Marketing, Ads & CRO

Busted

• A/B test (split test)Show version A to half your visitors and version B to the other half at random, then keep whichever wins on one agreed metric.
• Ad creativeThe actual image, video, or copy inside a paid ad: the part people see, as opposed to the targeting and budget behind it.
• Ad fatigueThe same ad shown to the same people until it stops working: clicks drop, costs climb, and the creative is what died, not the offer.
• AdvertorialA paid sales message written and laid out like an article so the reader gets the story and evidence before the pitch.
• Audience segmentationSplitting prospects into useful groups so a new visitor, a hesitant lead, and a repeat buyer do not all get the same message.
• Audience targetingThe settings that decide who can be shown an ad, translating your intended audience into locations, signals, lists, and exclusions.
• Bid strategyThe rule you give an ad platform for how hard to bid in each auction: chase volume, hold a cost target, or cap the maximum price.
• CAC (customer acquisition cost)What one new customer actually costs you: all your marketing and sales spend divided by the customers it brought in.
• Call to action (CTA)The button or link that asks the visitor to do the one thing the page exists for. 'Start free trial', not 'Submit'.
• Click-through rate (CTR)Clicks divided by impressions. Of everyone who saw the thing, the share who actually clicked it.
• Cold traffic vs warm trafficCold traffic is strangers meeting you for the first time. Warm traffic already knows you. The same page converts wildly differently for each.
• Comparison / alternative pageA page for buyers choosing between you and a named competitor, with honest differences, best-fit guidance, and a switching path.
• Conversion rate optimization (CRO)Testing and rewriting a page so more of the same visitors take the action you want, instead of paying for more traffic.
• Cost per acquisition (CPA)Average ad spend for one named result, such as a purchase, signup, or lead. The result must be specified or the number means little.
• Cost per click (CPC)What you actually pay each time somebody clicks your ad: total spend divided by clicks.
• Cost per mille (CPM)Ad cost per thousand impressions. You pay to be shown, whether or not anyone clicks.
• Creative testingComparing ad ideas, hooks, visuals, or copy to find what earns better results before more budget goes behind it.
• Exit-intent popupA last-chance modal shown when desktop cursor movement suggests someone is about to leave the page.
• Frequency capA delivery limit that stops one person from being served the same campaign too many times within a day, week, or month.
• FunnelThe staged path from first look to purchase, drawn as a narrowing shape because people fall out at every step.
• ImpressionOne counted ad delivery or display. It need not have been viewable, and nobody has to have seen or clicked it.
• Landing pageA standalone page built for one offer and one action, with everything else stripped out so visitors convert or leave.
• Lead generationAttracting potential customers and capturing their contact details so the conversation can continue after the first visit.
• Lead magnetA free, genuinely useful thing you hand over in exchange for an email address.
• Lookalike audienceGive an ad platform a list of your best customers and it finds strangers who behave like them.
• Marketing campaignOne coordinated marketing push: messages, assets, channels, budget, and timing all working toward the same measurable result.
• Marketing channelThe route used to reach prospective customers, such as paid search, email, events, partners, or organic search.
• Message matchThe ad and the page it leads to say the same thing in the same words, so nobody feels bait-and-switched after clicking.
• Micro-conversionA small tracked step on the way to the real goal: email captured, video watched, add-to-cart. Progress you can measure before anyone pays.
• Multivariate testTesting combinations of several page changes at once to learn which elements, and which pairings, improve the result.
• Native advertisingPaid content designed to fit the surrounding feed, article list, or product grid while staying clearly labeled as an ad.
• Objection handlingAnswering the doubts in the buyer's head (price, effort, trust, fit) right on the page, before they become reasons to leave.
• Offer stackThe core product, bonuses, support, and guarantee grouped into one easy-to-scan package before the price and buy button.
• Paid mediaAttention you pay to rent, from search ads and sponsored posts to newsletter placements, with a bill attached to the distribution.
• Pay-per-click (PPC)The ad model where you are billed only when someone clicks, not when your ad is merely shown.
• Product-led growth (PLG)A growth model where people try, adopt, share, and expand through the product itself before or alongside talking to sales.
• Progressive profilingCollecting a few profile details now and asking for more later, so each form stays short and never repeats a known question.
• Referral loopA repeatable path where a user invites someone, that person gets value, then becomes able and motivated to invite the next user.
• Retargeting (remarketing)Ads aimed only at people who already visited you. The reason that product keeps following you around the internet.
• Risk reversal / guaranteeMoving the money risk of a bad purchase off the buyer and onto you: refunds, free trials, 'cancel anytime', free returns.
• ROAS (return on ad spend)Revenue earned per dollar of ad spend. Spend 1,000, make 4,000, that is 4x ROAS.
• ScarcityLimited-quantity pressure: '3 seats left', 'almost sold out', a capped cohort. Supply is the constraint, not the clock.
• Social proofShowing that other people already bought in: logos, reviews, ratings, and counts placed where visitors hesitate.
• Squeeze pageA minimal page with one promise and one email form, with navigation and competing actions removed.
• Target audienceThe specific people an offer is built for: the group whose problem, situation, and buying trigger shape the campaign.
• UGC adA phone-shot, casual-looking video ad made to feel like a regular post from a real person instead of a brand commercial.
• UrgencyTime pressure that pushes the decision to now instead of 'later': deadlines, countdowns, 'price goes up Friday'.
• Value propositionOne line saying who this is for, what it does for them, and why it beats the alternative they would pick instead.
• Viral coefficientThe average number of new users one existing user creates through invites: invites sent per user multiplied by invite conversion rate.
• Waitlist / pre-launch pageA one-purpose page that collects emails for a product that does not exist yet, so launch day starts with an audience instead of silence.

The territory

30 core terms mapped for this field, ranked by how often builders reach for them. Each one is a future entry. Want to bust one? One entry, one file, one pull request.

• Conversion ratepercent of visitors who complete the desired action"how many actually sign up" · "hit rate"
• Conversion rate optimization (CRO)testing and tweaking pages to lift the conversion rate"making the page convert better" · "tuning the page"
• Landing pagestandalone page built for one offer and one action"a page just for the ad" · "one-page sales thing"
• Call to action (CTA)the button or link asking the visitor to act"the main button" · "the click-me thing"
• Funnelstaged path from first touch to purchase, narrowing at each step"the steps to buy" · "customer journey pipe"
• A/B test (split test)two variants shown to random halves, better one wins"try two versions" · "which headline works"
• Value propositionone-line reason this product beats alternatives for someone"why should they care" · "the pitch sentence"
• Ad creativethe image, video, or copy asset inside a paid ad"the actual ad picture" · "ad artwork"
• Click-through rate (CTR)share of people who saw an ad and clicked"how many clicked it" · "click percentage"
• Impressionone counted display of your ad to a person"one view of the ad" · "eyeball count"
• Cost per click (CPC)what you pay each time someone clicks your ad"price of one click" · "cost per tap"
• Cost per mille (CPM)ad cost per thousand impressions, not per click"cost per thousand views" · "price to be seen"
• Pay-per-click (PPC)ad model where you pay only for clicks received"you pay when they click" · "paid search ads"
• CAC (customer acquisition cost)total spend divided by customers gained"what each customer costs me" · "cost per signup"
• ROAS (return on ad spend)revenue earned per dollar of ad spend"am I making money on ads" · "ad payback ratio"
• Retargeting (remarketing)ads shown to people who already visited your site"ads that follow you around" · "creepy chasing ads"
• Lookalike audiencenew prospects algorithmically similar to your existing customers"find more people like my buyers" · "clone my audience"
• Social prooftestimonials, logos, counts that show others already trust you"logos of customers" · "reviews section"
• Lead magnetfree asset traded for an email address"free thing for their email" · "download bribe"
• Message matchad promise matching the landing page headline exactly"ad and page say the same thing" · "no bait and switch"
• Objection handlingFAQ or reassurance blocks answering hesitation before purchase"section that answers doubts" · "but-what-if section"
• Risk reversal / guaranteeremoving buyer risk with refunds or free trials"money back promise" · "try it risk free"
• Urgencytime pressure cues that push a decision now"countdown timer thing" · "act fast message"
• Scarcitylimited quantity cues that make an offer feel rare"only 3 left message" · "almost sold out"
• Micro-conversionsmall tracked step preceding the main goal"smaller wins before buying" · "mini goals"
• Cold traffic vs warm trafficstrangers versus people who already know you"people who never heard of us" · "audience temperature"
• Ad fatigueperformance decay as the same audience keeps seeing one creative"people got sick of the ad" · "ad stopped working"
• Bid strategyrule telling the ad platform how aggressively to buy impressions"how much to bid setting" · "auction strategy"
• UGC adcreator-shot casual video ad mimicking organic content"looks like a real person's video" · "influencer style ad"
• Waitlist / pre-launch pagecapture page collecting interest before product exists"coming soon signup" · "early access page"

Deeper in the field

• Target audience people an offer and campaign are meant to reach
• Audience targeting selecting who should be shown an advertisement
• Audience segmentation dividing prospects into groups with shared traits or behavior
• Marketing campaign coordinated activities pursuing one measurable marketing objective
• Marketing channel medium used to reach and acquire prospective customers
• Paid media purchased distribution across advertising platforms and publishers
• Cost per acquisition (CPA) average ad cost for each acquired customer or conversion
• Lead generation attracting and capturing prospective customer contact information
• Creative testing comparing ad concepts to find stronger performers
• Frequency cap limit on how often one person sees an ad
• Multivariate test testing multiple element combinations simultaneously
• Offer stack bundled bonuses and guarantees framed as one value package
• Advertorial ad written and styled to read like an article
• Native advertising ads matched to the look and feel of surrounding content
• Comparison / alternative page page positioning you against a named competitor
• Referral loop each user reliably bringing in more users
• Viral coefficient average number of new users each existing user brings
• Progressive profiling asking for more user data gradually across visits
• Exit-intent popup modal triggered when cursor moves toward closing the tab
• Squeeze page minimal page whose only option is submitting an email
• Product-led growth (PLG) product itself drives signup, usage, and expansion