AZ of Digital Terms
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
A-Z of digital terms This A-Z of digital media terms will help you understand what they actually mean. From algorithms and avatars through to MPU and Unique User, this guide will help you get to grips with the most frequently used terms at the heart of online advertising. A-Z of Digital Media Terms Ad Impression An advertisement‟s single appearance on a user‟s browser. For example, if the page you‟re on shows three ads, that‟s three ad impressions. Advertisers use impressions to measure the number of views their ads receive, and publishers sometimes sell their ad space according to impressions. Ad Network An aggregate seller or broker of advertising inventory for multiple web properties, usually allowing a campaign to run across many sites with a single insertion order e.g Google Display network. Ad Serving Delivery of online adverts to an end user‟s computer by an ad management system. The system allows different online adverts to be served in order to target different audience groups and can serve adverts across multiple sites. So rather than supplying your ad to several different publishers individually, you upload the ad into an adserver and the publishers pull in the ads from the adserver. DART and Doubleclick are two of the most popular Ad Serving solution providers. Affiliate Marketing An agreement between two websites in which one site agrees to feature content or an ad designed to drive traffic to another site. If a consumer visiting the affiliate‟s site clicks on this advertisement and goes onto perform a specified action (usually a purchase) on an advertiser‟s site then the affiliate receives a commission. Algorithm The set of „rules‟ a search engine may use to determine the relevance of a web page (and therefore ranking) in its organic search results. See also organic search results and Search Engine Optimisation. Augmented reality (AR) A term for a live direct or an indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data. It is related to a more general concept called mediated reality, in which a view of reality is modified (possibly even diminished rather than augmented) by a computer. As a result, the technology functions by enhancing one‟s current perception of reality. Avatar A picture or cartoon used to represent an individual in chat forums, games or on a website as a help function. Banner An online advert usually found running on commercial websites. Behavioural Targeting A form of online marketing that uses advertising technology to target web users based on their previous behaviour. Advertising creative and content can be tailored to be of more relevance to a particular user by capturing their previous decision making behaviour (e.g.: filling out preferences or visiting certain areas of a site frequently) and looking for patterns. Beta A test version of a product or service, prior to final release. Blog An online space regularly updated presenting the opinions or activities of one or a group of individuals and displaying in chronological order. Button A small square online advert usually found embedded within a website page. Broadband An internet connection that is always on and that delivers a higher bit rate (128kbps or above) than a standard dial-up connection. It allows for a better online experience as pages load quickly and you can download items faster. Click-through When a user interacts with an advertisement and clicks through to the advertiser‟s website. CTR (click-through rate) Frequency of click-throughs as a percentage of impressions served. Contextual advertising Advertising that is targeted to the content on the Web page being viewed by a user at that specific time. Cookie A small text file on the user‟s PC that identifies the user‟s browser and hence, users are „recognised‟ when they re-visit a site e.g.: it allows usernames to be stored and websites to personalise their offering. Conversion rate A measure of success for an online ad when compared to the click-through rate. What defines a „conversion‟ depends on the marketing objective e.g.: it can be defined as a sale or request to receive more information...etc. CPA (Cost-Per-Action) Cost of advertising based on a visitor taking some specifically defined action in response to an ad. “Actions” include such things as a sales transaction, a customer acquisition, or a click. CPC (Cost- Per-Click) The cost an advertiser pays to acquire a click-through. CPL (Cost-Per-Lead) Cost of advertising based on the number of generated leads recorded. CPM (Cost per Mille) Also known as Cost per Thousand. M is the Roman numeral for thousand; hence CPM rather than CPT. Online advertising can be purchased on the basis of what it costs to show the ad to one thousand viewers (CPM). CRM Short for customer relationship marketing, describing campaigns specifically targeted to increasing brand loyalty. Deep-linking Advert Linking beyond a home page to a page inside the site with content pertinent to the advert. Domain Name The unique name of an internet site e.g. www.playhousecomm.com. Drill Down When a website visitor accesses additional pages and goes deeper into a website. Emoticons Emoticon symbols are used to indicate mood in an electronic mode of communication e.g.: email or windows live instant messenger. :-). Expandable banner/skyscraper Online advertising placements that expand over the page in the response to user action e.g.: mouse-over. See also Rich Media. Extranet A private network or website that uses Internet technology and the public telecommunication system to securely share part of business‟s internal information or operations with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers, or other businesses. Flash Web design software that creates animation and interactive elements which are quick to download. 3G 3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000) specifications by the International Telecommunication Union. Application services include wide-area wireless voice telephone, mobile Internet access, video calls and mobile TV, all in a mobile environment. 4G 4G is the 4th Generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunications that adheres to the IMT Advanced specifications by the International Telecommunication Union. It is a successor to the 3G and 2G families of standards. Mobile telecommunications that use 4G are expected to provide a comprehensive and secure IP based mobile broadband solution to laptop computer wireless modems, smartphones, and other mobile devices. Hit Also known as page hit, is the retrieval of any file from a web server, includes web pages and all associated image files, i.e. every file and image on a website will record a hit. This term is commonly used by many as a measure of success for website traffic but some argue that unique visitors and page impressions are more appropriate variables to use. Homepage The main entrance page of a website. Hot Spot An area of an image or a section of a text that activates a function when clicked on. HTML Stands for Hyper Text Mark-up Language, which is the set of commands used by web browsers to interpret and display page content to users. Hyperlink Highlighted words or images that take you to another section within the same document or retrieves a different document. Impression The metric used to measure views of a webpage and all its parts - including the advertising embedded within it. Ad Impressions is how most online advertising is sold and the cost is quoted in terms of the cost per thousand impressions (CPM). Instant messaging Sending messages and chatting with friends or colleagues in real-time when you are both online via a special application. Windows Live Messenger is the most popular application. Interruptive formats Online advertising formats that appear on users‟ screens on top of web content (and sometimes before web pages appear) and range from static, one-page splash screens to full-motion animated advertisements. See also overlay and pop-up. Interstitial Ads Are ads that appear between two content pages. Also known as splash pages and transition ads. See also Rich Media. Intranet A network based on TCP/IP protocols that belongs to an organisation and is accessible only by the organisation‟s internal members, employees or others with specific authorisation. Inventory The number of advertising impressions available to be sold to interested third parties. IP address The numerical internet address assigned to each computer on a network so that it can be distinguished from other computers. Expressed as four groups of numbers separated by dots. IPTV (Internet Protocol TV) The use of a broadband connection to stream digital television over the internet to subscribed users. ISP (Internet Service Provider) A company which provides users with the means to connect to the internet. E.g.: Starcomms, Mobitel, Swift , etc... Jump Page Ad A micro-site which is reached after a click-through from an interactive ad, usually with specific content that provides advertising message continuity. This is normally frequency capped so users are not continually exposed to the advertising each time they visit the web site where the jump page is running. Keyword marketing The purchase of keywords (or „search terms‟) by advertisers in search listings. Link Popularity Refers to the number and quality of inbound links to a web site from other web sites. One of the highest quality inbound links is a link from a major directory such as Yahoo! Log files A record of all the hits a web server has received over a given period of time.