Search Engine Optimization Related Important Terms

SEO

A

Ad-words – Google’s CPC (Cost Per Click) model for text-based advertising in its search engine. The amount an advertiser bids determines their ad’s relative position within the paid search results, and also factors users’ Click Through Rate (CTR) on the ad.

Alexa – A search service which measures website traffic.

Algorithm – A mathematical set of rules that a search engine uses to rank listings in response to a query. Search engines guard their algorithms closely, as they are the unique formulas used to determine relevancy.

Alt Tag or Alt Attribute – A description of an image in your site’s HTML. This is alternate text that will be displayed by a browser when an image can’t be found or loaded. Search engines and blind people rely heavily on Alt Tags. Add ALT text to images whenever possible. (Compare to Title Tag.)

Anchor Text – Text that is linked to a web page. This text is often a different color than the rest of the copy on a website and is commonly underlined, or purple if you’ve visited the link in the past. Anchor text helps search engines understand what the destination page is about; it describes what you will see if you click through.

Authority – An arbitrary score assigned by search engines to measure the power, relevancy, stature and credibility of websites. Common factors used to calculate site and page Authority includes inbound links, site age, traffic trends and a constant stream of unique, quality content.