Website terms, in plain English

301 redirect

A permanent redirect that sends visitors and search engines from an old URL to a new one, passing on most of the old page's ranking value. Essential when you change URLs or redesign a site.

Backup

A saved copy of your website's files and database that can be restored if something goes wrong. Good backups run automatically and are stored off-site.

Block editor (Gutenberg)

WordPress's built-in editor, where pages are built from blocks like paragraphs, images and buttons. It's lightweight and free.

Bounce rate

The share of visitors who leave without interacting further. In Google Analytics 4 the related metric is engagement rate.

Cache / caching

Storing ready-made copies of pages so they load instantly instead of being built from scratch for every visitor. One of the biggest speed improvements for WordPress.

CDN (Content Delivery Network)

A network of servers around the world that delivers your images and files from a location close to each visitor, making the site faster.

CMS (Content Management System)

Software that lets you create and edit website content without coding. WordPress is the most widely used CMS.

Conversion

A visitor taking the action you want, such as submitting a form, calling, clicking WhatsApp or buying.

Core Web Vitals

Google's three user-experience metrics: LCP (loading), INP (responsiveness) and CLS (visual stability).

CTA (Call to Action)

A button or link that tells visitors what to do next, like "Get a Free Quote" or "Book an Appointment".

DNS (Domain Name System)

The system that connects your domain name to the server hosting your website and email. Nameservers and DNS records control where your domain points.

Domain name

Your website's address, like example.com. It's renewed every year with a domain registrar.

Elementor

A popular drag-and-drop page builder for WordPress that lets you design pages visually. Elementor Pro adds theme templates, forms and popups.

Favicon

The small icon shown in browser tabs and bookmarks next to your site's name.

Google Business Profile

Your free business listing on Google Search and Maps, showing your hours, reviews, photos and website. Key for local SEO.

Google Search Console

A free Google tool showing how your site appears in search, which queries bring clicks, and any indexing or security problems.

GA4 (Google Analytics 4)

Google's free analytics tool for measuring visitors, traffic sources and conversions on your website.

Hosting

The service that stores your website on a server and makes it available on the internet. Quality hosting affects speed and uptime.

HTTPS / SSL certificate

Encryption that secures the connection between visitors and your website, shown by the padlock in the browser. Required for trust and SEO.

Indexing

When Google adds a page to its database so it can appear in search results. Pages that aren't indexed can't rank.

Keyword

A word or phrase people type into search engines. SEO involves creating pages that match the keywords your customers use.

Landing page

A focused page designed for one goal, usually capturing leads from an ad campaign.

Lazy loading

Loading images and videos only when they are about to scroll into view, which speeds up the initial page load.

Local SEO

Optimizing your website and Google Business Profile to appear in local searches like "dentist near me" and in Google Maps.

Meta description

A short summary of a page (around 150–160 characters) that often appears under the title in Google results.

Mobile-first / responsive design

Design that adapts to every screen size, built primarily for phones since most visitors browse on mobile.

Payment gateway

A service like Razorpay, PayU or Cashfree that processes online payments by UPI, card and net banking on your website.

Plugin

An add-on that extends WordPress with new features, such as forms, SEO tools, security or WooCommerce.

Schema markup (structured data)

Code that helps search engines understand your content, such as your business details, FAQs, products or articles, and can enable rich results.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Improving your website so it ranks higher in search engines for the searches your customers make.

Sitemap (XML sitemap)

A file listing the pages on your website to help search engines find and index them.

Slug

The part of a URL that identifies a specific page, like /wordpress-maintenance/.

Staging site

A private copy of your website used to build and test changes before they go live.

Theme

The design framework that controls how a WordPress site looks. Popular lightweight themes include Astra and Hello Elementor.

Title tag

The page title shown in browser tabs and as the clickable headline in Google results. One of the most important on-page SEO elements.

Uptime

The percentage of time your website is online and working. Good hosting keeps uptime very high.

UX (User Experience)

How easy and pleasant your website is to use, from navigation and readability to speed and mobile usability.

WooCommerce

A free plugin that turns WordPress into a full online store with products, cart, checkout and payment gateways.

WordPress

Free, open-source software for building websites. It powers a large share of all websites, from blogs to large business sites.

White-label development

Work done by a developer on behalf of an agency and delivered under the agency's brand, without the developer being credited.

Want to go deeper? Read the blog or ask me a question.