Common Web Terms
The Internet has a language all its own, and it's good to be familiar with some of the terms you may see used on WebsiteDirect. Below you'll find an introduction to some basic Web terms and phrases.

Ad Banner
An image file that displays an online advertisement, typically sized for placement at the top or bottom of a web page and linked to another Website or buffer page.

Affiliate Marketing
A revenue sharing arrangement, between WebsiteDirect and you as a Website owner. Whereby payment is based on performance measures, such as the number of sales that you as the affiliate refer. In other words, two companies agree to link to one another; if someone clicks from your site to purchase a membership package with WebsiteDirect, your business will receive a commission on the sale. WebsiteDirect affiliate software will provide the tracking and reporting of each new membership sold. For more information, go to Business Opportunities.

Autoresponder
Automatic e-mail response, an autoresponder sends scripted e-mail messages to people whom request information. It can be as simple as sending one message to anyone who writes to a specific e-mail address, or it can be as sophisticated as offering fifty different response messages, each one sent based on the text of the received e-mail message.

Broadband
A high speed, high-capacity data transmission channel, that sends and receives information, giving it the ability to carry video, voice, and data simultaneously.

Browser
A software program used for locating and viewing Websites on the Web. Examples include Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, and Opera.

Cookies
Cookies are a small file that a Web server automatically sends to your PC when you browse certain Websites. Cookies are stored as text files on your hard drive so servers can access them when you return to Websites you've visited before. Cookies contain information that identifies each user, for example: username, passwords, and shopping cart information. When a user revisits a Website, his or her computer automatically "serves up" the cookie, which establishes the user's identity, thus eliminating the need for the customer to reenter the information. Basically, the server needs to know this information in order for the Web site to work correctly.

CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
CRM is a process to provide a complete, company-wide view of the customer and to cultivate high-quality relationships that increase loyalty and profits. The idea is to capture all interaction with a customer and centralized on a database. The focus is on learning more about customers and using that knowledge to refine every interaction with them. Effective CRM requires an integrated sales, marketing, and service strategy, supported by CRM software that provides profiles and histories of each interaction the company has with each customer. When businesses review this data, it helps them evaluate their progress. A comprehensive CRM strategy can anticipate needs; tailor messages, products, and services; create value; anticipate problems; and improve the customer's overall experience in dealing with the company.

Database
An organized collection of information, characterized by the use of data fields, it provides a foundation for procedures such as retrieving information, drawing conclusions, and making decisions. Computerized databases are organized by fields, records, and files. A field is a single piece of information; a record is a complete set of fields; and a file is a collection of records.

Domain Name
An Internet address or URL of a particular Website, also known as a personalized web address.. It is the text name corresponding to the numeric IP address of a computer on the Internet. There is an organization called InterNIC that registers domain names for a fee, to keep people from registering the same name.

Download
To transfer files or data from one computer to another, for example, from a server to your desktop computer. To download means "to receive," to upload means "to send." There are a few methods of downloading on the Internet: HTTP, FTP and e-mail attachments are the most common. When you "load" a Web page into your browser, you are essentially "downloading" the page from the server it is hosted on. One of the most resourceful functions of the Web is that you can download almost any type of computer file or program.

Dynamic
Refers to the activity, consistent change, and or motion of the Website content. Web customers expect a Website to consistently change. Since the Internet is a "dynamic environment" and WebsiteDirect technology makes it easy to continuously change text or images, your Website should strive for a fresh, updated, and dynamic image.

E-Commerce
E-Commerce means conducting business online. It refers to transactions occurring on the Internet, such as credit card purchases at websites. Selling goods or services, is possible to do on the Internet with the WebsiteDirect E-Commerce tools. The definition of e-commerce includes business activities that are business-to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C). E-commerce is a major factor in the U.S. economy because it assists companies with many levels of current business transactions, as well as creating new online business opportunities that are global in nature.

E-Mail
Text messages, sent from one person to another, via computer. E-mail can also be sent automatically to a large number of addresses. E-mail is mail that's electronically transmitted by your computer. E-mail sends your messages instantaneously, anywhere in the world. Linked by high-speed data connections that create a global network, e-mail lets you compose messages and transmit them in seconds to one or more recipients across the office, the street, or the country. All you need to get started is a WebsiteDirect business e-mail account.

FAQ (frequently asked questions)
A list of the answers to frequently asked questions, usually questions asked by visitors to a web site. FAQ (or Frequently Asked Questions) provide simple answers to the most common questions. Often times the answers merely tell you if you can do something or if WebsiteDirect includes a specific features.

Flash
A Vector Graphic Animation technology that's bandwidth friendly and browser independent. Flash is a programming technique that enables movies and animation to move seamlessly across a Web browser. As long as different browsers are equipped with the necessary Flash plugins, Flash animations will look the same. If it's on the Web and it's moving, it is probably a design using Flash.

FTP (file transfer protocol)
A way to transferring files over the Internet. WebsiteDirect members can use a specialized FTP application call File Manager. The standard method for downloading and uploading files over the Internet.

GIF (graphic interchange format)
A file type that contains a graphic, photo, or other image. GIF files are commonly found on the Web, along with another graphic file format, the JPEG. On Web pages, the images (or pictures) you see are usually in GIF because the files are small and can be downloaded quickly. Another type of graphics format commonly used online is JPEG; these files download even faster and contain a better resolution.

HTML (hypertext markup language)
Code that determines how a web page will appear, including graphics, links, and text characteristics. HTML is a mark-up language that uses tags to structure text into headings, paragraphs, lists, and links. The code tells a Web browser how to display text and images. You can see a Web page's HTML code if you select "view source" from the View menu in your Web browser.

HTML E-Mail
E-mail that is formatted using HTML, so that graphics and links appear in the e-mail body. In order to see the format and images correctly, both the sender and the recipient must have an e-mail program that supports HTML e-mail. Most e-mail programs do; otherwise, the message will have broken graphics.

Hyperlink or Link
A reference in the form of a link from one point in one HTML document to another document. A browser usually displays a hyperlink in some distinguishing way, for instance, in a different color, font, or style. The text or graphics on a Web site that can be clicked on with a mouse to take you to another Web page, or a different area of the same Web page. Hyperlinks are usually created in HTML.

IP Address
A numeric address that is given to servers and users connected to the Internet. For the server, a Domain Name Server (DNS) translates the IP address into a domain name. For the user, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) assigns the IP address when the user goes online. This IP address might be the same number each time you log on, or it might be a newly assigned number each time you connect, based on what's available.

JPEG (or JPG)
A file format used for storing graphic images, usually photographs. JPEG files are larger than GIF files of the same image but offer better color control and clarity. See also GIF.

Keyword and Meta Tag
A word or phrase used in a search engine query. In HTML, keywords appear in the meta tags for a Web page, where they help search engines readily identify and better index the website. For example, if you sell candy, your keywords might include "Chocolate," "CandyBag," and "Mixed Candy."

Merchant Account
A bank account established by a merchant to receive the proceeds of credit card purchases. A banking relationship, which allows a business to accept credit cards. Existing businesses that already have an established merchant account with a bank and who want to sell their wares on the Internet need to make sure that the same merchant account is acceptable for Internet transactions.

Multimedia
A Web page method of presenting combinations of text, images, graphics, animation, streaming audio and or video.
POP (post office protocol)
A protocol designed to allow a home computer to retrieve email from a mail server. Using POP mail, you can check your email from your computer using a program like Microsoft Office.

Privacy Policy
A statement on the WebsiteDirect websites to explain how our company protects the privacy of the information it aggregates about its users. It discloses how the site collects, uses, and shares your personal information.

Search Engine
A remotely accessible program that lets you do keyword searches for information or websites on the Web. Commonly known search engines include Google, Yahoo!, and Altavista.

Search Engine Submission
The process of submitting your website's URL to a search engine or search directory with the intent of getting it listed on the search site.

Spam
An E-mail message sent to a large number of people without consent, also known as Unsolicited Commercial E-mail or junk E-mail. Spam is usually sent to promote a product or service.

Traffic
The amount of user activity on a Web site. The volume of data sent via a network; includes messages and transactions of any kind. A web site that has a lot of visitors has a high volume of traffic.

Upload
To copy a file from your local computer to a server or host system. To transfer files or data from one computer to another. To upload means "to send, to download means "to receive."

URL (uniform resource locator)
An address for a website located on the Internet. All websites have a URL’s. Example: http://www.WebsiteDirect.com.

WYSIWYG
What You See Is What You Get
(pronounced: whiz-ee-wig)
This is a acronym for a technology that allows you to view the development of your website exactly as it looks.