Marketing and Sales Vocabulary

A comprehensive collection of $$104$$ marketing and sales terms and definitions, covering digital strategies, metrics, and consumer engagement concepts.

A/B Testing

Testing two versions of a webpage, email subject line, landing page, CTA, etc. to see which one performs better.

Advertising

Putting a spotlight on a product, service or business through paid broadcasting – print or digital.

Analytics

Tracking data and creating meaningful patterns from it that inform future marketing endeavors.

Annual Recurring Revenue

Repeating income for one calendar year. It’s often subscription-based revenue (ARR).

Artificial Intelligence

A computer, machine, or software system or process that can mimic certain aspects of human intellect.

Baseline

The starting point from which comparisons are made for analysis, performance improvement, forecasting and strategy creation.

Blogging

Writing articles, commentaries, and the like, publishing regularly on their website to drive traffic and leads.

Bottom of the Funnel

A stage in the buying process where leads move through identifying problems and solutions and are ready to buy.

Bounce Rate

The number of people who land on a page of your website and leave without clicking on anything.

Brand

Anything that brings about awareness of a specific product, service or business while separating it from others.

Brand Awareness

The extent to which a brand is recognized by potential customers and correctly associated with a particular product.

Business-to-Business (B2B)

Describing a business that markets or sells to other businesses.

Business-to-Consumer (B2C)

Describing a business that markets and sells to consumers.

Buyer Persona

A summary of your ideal buyer, based on market research, data and hypothesis.

Call to Action (CTA)

This tells your audience what action you want them to take (e.g., “Buy now, get a quote, join today”).

CAN-SPAM

A law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, etc.

Case Study

A detailed report on how an individual or company used your product/service to achieve specific results.

Churn Rate

The percentage of customers who cancel a product or service or leave within a specified time period.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

The number showing people that move through your website, calculated by clicks divided by total possible actions.

Closed-Loop Marketing

Data-driven marketing based on insights from tracking the customer journey from beginning to end.

Cloud Computing

Using remote servers hosted on the internet to store, manage, and process data.

Cold Calling

Approaching prospective clients by phone or face-to-face without having ever had prior interaction.

Comparative Advertising

Advertising in which a company makes a direct comparison to another brand, firm or organization.

Content Marketing

A marketing method focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content.

Conversion Path

The course of actions a prospect will go through to eventually become a lead (CTA, lead form, thank you page, etc.).

Conversion Rate

Percentage of people who take a desired action (e.g., filling out a form) other than just browsing.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Business activities intended to benefit the community or the environment.

Cost Per Click (CPC)

An advertising metric used to determine the amount paid for ads based on how many clicks the ad receives.

Cost Per Lead (CPL)

The total cost marketing pays to acquire a lead, influencing your Customer Acquisition Cost.

Customer Acquisition Cost

A measurement assessing the cost of scaling business by dividing acquisition spend by new customers gained.

Customer Lifetime Value

A prediction of the net profit attributed to the entire future relationship with a customer.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Software that helps organize all marketing and sales activities, contact info, tracking emails, and more.

Demographics

Specific profiling considering age, gender, income, family life, social class, etc., used in segmentation.

Digital Marketing

Marketing to a target audience solely via the internet, such as email or content marketing.

Direct Mail

Advertising communication reaching consumers at home or business through mail, often based on location.

Direct Marketing

Dealing directly with the ‘end user’ rather than a third party or middle man.

E-book

Generally a piece of longer content designed to generate leads, also referred to as a lead magnet.

Ecommerce

The means of selling products digitally on the internet.

Email Marketing

Promoting your products and services by engaging with your audience via email.

Engagement Rate

A measurement of likes, shares, comments or other interaction a particular piece of content receives.

Evergreen Content

Timeless content that is valuable today and in the future, offering SEO benefits and quality information.

Friction

Any aspect of your website that is hard to understand, distracting or causes visitors to move on.

Geofencing

A location-based service that sends messages to smartphone users within a specific geographic area.

Google My Business

A free tool allowing businesses to manage their online presence across Google.

Hashtag

A keyword phrase with a # in front, allowing audiences to interact about specific topics on social media.

Inbound Marketing

Advertising via content marketing, podcasts, SEO, social marketing, etc., rather than paid advertising.

Infographic

A type of content that is visual in nature, making complex information easy to understand and digest.

Key Performance Indicator (KPI)

A means to measure performance of various factors, from employee functions to marketing tactics.

Landing Page

A website page housing a form where prospects exchange info for a lead magnet or free offer.

Lead

An individual or company that has shown interest in one of your products or services (MQL or SQL).

Lead Generation

Activities like content marketing or advertising intended to generate interest about your product or service.

Lead Nurturing

Engaging and building relationships with potential customers through a variety of marketing techniques.

Lead Scoring

A method used to rank leads based on their value to the organization.

Local SEO

Optimizing your online presence to attract more business from relevant local searches.

Logotype

A graphic design or symbol used by a company to identify its products.

Marketing

The process of identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements in a profitable way.

Marketing Automation

Tools letting you automate campaigns to send the right messages to the right people at the right time.

Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL)

A lead ready to be handed to sales after positive interaction like downloading marketing products.

Market Research

High-intelligence research and development of a specific industry for sound business decisions.

Market Segmentation

Dividing a target market into smaller, more meaningful groups based on common characteristics.

Market Share

The percentage of sales in a market that is controlled by a particular company.

Middle of the Funnel

The stage buyer enters after identifying a problem, where you position your business as the solution.

Mobile Marketing

Marketing specifically designed for mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.

Native Advertising

A type of paid advertising that matches the form and function of the platform upon which it appears.

Net Promoter Score (NPS)

A survey tool that measures the loyalty of customers to a company.

Newsfeed

A constantly updated list of news and information on a social media platform.

Niche Market

A very specific segment of a market in which you are trying to meet the needs of that market.

Off-Page SEO

Activities taken outside of your own website to impact your rankings within search engine results.

On-Page SEO

Optimizing individual web pages in order to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic.

Outbound Marketing

Traditional marketing where a company initiates the conversation and sends messages to an audience.

Page View

A single view of a webpage by a user.

Paid Search

Digital marketing where companies pay search engines to have their ads displayed.

Pay Per Click (PPC)

An internet advertising method where you only pay when someone “clicks” on your ad.

Product-led Growth

A business strategy that relies on using your product as the main vehicle to acquire and retain customers.

Public Relations (PR)

Media releases, conferences, etc., that make up and maintain the reputation of an organization and its brands.

Qualified Lead

A lead that meets criteria or persona attributes and is more likely to buy.

Relationship Marketing

Establishing relationships with the intent of developing long term association with prospects.

Responsive Design

A website that changes based on the device the consumer uses (mobile, laptop, desktop).

Return on Investment (ROI)

A way to measure the profitability of investments made in marketing, sales, etc.

Sales Funnel

The entire sales process as a whole – from prospect to paying customer – and all processes in between.

Sales Qualified Lead (SQL)

A lead that has been vetted by the sales team and is ready for the next stage.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

A method to increase a webpage’s performance and rank in web search results (keywords, tags, etc.).

Search Engine Results Page (SERP)

The page displayed by a search engine in response to a user's query.

Service Level Agreement (SLA)

A commitment between a service provider and a client about service standards.

S-marketing

The integration of sales and marketing to improve the skill sets and knowledge of both teams.

Social Media Marketing

Using social platforms to increase awareness, grow customer base and achieve business goals.

Social Proof

A psychological phenomenon where people copy the actions of others in certain situations.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

A software licensing and delivery model in which software is licensed on a subscription basis.

Stakeholder

Anyone with an interest in or affected by the actions of a business.

Target Audience

A specific group of consumers at which a company aims its marketing efforts.

Target Market

A group of potential buyers to which a company decides to direct its marketing efforts.

Target Marketing

Dividing a market into segments and focusing marketing efforts on one or a few key segments.

Telemarketing

Marketing goods or services by calling potential customers directly.

Top of the Funnel (TOFU)

Initial stage of buying process where customers look for answers to newly realized problems.

Unique Selling Proposition

A factor that differentiates a product from its competitors, such as low cost or quality.

User Experience (UX)

User experience with your brand/website from discovery through purchase and beyond.

Value Statement

Description of company priorities and how they translate into marketing and sales initiatives.

Viral Marketing

Promotion method relying on customers to market an idea, product or service on their own.

Website

Series of connected webpages starting with a homepage, designed to attract and convert users.

Workflow

A series of emails designed to nurture leads, segment lists, and engage prospects.