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Glossary
The vocabulary of growth.
Understand the terms in a marketing report or AI proposal. Each page gives a definition, a worked example and links to the
AI Search
AI Search, defined.
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the practice of making a brand visible, accurately described, and cited inside AI-generated answers from systems like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is structuring content so answer engines, including AI assistants and search features like AI Overviews, can extract a direct, correct answer
AI citation
An AI citation is a source reference attached to an AI-generated response, usually a link supporting part of
AI crawler
An AI crawler fetches web pages for a specific purpose, such as search indexing, model training, or retrieval requested by
AI visibility
AI visibility is the measurable presence of a brand inside AI-generated answers: whether the major engines mention it, how they describe it, and which competing brands appear in the answers where
Google preferred source
A Google preferred source is a publisher a signed-in user has marked as preferred in
Zero-click search
A zero-click search is a query that ends with no visit to an
SEO & Web
SEO & Web, defined.
Entity SEO
Entity SEO is optimizing how search and AI systems understand a brand as a distinct entity: its name, category, location, offerings, and relationships, kept consistent across the site, structured data, and
Structured data (JSON-LD)
Structured data is machine-readable markup, commonly JSON-LD, that describes visible page content using schema.org terms such as Organization, Service
Technical SEO
Technical SEO is the engineering layer of search visibility: crawlability, indexation, rendering, redirects, canonical URLs, sitemaps, structured data, and
Core Web Vitals
Core Web Vitals are Google’s field-measured user experience metrics: Largest Contentful Paint (loading), Interaction to Next Paint (responsiveness), and Cumulative Layout Shift
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is the discipline of increasing the share of visitors who take a valuable action, using research, experimentation, and measurement rather
Mobile Growth
Mobile Growth, defined.
App Store Optimization (ASO)
App Store Optimization (ASO) is improving an app’s visibility and conversion inside the App Store and Google Play through relevant metadata, listing creative, reviews,
Custom product pages
Custom product pages are alternate versions of an App Store product page, each with its own screenshots, previews, and promotional text, reachable by
Store listing experiments
Store listing experiments are native tests of app-store
SKAdNetwork (SKAN)
SKAdNetwork (SKAN) is Apple’s privacy-preserving attribution framework
Aggregated Event Measurement (AEM)
Aggregated Event Measurement (AEM) is Meta’s approach to measuring ad-related conversion events when privacy restrictions limit available
ATT opt-in rate
The ATT opt-in rate is the share of users who grant tracking permission through Apple’s App Tracking Transparency prompt, with the measured
Mobile Measurement Partner (MMP)
A Mobile Measurement Partner (MMP) is the independent attribution layer for app campaigns, such as Adjust or AppsFlyer: one SDK that credits installs and events to channels, deduplicates across networks, and
Attribution window
An attribution window is the period after an ad interaction during which a conversion is credited to it, such as 7-day click or
Cohort analysis
Cohort analysis groups users by when they arrived, then follows each group’s behavior over time: retention, revenue, and payback by acquisition week
D7 ROAS
D7 ROAS is return on ad spend measured seven days after install, per cohort: revenue from a cohort’s first seven days divided by what it cost
Cost per install (CPI)
Cost per install (CPI) is ad spend divided by the installs
IAA vs IAP
IAA (in-app advertising) and IAP (in-app purchases) are the two core app revenue models: monetizing attention with ads versus monetizing users with purchases
Paywall optimization
Paywall optimization is systematic testing of where, when, and how an app asks for money: placement in the flow, offer structure, trial length, pricing, and the
Paid Media
Paid Media, defined.
LTV to CAC ratio
The LTV to CAC ratio compares customer lifetime value to customer acquisition cost, stating how many dollars of value each acquisition
Creative fatigue
Creative fatigue is the performance decay that sets in as an audience sees the same ad repeatedly: costs rise and results fall while nothing
Incrementality
Incrementality is the share of measured conversions that would not have happened without
AI Automation
AI Automation, defined.
AI agent
An AI agent is software that uses a language model to pursue a goal through multiple steps and tools: reading systems, making bounded decisions, and taking actions, rather than answering a
Human-in-the-loop
Human-in-the-loop is an automation design in which defined actions wait for a person’s approval before executing, typically anything irreversible: spending money, messaging a client, writing to a
AI governance
AI governance is the documented control system around AI in production: written scopes per automation, hard bounds on what runs alone, logging, output verification against baselines, escalation paths, and named
Model Context Protocol (MCP)
The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard for connecting AI applications to external tools and data through a
Put the terms in context.
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