As a business owner, it’s important to understand the value of Search Engine Optimization and the great effect it can have on your business. SEO encompasses everything that represents your business online including your website, social media, app, online ordering channels and more.

So, what exactly is it and how can you make sure you’re taking full advantage of it?

The term SEO is one of the most important elements in making sure your business is discoverable online and your website is getting continuous traffic. Simply put, businesses with good SEO show up on the first page whenever a potential customer searches for a relevant service or product in a specific area. Read tips for improving your local SEO here.

At Media Explode, we understand that the range of acronyms in the online world can be very confusing to anyone who isn’t a marketing expert. Which is why we’re decoding some of the most common acronyms you are likely to come across.

Here are 8 SEO acronyms every business owner needs to know:

SEO — Search Engine Optimization

Mentioned earlier, SEO is the backbone of online marketing. It is the most effective way to make your business visible to more potential customers – through increased online traffic, which can directly increase leads and boost sales. Refining a brand’s SEO results in an improved quality of website visitors, which are more likely to turn into paying customers.

SEM – Search Engine Marketing

SEM uses search engines, like Google, to advertise your business to potential customers online; resulting in more precisely-targeted traffic to your website. While SEM and SEO may seem similar, SEM encompasses paid advertising and sponsored links – not organic, unpaid results. It is absolutely necessary to utilize both SEO and SEM in order to thrive as a business online.

SERP — Search Engine Results Page

The SERP is the listings that pop up when an internet user searches a term or keywords into a search engine. It can include both organic and paid results, as well as mapped and image listings to deliver more precise results to the searcher. Knowing this, the higher your business ranks in a search, the more traffic and visibility you receive.

PPC — Pay-Per-Click

PPC is a type of online advertising where business owners create an ad and pay a fee every time a searcher clicks on said ad. These ads are almost always linked to the business’s website and are created with the aim of increasing online traffic. Much like SEM, PPC is a great tool to use in combination with organic SEO to reach better results.

CTA — Call To Action

A CTA prompts online visitors to take action. Actions could be contacting your business, purchasing a product, leaving a comment, joining your newsletter or simply clicking a link.  This elicited action increases engagement between visitors and your brand.

CR — Conversion Rate

Your CR is a very important performance indicator because it shows you how many potential customers complete a desirable action suggested by your business – like clicking on your Facebook ad and buying your product online. It is an important tool in figuring out whether or not your online ads and posts are persuasive and effective.

CTR – Click-Through-Rate

CTR refers to how many people clicked on a link you provided – this could be for a blog post, email marketing or online ad. The higher your CTR, the better the indication that your marketing efforts are successful, engaging and attract attention.

BR — Bounce Rate

BR refers to the number of visitors that click on a link redirecting to your website and either leave immediately or after viewing only 1 page. A high bounce rate indicates that your website is either unattractive or hard to navigate. One common mistake business owners make is neglecting to adapt their webpage for mobile visitors, which is a surefire way to increase your bounce rate.

While there are many more acronyms to study, the ones above are the most commonly used. If you want to learn more about increasing your online traffic and boosting your sales through effective SEO, feel free to contact the marketing specialists at Media Explode. Our team is always available to provide local businesses with expert marketing advice and strategies. Drop us a line and let’s grow your business together!