Here are some descriptions for terms you may have heard and been suspicious that someone was just winding you up.
Branding
Brand - The identity of a product or service, that helps people to recognise and trust your company. Not just a buzz-word, brands can evoke emotions that are positive or negative, which then influence customer preferences.Colour Palette - Part of your branding, your colour scheme is a limited set of colours that are used throughout your business and that reflect the business values and are attractive to your customers.Logo - A key part of your branding, it is a graphic that represents your company. It doesn't have to reflect what your business does specifically, but needs to be recognisable and to work when small or large.Icon - In terms of computing, it is a small image that helps you navigate around a screen by identifying something else, usually software.Typeface - Is used to describe the overall family name of a collection of fonts and there are thousands to choose from.Font - The style, size and weight (boldness) of text on a screen or paper. A collection of fonts make up a typeface. Font sizes are typically measured in points (pt).Flyer - Used to convey your products or services to your potential customers. It can be any size or shape and should be eye catching if it is part of your advertising campaign.Letterhead - Used to professionally contact a customer by mail. It is usually A4 in size, contains your business information and can be used for multiple purposes such as invoices, letters, quotes.Compliment Slip - Typically a third of an A4 size sheet of good quality paper, containing your business information and a personal message. Usually included with deliveries.
Design
Graphic Design - The process of communicating visually through the use of text, photos, icons and illustration, to form representations of ideas and messages.Adobe - A company who make design software including PDF Readers, Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign & Dreamweaver.Vector - An image (such as a logo) drawn using geometric shapes and lines. It does not pixelate (become fuzzy) when you make the image bigger.Raster - An image (such as a photo) generally made up of a grid of pixels or dots. It will pixelate (become fuzzy) when you make the image bigger, depending on the resolution of the image.Resolution - Refers to the clarity and sharpness of an image. On computer screens this is measured in how many pixels fit in an inch (ppi) and varies from 72 to 96ppi. In printing, it is measured in how many dots fit in an inch (dpi) and is typically around 300dpi.Pixel - Short for picture element and is the smallest unit of light on a screen. Many pixels together make up the screen display and there can be millions.Hex - In terms of colours, they are a set of six numbers preceded by a hash #, that represent a specific colour. There are over 16 million possible colours using hex.Gradients - A gradual change from one colour to another to give an attractive effect.File Extension - A file extension is tagged onto the end of a file name, after the full stop. It indicates what sort of file it is and tells the computer what software it needs to open it with.AI - An .ai file extension is produced when you make a logo or design in Adobe Illustrator. It contains all the information used to create the design, not just the finished image.EPS - An .eps file extension is an Encapsulated Postscript format from Adobe but they tend not to be used any more.PNG - A .png file extension is a Portable Network Graphics file used for high quality raster images online. They are not suitable for printing.SVG - An .svg file extension is a Scalable Vector Graphics file used for high quality vector images online. They are not suitable for printing.
Printing
Colour Profile - Standards that ensure the same colour is displayed exactly the same no matter where it is shown or printed. Different profiles are used depending on whether the colour is displayed on a screen or printed physically.CMYK - A real world colour profile that stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key (Black). They are used in the printing process where colours are added to a white canvas (paper) to remove other colours from the visual spectrum.GSM - The Grams per Square Metre number describes the quality of paper. The greater the number, the heavier the paper.FSC - The Forest Stewardship Council promotes responsible management of the world's forests and the ability to use the term means that products come from a well-managed forest or recycled sources.PDF - A .pdf file extension is a Portable Document format from Adobe that enables documents to be shared more easily.Proofs - When you send files to a printer, they will check them and send them back to you for verification before they go ahead with printing. If there are any subsequent errors found, the printer is not at fault if the error is also on the proof.RGB - An online colour profile, which stands for Red, Green, Blue. It is used by computer screens where colours are added to a black canvas (screen) to build the image. It should not be used for printing.
Internet
Online - Used to refer to being on the internet or connected to other devices. Offline is the opposite :-)Internet - All the websites of the world, connected by wires or satellites to computers (servers) that are always switched on.Broadband - A way of connecting to the internet using your home phone line (ADSL). It allows you to carry on using your landline phone and is usually fast.ISP - An Internet Service Provider is the company that provides your broadband access and who charges for the privilege.Modem / Router - A physical device that works between your computer/device and your phone line in order to use your broadband to access the Internet. They are usually provided for free from your ISP.Wi-Fi - A wireless connection between your computer/device and modem so that you don't need a cable trailing everywhere. Wi-fi is built into most devices these days.Search Engine - like Google, they keep track of all the websites on the internet so that they can choose the best results for you when you are looking for something in particular.Browser - A way to access the internet and display websites, on a screen (window). There are many different browsers available including Chrome, Safari, Edge, Internet Explorer, Samsung Internet, Firefox and Opera, all with their own way of displaying a website.Chrome - the main web browser made by Google and is very popular.Safari - the main web browser made by Apple and is usually used on iPhones, iPads and iMacs.Microsoft Edge - the main web browser made by Microsoft to replace Internet Explorer and is on most computers.Tabs - When you are using a web browser, you might want to look for something else without losing what you are already looking at. You can open a new 'tab' within the same browser and then switch between them.GDPR - The General Data Protection Regulation aims to give protection to consumers when their personal data is stored by someone else. The intention is to reduce cold calls, spam and the selling of your data without your permission.HTML - Stands for Hypertext Markup Language (always good to remember for a pub quiz). The main computer language used to write websites so that browsers know what to display on the screen.HTTP - Stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol and is a protocol for how data is exchanged between websites and servers on the internet.HTTPS - A more secure version of the HTTP protocol which uses SSL for encryption and authentication. So it's better than HTTP.
Websites
Website - Your section of the internet where you can display your goods and services, connect with new customers and hopefully turn their visits into future sales.Domain - This is your website address and refers to the words that go after the www. bit. You can also choose from many alternatives to the .com or .co.uk extension at the end, which can be a cheaper. Domains are usually rented annually from domain registrars.Hosting - Your website host is a company you pay to store your website on their server and who ensures it is available 24/7.Server - A server is basically a computer that is always switched on so that multiple people can access the websites that are stored on it, at the same time.Publish - Before anyone on the internet can see your website, it needs to be published. This is good because it means while you are initially working on it, it is not publicly displayed before it is ready.SEO - Search Engine Optimisation is about doing everything you can to ensure that your website appears near the top of any relevant search results.Traffic - This refers to the number of visits you have had to your website. You want a high number of unique visitors as well as your regulars who come back again.Cookies - These are little electronic trackers that transfer to your computer or device when you visit a website. They let websites remember you when you visit again and are not evil or trying to take over the world.Ecommerce - This is buying or selling goods or services directly via the Internet. It lets a customer select and pay for something online, without having to interact with a person first to take the order. Any website that takes payments needs to be secure.Blog - A shortened version of weblog, a blog is like a diary on the internet. It's usually informal and displayed in reverse date order with the latest entries shown first.Wordpress - free software that can be used to create and publish your own website or blog. It is very popular.
Social Media
Social Media - The modern menace that we love to hate. Use it to connect with friends or strangers, to share news or photos and to attract the attention of potential customers.Content - This is the main text, images, videos or photos that people use social media for. Whenever you add something to your social media account, you are creating content.Post - When you are on a social media platform and you want to write something to share with others, you are creating a post and once you press Return/Enter, you have posted it.Engagement - This is about getting people to notice what you put on social media. If they just scroll past, you have no engagement. If they click on your post and maybe give it a thumbs up, you have engaged them. The higher your engagement figures, the better.Insights - Each social media platform usually has a method of checking how well your posts are doing in terms of the number of people who have read them and engaged with them.Profile - Whenever you create a social media account, you get an area, called your profile, to add relevant information about yourself and/or your business. You can usually also add a small profile photo or logo as well as a larger banner image.Banner - When talking about social media banners, these are the customisable main images at the top of your profile. Each social media platform has a slightly different size requirement for the image to display nicely.Facebook - The friend-based social media giant accounting for over 55% of UK social media - great for connecting with customers, advertising and receiving feedback.Twitter - The opinion-based social media platform where you can rant and rave into the ether at the same time as being able to 'follow' politicians, actors, journalists and the bloke down the pub.Instagram - The image-based social media company - great for sharing images of products and for building a brand. Can only be posted to using a mobile device i.e. Phone or tablet.LinkedIn - The business-based social media company - great for displaying company information as well as personal professional information.Pinterest - The visual equivalent of a search engine - great for finding ideas, sharing products and creating image libraries.
Other
Software - is usually what you see on a computer screen or device and is what lets you magically interact with the computer. When you turn the machine off, you don't see the software anymore.Hardware - is the physical gubbins of the computer or device. Keep it nice and clean and don't spill coffee on it.Excel - Software made by Microsoft to generate spreadsheets that can perform calculations, do accounts and create graphs. You need to buy it in order to use it.Word - Software made by Microsoft that is a word processor and is used to write documents. You need to buy it in order to use it.BACS - Previously known as Bankers Automated Clearing System, it is used to facilitate bank transfers.
