The Ultimate Glossary of Ecommerce SEO Terms

"URL"

• Definition: The web address of a specific page on your website.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: "www.example.com/products/eco-yoga-mat"

• Why It Matters: A well-structured URL helps users and search engines understand what a page is about, which can improve SEO.

"Keyword"

• Definition: A word or phrase that describes the content of a page and helps search engines understand what the page is about.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If you sell eco-friendly yoga mats, the keyword might be "eco yoga mat."

• Why It Matters: Keywords are the foundation of SEO—they help search engines match your store's content with user searches.

"SERP"

• Definition: Search Engine Results Page, the page displayed by search engines in response to a user’s query.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: The page where your store's product listing appears when someone searches for "eco-friendly yoga mat."

• Why It Matters: Your position on the SERP affects how much traffic you can attract to your store.

"Meta Title"

Also known as SEO Title within Shopify

• Definition: The title tag that appears on search engine results pages (SERPs) as the clickable headline for a given result.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: "Eco-Friendly Yoga Mats - Sustainable & High Quality | EcoYogaShop."

• Why It Matters: A well-crafted meta title can improve click-through rates and help you rank for targeted keywords.

"Meta Description"

Also known as SEO Description within Shopify

• Definition: A brief summary of a webpage that appears in search engine results.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: "Shop our eco-friendly yoga mats and accessories. Perfect for sustainable living and a mindful practice."

• Why It Matters: A well-crafted meta description can improve your click-through rate from search results, attracting more potential buyers.

"Organic Search"

• Definition: Traffic that comes to your website from unpaid search results in search engines like Google.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: When a customer searches for "eco-friendly yoga mat" and clicks on your store's link in the search results without you paying for that placement.

• Why It Matters: Organic search traffic is cost-effective and often brings highly targeted visitors who are looking for exactly what you offer.

"Paid Search"

• Definition: Traffic that comes to your website through paid advertising, such as Google Ads.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Running a Google Ad campaign to get your yoga mats to the top of the search results.

• Why It Matters: Paid search can drive targeted traffic quickly, especially when you're trying to get visibility for new products.

"Ranking"

• Definition: The position of a webpage in search engine results for a specific keyword.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If your product page ranks in the top 3 for "eco yoga mat," it is likely to get more clicks.

• Why It Matters: Higher rankings mean better visibility, which can lead to more traffic and sales.

"Traffic"

• Definition: The number of visitors who come to your website.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If you notice a spike in traffic after launching a new product, it means more people are visiting your store.

• Why It Matters: More traffic can lead to more sales, especially if the traffic is well-targeted.

"Domain"

• Definition: The main web address of your store, like www.example.com.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Your store’s domain could be something like "www.ecoyogashop.com."

• Why It Matters: Your domain is your online identity, and a well-chosen domain can make your store more memorable and improve SEO.

"Content"

• Definition: The text, images, videos, and other media on your website.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Product descriptions, blog posts, and collection pages are all types of content.

• Why It Matters: High-quality content helps attract visitors, keeps them engaged, and signals to search engines that your site is relevant.

"Search Console"

• Definition: A free tool from Google that helps you monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot your website’s presence in Google Search results.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: You can use Search Console to see how many people are clicking on your product pages from Google.

• Why It Matters: It provides valuable insights into your website's performance in search, helping you identify opportunities for improvement.

"Domain Rating"

• Definition: A score that reflects the strength of a website’s backlink profile, often used by SEO tools like Ahrefs.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If your domain rating is 50, it indicates that your site has a relatively strong backlink profile compared to competitors.

• Why It Matters: A higher domain rating can help your site rank better, as it signals authority to search engines.

"Canonical Tag"

• Definition: A piece of HTML code that helps prevent duplicate content by specifying the preferred version of a web page.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If you have multiple product pages for the same t-shirt in different sizes, a canonical tag tells Google which page should rank in search results.

• Why It Matters: Without using canonical tags correctly, your SEO efforts can be diluted, causing Google to split ranking potential across multiple pages.

"XML Sitemap"

• Definition: A file that lists all the pages of your website to help search engines crawl and index your content.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Think of it as a roadmap for search engines to easily discover all your product pages and collections.

• Why It Matters: An updated XML sitemap ensures that Google finds all the important pages of your store, which is key to ranking well.

"Robots.txt"

• Definition: A text file that tells search engines which pages they can or cannot crawl.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: You might use Robots.txt to prevent Google from indexing duplicate pages, like filtered versions of product lists.

• Why It Matters: Properly managing Robots.txt helps avoid indexing irrelevant or duplicate content, making your store more SEO-friendly.

"Site Audit"

• Definition: A comprehensive analysis of your website to identify issues that may be affecting its performance or rankings.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Regularly conducting site audits can help spot broken links, slow-loading pages, and other SEO problems.

• Why It Matters: A thorough site audit ensures that your store is optimised for search engines, improving overall performance.

"Indexing"

• Definition: The process by which search engines add your web pages to their database.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Google needs to index your product pages so they can appear in search results.

• Why It Matters: If your pages aren't indexed, they can't be found in search results, which means lost opportunities for traffic and sales.

"Web Crawl"

• Definition: The process where search engines visit and analyze the pages on your website to understand and rank them.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Googlebot will crawl your new product pages to understand what they’re about and decide how they should rank.

• Why It Matters: Crawling is the first step to getting indexed and ranked, so it's critical to ensure your site is crawlable.

"Redirect"

• Definition: A method used to send both users and search engines to a different URL from the one they originally requested.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If you discontinue a product, you might use a 301 redirect to send visitors to a related product page.

• Why It Matters: Proper redirects ensure that visitors and link equity are not lost, which can help maintain rankings.

"Localisation"

• Definition: The process of adapting your content and SEO strategy for different geographic locations.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Creating region-specific content and keywords to attract customers from different countries.

• Why It Matters: Localisation helps your store rank in specific geographic areas, increasing your reach and relevance.

"Hreflang Tag"

• Definition: An HTML attribute used to specify the language and geographical targeting of a webpage.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using hreflang to specify that one page is for UK users and another for US users.

• Why It Matters: Helps search engines deliver the right version of your website to users in different regions, improving their experience.

"404"

• Definition: An error message that indicates a page could not be found.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If a product page is deleted without a redirect, users may encounter a 404 error.

• Why It Matters: Too many 404 errors can frustrate users and negatively affect your SEO.

"Alt Text"

• Definition: A description of an image that helps search engines understand what the image is about.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Adding "woman practicing yoga on eco-friendly mat" as alt text for a product image.

• Why It Matters: Alt text improves your store’s accessibility and helps images rank in Google Image Search, driving more traffic.

"Open Graph Tag"

• Definition: Metadata used by social media platforms to display rich previews of your website content.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using Open Graph tags to ensure that your product image and description appear correctly when shared on Facebook.

• Why It Matters: Proper Open Graph tags can improve click-through rates from social shares, increasing traffic to your site.

"H1 Tag"

• Definition: The main heading of a page, typically used to signal the topic to both users and search engines.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: "Eco-Friendly Yoga Mats for Every Practice."

• Why It Matters: The H1 tag helps define the page's purpose, making it crucial for both usability and SEO.

"Internal Link"

• Definition: A link that connects one page of your website to another.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Linking from a blog post about yoga techniques to your product page for yoga mats.

• Why It Matters: Internal links help distribute link equity throughout your site and can improve the ranking of specific pages.

"Orphan Page"

• Definition: A page that has no internal links pointing to it, making it difficult for users and search engines to find.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: A discontinued product page that is still live but no longer linked from any collection or navigation.

• Why It Matters: Orphan pages can be missed by search engines, meaning they won't be indexed or ranked.

"Broken Link"

• Definition: A link that leads to a page that no longer exists or cannot be found.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If you delete a product page but don’t remove the links to it, those links become broken.

• Why It Matters: Broken links can negatively impact user experience and SEO, so it's important to fix or remove them.

"Backlink"

• Definition: A link from another website that points to your website.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If a popular blog writes about your eco-friendly yoga mats and links to your store, that’s a backlink.

• Why It Matters: Backlinks help establish your website's authority, signalling to Google that your content is valuable.

"Anchor Text"

• Definition: The clickable text in a hyperlink.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If a blog links to your site with the text "eco-friendly yoga mats," that’s the anchor text.

• Why It Matters: The right anchor text helps Google understand what the linked page is about, potentially improving your rankings for that keyword.

"Nofollow"

• Definition: An HTML attribute that tells search engines not to follow a specific link.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Adding a nofollow attribute to links in blog comments to avoid passing link equity.

• Why It Matters: Helps control how link equity is distributed, ensuring it only goes to valuable pages.

"Dofollow"

• Definition: A default link attribute that allows search engines to follow the link and pass link equity.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Linking to a trusted partner website with a dofollow link can help both sites' SEO.

• Why It Matters: Dofollow links contribute to your site's authority, potentially improving rankings.

"Product Schema"

• Definition: A type of structured data that helps search engines better understand your product information.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using product schema to display star ratings and prices in Google search results.

• Why It Matters: Rich results, such as star ratings, can increase click-through rates and drive more traffic to your store.

"Collection Page"

• Definition: A page that groups similar products together on your Shopify store.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: A collection page for "Yoga Accessories" that includes mats, straps, and blocks.

• Why It Matters: Well-optimised collection pages can rank for broader keywords, helping customers discover more of your products.

"Product Page"

• Definition: A page dedicated to a specific product in your Shopify store.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: The page displaying your "Eco-Friendly Yoga Mat" with product details, images, and pricing.

• Why It Matters: Product pages are key for conversions and SEO—they provide customers with the information needed to make purchasing decisions.

"Product Description"

• Definition: Text that describes a product, highlighting its features, benefits, and specifications.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Describing the eco-friendly materials used in your yoga mat and how it supports sustainable practices.

• Why It Matters: Compelling product descriptions can improve SEO and help convince customers to buy.

"Collection Description"

• Definition: A description on a collection page that provides context about the products within that collection.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Writing about the "Yoga Accessories" collection, highlighting what makes each product useful for a yoga practice.

• Why It Matters: A well-written collection description can boost SEO by including relevant keywords.

"Metafields"

• Definition: Extra pieces of data that can be added to Shopify products, orders, or other parts of your store to provide additional information.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Adding information such as "material type" or "care instructions" to product pages.

• Why It Matters: Metafields help provide more detail to customers and improve search engine indexing for unique content.

"Product Type"

• Definition: A categorisation used in Shopify to describe what type of product is being sold.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using "Yoga Mat" as a product type to categorise similar items.

• Why It Matters: Product types help organise your catalog and can also be useful for SEO.

"Vendor"

• Definition: The brand or manufacturer of a product in Shopify.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Listing "EcoBrand" as the vendor for an eco-friendly yoga mat.

• Why It Matters: Listing vendors can help customers filter products by brand, making it easier to navigate your store.

"Variant"

• Definition: Different versions of the same product, such as color, size, or material.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Offering a yoga mat in different colors (green, blue, purple).

• Why It Matters: Variants help streamline your product offerings and improve customer experience.

"Category"

Also known as Google Category

• Definition: A categorisation used to map your products for Google Shopping.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Categorising your yoga mats under "Sporting Goods > Yoga."

• Why It Matters: Proper Google categories help your products appear accurately in Google Shopping searches, increasing visibility.

"Tags"

Also known as Google Category

• Definition: Keywords or labels assigned to products to help organize and filter them within the store.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Adding tags like "eco-friendly" and "yoga" to a product.

• Why It Matters: Tags improve navigation and search functionality within your store, helping customers find products easily. Be careful using tags as they can create a high number of extra URL's with thin content, which can harm SEO.

"Search Engine Listing"

• Definition: The appearance of your Shopify page in search engine results, including the title, description, and URL.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Reviewing how a product page appears on Google search, including its meta title and description.

• Why It Matters: Optimising search engine listings can improve click-through rates from search results.

"Theme Template"

• Definition: The layout and design used to display your Shopify pages, such as product or collection pages.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using a custom template to showcase best-sellers with a unique layout.

• Why It Matters: Custom templates can improve user experience and highlight specific products more effectively.

"Default Theme Content"

• Definition: The pre-designed content and layout that come with a Shopify theme.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using default banners and sections provided by a free Shopify theme.

• Why It Matters: Default content can be customised to fit your brand, but using it without modification can make your store look generic.

"Customer Events"

• Definition: Actions taken by customers on your Shopify store that can trigger specific processes, like purchases or adding to cart.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: A "purchase" event being used to track conversions for advertising.

• Why It Matters: Understanding customer events helps measure campaign effectiveness and customer journey performance.

"Custom Pixels"

• Definition: Code snippets added to your Shopify store to track customer behavior or conversions for third-party analytics.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Adding a Facebook Pixel to track ad campaign performance.

• Why It Matters: Pixels help measure the success of marketing campaigns and can be used for retargeting customers.

"Liquid"

• Definition: Shopify's open-source template language used for customizing themes.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Using Liquid to add custom features to your store, such as displaying unique product messages.

• Why It Matters: Understanding Liquid can help you make more detailed and effective customisations to your store's appearance and functionality.

"Themes"

• Definition: The templates used to define the look and feel of your Shopify store.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Choosing a minimalistic theme to emphasise product images.

• Why It Matters: The theme is your store's first impression—selecting the right one impacts user experience, conversions and SEO.

"Navigation"

• Definition: The menus and links that help users move around your Shopify store.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: A top navigation bar with links to "Home," "Shop," and "Blog."

• Why It Matters: Effective navigation makes it easy for customers to find what they're looking for, improving user experience and SEO.

"Markets"

• Definition: Shopify's feature that allows you to manage multiple markets (e.g., countries) from a single store.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: Creating separate pricing and content for US and UK customers.

• Why It Matters: Markets help you manage your international strategy efficiently, optimising for different locations.

"Click-Through Rate (CTR)"

• Definition: The percentage of people who click on your link after seeing it in search results.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If 100 people see your product page in search results and 10 click on it, your CTR is 10%.

• Why It Matters: A higher CTR means your meta titles and descriptions are effective, bringing more potential buyers to your site.

"Conversion Rate"

• Definition: The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If 100 visitors land on your product page and 3 make a purchase, your conversion rate is 3%.

• Why It Matters: A higher conversion rate means your product pages and customer journey are optimized to turn visitors into customers.

"Bounce Rate"

• Definition: The percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If someone visits your product page but leaves without exploring further, that counts as a bounce.

• Why It Matters: A high bounce rate may indicate that users aren't finding what they need or that your page takes too long to load.

"Bounce Rate"

• Definition: The percentage of visitors who leave your site after viewing only one page.

• Example for Shopify Store Owners: If someone visits your product page but leaves without exploring further, that counts as a bounce.

• Why It Matters: A high bounce rate may indicate that users aren't finding what they need or that your page takes too long to load.