads to a web page that no longer exists.
  • Crawlers: Automated software that crawls (fetches) pages from the web and indexes them
  • Crawling: The process of finding new or updated web pages
  • Domain: The core part of a website’s URL, or internet address
  • Featured snippet: A special box that displays information about a search in the results page
  • HTTPS: An internet communication protocol that protects the integrity and confidentiality of data between the user’s computer and the site
  • Indexing: The process of Google saving and organizing website information to display in the search engine
  • Google Business Profile: A tool that allows local businesses to tailor how their information appears on Google Search and Google Maps
  • Google knowledge panels: Information boxes that appear on Google when someone searches for people, places, organizations, or things that are available in Google’s knowledge database
  • Googlebot: The generic name of Google's crawler
  • Keyword: A search term that people use to find information, products, or services online
  • Keyword research: The process of finding terms and phrases that people use in search engines
  • Keyword stuffing: The practice of loading a webpage with keywords or numbers in an attempt to manipulate a site’s ranking in the search results
  • Meta description: Provides the search engines a summary of what the page is about
  • Mobile-friendly webpage: A webpage that is designed to load quickly and render well on a phone screen
  • Organic search: Unpaid results a search engine produces when a search is performed
  • Query: The words typed into a Google Search bar
  • Rank: A webpage’s position in the search engine results pages (SERPs), which is determined by an algorithm
  • Rich results: Enhanced results in Google Search with extra visual or interactive features
  • Search algorithm: An automated process that helps locate information to answer a user’s query
  • Search engine: Software that provides information on a search query
  • Search engine optimization (SEO): The process of increasing the visibility of website pages on search engines in order to attract more relevant traffic
  • Search engine results pages (SERPs): The results pages that appear when someone performs a search query
  • Sitemap: A file that provides information about the pages, videos, and other files on a site, and the relationships between them
  • Structured data: Code used to better describe a webpage’s content to search engines
  • Subdomain: The subset of a larger domain used to organize an existing website into a different page URL
  • Subpage: A lower-level page that appears below the homepage of a website
  • URL: The address of a webpage or file on the internet
  • Web page title element: Text that provides both the users and search engines with a page’s topic