Core Concepts

Fundamental concepts and terminology you need to understand programmatic SEO.

Programmatic SEO

The practice of creating large numbers of web pages targeting similar search queries using templates populated with structured data.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)

The practice of optimizing content to be discovered, cited, and recommended by AI-powered search systems and large language models.

Page Templates

Reusable HTML structures that define layout and content placement, populated dynamically with data to create multiple unique pages.

Landing Page Variants

Multiple versions of landing pages created programmatically to target different keywords, locations, or user segments.

Long-tail Keywords

Specific, multi-word search phrases with lower volume but higher conversion intent, ideal for programmatic SEO targeting.

Search Intent

The underlying goal behind a user's search query - informational, navigational, transactional, or commercial investigation.

Head Terms

Short, high-volume keywords with broad meaning and high competition, typically 1-2 words.

Keyword Modifiers

Words added to base keywords to create variations, such as locations, years, adjectives, or qualifiers.

SERP Features

Special result formats on search engine results pages including featured snippets, knowledge panels, image packs, and local packs.

Organic Traffic

Website visitors who arrive through unpaid search engine results rather than paid advertisements.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

The percentage of users who click on a search result after seeing it, calculated as clicks divided by impressions.

Impressions

The number of times a page appears in search results, regardless of whether users click on it.

Search Volume

The average number of times a keyword is searched per month, indicating demand and potential traffic.

Keyword Difficulty

A metric estimating how hard it is to rank for a keyword, based on competitor strength and backlink requirements.

Domain Authority

A score predicting how likely a domain is to rank in search results, based on link profile and other factors.

Backlinks

Links from external websites pointing to your pages, serving as votes of confidence that influence search rankings.

Anchor Text

The clickable text of a hyperlink, providing context about the linked page's content to both users and search engines.