I was on a content call with one of our clients recently. The design chat had already taken place and I started off the call with, “Hi, are you ready to talk content?” Much confusion ensued. The client thought we were talking about the “script”, not whatever this “content” thing was. I wasn’t sure why they would think we were talking about programming language and not content. After some confused mumbling on my part, we realized we were both talking about the same thing: the writing on the page.
Hence, the inspiration for this post: The Client-to-Agency Dictionary (compact edition).
Client
Agency
Writing
Content
What used to be just known as “writing” or “copy” in the print world is known as content in the online world. Content can be any written word on a webpage, like a blog post, page title, home page, meta description, CTA, etc.
AKA: Copy, Scripts, Text, Words, Paragraphs
Tabs
Navigation
“Tabs” is a holdover from the early days of the internet, when site navigation mimicked the way the tabs on file folders looked in a filing cabinet. The navigation of a site’s main or most important pages is listed across the top on the navigation bar.
AKA: The Menu, The Navigation Bar, The Nav Bar, Header Navigation, Menu Bar
Outline
Sitemap
A sitemap is like an outline, in a sense. It contains a hierarchy of every page that will be on your website, including main pages and subpages, as well as how they connect to each other.
AKA: List of Website Page Titles, Framework
Landing Page
Landing Page
This one is a little trickier. The meaning of landing page varies between platforms. In the most basic sense, it’s any page of a website someone lands on after a web search; it’s the entry point for the user.
In marketing, it has a very specific meaning — a landing page is a specialized web page to be used with online advertising and inbound marketing campaigns. It is a stand alone page from your navigation and is targeted for a specific purpose: to get a customer to take action. For example, the landing page can be a click through page to register for an event, purchase a product or download a white paper.
Snippet
Page Name
Title Tag
A title tag is given for each of your website’s pages. It is the title that appears on top of a meta description in search results, as well as at the top of your web browser. It’s more than just a page name, it tells both users and search engines what the page is about and contains important keywords.
AKA: Page Title, Title Element
The Slideshow
Slider
A slideshow, just like the slide projectors in the olden days, is a rotating array of images in a repeating order. A slideshow can be on any page. But a slider is more specific; it refers to large size, rotating images that only appear prominently on the home page.
AKA: Slider, Rotator, Rotating Slide, Carousel, Gallery Slider
Newsletter/Blog Post
Email Newsletter
When people say newsletter, they’re typically referring to an email newsletter. It is found, as the title suggests, in an email, and is sent out to a contact list. A newsletter is great for alerting customers about a new blog post on your website, but is not considered a blog or blog post in itself. Email newsletters are not posted on a website so they are not searchable by Google.
Blog Post
A blog post appears on your website’s blog. Every blog post is a new page of your website and customers have to go to your site to find it. It can be shared through an email newsletter, but it originates within your website, not email. Blogs are also searched and indexed by Google, which makes them great for SEO purposes.
Marketing/Sales
Marketing
The role of marketing is to create leads, opportunities and conversations. Marketing uses strategy to reach potential customers and it can include many elements like social media, content writing, branding, web design, PR, etc.
Sales
Sales is everything you do to convince a customer to purchase your service or product or to get a contract. Marketing is what brings customers to the point where you are able to make a sale.
Marketing is the description, sales is the pitch. For instance, Roundpeg provides marketing to help you create the sale, but we don’t close your sales.
Want More Definitions?
Have any definitions you want to add to the Client-to-Agency Dictionary? Would you like anything else defined? Leave your comments below.
