The AI search glossary.Every term, in plain English.
The terms agencies throw around, explained for owners. Each one starts with a one-sentence answer.
A
- A2P 10DLCA2P 10DLC is the US carrier registration system for businesses that send texts from standard 10-digit phone numbers.
- Ad spend capAn ad spend cap is the most a business allows its advertising to spend in a set period, such as a month, whatever the campaigns could otherwise use.
- Advanced VerificationAdvanced Verification is Google's extra check for some advertisers: garage door services in the US and locksmiths in the US and Canada must pass it to advertise on Google Ads or Local Services Ads.
- AI crawlerAn AI crawler is a bot an AI company uses to fetch web pages, to train models, to build a search index or to read a page when a person asks.
- AI receptionistAn AI receptionist is software that answers a business's calls or texts, handles common questions and books appointments, then hands anything unusual to a person.
- AI SEO (LLM SEO)AI SEO, sometimes called LLM SEO, is the work of getting a business found and cited by AI assistants and AI search features as well as by traditional search.
- AI share of voiceAI share of voice compares how often your business is named in AI answers against how often your competitors are named for the same questions.
- AI visibilityAI visibility is how often AI assistants name your business when people ask questions about your trade and area.
- AI visibility scoreAn AI visibility score is the number of times AI engines name your business across a fixed set of real customer questions, asked the same way every month.
- Answer engine optimization (AEO)Answer engine optimization is the practice of making a business easy for AI assistants and search features to understand, trust and quote in a direct answer.
- Answering serviceAn answering service is an outside team of people who answer a business's calls, take messages and sometimes book appointments when the business can't pick up.
C
- Call trackingCall tracking gives each marketing channel its own phone number so you can see which channel made the phone ring.
- Citation buildingCitation building is the work of creating and correcting a business's listings on directories, maps and data aggregators so its name, address and phone match everywhere.
- Cost per booked jobCost per booked job is marketing spend divided by the number of jobs it produced. It shows what a channel really costs, unlike cost per click or cost per lead.
D
- Data aggregatorA data aggregator is a company that collects business listings and supplies them to maps, directories, apps and search engines.
- Direct accessDirect access means a patient can see a physical therapist without a doctor's referral. Every US state allows some form of it, with limits that vary by state.
- Duplicate listingA duplicate listing is a second profile for the same business on the same platform, often left over from an old address, phone number or owner.
- Dynamic number insertionDynamic number insertion is a call-tracking method that shows each website visitor a phone number tied to how they arrived, such as an ad or a search.
E
G
- Generative engine optimization (GEO)Generative engine optimization means shaping the sources that generative AI tools draw on so a business is mentioned accurately in their answers.
- Google AI ModeGoogle AI Mode is a way of searching Google that replies with an AI-written answer, with links to the web, and invites follow-up questions.
- Google AI OverviewsAI Overviews are AI-written summaries that Google shows in some search results, with links to the sources they draw on.
- Google Business ProfileGoogle Business Profile is the free listing that shows your business on Google Search and Maps, including hours, services, photos and reviews.
- Google VerifiedGoogle Verified is the single badge Google now shows on Local Services Ads for businesses that have passed its screening and verification.
- GroundingGrounding is when an AI model bases its answer on sources it retrieves at the time, such as search results or maps data, rather than only on what it learned in training.
H
- HIPAA and review repliesHIPAA and review replies refers to the rule that healthcare providers can't disclose patients' health information when they reply to online reviews.
- Hybrid service-area businessA hybrid service-area business serves customers at its location and also travels to them, like an auto repair shop with a garage that also offers roadside service.
L
- LLM citationAn LLM citation is a source link that an AI assistant shows alongside its answer to show where the information came from.
- llms.txtllms.txt is a proposed Markdown file, usually at the root of a website, that summarizes the site and links its key pages for AI tools.
- Local citationA local citation is any online mention of your business name, address and phone number, such as a directory listing.
- Local packThe local pack is the map and short list of nearby businesses that Google shows for searches with local intent, such as 'plumber near me'.
- Local ranking factorsGoogle says its local results are based mainly on relevance to the search, distance from the searcher and how well known the business is, which it calls popularity or prominence.
- Local Services AdsLocal Services Ads are Google's pay-per-lead ads for service businesses, shown at the top of the page with a Google Verified badge.
- LocalBusiness schemaLocalBusiness schema is structured data from Schema.org that describes a business's name, address, phone number and opening hours in a form search engines can read reliably.
M
- Markdown twinA Markdown twin is a plain-text Markdown version of a web page, published at a parallel address so AI tools can read the content without the page's layout and scripts.
- Missed-call text-backMissed-call text-back automatically sends a text to someone whose call you missed, so they hear from you before they try someone else.
N
P
- Pay per leadPay per lead is a pricing model where a business pays for each enquiry, such as a call or message, rather than for each ad click or for a fixed listing.
- Performance MaxPerformance Max is a Google Ads campaign type that reaches all of Google's ad inventory, including Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail and Maps, from one campaign.
- Practitioner profileA practitioner profile is a Google Business Profile for an individual professional, such as a dentist or chiropractor, separate from the profile of the practice they work in.
- Primary categoryThe primary category is the main category you choose on your Google Business Profile, telling Google what your business mainly is.
R
- Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG)Retrieval-augmented generation is a method where an AI system first fetches relevant documents and then writes its answer from them.
- Review gatingReview gating is asking customers how happy they were first, then sending only the happy ones to leave a public review.
- Review response rateReview response rate is the share of a business's reviews that have a reply from the owner, usually measured over the last few months.
- Review schemaReview schema is structured data that marks up reviews and ratings on a web page so search engines can read them.
- Review solicitationReview solicitation means asking customers to leave a review. Google allows it as long as you ask for genuine reviews, offer no incentive and don't ask only happy customers.
- Review velocityReview velocity is how steadily new reviews arrive over time, not just how many reviews you have in total.
- robots.txtrobots.txt is a plain-text file at the root of a website that tells crawlers which pages they may fetch, using rules written per user agent.
S
- Service-area businessA service-area business serves customers at their homes or sites, like a plumber or roofer, rather than at a storefront customers visit.
- Shared leadsA shared lead is a customer request that reaches several businesses at once, so each one competes to reply first.
- Speed to leadSpeed to lead is how long a business takes to respond to a new inquiry, such as a call, a web form or a text.
- Structured data (schema markup)Structured data is code on a web page that labels information, such as your business type, hours or FAQs, so search engines can read it reliably.