Quirk's eMarketing Glossary

A cache is a temporary copy of a collection of data. If accessing the original data is proving to be resource heavy (read time-consuming), then users can access the cache thereby not having to reload the original data.

Abbreviation of Ctrl Alt Delete, this command will end programs and restore the warm fuzzy feeling you had before things went to hell in a hand basket.

A CTA is a phrase written to motivate the reader to take action. (sign up for our newsletter, book car hire today etc.).

CAPTCHA stands for “Completely Automated Turing Test To Tell Computers and Humans Apart” and it does pretty much what it says. It is a program that asks a user to complete a simple test to prove the user is human and not a computer. The most common test is by typing in the content of a distorted image of numbers and text that a computer is unable to read.

The act of generating invalid clicks on an advert. Deliberate invalid clicks may be generated by competitors to waste the media budget of an advertiser or by site owners hosting the advert in order to increase profits from the clicks.

The pattern of clicks, entry and exit points of a user’s interaction with a website.

The number and percentage of recipients who clicked on a particular URL included in an email, a webpage etc.

A business that has both online trading capabilities and offline physical stores.

Content Management System - A nifty script or program for maintaining websites. If you have a really hot CMS program you can almost do anything; you no longer have to depend on anyone else when it comes to maintaining your site - but be sure that you get a really good one!

This refers to online information that could be published anywhere, whether in blogs, forums, on websites and even on Twitter. Consumer generated media is highly valued among individuals looking for information about which brands or companies are trust-worthy, and which are not. It therefore plays a significant role in building and destroying online reputations. The increasing amount of consumer generated media available, and the impact that it has on the opinions of other consumers is cited in explanation of the need for an Online Reputation Monitoring and management tool such as BrandsEye. 

Advertising on content based rather than on search sites.

Two phase process which is made up of analysing the collaborative effect of your eMarketing efforts and optimising their effect in turning visitors into customers.

The percentage of visitors to a website that perform a desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a form. For example, if 30 visitors out of 100 subscribe to a newsletter for example the conversion rate is expressed as 30%.

No they’re not the yummy treats we have at teatime: cookies are small text files that are stored on an end-user’s computer that allow websites to identify the user, and allow the website owner to construct a profile of that user.

Cost Per Action. Refers to the cost of acquiring a new customer. The advertiser only pays when a desired action is achieved (sometimes called cost per acquisition).

Cost Per Click. Refers to when an advertiser only pays when their ad is clicked upon, giving them a visitor to their site - typically from a search engine in Pay Per Click search marketing.

Cost Per Mille. Refers to Cost per 1000 ad impressions. An advertiser pays each time 1000 impressions of their ad are shown

Marketing other products or services to an existing customer. Cross marketing enhances the ability for generating further sales. Also known as Cross Selling.

See Cross Marketing

Cascading Style Sheets. This is a language used to describe how an HTML document should be formatted. Cascading Style Sheets provide the ability to separate the layout and styles of a webpage from the data or information.

The progressive steps a customer goes through when purchasing, using or considering a product or service.

Cybersquatting occurs when a domain name that contains the name of a well-known brand/subject/trademark i.e. emarketing.com is purchased with no intent to be developed but rather sold off to the highest bidder.