At some point, it feels like everyone starts speaking a different language.
CPM, CAC, CTR, ROAS…
It can feel like you need a secret decoder ring to figure out what’s working and what’s wasting your money.
The good news?
You don’t need a marketing degree.
You don’t need to love branding or become a full-time marketing nerd.
You just need to know which numbers to watch and what they mean.
This will help you make better decisions and get more customers.
That’s why I created this guide.
It’s a simple glossary of the 25 most important marketing terms, built around the customer journey.
Before we dive into the terms, let’s talk about the customer journey.
Every customer follows a simple path:
- First they notice you.
- Then they get curious.
- Then they think about whether or not they trust you.
- Then they buy.
If you deliver, they come back for more—or send their friends your way.
Knowing where someone is on that path is the key to growing faster without wasting time and money. That’s exactly what these marketing terms are here to help with.
Let’s dive in.
Top of Funnel: Getting Noticed (Awareness Stage)
When you’re just getting started, the goal is simple: get seen by the right people.
- Impression — Every time your ad, post, or content shows up on someone’s screen.
- Reach — The total number of unique people who saw your ad or content at least once.
- Frequency — How often, on average, each person saw your ad. (Impressions ÷ Reach)
- CPM (Cost Per Mile) — How much it costs to get 1,000 impressions.
- Engagement Rate — The percentage of people who interact with your content (likes, comments, shares, saves) after seeing it. Higher engagement means people are paying attention, and that’s the first step to building trust.
- SEO (Search Engine Optimization) — Making free tweaks to your website so you show up higher in Google searches.
- SEM (Search Engine Marketing) — Paying for your site or ad to show up at the top of Google search results.
- PPC (Pay-Per-Click) — Paying only when someone clicks your ad, not just when they see it.
Middle of Funnel: Sparking Curiosity (Interest & Consideration)
Now that you’ve got their attention, your next job is to get them curious enough to take action.
- Traffic — The number of people visiting your website from ads, search, social media, or email.
- CTR (Click-Through Rate) — The percentage of people who clicked on your ad after seeing it. (Clicks ÷ Impressions × 100)
- CPC (Cost Per Click) — How much you’re paying for each click to your website.
- Bounce Rate — The percentage of visitors who leave your site without taking any action.
- Landing Page — The first page a visitor sees after clicking your ad, designed to guide them toward taking action.
- CTA (Call To Action) — The button, link, or message that tells people exactly what to do next, like “Download Now” or “Sign Up Today.”
- Lead — Someone who shows interest by signing up, filling out a form, or giving you their contact info.
- CPL (Cost Per Lead) — How much you’re paying to generate each lead.
- Lead Scoring — A system for ranking leads based on how ready they are to buy, based on actions they’ve taken or data you have.
Bottom of Funnel: Closing the Deal (Decision & Conversion)
This is where curiosity turns into action—and where you start generating real revenue.
- Conversion Rate — The percentage of visitors who complete the action you want (buy, sign up, schedule a call).
- CPA (Cost Per Acquisition/Action) — How much it costs you to get someone to take a specific action.
- CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost) — The total cost (ads, tools, people) to win one new paying customer.
- AOV (Average Order Value) — The average dollar amount customers spend per order.
- ROAS (Return On Ad Spend) — How much revenue you earn for every dollar spent on ads.
- ROI (Return On Investment) — Your real profit after factoring in all costs, not just ad spend.
Post-Purchase: Building Loyalty (Retention & Advocacy)
Getting the first sale is just the start. The real growth happens when you keep customers happy, and keep them coming back.
- LTV (Customer Lifetime Value) — The total amount of money you can expect to earn from a customer over the lifetime of your relationship.
- Churn Rate — The percentage of customers who stop buying from you or cancel within a specific period. Churn is typically tracked in recurring revenue businesses, such as memberships, SaaS, service retainers, and ongoing coaching or consulting programs.
How to Use Marketing Terms
You don’t need to memorize all 25 terms right now.
Just focus on the stage you’re working on—and track your numbers:
- Getting Seen? → Watch Impressions, Reach, CPM.
- Building Interest? → Track Traffic, CTR, Bounce Rate, CPL.
- Closing Sales? → Focus on Conversion Rate, CPA, CAC, ROAS.
- Keeping Clients? → Keep an eye on LTV and fight Churn.
Bonus: A Few Advanced Marketing Terms (For When You’re Ready to Scale)
Once you’re scaling and want to dig deeper, here are a few more metrics to know:
- CPV (Cost Per View) — How much you pay when someone watches your video ad (important for YouTube/Facebook).
- Payback Period — How long it takes to earn back what you spent to get a new customer.
- Customer Journey Mapping — Planning out every step someone takes from not knowing you to becoming a loyal client.
(But don’t worry about these yet—get the basics dialed in first.)
Marketing Is More Than Buzzwords
Marketing isn’t about throwing around buzzwords.
It’s about knowing your numbers, making smarter decisions, and helping more people find—and love—what you offer.
When you start using these 25 terms in your strategy, you’ll have a serious edge over 90% of business owners who are still guessing what works.
- You’ll spot problems faster.
- You’ll fix what’s broken sooner.
- You’ll grow a business that’s built to last.
Want to make getting clients the easy way?
Click here to see how we can help you grow faster.
Let’s make it happen.