Digital Marketing Glossary
Updated 31 May 2026 · 5 min read
This digital marketing glossary defines the terms you meet most often, from CPC and ROAS to CTR, conversion, and the marketing funnel, in plain English. Use it as a quick reference when working with an agency or reading reports.
Key takeaways
- CPC is what you pay per click; ROAS is revenue earned per rupee of ad spend.
- CTR measures how often people click after seeing your ad or listing.
- A conversion is any valued action: a call, form fill, or sale.
- The funnel describes a buyer's journey from awareness to purchase.
- Understanding these terms helps you judge whether marketing spend is working.
How to use this glossary
Digital marketing reports are full of acronyms that can hide whether your money is working. This glossary explains the terms you will meet most often in plain English, so you can read a report or talk to an agency with confidence. You do not need to memorise them; keep this as a quick reference. Knowing the vocabulary helps you ask the right questions, spot vague claims, and focus on the metrics that actually connect to revenue. Each definition is short and jargon-free, written so a busy business owner can grasp it in seconds and apply it to their own numbers.
- CPC
- Cost-per-click: the amount you pay each time someone clicks your ad.
- CPM
- Cost per thousand impressions: what you pay for every 1,000 times your ad is shown.
- CTR
- Click-through rate: the percentage of people who click after seeing your ad or listing.
- Conversion
- Any valued action you want a visitor to take: a call, form fill, or sale.
- Conversion rate
- The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action like an enquiry or purchase.
- ROAS
- Return on ad spend: revenue earned for every rupee spent on advertising.
- ROI
- Return on investment: the overall profit earned relative to total marketing cost.
- CPL
- Cost per lead: total spend divided by the number of enquiries generated.
- CPA
- Cost per acquisition: what it costs, on average, to win one paying customer.
- Funnel
- The buyer's journey from first awareness, through consideration, to purchase.
- Impression
- One instance of your ad or content being shown to a person.
- Reach
- The number of unique people who saw your content or ad.
- Engagement
- Interactions with your content, such as likes, comments, shares, and saves.
- Landing page
- The focused page a visitor reaches after clicking an ad, built to drive one action.
- Remarketing
- Showing ads to people who already visited your site, to bring them back.
- Organic vs paid
- Organic reach is free and earned; paid reach comes from advertising you buy.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between CPC and CPM?
CPC charges you per click on your ad, while CPM charges per thousand times your ad is shown. CPC suits lead generation; CPM suits awareness, where impressions matter more than immediate clicks.
What is a good conversion rate?
It varies widely by industry and channel, so there is no single benchmark. Compare against your own past performance and aim to improve it steadily. A higher conversion rate lowers your cost per customer.
Why does ROAS matter more than CPC?
CPC tells you what a click costs; ROAS tells you what you earn back. A high CPC can still be profitable if ROAS is strong, so ROAS is the truer measure of whether ads make money.
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