Imagine this scenario: While reading a how-to article on plumbing, you come across the term PEX pipe. You have no clue what PEX pipe is or what it does. Your trusty office dictionary doesn’t include plumbing terminology, so you turn to Google and find out that PEX pipe is a flexible polyethylene-based tubing.
As I mentioned last year, Google has become our default dictionary. But really, Google is the tool that leads us to the definitions we seek; it doesn’t actually provide the definitions. Websites do!
If your business uses industry-specific terminology, you can potentially boost your website traffic by adding a glossary page. While dictionaries attempt to cover an entire language or subject, glossaries are alphabetical lists of terms and definitions related to specific documents. In this case, the document would be your website.
Although print glossaries are usually text-based, there are no rules preventing you from including images. In fact, your visitors will probably appreciate the addition of pictures, diagrams, and other graphics. Carefully labeled images can also bring in additional web traffic through Google Images.
In addition, you can link glossary entries to technical terms in your blog posts so that you don’t have to repeatedly define difficult words or phrases for new readers.
Here are a few examples of industries (beyond plumbing) that can benefit from website glossaries:
- Medical, dental, and vision
- Computer hardware and software
- Website design and development
- Cooking and baking
- Gaming
- Construction and manufacturing
- Interior decorating and remodeling
- Financial
- Automotive
- Crafting
- Health and fitness
I know what you’re thinking: “Why don’t you have a glossary on your site?” I don’t have a glossary because the language of copywriting and editing isn’t industry specific. Nouns, verbs, and dangling participles belong to everyone—even those who don’t want them! But, I always look forward to discovering my clients’ unique vocabularies.
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