Aldus Local SEO Glossary

Algorithm: A formula that search engines use to determine the order and relevance of web pages in response to a keyword search.

Analytics: Tools that monitor user behavior on a website, such as traffic, visit duration, and conversions. Google Analytics is notably used within the Google Business Profile to provide insights.

Audit: In local SEO, an audit involves a comprehensive examination of various marketing elements such as citations, content, or competitive environment.

Canonical Tags: HTML elements that indicate to search engines which URL is the master copy of a page, helping to prevent issues of content duplication.

Category: Used in local business listings, categories help classify a business in an industry-specific manner. Businesses may select a primary and multiple secondary categories to accurately represent their services.

Citation: References to a business's name, address, and phone number online. Citations can be structured (official listings) or unstructured (mentions in blogs or articles).

Click-through Rate (CTR): Measures how often people click on a search result or advertisement. For local businesses, actions such as clicks-to-call or directions may influence Google Business Profile rankings.

Conversion: The action of turning a website visitor into a customer, whether it occurs online or offline. Google Analytics tracks these through conversion goals.

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO): Techniques used to increase the rate at which visitors become customers, involving tests on web design, copy, and user interface.

Data Aggregator: Entities that compile and distribute business data like name, address, and phone number, ensuring accuracy before supplying this data to other platforms like directories or mapping services.

Directory: Websites that organize and list business information, often used by search engines as data sources for local search.

Domain Authority (DA): A score by Moz predicting a website's potential to rank in search engines. It's a composite of various SEO metrics but is not a metric used by Google.

Duplicate Listing: Multiple entries for a single business on a platform, potentially leading to penalties or ranking issues, particularly on Google.

GEO Grid Mapping: A mapping system used to determine ranking and competitor data variables by GPS points. 

1 - Drive-time - For seeing how your ranking for a set driving time to your location.

2 - Polygon - For achieving an accurate ranking of any service area. Water, Desert, Forest are eliminated automatically.

3 - Radius - For ranking a set distance from your location.

4.- Basic Grids - 5x5, 7x7, 9x9, 13x13 grids to show ranking for GPS points using preset distance between points to determine size of map. (not used by Aldus Local)

Google Maps: A mapping service offering navigation, street views, and traffic conditions, crucial for businesses aiming to enhance local visibility.

Google Business Profile: A tool that lets businesses manage how they appear on Google Search and Maps, helping them connect with customers and track engagement.

Google Business Profile Audit: An analysis that checks the optimization level of a Google Business Profile, offering insights for improvement.

Image Alt Tags: Descriptive text added to images to help search engines understand the image content, which can also aid in accessibility.

Internal Link: Links within a website that connect one page to another, important for SEO and user navigation.

Keywords: Phrases in your content that enable users to find your site via search engines. Proper keyword optimization helps align your content with user searches.

Landing Page: The initial page a visitor lands on through search results or advertisements, critical for converting visitors into customers, especially in local SEO.

Link Building: The process of acquiring external links to your website, which can significantly influence search engine rankings.

Local Pack: A feature in Google Search that shows the top local business listings related to a query, heavily influenced by local SEO.

Local SEO: Optimizing a business’s online presence to rank higher in local search results, involving adjustments to Google Business Profiles, local content, and more.

Local Search Audit: A tool that evaluates a business’s local online presence, providing actionable insights to improve local search performance.

Local Search Grid: Tracks local search rankings on a map, offering detailed insights into competitive positioning and optimization opportunities.

Local Rank Tracker: Monitors a business's performance in search engine results, providing data on rankings and helping identify competitive advantages or weaknesses.

Local Search Ranking Factors: Elements that influence the performance of a business in local search results, including on-page SEO, Google Business Profile optimizations, and user engagement metrics.

Meta Description: A brief description of a webpage's content, appearing under the page title in search results and influencing click-through rates.

Meta Keywords: Once used to inform search engines about the themes of a page, now largely obsolete due to overuse and spam.

Meta Tags: HTML tags that provide metadata about a webpage, not displayed on the page itself but used by search engines to understand page content.

Mobile-friendly: Describes whether a website is effectively usable on mobile devices, a critical factor for user experience and SEO.

NAP: Stands for Name, Address, Phone Number. Consistency in NAP information across the web can boost local search rankings.

Open Graph Tags: Tags that control how content is displayed when shared on social platforms, particularly Facebook, enhancing the visual presentation of shared links.

Outbound Link: A link from one website to a different website, providing additional context or authoritative backing to content.

Page Title: The title of a webpage that appears in browser tabs and search results, playing a critical role in SEO and user engagement.

Paid Search: Online advertising where businesses pay each time a user clicks on their ads, also known as PPC (Pay Per Click).

Prominence, Proximity, and Relevance: Three core pillars of local search that guide Google's algorithms in determining which local businesses to display in response to a query.

Review Management: The practice of monitoring and responding to customer reviews, crucial for maintaining a positive online reputation and enhancing local SEO.

Responsive Design: A design approach that ensures a website looks good and functions well on all devices, from desktops to smartphones.

Schema Markup: Code that helps search engines return more informative results for users by structuring data in a way that is easily digestible.

SERP: Search Engine Results Pages, the pages displayed in response to a user's search query, including organic listings, ads, and local pack results.

SEO: Search Engine Optimization, the practice of increasing the quality and quantity of traffic to a website through organic search engine results.

Service-Area Business: Businesses that operate in a specific geographic area but do not have a fixed storefront, relying on local SEO to attract customers within that area.

XML Sitemap: A file that lists a website’s important pages, ensuring that search engines can find and crawl them all, enhancing site indexing and performance in search results.