Glossary: digitalisation, software & marketing from A to Z
85 terms from SEO, GEO, web design, software, apps and marketing — briefly explained, with examples from our projects.
A
- A/B testingAn A/B test compares two variants of a page, ad or email by showing one part of the visitors variant A and the other variant B — revealing which works better.
- Accessibility Strengthening Act (BFSG)Since 28 June 2025, the German Accessibility Strengthening Act (BFSG) has required businesses to offer certain products and services to consumers in an accessible way — including online shops and other e-commerce services.
- AI agentAn AI agent is a software system based on a language model that plans and carries out tasks on its own by using tools and data sources — such as looking up information, filling in forms or suggesting appointments.
B
- BacklinkA backlink is a link from another website to your own. For search engines, a link from a trustworthy, thematically relevant site counts as a recommendation.
- BackupA backup is a copy of data, files or entire systems that allows the previous state to be restored after an error, attack or outage.
- BrandingBranding is the deliberate building of a brand — from positioning, name and message through visual identity to every touchpoint where customers encounter the brand.
C
- CI/CDCI/CD stands for continuous integration and continuous delivery or deployment and describes automated pipelines that test, build and ship code changes — fast, repeatable and with fewer errors.
- Colour systemA colour system defines a brand’s colours bindingly — primary and secondary colours with exact values for print and screen, plus rules for when each colour is used.
- Content marketingContent marketing is the strategy of winning customers with useful content — guides, case studies, videos or checklists — instead of addressing them only with advertising.
- Conversion rateThe conversion rate is the share of a website’s visitors who complete a desired action — such as sending an enquiry, completing a purchase or applying for a job.
- Cookie consentCookie consent is the permission website visitors must give under Section 25 TDDDG (German Telecommunications Digital Services Data Protection Act) before information is stored on or read from their device — unless this is strictly necessary for the service they requested.
- Copyright in imagesEvery photo is protected under the German Copyright Act — as a photographic work (Section 2(1) No. 5 UrhG) or as a simple photograph (Section 72 UrhG). Anyone using third-party images on websites, social media or in advertising needs the appropriate rights of use.
- Core Web VitalsCore Web Vitals are three Google metrics for a website’s user experience: loading time of the largest content (LCP), responsiveness to input (INP) and visual stability (CLS).
- Corporate designCorporate design is a company’s consistent visual identity — logo, colours, typefaces, imagery and design rules — across all media.
- Corporate filmA corporate film is a short film showing a company, its people and its way of working — for website, social media, trade fairs and recruiting.
- CRM (customer relationship management)A CRM (customer relationship management) system is where a company manages all contacts, enquiries, offers and customer relationships centrally — instead of in inboxes, spreadsheets and people’s heads.
- Customer journeyThe customer journey describes a customer’s path from first contact with a business through research, comparison and enquiry to purchase and beyond.
D
- Data centreA data centre is a specially secured building in which servers are operated with redundant power supply, cooling, network connectivity and access control.
- Data processing agreement (DPA)A data processing agreement (DPA, German “AVV”) is the contract required by Art. 28(3) GDPR between a business and a provider that processes personal data on its behalf and under its instructions — such as a hosting provider, an email service or a CRM vendor.
- DatabaseA database is a system that stores, manages and quickly retrieves structured data — such as customers, orders, products or a website’s content.
- Design systemA design system is a collection of reusable design building blocks — colours, typefaces, spacing (design tokens) and ready-made components such as buttons or forms — together with rules for their use.
- DevOpsDevOps is a way of working in which development and operations collaborate closely so software is delivered and run faster, more securely and more reliably.
- DNS (Domain Name System)DNS (Domain Name System) is the “phone book of the internet”: it translates domain names such as circle.gmbh into the technical addresses of the servers running website and email.
- DomainA domain is a website’s internet address, such as circle.gmbh — the name under which people access a website and under which email addresses run.
- Drone footageDrone footage means photos and videos from the air taken with remote-controlled camera drones — for real estate, event venues, construction sites, corporate films and social media.
E
- E-E-A-TE-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness and describes how Google assesses the quality of content and its creators.
- Email newsletter marketingEmail newsletter marketing is regular email communication with prospects and customers who have agreed to receive it — for news, knowledge, offers and invitations.
- Employer brandingEmployer branding is the deliberate building of an attractive employer brand so that a company is noticed, found and chosen by suitable professionals and apprentices.
- Equal treatment (AGG) in job adsUnder Section 11 AGG (German General Equal Treatment Act), job ads must be worded neutrally: they must not disadvantage applicants on any of the grounds listed in Section 1 AGG — such as sex, age or ethnic origin.
- EU AI ActThe EU AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689) is the EU law regulating the development and use of artificial intelligence by risk — from prohibited practices through transparency obligations to strict requirements for high-risk AI.
F
G
- General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the EU-wide regulation that governs when and how businesses may process personal data — from contact enquiries to customer files to website tracking.
- Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the optimisation of company content so that AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity know a company, describe it correctly and recommend it in their answers.
- Google AdsGoogle Ads is Google’s advertising system that lets businesses place paid ads in Google Search, on YouTube and on partner sites — usually billed per click.
- Google Business ProfileThe Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is a company’s free listing in Google Search and Google Maps with address, opening hours, photos, services and reviews.
H
- Headless CMSA headless CMS is a content management system that only manages content and delivers it via an interface, while presentation on website, app or other channels is developed separately.
- Hosting (web hosting)Hosting means providing and operating a website, online shop or software on servers so that it is reachable over the internet around the clock.
I
K
- Key visualA key visual is the central image motif of a campaign or brand that runs through all media — from poster to social media and website to vehicle graphics.
- Keyword (search term)A keyword is a search term or phrase people type into a search engine — such as “advertising agency Ingolstadt” — and that a page or ad is targeted at.
- KPI (key performance indicator)A KPI (key performance indicator) is a metric that measures whether a goal is being achieved — such as number of enquiries, cost per enquiry or conversion rate.
- KubernetesKubernetes is an open-source platform that automatically distributes, starts, scales and restarts containerised applications across multiple servers.
L
- Landing pageA landing page is a web page focused on a single goal — such as an enquiry, an application or a purchase — that visitors reach directly from an ad, a link or a search.
- Lead funnelA lead funnel is a multi-step path on a website that guides prospects to a qualified enquiry with a few targeted questions — instead of facing them with an empty contact form.
- Legal notice requirement (Impressum)The legal notice requirement (“Impressumspflicht”) obliges providers of commercial digital services — websites, online shops and business social media profiles — under Section 5 DDG (German Digital Services Act) to keep certain information about themselves easily recognisable, directly accessible and permanently available.
- llms.txtllms.txt is a text file in a website’s root directory that gives large language models (LLMs) a compact, easy-to-read summary of the company and its most important pages.
- Local packThe local pack is the map section in Google search results that shows several local businesses with ratings, address and opening hours for searches with a regional focus.
- LogoA logo is the graphic identifier of a company or brand — as a symbol, a wordmark or a combination of both.
M
- Marketing strategyA marketing strategy defines which goals a business wants to achieve with its marketing, which audiences it addresses, with which message, through which channels — and with what budget.
- Meta AdsMeta Ads are paid ads on Facebook, Instagram and other Meta services that can be targeted to specific audiences by region, interests and behaviour.
- Minimum viable product (MVP)A minimum viable product (MVP) is the first, deliberately lean version of a piece of software that contains just enough features for real users to use it and give feedback.
- MockupA mockup is a realistic preview showing how a design will look in reality — such as a logo on a sign, a website on a smartphone or a wrap on a vehicle.
N
O
- Open sourceOpen source refers to software whose source code is publicly viewable and licensed to allow use, modification and redistribution.
- Order button rule (“Button-Lösung”)The order button rule (“Button-Lösung”) obliges online shops under Section 312j(3) BGB to label the final button of a paid order with “order with obligation to pay” (“zahlungspflichtig bestellen”) or an equally unambiguous wording.
P
- Packaging designPackaging design is the design of product packaging, labels and stickers that protect a product, inform and convince on the shelf or when unboxing.
- Penetration testA penetration test is a commissioned, controlled attack on a website, software or IT infrastructure in which experts deliberately look for security gaps before real attackers find them.
- Print mediaPrint media are printed communication materials such as business cards, flyers, brochures, posters, menus, letterhead and catalogues.
- Product photographyProduct photography means images of products for online shop, menu, catalogue, advertising and social media — cut out on a neutral background or staged in a fitting setting.
- Progressive web app (PWA)A progressive web app (PWA) is a web application that behaves like an app: it can be added to the home screen, works partly offline and can send notifications — without an app store.
R
- Responsive web designResponsive web design means a website automatically adapts to any screen size — from smartphone to tablet to large monitor — without content being cut off or users having to zoom.
- RetargetingRetargeting means showing targeted ads again to people who have already visited a website or interacted with a business — for example on Instagram, Facebook or in the Google network.
- Retrieval augmented generation (RAG)Retrieval augmented generation (RAG) is a technique in which an AI language model first retrieves relevant information from its own knowledge source — such as documents, manuals or a database — and bases its answer on it.
- Review managementReview management covers everything a business does to actively collect, respond to and learn from customer reviews on Google and other platforms.
- Right of withdrawal & withdrawal buttonThe right of withdrawal allows consumers to withdraw from contracts concluded online, generally within 14 days and without giving reasons. Since 19 June 2026, online shops must provide an electronic withdrawal function — the withdrawal button — under Section 356a BGB.
S
- Search engine optimisation (SEO)Search engine optimisation (SEO) covers all measures that help a website rank better in the unpaid results of search engines such as Google.
- SignageSignage covers the production and installation of advertising in public space and on buildings — such as signs, light boxes, vehicle wraps, shop-window lettering, banners and trade-fair stands.
- Social media managementSocial media management is the ongoing, professional care of a company’s channels on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn or TikTok — from planning to design and copy to community communication.
- Social video (short-form)A social video is a short, usually vertical video for platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Facebook or LinkedIn — made to win attention within seconds.
- Software as a Service (SaaS)Software as a Service (SaaS) is a delivery model in which software is used in the browser or as an app and operated centrally by the provider, usually for an ongoing fee instead of a one-off licence.
- SSL/TLS (HTTPS)SSL/TLS is the encryption of the connection between browser and website. It is recognisable by “https://” in the address and protects transmitted data such as form entries from being intercepted.
- Structured data (Schema.org)Structured data is machine-readable information in a website’s source code, usually in the Schema.org format, that tells search engines and AI systems unambiguously what a page describes — such as a company, a service, an article or frequently asked questions.
- Style guide (CI guide)A style guide or CI guide is the rulebook of a corporate design: it defines how logo, colours, typefaces, imagery and design elements are used.
T
- Target audience & personaThe target audience is the group of people or businesses an offer should reach; a persona is a concrete, exemplary profile of a typical person from that group.
- Tracking (web analytics)Tracking refers to measuring and analysing how visitors use a website or campaign — where they come from, which pages they view and whether they enquire or buy.
- Trade-fair standA trade-fair stand is a company’s presence at a trade fair or exhibition — with stand construction, graphics, counters, display areas and materials that attract visitors and enable conversations.
- Two-factor authentication (2FA)Two-factor authentication (2FA) means that logging in requires a second, independent proof besides the password — such as a code from an app or a security key.
- TypographyTypography is design with type: the choice of typefaces, sizes, spacing and hierarchies that make texts readable and give a brand its own expression.
U
- UI/UX designUI/UX design covers the design of the user interface (UI) and the overall user experience (UX) of a website, app or software — how it looks and how easy it is to use.
- Uptime monitoringUptime monitoring is the automatic surveillance of whether a website, shop or software is reachable and working correctly — with immediate notification in case of an outage.
V
W
- WebhookA webhook is an automatic notification one system sends to another as soon as a certain event occurs — such as “new order” or “payment received”.
- WooCommerceWooCommerce is an open-source shop extension for WordPress for building online shops with products, cart, payment methods, shipping and invoices.
- WordPressWordPress is a widely used open-source content management system (CMS) for building and self-managing websites, blogs and — with WooCommerce — online shops.
- Workflow automationWorkflow automation means letting recurring processes between applications run automatically — such as creating invoices, transferring data or sending notifications — instead of doing them by hand.
More background in our articles.