Are you learning about marketing? Are you looking to hire a marketer but don't quite understand what they're talking about? I'm here to help!
Some marketers use marketing jargon as it's part of their everyday language in the industry. It's often easy to forget that people outside of the industry are often left confused and have no idea what they're talking about. I learned that lesson myself when I first started consulting- my family and friends were too often raising their eyebrows on a couple of marketing terms. 🙊
Let's break down common marketing terms that you should know:
Organic social, posts, content - Non-paid posts. These are not ads nor paid posts. You simply post content online without paying to promote the post. For example, when you post a selfie on your Instagram account, that's an organic post! If you pay to advertise the selfie, then that is no longer organic and will be considered 'paid.'
Earned media - The type of media you don't have any control over. It's what others are saying about your business online. The most common example would include public relations, such as news articles about your business.
Owned media - A type of media that you have control over owned media refers to the content that you develop and publish as a brand. This is also known as 'organic' content where the content published is not promoted nor boosted in any way.
Social - Whenever you see 'social' used as a noun, the writer is referring to 'social media.'
SEO - This acronym is short for Search Engine Optimization, which is a strategy that helps websites rank higher on search engines. To learn more, check out this article.
CTA - CTA is an acronym for Call-To-Action, a phrase or word that asks people to act on something. Examples include 'learn more' or 'click here.'
Gated content - This refers to content that requires the user to provide some information before receiving access to the content. For example, you may need to register your email to download a document instead of downloading it directly.
Lead generation - The process of acquiring a prospective customer's information.
Conversion - When a customer takes an action. The action is dependent on the goals are of the business. This could include signing up for a newsletter, downloading a brochure, or clicking the 'contact us' button.
Marketing funnel - This refers to the customer acquisition process the consumer has to go through from first knowing about the brand all the way to the conversion point (i.e. when a prospect becomes a customer). By the end of the funnel (or the bottom), the consumer has bought into the brand and is now a customer.
Example below:
Consumer journey - The customer acquisition process, from not knowing about the brand, learning about the brand, considering options, evaluating the brand's products/services to making the purchase.
Out-of-Home advertising - This is also referred to as 'OOH,' and is another way to say outdoor advertising, where the advertising method is located outdoors. Examples include billboards, bus shelters, and posters. This can also be referred to as 'Above-the-Line' which is more commonly used in British English.
Branding - Your brand represents your business identity. Learn all about branding in my Branding 101 article.
Brand awareness - Brand awareness refers to the measure of how memorable and familiar people are with your brand.
Are there any other marketing terms that you're unclear about? Shoot me a message and/or follow me on Instagram for more tips!