Use this list to look up commonly-used terminology in the world of internet business.
Ad Tracker: A software program that allows you to create "coded" URLs that will show you how many people click on a link, amongst other useful statistics. Used to monitor results from marketing campaigns.
Affiliate Program: An opportunity where you are paid a commission for every click, lead, or 
Article Bank: A site that accepts or finds reprintable articles and makes them available to others. Some article banks focus on one topic only, while others accept articles on topics of all kinds.
Autoresponder: An email address that will automatically reply to any request with a predefined message that you set up. Autoresponders can be programmed to send out 'follow-up' messages at various intervals.
Back-End Products or Sales: Anything you sell to a customer after the initial purchase. For example, many businesses offer a low-priced product for their initial sale, and more extensive or comprehensive products or "upgrades" as a back-end sale.
Banner: An electronic 'billboard' advertising a product, service, website, etc.
CGI Scripts: Computer programs often used to add interactivity to websites. For example, CGI scripts can send you data that a customer types into a request or order form.
Click-Through Rate (CTR): The percentage of visitors that click on an ad. For example, if you place an ad in a newsletter with 1000 readers and 20 of them click on your link, your CTR is 2%.
Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors your website or ad converts into paying customers. For example, if 1 out of every 100 visitors places an order, your conversion rate is 1%.
Cookie: A small file placed on your computer by a website. This file is used to identify the user and often used to display customized web pages for them. For example, instead of seeing a generic "welcome" page, you could instead see a welcome page with your name on it.
Cost Per Action (CPA): The price you pay to get someone to take action (subscribe to a newsletter, place an order…). For example, a $20 ad that gets 5 orders gives a CPA of $4.
Cost Per Click (CPC): The price you pay to get someone to click on your link. For example, a $20 ad that results in 100 clicks on a link would give you a CPC of $0.20.
CPM: Cost per one thousand ad impressions.
Demographics: Information on your website visitors, useful for analyzing your traffic and the effectiveness of your site. Examples include most popular web pages; time spent on each page; referring URL (ie. how did they find your site?); number of page views and unique visitors, etc.
Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL): A form of high-speed Internet connection. DSL allows you to connect to the Internet without using your telephone line. It does not give you a second line; it merely allows you simultaneously talk on the phone and surf the web.
DNS: An internet service that translates domain names into IP addresses (the internet is based on IP addresses, but domain names are much easier to remember).
Domain: Your address on the web. For example, onlinebusinessbasics.com is a domain name.
Double opt-in: A subscription process that requires two emails: the initial subscription request, plus a confirmation of the subscription request. Recommended to help build a cleaner, more responsive list. Double opt-in also helps to ensure subscribers are added to your list only with their knowledge and their consent.
Download: The transfer of a file from the Internet to your own computer.
Downline: A multi-level marketing (MLM) term. Members you recruit to join an opportunity 'under' you; typically you make a percentage from the sales made by your downline. Often hyped up as the 'easy way' to make extra money.
Dropshipping: An opportunity where you can sell tangible products without holding inventory, by working with a distributor who allows you to buy products at their wholesale price. The difference between the retail and wholesale prices is your profit.
EBook Compiler: Special software used to create an "electronic book" that people can read on their computers.
eZine: An electronic newsletter.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP): An agreed-upon "format" used to send files over the Internet. FTP programs are available to help you transfer files to and from your server.
Firewall: A program that helps to protect your computer from unauthorized connections to or from the 'outside world'. In this context, it protects you from programs that try to connect to the Internet without your knowledge or consent; similarly, it protects your computer from incoming requests for information (eg. a hacker trying to scan your computer).
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ): Exactly what it sounds like: answers to common questions. Most business sites have a FAQ page.
Hit: A request for an 'object' on your website. For example, a web page with 2 graphics on it will generate 3 hits: 1 for the HTML page + 1 for each graphic.
Hype: Misleading, unreasonable or unsubstantiated claims, such as 'Make $5000 in three days with just a $2 investment! Guaranteed income, no selling involved!'
HyperText Markup Language (HTML): The formatting language used to create web pages. Although often referred to as a 'programming' language, HTML is really just a simple formatting language that's similar to what the old word processors used.
Index: A list of web sites grouped together by category. One of the best known indexes is Yahoo!
Internet Service Provider (ISP): The company that provides you with access to the Internet, via dial-up service or high-speed services such as cable or DSL.
IP Address: A numeric identification number that refers to a specific computer or device on a specific type of network.
Joint Venture: A mutually beneficial business arrangement between two companies.
Keyword or Key Phrase: The words or phrase you enter when you're looking something up in the search engines. For example, if you're looking for a scratching post for your cat you might use, "cat tree" as a key phrase.
Link: Those 'clickable' pieces of text you see on web pages (made clickable through HTML, the web page formatting language).
Link Popularity: How many other relevant / complementary sites link back to your own. Search engines love popular sites!
List Manager or List Host: A program that automatically handles subscription management for a mailing list such as a newsletter. It also handles the mailing of messages to the addresses on the list.
Merchant Account: Allows you to process credit card orders on your website. A more popular choice with fledgling online business owners are third party credit card processors.
Message Board: An online forum where visitors can post and read messages to and from one another.
Mini-Site: A site that consists of just a few pages, that's completely focused on getting the visitor to perform just one action (make a purchase, subscribe to a newsletter, complete a survey, etc).
Mirror Site: A site that has been duplicated on another server.
Moderator: (in the context of message boards) The person(s) who is responsible for monitoring posted messages for appropriateness. Moderators remove inappropriate messages and are used to maintain the quality of the board.
Multi-Level Marketing (MLM): Any opportunity where people can make commissions from the sale of products and services, and can recruit others into their downlines to do the same. You make a percentage of your downline's commissions.
Name Server: A computer that maps domain names to IP addresses.
Newbie (slang): Someone new to the internet business / marketing area.
Newsgroup: An interactive discussion group focused on a particular topic. People post messages and others respond. Also called message boards, discussion lists, discussion forums, and others.
Opt-In: The process of getting someone's explicit permission to send them email. For example, when you subscribe to a newsletter through a form on a website, you are opting-in to receive it. Also see double opt-in.
Opt-Out: The process of requesting users to indicate that they don't want to receive further email. For instance, someone may add your email address to their 'newsletter' without getting your permission to do so. If you don't want to receive it, then the onus is on you to unsubscribe. Many people believe that opt-out is synonymous with spam.
Page View: The number of times a web page is viewed on your website. Each time your page loads, you have one page view.
Park: As in, 'park a domain'. A domain name has to point to a name server to be "valid" (although it might be registered). Parking a domain allows you to point it to a certain website. For people who don't yet have their websites designed, domain registration services often allow you to park your domain free of charge on their servers - people who type in your domain name would then typically see an ad for your registrar. Similarly, you can choose instead to park one domain "on top of" another. For instance, you could park www.YourDomain.org on top of www.YourDomain.com. Both website addresses would then display the same site.
Persistent Visitor Tracking: With regards to affiliate programs, the ability to track a customer from one visit to the next, so that the affiliate receives his or her commission regardless of whether the customer purchases immediately or at some point in the future.
PDF: Stands for 'Portable Document Format'. A document that's formatted in PDF is viewable by anyone who downloads the free Adobe Acrobat Reader. Many online documents are published in PDF format.
Privacy Policy: A statement indicating what types of personal information your company collects and what it does (or doesn't do) with it.
Profit: The difference between your income and your expenses. For example, if you sell a product for $20 and it costs you $5 to produce and deliver it, then your profit is $5.
Pyramid Scheme: An illegal 'opportunity' where the focus is on recruitment rather than on the selling of products and services.
Reciprocal Link: The trading of links - eg. You link to me and I'll link back to you.
Reserve: (in the context of third-party credit card processors) A percentage of your income that's temporarily held back in case of future returns, refunds, or chargebacks.
Residual Income: Income you continue to receive after making the initial sale. For example, let's say you're a reseller for website hosting services. Assuming that your service is good, a percentage of your customers will continue to renew their hosting accounts with you year after year.
Revenue: The amount you make in sales. For example, if you sell 100 items for $50 each, then your revenue is 100 x $50 = $5000.
Search Engine: A website that indexes sites from all over the Internet. Visitors use search engines to look for specific information; if your website is indexed and fits the search criteria, it is listed in the search results. Google is a very well-known search engine.
Secure Server: A server that can encrypt (or decrypt) messages to protect them from tampering. For example, most ordering forms are secure to protect the customer's credit card information.
Shopping Cart Software: A program that allows users to add items to their online shopping cart. Good for sites that sell a number of related items. For example, an online bookstore can use shopping cart software so that customers can browse and add several books to their cart before buying.
Sig file: Short for "signature file"; a few lines of text about your business and perhaps contact information as well. Typically included at the end of email messages or at the bottom of a message board post.
Spam: Unsolicited, untargeted bulk commercial email. It's the 'four-letter word' of Internet marketing!
Spyware: hidden software that transmits information about you or your surfing habits over the internet.
Stockless Retailing: see Dropshipping.
Subaffiliate: Affiliates you personally 'recruit' into your second-tier of an affiliate program. You typically earn a percentage of their sales.
Superaffiliate: Someone who is knowledgeable, experienced, and very successful at earning money with affiliate programs.
Targeted Traffic: Visitors who already have an interest in the information and/or products available from your website. For example, pet owners visiting an online pet store are targeted traffic, while people searching for sports memorabilia are not.
Third-Party Credit Card Processor: A company that processes online credit card orders on your behalf. A good choice for fledgling businesses since they are both easy-to-use and cost-effective (although there are also risks to using them).
Traffic: Visitors to your website.
Two-Tiered: Usually used in reference to an affiliate program. A two-tiered program lets you make money off the sales of people you recruit. For example, you may get paid 25% on all of your personal sales. If you recruit Joe and he makes a sale, he gets 25% and you get 10% of the gross sale. Commission rates vary from program to program.
Unsolicited Commercial Email (UCE): Another name for spam. There is actually a difference between UCE and spam, but most ISPs and web hosts do not differentiate between them.
Upload: The transfer of files from your computer to your web space.
Upsell: To try to convince a customer to purchase a more expensive product or service. For example, when you order a "combo" meal at a fast-food restaurant you may be asked if you'd like to purchase a larger size of fries or drink at a discount.
URL: The short form for 'Uniform Resource Locator'. Refers to the addresses you see on the web, such as http://www.yourcompany.com or ftp://www.yourcompany.com/.
Viral Marketing: Any marketing technique that 'empowers' someone to tell others about your business. For example, a freely distributable eBook embedded with your links is a popular viral marketing technique.
Virus: A destructive program that can be transmitted to your computer via email, downloading from the web, or running a program. Investing in good anti-virus software will help keep your computer virus-free.
Visitor: The number of unique visitors to your site. For example, if someone visits your site and views 5 pages, that is still only one visitor.
Web Host: A company that provides you with server space and makes your online business / domain accessible to the world. They give you a place to store your files and scripts.
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