26 Important Marketing Term Definitions (for Home Builders & Developers)

6-min read

Learn the definitions of 26 marketing terms to make informed decisions about your strategy.

Like most successful home builders and developers, you probably receive a report every month about your marketing performance. Whether your marketing is done in house or with an agency, you should be able to know exactly what the report tells you without any confusion. In this article, you’ll learn 26 important marketing term definitions.

You should keep this article handy and refer to it next time you receive a digital marketing report because it can help you better understand your company reports and marketing. Without knowing what these terms mean, it can leave your business in the dark. The last thing you want is to have a decreasing SEO or marketing performance because of the inability to understand terminology.

I am here to help you understand important marketing term definitions for you to make the right business decisions moving forward.

 

26 Important Marketing Term Definitions:

 

• Artificial Intelligence (AI Marketing)

The true definition of AI is stemmed from computer science. However, for your purposes, AI’s marketing definition is a type of marketing which leverages artificial intelligence as a concept and model such as machine learning to achieve marketing goals. The majority of AI marketing is performed by a computer and an algorithm, not by a human.

 

• Blogging

A common SEO technique which is short for web log or weblog. A traditional blog includes regular entries of commentary, description of events, or other materials such as pictures and videos. It’s a core component of inbound marketing and can improve your website traffic and lead generation.

 

• Bounce Rate

Contrary to popular belief, bounce rate does not relate to time spent on a certain page. Bounce rate represents the percentage of visitors who enter the site and then leave rather than continuing to view pages within the same site. It counts as a bounce if your prospect takes no action on your website and departs.

 

• Brand Awareness

The level of consciousness that one of your consumers has with your company. In other words, it’s the extent to which consumers are familiar with the unique qualities or image of your brand.

 

• Brand Positioning

How your consumers identify and connect with your brand. For example, this term is what makes your brand different from your home building and developer competitors.

 

• Buyer Personas

The semi-fictional representations of your ideal homebuyer. Buyer personas include demographics, psychographics, and behavioral information. When you create buyer personas, think of creating a real home buyer with goals, motivations, and interests. Understanding the mind and lifestyle of the homebuyer is very beneficial to your marketing.

 

• CTR (Clickthrough Rate)

The percentage of your audience that clicks through one part of your website to the next step of your marketing campaign. The total number of clicks that a page on your website receives divided by the number of opportunities that someone had to click.

CTR in terms of retargeting means a ratio of how often people who see your ad end up clicking on it. A good CTA for retargeting is 0.7%.

CTR in terms of banner ads means the number of clicks that you ad receives divided by the number of times your ad is shown. A good CTR for banner ads depends on the type of ad. For example, overall display CTR is 0.05%,rich media ad CTR is 0.1% and Facebook ad CTR ranges from .5% to 1.6%.

CTR in terms of PPC ads means the number of clicks that you ad received divided by the number of times your ad is shown. A good CTR for PPC is about 2%.

 

• CTA (Call to Action)

This refers to the messaging for the next step a marketer wants its audience or reader to take. The most effective CTAs are obvious and are a clear message. For example, these include “Call Now”, “Subscribe Here”, or “Buy Today” with buttons or links. It’s what you want your target audience to click on.

 

• Content Marketing

A type of marketing that involves creating online materials. For instance, content marketing includes all articles, videos, blog, images, social media posts, etc. but does not explicitly promote your brand. Content marketing is intended to stimulate your target audience in being interested in your company. You should never use a heavy sales pitch.

 

• Conversion Rate

The ratio between the number of people that complete the desired action on a webpage and the number of people that visit that same webpage. It’s the percentage of people who convert from a CTA.

 

• Direct Traffic

This is the number of users who have visited your website by clicking on a link or typing your exact URL into their Internet browser. This normally measures the effectiveness of a digital marketing campaign.

 

• Impressions

This is the number of times your content was seen on screen. Also, this includes all devices such as desktop, tablet, and mobile devices. Refer to the reach definition later in this article as well for a better understanding of impressions.

 

• Keyword Research

This is the process of identifying the correct search terms your target audience uses when looking for products and services. SEO professionals use keyword research to find and investigate alternative search terms for more relevant content marketing as well as more effective PPC campaigns and other ads.

 

• KPI (Key Performance Indicator)

A key performance indicator is one of the many campaign performance measurements. These are specific numerical metrics to track the progress of a defined goal within your marketing channels. By tracking these, you can make adjustments to your various strategies and budget.

 

• Landing Page

This is a page on your website designed for lead generation. The most successful landing pages use a form to exchange consumer information such as an email or phone number. Many landing pages only have one clear CTA and conversion path. Too many CTAs or links will distract the consumer you want to convert.

 

• Lead Nurturing

The systematic process of educating and building trust with your target audience to guide them through the homebuyer’s journey. There are multiple steps of the marketing funnel with lead nurturing. Learn more about each step of lead nurturing here.

 

• Off-Page Optimization

Off-page optimization refers to the outside factors that impact a website’s SEO performance. It refers to incoming links coming to your website from outside sources. For instance, social media plays a big role in off-page optimization, especially when promoting a blog article.

 

• On-Page Optimization

On-page optimization refers to your internal website efforts for ranking high on Google and other search engines. This includes ranking for a specific keyword or phrase for a blog or page, or your website including meta-descriptions, title tags, and alt text on images.

 

• Organic Traffic

This is the number of users who have visited your website by typing a search request or keyword into their browser and have been served your page by their browser. For example, this includes the traffic coming to your website from your SEO efforts.

 

• PPC (Pay-Per-Click Advertising)

This is an Internet advertising method used to drive traffic to your website through paid ads. Essentially, you or your advertiser pays a publisher such as Google when an ad gets clicked on. Hence the words, pay-per-click. Most of the time, PPC ads are the very first to appear on the SERP (search engine results page, we’ll cover later).

 

• Reach

This is the number of people who saw your specific ads at least once. Reach is different from impressions, which may include multiple views of your ads by the same people. This number is an estimate based on the network’s algorithm, whether that be with Google, Facebook, or another platform for paid ads.

 

• Retargeting

Retargeting is a paid digital marketing technique which involves placing your advertisements in front of people who have visited your website recently and took no action. These visitors have visited your site then clicked away and went to other sites. Retargeting ads target consumers based on their previous Internet actions. For example, its able to track online users by using a pixel within the webpage or email which then sets a cookie in the visitor’s browser.

 

• SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

I could spend an entire day explaining to you what SEO entails, but in short, it means using content, keywords, link building, and development techniques to rank in high positions on the search engine results page (SERP). SEO is a long-term digital marketing strategy built with effective content marketing and a strong website and backlinks.

 

• SERP (Search Engine Results Page)

This is the page you land on when you search for something in Google, Yahoo!, or Bing. For example, on the first page of the SERP, you will see the top 10 results from your specific search query. On the second page, you will see results 11-20.

 

• Video Brochure

A card-like marketing piece that folds like a brochure and plays a video upon opening. Each one is hand-assembled and can be custom depending on your marketing needs. Use Video Brochures for a new product launch, community marketing, or realtor events. These are a very powerful visual marketing tool.

 

• Voice Search

This allows a homebuyer or homeowner to use voice command to search the Internet, your website, or an app. In essence, it’s when you use your phone, computer, or tablet to perform a search on the device through your voice only. The most well-known example of Voice Search includes Apple’s Siri.

Do you want me to inform you about any more important marketing term definitions? Comment them below!

 

Stay in the know about other important marketing term definitions and other techniques for home builders and developers by checking out the following articles:

• 10 FAQs About Home Builder & Developer Strategies Under COVID-19
• Digital Marketing For Home Builders & Developers: 5 Tips
• SEO Strategies to Sell Homes [10 for Home Builders & Developers]
• Home Builder Websites: 5 Elements to Strengthen Your SEO
• Features Home Builders & Developers Need [for More Single-Family Homebuyers]

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About Terry Zelen

Creative Director | Consultant | Author | President of Zelen Communications

Terry Zelen is a seasoned Creative Director with more than 35 years of experience in Home Builder advertising and marketing.

He is the founder of The Punch List, which is an online blog to help inform home builders and developers on strategic marketing insights to fuel their firm.