- 2024-05-24
Local SEO Glossary: Terminology, Acronyms & Buzzwords
In this Local SEO Glossary, we shed light on the key terminology you need to know to start your journey to the top of the search engine results.
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Local SEO Glossary for 2024
The ever-evolving digital marketing landscape can be overwhelming, especially for beginners new to online marketing and not versed in the vocabulary or buzzwords.
In order to cut through the jargon and stay ahead of the game, check out this comprehensive Local SEO glossary – a must-have dictionary in order to successfully navigate the world of Local SEO!
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Local SEO Terminology
By familiarizing yourself with the terms in this Local SEO glossary, you’ll be better equipped to navigate the world of search engine optimization and improve your online visibility.
- Ahrefs: A popular SEO tool that provides insights into a website's backlink profile, keyword rankings, and overall search visibility. It is commonly used by businesses to track and improve their local SEO performance.
- Anchor Text: An anchor text is the clickable text in a hyperlink used to describe or define the link's destination.
- Average Star Rating: The average star rating on your Google Business Profile. This depends on the user rating of the individual company and the product or service they provide.
- Citation consistency: The accuracy and consistency of a website’s NAP (name, address, phone number) listed on other websites.
- Directory Listings: Listings on directories such as Yelp, Yellow Pages and Yahoo Local, which can help with Local SEO efforts.
- Distance: Distance in Local SEO refers to the proximity of a user's location to a business, which can impact search results and rankings. The closer a user is to a business, the more likely it is to appear in local search results.
- Domain authority: A metric used to gauge the overall quality and authority of a website.
- Geotagging: Adding location information to images or content on a website to help search engines understand the geographic relevance of the content.
- Geo-Targeting: Local SEO practice of targeting specific audiences located in specific geographic locations.
- Google Analytics: Google Analytics is a free tool provided by Google that allows businesses to track and analyze website traffic, user behavior, and other key metrics. This data can help businesses make informed decisions about their Local SEO strategy and improve their online presence.
- Google Business Profile (GBP): A profile that helps businesses promote themselves to local customers via Google’s search engine and Google Maps.
- Google Maps: A mapping service provided by Google that displays local businesses and provides directions to them.
- Google Search Console: Google Search Console is a free tool provided by Google that helps website owners monitor and maintain their site's presence in Google Search results. It provides valuable insights into how Google views your site, including indexing status, search queries, and errors.
- Google Spiders: Google Spiders are automated programs used by Google to crawl and index web pages on the internet. They follow links on websites to discover and analyze content for search engine results.
- Heat Maps: Heat maps on Google Business Profiles visually represent the areas where users are interacting the most with a business listing. This data can help businesses understand customer behavior and make informed decisions to improve their online presence.
- Indexing: A process by which search engines catalog webpages in their search index.
- Internal Links: Internal links are hyperlinks that point to other pages within the same website. They are used to link different pages of a website so that users can navigate between them easily and Google spiders can see the relation between website pages.
- Local Citations: Mentions of a business’s name, address, and phone number on other websites across the web. These citations serve as signals to search engines for local search rankings.
- Local Keywords: Keywords that are geographically relevant to a business, such as city, state, or street names.
- Local Link Building: The process of acquiring inbound links to a web page from geographically-relevant websites.
- Local Pack: A box that appears in Google’s search results featuring local business listings, with the top 3 spots being the most coveted.
- Local Search Algorithm: A Local Search Algorithm is a method used to find a solution to an optimization problem by iteratively exploring neighboring solutions. It starts with an initial solution and moves to a neighboring solution that improves the objective function until a local optimum is reached.
- Local Search Analytics: Local Search Analytics is the process of analyzing data related to how users are searching for businesses or services in a specific geographic area. This information can help businesses understand their local market and make informed decisions to improve their online presence and attract more customers.
- Local Search Campaign: A Local Search Campaign is a targeted marketing strategy that focuses on reaching potential customers in a specific geographic area. By targeting local keywords, optimizing Google Business Profile listings, and creating location-specific content, businesses can increase their visibility and attract more local customers.
- Local Search Competition: Local Search Competition refers to the competition between businesses to appear in local search results, such as on Google and Yahoo, when users search for products or services in a specific geographic area.
- Local Search Marketing: Local Search Marketing is a digital marketing discipline that focuses on increasing a business's visibility in local search results. This can include optimizing a business's website for local keywords, increasing Google Business Profile ranking, managing online reviews, and ensuring accurate business listings on local directories.
- Local Search Presence: Local Search Presence refers to a business's visibility in online search results for local products or services. It is important for attracting nearby customers and increasing foot traffic to physical locations.
- Local Search Visibility Score: The Local Search Visibility Score is a metric that measures how easily a business can be found in local search results. A higher score indicates better visibility and a greater likelihood of attracting local customers.
- Local Search Visibility: Local search visibility refers to how easily a business can be found by potential customers in a specific geographic area through search engines and online directories. It is important for businesses to optimize their online presence to improve their local search visibility and attract more local customers.
- Local Search Ranking Factors: The various factors that influence a business's ranking in local search results, such as distance, relevance, and prominence.
- Local SEO: Optimization of a website or Google Business Profile for local organic search results, which takes into account location-specific signals.
- Local SEO Agency: A local SEO agency is a company that specializes in helping businesses improve their online visibility in specific geographic areas.
- Local SEO Checklist: A list of tasks and best practices for optimizing a website or Google Business profile for local search.
- Local SEO Consultant: A professional who specializes in helping businesses improve their local search rankings.
- Local SEO Services: Local SEO services are strategies and executed techniques that improve a business's visibility in local search results. This can include optimizing a website or Google Business Profile, creating local business listings, and managing online reviews to attract more customers in the local area.
- Local SEO Software: Tools and platforms that help businesses manage and optimize their local SEO efforts.
- Local SEO Strategy: A plan for improving a business's visibility in local search results, including keyword targeting, content creation, and link building.
- Local SEO Techniques: Local SEO techniques are strategies, workflows and processes used to improve a business's visibility in local search results, such as optimizing Google Business Profile listings and creating location-specific content.
- Location Pages: Web Pages on a site that describe its physical address and other contact information, as well as services offered in specific locations.
- Localized Content: Content that is tailored and optimized for a specific geographic area or region.
- Mobile Optimization: The practice of optimizing content and webpages for mobile search users.
- NAP: The abbreviation for basic contact information (Name, Address, Phone) for a business, used for listing them with local business directories or on webpages.
- On-Page Optimization: The practice of optimizing content and HTML elements on webpages to improve their visibility on search engines.
- Prominence: Prominence in Local SEO refers to how well-known a business is in the local area, often measured by the quantity and quality of online reviews, citations, and backlinks. A business with high prominence is more likely to appear in local search results and attract customers.
- Relevance: The importance of a website’s content in relation to a user’s search query.
- Reviews: Customer feedback and ratings left on platforms like Google Business Profile, Yelp, and Facebook. Positive reviews can improve a business's Local SEO.
- Robots.txt: Robots.txt is a text file that tells search engine crawlers which pages or files on a website should not be crawled or indexed. It is an important tool for controlling how search engines interact with a website and can impact a site's visibility in search results.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO): The process of optimizing website content and structure, and building backlinks, in order to improve visibility on organic search engine results.
- SEMrush: SEMrush is a popular tool used for Local SEO that provides keyword research, site audit, backlink analysis, and other features to help businesses improve their online visibility and rankings in local search results. It allows users to track their local search performance, analyze competitors, and optimize their website for better local search rankings.
- SERP: Search Engine Results Page, is the page presented by a search engine, such as Google, after a user submits a query. It contains a list of relevant web pages, images, profiles, videos, and other types of content in response to the query.
- Sitemap: A sitemap is a file that lists all the pages of a website to help search engines crawl and index the site more effectively. In Local SEO, having a sitemap can improve the visibility of a business in local search results by providing search engines with clear information about the site's structure and content.
- Structured Data Markup: A type of code added to a website’s HTML to make information more easily understood by search engines.
- Visibility: The ability of a business to appear prominently in search engine results when customers are searching for businesses in their area.
Remember, understanding the language of SEO is key to implementing effective strategies for your business. So, keep this glossary handy and watch your website climb the search engine rankings!
"In 2022, a staggering 98% of individuals turned to the internet to research local businesses, a significant increase from the 90% reported in 2019."
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Local SEO Acronyms
Navigating the world of Local SEO can feel like learning a new language, especially when it comes to all the acronyms thrown around. From NAP to GBP, understanding Local SEO acronyms and abbreviations are crucial for optimizing your business’s online presence.
In this section, we’ll break down some of the most common Local SEO acronyms.
- SEO – Search Engine Optimization
- SERP – Search Engine Results Page
- GBP – Google Business Profile
- NAP – Name, Address, Phone Number
- CTR – Click-Through Rate
- ROI – Return on Investment
- PPC – Pay-Per-Click
- SEM – Search Engine Marketing
- CTA – Call to Action
- XML – Extensible Markup Language
- HTML – Hypertext Markup Language
- CSS – Cascading Style Sheets
- CMS – Content Management System
- SSL – Secure Sockets Layer
- HTTPS – Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure
- URL – Uniform Resource Locator
- ALT – Alternative Text
- H1 – Heading 1
- H2 – Heading 2
- H3 – Heading 3
- DA – Domain Authority
- PA – Page Authority
- CPC – Cost-Per-Click
- LSI – Latent Semantic Indexing
- KPI – Key Performance Indicator
- BB – Business to Business
- BC – Business to Consumer
- CRO – Conversion Rate Optimization
- UX – User Experience
- UI – User Interface
- API – Application Programming Interface
- SERM – Search Engine Reputation Management
- SMM – Social Media Marketing
- SMO – Social Media Optimization
- ORM – Online Reputation Management
- LSA – Local Service Ads
- LSO – Local Search Optimization
- LSI – Local Search Intent
- LSR – Local Search Ranking
- LSC – Local Search Competition
- LSS – Local Search Strategy
- LSP – Local Search Performance
- LST – Local Search Trends
- LSC – Local Search Campaign
- LSS – Local Search Solutions
- LSA – Local Search Advertising
- LSC – Local Search Consulting
- LSR – Local Search Results
- GMB – Google My Business (now Google Business Profile)
- HTTP – Hypertext Transfer Protocol
- CRM – Customer Relationship Management
- CPM – Cost Per Thousand
- CPC – Cost Per Click
- LTV – Lifetime Value
- LPO – Landing Page Optimization
- SaaS – Software as a Service
By understanding Local SEO acronyms, businesses can improve their online visibility and attract more customers in their target area. So don’t let these abbreviations intimidate you – embrace them and watch your local search rankings soar!
Now You Have a Powerful Tool in your SEO Arsenal!
Understanding Local SEO terms and definitions will help you tremendously along on your digital marketing journey. Make sure to bookmark this page and come back whenever you come across a term that needs defining!
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