Table of Contents
Your designer talks in code. Here’s the translation.
“Above the fold”
What they say: “This needs to be above the fold”
What it means: The part of your website visitors see without scrolling. If your most important stuff is buried, nobody sees it.
Why it matters: Visitors decide in 3 seconds whether to stay or leave. Put your most important message above the fold.
“Mobile responsive”
What they say: “Don’t worry, it’s mobile responsive”
What it means: Your website doesn’t look broken on phones. Bare minimum in 2025.
“Hero section”
What they say: “Let’s rework the hero”
What it means: That big visual area at the top of your website homepage.
Not: Anything to do with superheroes (unfortunately).
“CSS”
What they say: “I’ll handle it in CSS”
What it means: The code that makes websites look good (colors, layouts, fonts).
What you hear: Magic words that mean “trust me, it’ll work.”
“WebP”
What they say: “We’ll convert images to WebP”
What it means: Modern image format that loads way faster than JPG/PNG.
Why you care: Faster site = better Google ranking = more visitors stick around.
“Lazy loading”
What they say: “We’ll implement lazy loading”
What it means: Images load only when you scroll to them, not all at once.
Why it’s smart: Faster website = visitors don’t lose patience and leave.
“SEO vs SEM”
What they say: “Your website need both SEO and SEM”
What it means:
- SEM = Search Engine Marketing (paid ads)
- SEO = free organic ranking
The difference: SEM costs money per click. SEO costs time and effort upfront.
“CTR”
What they say: “Your CTR is low”
What it means: Click-Through Rate – how many people actually click your button/link.
Red flag: If 1,000 people see your website but only 5 click your contact button, something’s broken.
“CRO”
What they say: “We should focus on CRO”
What it means: Conversion Rate Optimization – making more visitors actually do something (buy, contact, sign up).
Real talk: A pretty website that doesn’t convert is just expensive decoration.
“Bounce rate”
What they say: “Your bounce rate is 85%”
What it means: 85% of website visitors left immediately without doing anything.
Translation: Your website failed to convince them in 3 seconds.
“UX”
What they say: “The UX needs work”
What it means: User Experience – how easy/pleasant your site is to use.
Real example: On your website, if people can’t find your phone number in 5 seconds, bad UX.
“Whitespace”
What they say: “We need more whitespace”
What it means: Empty space around elements. Not wasted space – breathing room.
Client hears: “You want me to pay for blank space?”
Reality: Makes everything else easier to read and more premium.
“Wireframe”
What they say: “Let’s start with wireframes”
What it means: Basic layout sketch with boxes and placeholders. No colors, no images.
Why first: Proves the structure works before we make it pretty.
“A/B testing”
What they say: “We should A/B test this”
What it means: Show version A to half your visitors, version B to the other half. See which converts better.
The truth: Guessing what works is expensive. Testing is cheaper.
Confused by something your designer said? Send us the phrase. We’ll translate.
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