SEO & Keyword Research Glossary

Search Volume

The average number of times a keyword is searched for in a search engine per month. Search volume helps you understand the potential traffic a keyword could bring to your site.

Example: A keyword with 5,000 monthly search volume is searched approximately 5,000 times per month on Google.

Keyword Difficulty (KD)

A metric (0-100) that estimates how hard it will be to rank in the top 10 organic search results for a specific keyword. Higher scores indicate more competition.

Scale: 0-20 (very easy), 21-40 (easy), 41-60 (medium), 61-80 (hard), 81-100 (very hard)

CPC (Cost Per Click)

The average amount advertisers pay for each click on a paid search ad for a keyword. Higher CPC often indicates keywords with commercial value and buyer intent.

Example: A keyword with $5.50 CPC means advertisers pay $5.50 on average when someone clicks their ad for that keyword.

SERP (Search Engine Results Page)

The page displayed by a search engine in response to a user's query. It includes organic results, paid ads, featured snippets, and other SERP features.

Tip: Analyzing the SERP helps you understand what type of content ranks for your target keyword.

Domain Rating (DR)

A metric (0-100) that measures the overall strength and authority of a website's backlink profile. Higher DR indicates a more authoritative domain.

Note: Sites with high DR (70+) like Wikipedia or Forbes are very difficult to compete against.

URL Rating (UR)

A metric (0-100) that measures the strength of a specific page's backlink profile, similar to Domain Rating but for individual pages rather than entire domains.

Long-Tail Keywords

Longer, more specific keyword phrases (typically 3-5+ words) with lower search volume but higher conversion rates. They're easier to rank for than short "head" keywords.

Example: "best running shoes for flat feet women" (long-tail) vs. "running shoes" (head term)

Search Intent

The goal or purpose behind a user's search query. Understanding search intent helps you create content that matches what users are looking for.

Types: Informational (learning), Navigational (finding a site), Transactional (buying), Commercial (researching before buying)

Backlinks

Links from other websites pointing to your site. Backlinks are one of Google's most important ranking factors, especially from authoritative sites.

Quality > Quantity: One backlink from a high-authority site is worth more than 100 links from low-quality sites.

Organic Traffic

Visitors who arrive at your website by clicking on unpaid (organic) search results, as opposed to paid ads. Organic traffic is the primary goal of SEO.

Traffic Potential

An estimate of how much organic traffic the top-ranking page for a keyword receives from all the keywords it ranks for, not just the target keyword.

Why it matters: A page ranking #1 for a keyword often ranks for hundreds of related keywords too.

SERP Features

Special result types displayed in search results beyond standard organic listings, such as featured snippets, People Also Ask boxes, image packs, and knowledge panels.

Referring Domains

The number of unique websites (domains) that link to a specific page or website. More referring domains from quality sites generally indicates higher authority.

Keyword Clustering

Grouping related keywords together based on search intent and topic similarity. This helps you create comprehensive content that ranks for multiple keywords.

On-Page SEO

Optimization of elements within your website (content, HTML tags, internal links, etc.) to improve search rankings. This is what you directly control.

Off-Page SEO

Actions taken outside your website to impact rankings, primarily building backlinks from other sites. This demonstrates authority and trust to search engines.

Meta Description

A brief summary (150-160 characters) of a page's content that appears in search results below the title. While not a direct ranking factor, it affects click-through rates.

Anchor Text

The clickable text in a hyperlink. The words used in anchor text help search engines understand what the linked page is about.

Example: In "Check out this keyword research guide", the anchor text is "keyword research guide"