Marketing jargon, translated for people who do the work themselves

Numbers that matter for your money

These are the terms that decide whether marketing pays. If you only learn one section, make it this one.

• Enquiry (or lead). Someone who contacts you about a job: a call, text or email. For you: count them and note where each came from.
• Close rate. The share of enquiries or quotes that become paid jobs. Win 4 of 10 and your close rate is 40%. For you: often the cheapest number to improve.
• Average job value. Your total invoices divided by the number of jobs. For you: raising it can matter more than getting more jobs.
• Profit per job. Job value minus materials, fuel and other direct costs. For you: the basis of every budget decision.
• Cost per enquiry. What you paid for marketing divided by the enquiries it produced. For you: only meaningful if you track where enquiries come from.
• Cost per won job. Cost per enquiry divided by close rate. For you: compare it with profit per job.
• ROI (return on investment). What came back compared with what went out. A 3:1 return means $3 back for every $1 spent. For you: make sure it is measured in profit, not just revenue.
• Capacity. How many jobs you can really do in a week. For you: the limit on how much marketing is worth buying.

Our budget guide puts these numbers to work with three examples.

Being found on Google

These terms describe how local customers find a business like yours.

• Google Business Profile. Your free listing on Google Search and Maps, with your name, phone, hours, photos and reviews. For you: often the most valuable marketing asset you have.
• Map pack. The short list of businesses shown with a map when someone searches for a local service. For you: the place where many local calls begin.
• Service-area business. A business that goes to the customer rather than having customers visit. Google's guidelines say such businesses working from home should hide the address. For you: almost certainly what you are.
• Category. The label you choose to describe your business on your Google profile. For you: the main category should match the work you most want.
• SEO (search engine optimisation). Making your website and profile easier for search engines to understand and show. For you: mostly clear pages, accurate details and patience.
• Organic results. Search results that are not paid ads. For you: free per click, slow to build.
• Keyword. The words people type into a search, such as "gutter cleaning near me". For you: use the words your customers use on your pages.
• Ranking. Where you appear in search results. For you: nobody can promise one, so be wary of anyone who does.

The Google profile service covers how to get this right.

Your website

Terms you will hear when someone talks about building or fixing a website.

• Domain. Your website address, such as yourname.ca. For you: it should be registered in your name.
• Hosting. The service that keeps your website online. For you: know who pays for it and who has the login.
• Service page. A page about one specific job you do. For you: one per service you want more of.
• Call to action. The thing you want the visitor to do next, such as "Call or text". For you: make it obvious on every page.
• Conversion. When a visitor does what you hoped, such as calling you. For you: conversion rate is conversions divided by visitors.
• Mobile-friendly. Easy to read and use on a phone. For you: most of your visitors are probably on one.
• Landing page. A page built for visitors from a specific ad or campaign. For you: usually only needed if you run paid ads.

See what a small website needs for the pages most solo owners require.

Ads and paid marketing

Terms that come up when you pay for attention.

• Pay-per-click (PPC). Ads where you pay each time someone clicks. For you: clicks are not enquiries; track what happens after the click.
• Impressions. How many times an ad or listing was shown. For you: a number that sounds big and pays nothing on its own.
• Ad spend. The money paid to the ad platform, separate from any management fee. For you: always ask how it is billed.
• Retargeting. Showing ads to people who have already visited your website. For you: rarely a priority for a one-person business.

Customers, reviews and messages

Terms about keeping customers and staying in touch, including two laws worth knowing by name.

• Review. A customer's public rating and comment about your work. For you: ask every finished customer, on the day.
• Follow-up. Getting back in touch with someone after a quote or job. For you: two or three messages over two weeks is reasonable for most quotes.
• CASL. Canada's anti-spam legislation, covering commercial electronic messages such as marketing emails and texts. The federal CASL page explains that businesses should get consent before sending them. For you: only message people who contacted or hired you, and stop when asked.
• PIPEDA. The federal private-sector privacy law. The Privacy Commissioner's summary of privacy laws explains which laws apply where. For you: keep customer details safe and use them only for the reason you collected them.

We summarise these laws for orientation only; check the official pages for your own situation.

How to use this glossary

Next time someone pitches you marketing, listen for the terms above and ask three questions.

1. Which of my numbers will this change? Enquiries, close rate, job value or cost per won job.
2. How will I see the change? If the answer is "impressions" or "reach", ask again.
3. What does it cost in money and in my time? Then run the break-even sum.

A seller who can answer those clearly, in plain words, is worth listening to. One who can't is worth a polite goodbye. If you'd like a plain-language plan built around these numbers, see the one-page plan service, browse the other guides or contact us.