Information architecture is one of the most important user experience elements of a website because it directly affects navigation, often affects URL structure, and it is important to both SEO and conversion optimization. On ecommerce websites, product “merchandising” may impact aspects of information architecture. To ensure that users can find the information they are looking for as quickly and as easily as possible, it is important to understand the technical differences between categories and attributes.

Learn the technical differences between categories and attributes

Some SEO consultants recommend “flat” URL structures. However, there is no evidence that a flat URL structure is better than a clearly hierarchical URL structure. While there is some debate in the SEO community, most reputable sources agree that there is no SEO/SERP benefit to flattening URL structure, and that hierarchical URLs are better for UX, crawling, and data analysis.

Learn how to best structure URLs for SEO and UX

When launching a website on a new platform or when changing the information architecture of a website, it is usually necessary to configure redirects to ensure users can locate the content they expect even when accessing the website via legacy URLs. These redirects also instruct search engines to reindex content at a new location and transfer page ranking.

Learn how locate and redirect URLs for URL migrations

Acronyms are evil. Individually, acronyms appear to be manageable, but many acronyms (built up over time) result is an unmanageable glossary of terms that make on-boarding difficult. Acronyms alienate new team members and clients by creating insecurity and confusion. We have a responsibility to utilize as few acronyms as possible, in addition to educating our clients and staff on commonly used industry acronyms.

3PL (TPL) - Third-Party Logistics

Third-party logistics providers offers outsourced logistics services for part, or all of the necessary supply chain management functions.

AOV - Average Order Value

Average order value is a relationship between the sum of revenue generated and the number of orders taken.

AVS - Address Verification System

An address verification system is a system used to verify the address of a person claiming to own a credit card. The system will check the billing address of the credit card provided by the user with the address on file at the credit card company. This may also be applied to logistics.

B&M - Brick-and-Mortar

Brick-and-mortar is often used to refer to a company that possesses buildings, production facilities, or physical retail locations for operations.

B2B - Business-to-Business

Business-to-business refers to a situation where one business makes a commercial transaction with another.

B2C - Business-to-Customer/Consumer

Business-to-customer refers to a situation where a business sells directly to customers.

CLV (CLTV, LTV) - Customer Lifetime Value

Customer lifetime value is a prediction of the net profit attributed to the entire future relationship with a customer.

CRM - Customer Relationship Management

Customer relationship management refers to practices, strategies and technologies that companies use to manage and analyze customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle, with the goal of improving business relationships with customers, assisting in customer retention and driving sales growth.

CSR - Customer Service Representative

Customer service representatives interact with customers on behalf of an organization. They provide information about products and services, take orders, respond to customer complaints, and process returns. Many customer service representatives work in customer contact centers.

EDI - Electronic Data Interchange

An electronic data interchange is an electronic communication method that provides standards for exchanging data via any electronic means.

EOD - End of Day

End of day (also referred to as end of business [EOB] and close of business [COB]) is an indicator often used to designate the time by which something must be completed. End of day traditionally is around 5:00 PM, the end of the standard workday, but can vary depending on the time zone that the person or company is located in.

ERP - Enterprise Resource Planning

Enterprise resource planning is business process management software that allows an organization to use a system of integrated applications to manage the business and automate many back office functions related to technology, services and human resources.

ESP - Email Service Provider

An email service provider may provide tracking information showing the status of email sent to each member of an address list. Email Service Providers also often provide the ability to segment an address list into interest groups or categories, allowing the user to send targeted information to people who they believe will value the correspondence.

GA - Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a freemium web analytics service offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic.

GSC - Google Search Console

Google Search Console (previously Google Webmaster Tools) is a no-charge web service by Google for webmasters. It allows webmasters to check indexing status and optimize visibility of their websites.

PIM - Product Information Management

A Product Information Management system manages the information required to market and sell products through distribution channels. A central set of product data can be used to feed information to media such as web sites, print catalogs, ERP systems, and electronic data feeds to trading partners.

POS - Point of Sale

Point of sale is the time and place where a retail transaction is completed. This generally refers to a system of physical hardware and software found in brick-and-mortar retail locations.

RMA - Return Merchandise Authorization

Return merchandise authorization is a part of the process of returning a product in order to receive a refund, replacement, or repair during the product’s warranty period.

ROI - Return on Investment

Return on investment is the benefit to the investor resulting from an investment of some resource. A high ROI means the investment gains compare favorably to investment cost.

SEO - Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization is the process of affecting the visibility of a website or a web page in a search engine’s unpaid results — often referred to as “natural,” “organic,” or “earned” results. In general, the earlier (or higher ranked on the search results page), and more frequently a site appears in the search results list, the more visitors it will receive from the search engine’s users.

SEM - Search Engine Marketing

Search engine marketing is a form of Internet marketing that involves the promotion of websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs) primarily through paid advertising.

SI - Systems Integrator

A systems integrator is a person or company that specializes in bringing together component subsystems into a whole and ensuring that those subsystems function together, a practice known as system integration.

SLA - Service-Level Agreement

A service-level agreement is a part of a standardized service contract where a service is formally defined. Particular aspects of the service – scope, quality, responsibilities – are agreed between the service provider and the service user.

SOW - Statement of Work

A statement of work is a document, routinely employed in the field of project management, which defines project-specific activities, deliverables and their respective timelines, all of which form a contractual obligation upon the vendor, in providing services to the client.

T&M - Time and Materials

Time and materials refers to a payment arrangement in which a person or company agrees to a provider based upon the time spent by the provider to perform the work, and for materials used (plus mark up), no matter how much work is required to complete a task.

TCO - Total Cost of Ownership

Total cost of ownership is a financial estimate intended to help buyers and owners determine the direct and indirect costs of a product or system. It is a management accounting concept that can be used in full cost accounting or even ecological economics where it includes social costs.

UI – User Interface

User interface refers to an abstraction of a (generally complex) technology that allows a user to perform a set of actions without needing to understand the inner workings of the underlying technology.

UX - User Experience

User experience refers to the impression a user has when they’ve been exposed to a brand. User experience encompasses the totality of each interaction with a particular brand including marketing, digital and physical properties, packaging, product and customer service.

Text resize widgets are redundant artifacts of the 20th century web, many being poorly designed an poorly implemented. While these widgets were intended to assist with accessibility, in reality, they not only fail to improve accessibility, but they also detract from site design and negatively affect site performance.

Learn why text resize widgets fail to adequately address accessibility concerns