Real estate website glossary

Terms

AEO (answer engine optimization)

Writing and structuring pages so AI assistants and search features can quote a clear, direct answer from them.

Broker reciprocity

The MLS arrangement that lets participating brokers display each other’s listings on their websites. IDX is built on it.

Call to action (CTA)

The next step a page asks the visitor to take, such as asking a question or booking a call.

Canonical URL

The preferred address of a page, declared in its code, so search engines treat duplicates as one page.

Core Web Vitals

Google’s measurements of loading speed, responsiveness and visual stability on real visits to a page.

CRM

Customer relationship management software that stores contacts and leads and tracks follow-up.

DNS

The system that points your domain name at the server where your website is hosted.

Domain

Your website’s address, such as yourname.com. You should own it in your own account.

FAQPage schema

Structured data that marks up questions and answers on a page so search engines can read them.

Google Business Profile

Your free business listing on Google Search and Maps, where clients can leave reviews.

Hosting

The servers that store your website and deliver it to visitors.

IDX (Internet Data Exchange)

The rules and data feeds that let agents show MLS listings on their own websites, usually through an IDX provider. IDX websites

Lead capture

The forms and calls to action that turn a website visitor into a contact you can follow up with.

Lead follow-up

Replying to a new inquiry. An instant automatic reply confirms you received it until you follow up personally. Lead follow-up

llms.txt

A plain-text file at the root of a website that summarizes its pages for AI assistants.

Local SEO

Improving how a business appears in searches tied to a place, such as a town or neighborhood.

MLS (multiple listing service)

A database run by a group of brokers where members share property listings.

Neighborhood page

A page about one area you sell, with prices, trade-offs, common questions and a next step. Writing neighborhood pages

Schema markup (structured data)

Code that describes a page’s content, such as a business, article or FAQ, in a format search engines understand.

SEO (search engine optimization)

Making pages easier for search engines to find, understand and show for relevant searches.

Sitemap

A file that lists a website’s pages so search engines can find them.

SSL certificate

The certificate that lets your site load over a secure HTTPS connection.

UTM parameters

Tags added to a link, such as utm_source=email, that record which campaign a visitor came from.