Google Ads
Ad Rank
Ad Rank is the set of auction-time calculations Google uses to decide whether an ad can show and where it appears.
Google AdsAd Strength
Ad Strength is a Google Ads diagnostic rating of the relevance, quantity and diversity of assets supplied for an ad or asset group.
Google AdsAsset Group
An asset group is a collection of creative assets and audience or product inputs used together within a Performance Max campaign.
Google AdsAuction Insights
Auction Insights is a Google Ads report that compares your visibility with other advertisers participating in the same eligible auctions.
Google AdsAudience Signal
An audience signal is an advertiser-provided input that helps Google understand which people may be relevant to a campaign.
Google AdsConversion Value
Conversion value is the numeric value assigned to an action recorded as a conversion in Google Ads.
Google AdsCost Per Click (CPC)
Cost per click is the average amount you pay when someone clicks your ad.
Google AdsCustomer Match
Customer Match is a Google Ads audience feature that uses a business's first-party customer data to reach, exclude or model audiences across eligible Google inventory.
Google AdsDemand Gen
Demand Gen is a Google Ads campaign type designed to create and capture demand with visual ads across Google's discovery-focused inventory.
Google AdsEnhanced Conversions
Enhanced conversions are a Google Ads measurement feature that uses hashed first-party customer data to improve conversion matching.
Google AdsKeyword Match Types
Keyword match types control how closely a search must relate to a keyword before Google can consider showing an ad.
Google AdsMaximize Conversion Value
Maximize Conversion Value is a Smart Bidding strategy designed to generate the greatest total recorded conversion value within the campaign's budget.
Google AdsMaximize Conversions
Maximize Conversions is a Smart Bidding strategy designed to generate the most recorded conversions possible within the campaign's budget.
Google AdsNegative Keywords
Negative keywords are terms that prevent ads from showing for searches containing or matching unwanted language.
Google AdsOptimization Score
Optimization Score is Google's estimate of how well a Google Ads account or campaign is set up to perform, expressed from 0% to 100%.
Google AdsPerformance Max
Performance Max is a goal-based Google Ads campaign type that can serve across Google's advertising inventory from one campaign.
Google AdsQuality Score
Quality Score is Google Ads' 1-to-10 diagnostic estimate of how your keyword and ad experience compare with other advertisers.
Google AdsResponsive Search Ads
A responsive search ad is a Google Search ad made from multiple headlines and descriptions that Google can assemble in different combinations.
Google AdsSearch Impression Share
The percentage of eligible Google Search impressions your ads actually received.
Google AdsSearch Lost Impression Share (Budget)
Search lost impression share due to budget estimates the percentage of eligible Search impressions missed because the campaign's budget was insufficient.
Google AdsSearch Lost Impression Share (Rank)
Search lost impression share due to rank estimates the percentage of eligible Search impressions missed because Ad Rank was too low.
Google AdsSearch Partners
Search Partners are non-Google websites and properties where eligible Google Search campaign ads can appear.
Google AdsSearch Terms
Search terms are the actual words people typed or spoke before seeing and clicking a Google Search ad.
Google AdsSearch Top Impression Rate
Search top impression rate is the percentage of your Search ad impressions that appeared above the unpaid organic results.
Google AdsSmart Bidding
Smart Bidding is Google Ads' group of automated bid strategies that use Google AI to optimize for conversions or conversion value in each auction.
Google AdsTarget CPA
Target CPA is a Smart Bidding strategy that seeks as many conversions as possible at roughly the average cost per acquisition target you set.
Google AdsTarget ROAS
Target ROAS is a Smart Bidding strategy that seeks conversion value while aiming for the average return on ad spend target you set.
Meta Ads
Advantage+ Placements
Advantage+ placements is Meta's automated option for distributing ads across eligible placements in Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Audience Network.
Meta AdsAdvantage+ Shopping Campaign
An Advantage+ shopping campaign is a Meta campaign setup that uses extensive automation to find likely purchasers and allocate delivery.
Meta AdsBroad Targeting
Broad targeting is a Meta advertising approach that leaves detailed audience restrictions minimal and lets the delivery system find likely converters.
Meta AdsCampaign Objective
A Meta campaign objective tells the delivery system which broad business outcome to optimize toward, such as awareness, traffic, engagement, leads, app promotion or sales.
Meta AdsCost Per Mille (CPM)
CPM is the average cost to deliver 1,000 ad impressions.
Meta AdsCustom Audience
A Custom Audience is a Meta audience built from people who already interacted with a business or appear in an eligible first-party data source.
Meta AdsEvent Match Quality
Event Match Quality is Meta's diagnostic estimate of how effectively customer information sent with an event may be matched to Meta accounts.
Meta AdsFrequency
Frequency is the average number of times each reached person saw an ad during the selected period.
Meta AdsLearning Phase
The learning phase is the period when Meta's delivery system is exploring how best to deliver a new or materially changed ad set.
Meta AdsLookalike Audience
A Lookalike Audience is a Meta audience of people who share characteristics with a selected source audience.
Meta AdsMeta Catalog Ads
Meta catalog ads use a product or service catalog to automatically show relevant items in ads.
Meta AdsMeta Conversions API
Meta Conversions API is a server-side method for sending marketing events from a business's systems to Meta.
Meta AdsMeta Lead Ads
Meta lead ads are ads that collect prospect information through an Instant Form or another supported lead conversion location.
Meta AdsMeta Pixel
The Meta Pixel is browser-based code that records selected website actions and sends them to Meta for measurement, audience building and ad optimization.
Meta AdsMeta Retargeting
Meta retargeting shows ads to people who previously interacted with a business, its website, app, content or Meta profiles.
Measurement
Attribution
Attribution is the process of assigning credit for a conversion to one or more marketing interactions.
MeasurementAttribution Window
An attribution window is the period after an ad interaction during which a later conversion may be credited to that interaction.
MeasurementCall Tracking
Call tracking measures phone calls generated by marketing and connects them to sources such as campaigns, keywords or landing pages.
MeasurementConversion Lag
Conversion lag is the time between a marketing interaction and the conversion it eventually influences or receives credit for.
MeasurementConversion Rate
Conversion rate is the percentage of eligible visits, clicks or users that complete a defined conversion.
MeasurementConversion Tracking
Conversion tracking records actions that a business considers valuable and connects them to marketing activity.
MeasurementCross-Channel Deduplication
Cross-channel deduplication identifies when multiple platforms or touchpoints are claiming the same conversion and avoids treating those claims as separate sales.
MeasurementData-Driven Attribution
Data-driven attribution is an attribution model that uses observed conversion paths and modeling to distribute credit among eligible marketing interactions.
MeasurementEvent Deduplication
Event deduplication prevents the same real-world action sent through multiple tracking methods from being counted more than once.
MeasurementFirst-Party Data
First-party data is information a business collects directly through its own customer and prospect relationships.
MeasurementGoogle Analytics 4 (GA4)
Google Analytics 4 is Google's event-based analytics platform for measuring activity across websites and apps.
MeasurementIncrementality
Incrementality is the additional outcome caused by marketing compared with what would have happened without it.
MeasurementMarketing Mix Modeling
Marketing mix modeling uses aggregated historical data and statistical analysis to estimate how marketing and other factors relate to business outcomes.
MeasurementOffline Conversion Import
Offline conversion import sends outcomes that happen after the initial online interaction—such as qualified leads, closed sales or booked jobs—back into an advertising or analytics platform.
MeasurementRevenue Per Click (RPC)
Revenue per click is the average revenue associated with each advertising click.
MeasurementServer-Side Tracking
Server-side tracking sends marketing or analytics events from a server-controlled environment rather than relying only on code running in the visitor's browser.
MeasurementUTM Parameters
UTM parameters are standardized tags added to a URL so analytics tools can identify the source, medium, campaign and other details of referred traffic.
MeasurementView-Through Conversion
A view-through conversion is a conversion credited after someone saw an ad, did not click it, and converted later within the attribution window.
Marketing Economics
Average Order Value (AOV)
Average order value is the average revenue generated by each completed order during a defined period.
Marketing EconomicsBlended ROAS
Blended ROAS is total revenue divided by total advertising spend across the selected business, channels or campaigns.
Marketing EconomicsBreak-Even ROAS
Break-even ROAS is the return on ad spend at which the contribution generated by attributed revenue equals the advertising cost.
Marketing EconomicsContribution Margin
Contribution margin is the revenue remaining after subtracting variable costs associated with producing and fulfilling the sale.
Marketing EconomicsCost Per Acquisition (CPA)
Cost per acquisition is the average marketing cost required to generate a defined acquisition or conversion.
Marketing EconomicsCustomer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Customer acquisition cost is the average total cost required to acquire a new paying customer.
Marketing EconomicsCustomer Acquisition Payback Period
Customer acquisition payback period is the time required for a new customer's cumulative contribution margin to recover the cost of acquiring that customer.
Marketing EconomicsCustomer Lifetime Value (LTV)
Customer lifetime value estimates the economic value a customer generates across the relationship with a business.
Marketing EconomicsLTV-to-CAC Ratio
The LTV-to-CAC ratio compares estimated customer lifetime value with the cost required to acquire a new customer.
Marketing EconomicsMarginal ROAS
Marginal ROAS is the additional revenue generated by an additional unit of ad spend.
Marketing EconomicsMarketing Efficiency Ratio (MER)
Marketing efficiency ratio is total business revenue divided by total marketing spend for the same period.
Marketing EconomicsProfit on Ad Spend (POAS)
Profit on ad spend measures profit or contribution attributed to advertising relative to advertising cost.
Marketing EconomicsReturn on Ad Spend (ROAS)
Return on ad spend is revenue attributed to advertising divided by advertising cost.
SEO & AEO
Canonical URL
A canonical URL is the preferred URL selected for a page when the same or very similar content can be accessed at multiple URLs.
SEO & AEOCrawlability
Crawlability is the ability of a search engine crawler to discover and access a page and its important resources.
SEO & AEOIndexability
Indexability is a page's technical eligibility to be included in a search engine's index.
SEO & AEOInternal Linking
Internal linking is the practice of linking one page on a website to another page on the same website.
SEO & AEORobots.txt
Robots.txt is a text file at a site's root that gives compliant web crawlers instructions about which URL paths they may request.
SEO & AEOSchema Markup
Schema markup is structured data added to a page to describe its entities and content in a machine-readable vocabulary.
SEO & AEOSearch Intent
Search intent is the underlying goal a person is trying to accomplish with a search query.
SEO & AEOXML Sitemap
An XML sitemap is a machine-readable file listing canonical URLs a site wants search engines to discover and consider for indexing.
Definitions first. Strategy second.
These entries are intentionally direct. Where Darlington has a deeper guide, the definition page links to it for implementation, examples and decision-making.