Website words, in plain English
27 words you meet when you run a website, from above the fold to robots.txt. Each one says what it means, why it matters for a small business site, how to check yours and the mistakes to avoid.
Layout and first impressions
Above the fold
Above the fold is the part of a web page people see before they scroll: the first screen.
Read, then check your siteCall to actionCTA
A call to action is the button or link that asks a visitor to take the next step, such as “Book a table” or “Get a quote”.
Read, then check your siteHero section
The hero section is the large opening block at the top of a page: usually a headline, a short supporting line, a main button and an image.
Read, then check your siteWhite space
White space is the empty space between and around things on a page (margins, gaps and line spacing), whatever its colour.
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Readable for everyone
Typography hierarchy
Typography hierarchy is the use of size, weight, colour and spacing to show which text matters most and in what order to read it.
Read, then check your siteColour contrast
Colour contrast is the difference in lightness between text (or a button) and the colour behind it, measured as a ratio from 1:1 to 21:1.
Read, then check your siteWCAGWeb Content Accessibility Guidelines
WCAG, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, is the W3C standard for making websites usable by people with disabilities; version 2.2 is the current one.
Read, then check your siteAlt text
Alt text is a short written description of an image, kept in the page’s code, that screen readers read aloud and search engines use to understand it.
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Showing up on Google and in AI answers
Meta description
A meta description is a short summary of a page, written in its code, that search engines may show under the page title in their results.
Read, then check your siteTitle tag
A title tag is the page title set in its code: the text shown in the browser tab and, usually, as the clickable headline in search results.
Read, then check your siteSchema markupstructured data
Schema markup is structured data in a page’s code that tells search engines and AI assistants exactly what things are, such as your business, address or prices.
Read, then try itSitemapsitemap.xml
A sitemap is a file, usually sitemap.xml, that lists the pages on your site you want search engines to find.
Read, then try itrobots.txt
robots.txt is a small text file at the root of a website that tells search engine crawlers which parts of the site they may and may not crawl.
Read, then try itCanonical URL
A canonical URL is the one address you tell search engines is the main version of a page, when the same content can be reached at several addresses.
Read, then try itOpen Graphog tags
Open Graph tags are lines in a page’s code that set the title, description and image shown when its link is shared in apps like WhatsApp, LinkedIn and Slack.
Read, then try itFavicon
A favicon is the small icon that stands for your site in browser tabs, bookmarks and phone home screens, and next to your site’s name in Google results.
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Speed
Core Web VitalsLCP, INP and CLS
Core Web Vitals are three measures Google uses for how a page feels to use: loading (LCP), responsiveness (INP) and visual stability (CLS).
Read, then check your sitePage speed
Page speed is how quickly a web page loads and becomes usable for a visitor, on their device and their connection.
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Measuring results
Bounce rate
Bounce rate is the share of visits in which someone arrives on your site and leaves without engaging with it.
Read, then check your siteConversion rate
Conversion rate is the percentage of visitors who do what you want them to, such as book, buy or send an enquiry.
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Planning and building a site
Landing page
A landing page is a web page built for one goal, usually the page a visitor arrives on from an ad, an email or a social post.
Read, then try itResponsive design
Responsive design is building one website whose layout adapts to the screen it’s viewed on, from a small phone to a wide monitor.
Read, then try itMobile-first design
Mobile-first design means designing for the smallest screen first, then adding layout for larger ones, so the phone version is never an afterthought.
Read, then try itWireframe
A wireframe is a simple, usually black-and-white sketch of a page’s layout that shows what goes where, before any visual design.
Read, then try itPrototype
A prototype is a working model of a website or app that people can click through, used to test the design before it’s fully built.
Read, then try itBrand drift
Brand drift is when a site's colours, fonts, spacing or button styles slowly stop matching as more pages and edits are added.
Read, then try itDesign system
A design system is the saved set of colours, fonts, spacing and reusable pieces (buttons, cards, forms) that every page of a site is built from.
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See how your current site does
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