Marketing glossary
Marketing jargon, defined simply — with examples and why it matters. 38 terms.
AOV
Average Order Value — the average value of a single order.
Example: 10 orders, £2,500 total → AOV £250.
Why it matters: It influences what ROAS you can afford and how much you can pay per customer.
Attribution
How you decide which channel deserves the credit for a conversion.
Example: A customer sees a Meta ad, then searches on Google and buys. Who gets the credit?
Why it matters: It shapes how you read each channel's performance.
Bounce rate
The percentage of people who leave without any interaction.
Example: They land on the page, click nowhere, and leave.
Why it matters: A high bounce rate can signal a slow or irrelevant page.
Clicks
How many times your ad or link was clicked.
Example: 300 clicks from one campaign.
Why it matters: A step towards conversion, but clicks alone don't pay the bills.
Consent Mode
Google's mechanism that adjusts tracking based on GDPR consent.
Example: If a user declines cookies, data is collected anonymised/modelled.
Why it matters: Keeps you legally compliant without losing your data entirely.
Conversion
A valuable action: a sale, a form, a phone call, a booking.
Example: A visitor fills in your quote form → one conversion.
Why it matters: It's the real goal of marketing. Without conversions, optimisation is blind.
Read the guide →Conversion rate
The percentage of visitors who take the desired action.
Example: 100 visitors, 3 buy → a 3% rate.
Why it matters: A low rate usually means the problem is on the site or offer, not in the ads.
CPA
Cost Per Acquisition — how much you pay for a completed conversion (a sale or customer).
Example: £2,000 spent, 10 sales → CPA £200.
Why it matters: Closer to profit than CPL, because it measures the final result.
CPC
Cost Per Click — how much you pay for one click on your ad.
Example: £100 spent, 50 clicks → CPC £2.
Why it matters: A low CPC isn't good if the clicks don't convert.
CPL
Cost Per Lead — how much you pay for one contact (a form, a phone call).
Example: £1,500 spent, 30 leads → CPL £50.
Why it matters: Useful for comparing campaigns, but a low CPL can hide poor-quality leads.
Read the guide →CPM
Cost Per Mille — how much you pay for 1,000 impressions.
Example: CPM £20 = you pay £20 for every 1,000 impressions.
Why it matters: Useful for awareness campaigns, less so for direct performance.
Creative fatigue
When an ad seen too often loses its effect.
Example: After 2 weeks, the CTR drops and the cost rises on the same ad.
Why it matters: A signal that you need to refresh your visuals and message.
CTR
Click-Through Rate — the percentage of people who click out of those who see the ad.
Example: 1,000 impressions, 30 clicks → CTR 3%.
Why it matters: It shows how relevant your message is. A low CTR means the ad isn't pulling people in.
Demand Gen
Google demand-generation campaigns across YouTube, Gmail and Discover.
Example: Visual ads that build interest before someone searches.
Why it matters: Useful for creating new demand, not just capturing existing demand.
Display Ads
Visual ads (banners) on sites across the Google network.
Example: A banner showing your product on a news site.
Why it matters: Good for awareness and remarketing, weak for direct intent.
Engagement rate
The percentage of engaged visitors (in GA4) — sessions with real interaction.
Example: Engagement 65% = two out of three visitors interact.
Why it matters: Below 50% is a signal that something isn't working on the site.
Events
Actions tracked in GA4 (click, scroll, purchase).
Example: "purchase", "form_submit" and "phone_click" are events.
Why it matters: Events marked as conversions (key events) are the ones that matter.
Frequency
How many times the same person sees your ad.
Example: Frequency 5 = one person has seen the ad 5 times.
Why it matters: Too high → people get tired of it and costs rise (creative fatigue).
Read the guide →GA4
Google Analytics 4 — the free tool for measuring your traffic and conversions.
Example: See how many visitors you get, where they come from and how many convert.
Why it matters: The foundation of measurement. Without it, optimisation is guesswork.
Read the guide →GTM
Google Tag Manager — manage all your tags and conversions from one place.
Example: Add the Meta pixel and conversions without editing your website's code.
Why it matters: Simplifies tracking and reduces errors.
Impressions
How many times the ad or result was seen.
Example: The ad had 10,000 impressions in one week.
Why it matters: Volume, not results. Many impressions with no clicks means a weak message.
Landing page
The page a visitor lands on after clicking your ad.
Example: A page dedicated to one service, with a clear offer and a form.
Why it matters: A weak landing page wastes any ad budget, no matter how good.
Lead
A contact who has left their details — a potential customer.
Example: Someone requests a quote through your form → one lead.
Why it matters: The start of the customer relationship, but quality varies a lot.
Read the guide →LTV
Lifetime Value — how much a customer is worth over the whole relationship.
Example: A customer buys 4 times a year for 3 years → that's their LTV.
Why it matters: It justifies a higher acquisition cost for loyal customers.
Merchant Center
The Google platform where you upload your products for Shopping.
Example: Your product feed with price, image and stock syncs here.
Why it matters: Required for Shopping ads; a clean feed means better campaigns.
MQL
Marketing Qualified Lead — a lead that marketing considers promising.
Example: A lead who downloaded a guide and visited the pricing page.
Why it matters: Helps sales prioritise the warmer contacts.
Performance Max
A Google campaign type that runs automatically across all of Google's channels.
Example: Google decides where to show the ad: Search, YouTube, Display, Gmail.
Why it matters: Powerful with good data and solid tracking; risky without them.
Read the guide →Pixel
A piece of code that tracks visitor actions on your site (Meta, TikTok).
Example: The Meta pixel records who adds to basket or buys.
Why it matters: It powers ad optimisation and remarketing.
Read the guide →Product feed
A structured list of your products (price, image, description, stock).
Example: A file or stream that feeds Google Shopping and Meta.
Why it matters: A messy feed ruins the performance of ecommerce campaigns.
Quality Score
Google Ads' quality rating for the relevance of your ad and page.
Example: Relevant ad + good page → high score → lower cost.
Why it matters: A high score lowers your cost per click and improves your position.
Reach
How many distinct people saw the ad.
Example: 5,000 people saw the ad (vs 12,000 impressions).
Why it matters: The gap between reach and impressions shows the frequency.
Remarketing
Ads shown to people who have already interacted with you.
Example: You show an ad to people who visited your site but didn't buy.
Why it matters: Usually the most efficient type of campaign — the audience is already warm.
Retargeting
Almost a synonym for remarketing — re-showing ads to past visitors.
Example: The product you looked at "follows" you around your feed.
Why it matters: Wins back visitors who didn't convert the first time.
ROAS
Return on Ad Spend — how much revenue your ads bring in for every pound spent.
Example: £1,000 spent, £4,000 in sales → ROAS 4.
Why it matters: It shows how profitable your ads are, but it has to be read alongside your margin.
Read the guide →ROI
Return on Investment — profit measured against your total investment, not just ad spend.
Example: You invest £5,000 (ads + time) and make £8,000 profit → ROI 60%.
Why it matters: It measures the real return on your whole effort, not just your ad budget.
Search Ads
Text ads that appear in Google search results.
Example: You search "dentist Manchester" and see ads at the top.
Why it matters: The highest intent — you reach people who are actively searching.
Sessions
Visits to your site (one session = one visit, across several pages).
Example: A visitor who browses for 10 minutes = one session.
Why it matters: Visit volume; what matters is how many convert.
SQL
Sales Qualified Lead — a lead that sales has validated as ready to buy.
Example: An MQL whom sales has spoken to and confirmed the need and budget.
Why it matters: Closest to becoming a customer; it measures the real quality of your leads.