Where
Board
Often relating to Pinterest, boards are collections of saved images that a user has gathered over time on the site. They can be specific to a theme or interest that you have in mind.
Grid
Refers to your Instagram profile layout. You can create a theme/filter that will help your grid look more aesthetic to show off your personal style. If you create a consistent layout, this will definitely increase the number of people clicking that follow button.
Newsfeed
The newsfeed is the homepage of any social media, which shows all of the published content by anyone you follow. It is home to images and videos, upcoming events and links to external pages.
Platform
A platform refers to the program or app that allow users to connect with others and share their interests online. Platforms are ever-changing and some stay around for years, like Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram to the latest like TikTok. You’ll find that here are heaps of ways to interact with people.
Story
A collection of images and videos that users can add to their profile with different filters, music and gifs. These stories will disappear after 24 hours, but if added to your Instagram highlights, they can be grouped according to event.
What
A social networking website that allows users to create personal and business profiles to share information such as photos and status’, and respond or re-share information posted by others.
GIF
GIF stands for Graphic Interchange Format, and in basic terms means a computer file that contains a moving image.
Handle
A handle is any public username on any social media platform. A user’s handle relates to an @ symbol followed by their username. E.G. @thecitrusclubco.
IGTV
A shortened term for Instagram TV, this standalone app is where users can post video content that is longer than 60 seconds and less than 60 minutes. Even though it is its own app, IGTV is more frequently in the Instagram app.
an online photo and video sharing app that allows personal users and business accounts to upload media edited with filters and organised by hashtags and geographical tagging.
Meme
An idea or behaviour expressed in the form of an image, video or piece of text that is shared on the internet and spread rapidly.
An image sharing service described as a ‘visual bookmarking site’. Users are able to explore, organise and share visual content.
Post
A post is how you present your content on social media. It can be in the form of either a video, image or text.
Reel
Based off Tik Tok videos, an Instagram reel is a 15-second multi clip video incorporating music or sounds and visual effects. Reels have outstanding visibility and give even the accounts with little following the chance to go viral. Warning: reels can be highly addictive to watch!
TikTok
A video sharing app that allows users to create, share and discover short videos. Tik Tok is often used by a younger audience to express themselves via dancing, singing, lip-syncing and comedy.
User Generated Content (UGC)
UCG is any type of content, whether it be images, videos or text etc., created by a person, not a brand. You can see this type of content in sponsored posts by influencers on any social media platform.
When UCG is reposted/shared by other users, this can bump up the brand followers and the number of profile visits. E.G. if an influencer posts a photo of a big juicy burger, you best believe users are going to find out where they are.
Vlogging
A shortened term for video blogging. Uploaded normally to YouTube by content creators to give their followers an insight into their experiences, ideas and lifestyles.
Actions
Archive
To archive a post on Instagram is to hide it from your profile so your followers and other people on Instagram can’t see it. You are able to unarchive posts at any time, while keeping all it’s likes and comments.
Comment
If you want to engage with the post beyond liking it, you can write a message down below, this is called a comment. Other users can react and reply to your comments.
Direct Message (DM)
A DM is a private communication between the sender and receiver on any social media platform. When you message someone on the sly it’s commonly known as ‘sliding in someone’s DMs’.
Think of it like sending someone a text or SMS on that specific social platform. Hot tip: make sure you’re privately messaging and not commenting on a public profile for everyone to read.
Follow / Unfollow
Following a page is to subscribe to their content on social media, when you unfollow said user, you won’t be notified of any of their posts anymore.
Hashtag
Hashtags are labels used on social media posts that allow users to search/find specific content and themes or even further information about events and competitions. They allow users to gain followers, be a part of a community, and reach their target audience.
Twitter was the first platform to utilise hashtags and soon after, Facebook and Instagram followed. You can even follow hashtags on Insta, E.G. #foodporn.
Like
When you react to a post on social media this is called a like. However, if you’re using Facebook, you can use a range of reactions called love, haha, wow, sad, angry as well as the classic like.
Mention
Mention can be related to two different definitions. The first and most commonly known mention is when a user can tag another profile in their Instagram or Facebook stories.
Whereas the other definition for a mention relates to using it as a metric for engagement regarding a brand’s social platforms.
Pin
1. A feature on Instagram that allows users to pick up to three comments on each of their photos so they appear at the top of the post. This allows users more control over the nature of the comment thread.
2. To ‘pin’ something is to mark it. Pinning can include marking an important comment to the top of a post or even pinning an image to add to your personal collection/board on Pinterest.
Promote / Boost
If you want to boost the engagement of your posts or profile, you can pay to promote it. When promoting posts, you can choose the location and specific groups of users that you want to target. Promotion/boosting posts can lead to an increase in followers and user interaction.
Regram
A regram is when you share another profile’s content to your own Instagram page. When you’re regramming, there are more steps required than when you retweet. You have to save the URL and paste it into an app that will then save the video for you to repost.
Repost
Similar to a regram, a repost is about sharing others’ content online. Repost refers mainly to Facebook, but sometimes is featured on Instagram too.
Share(s)
When users share your content to their own pages or stories, allowing their followers and connections to view it and interact with it.
Tag / Untag
If you want to include another user in your post, you need to tag their handle. When you are tagged in a story, you have the option to repost the story on your own profile.
General
Engagement
To measure engagement on social media, you have to take into account the shares, likes, comments on the post, in order to determine how the page is performing.
Businesses and brands normally calculate the rate of engagement for influencers, to see if they will be successful at promoting a product or service. There are many influencers who buy their followers and likes, so sometimes this is tricky to navigate.
Impressions (Page Impressions)
Impressions are a little different than reach, because it counts the amount of times your posts were exposed to users, even if they didn’t click or engage with it.
Influencer
Influencers are considered as social media users who have obtained a large following and have the power to influence their followers by promoting themselves as a brand or products they’re using, wearing or consuming.
Influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing which relates to the endorsement and product placement by influencers. Those who have a good engagement rate are targeted more often because they clearly have dedicated followers that are more likely to purchase the product they are promoting.
Notification
A notification is an alert that you receive when an action has occurred. Whenever anyone messages, follows or reacts to your profile, you will receive a notification from that social media app.
Organic Reach
Organic reach refers to the performance of your posts that aren’t financially backed. Basically, every social media platform provides insights on the engagement of unpaid for content.
The more organic reach, the better, this means that your content speaks for itself and has the ability to engage the audience without you having to spend any money.
Reach
Reach on social media relates to the number of users that have seen and clicked on your content on any platform.
Retargeting
Retargeting is a way of online advertising to users who have previously visited your website or app but may not have interacted or connected with it. It normally involves displaying ads on their various social media platforms or emailing.
Sponsored Post
Sponsored posts are a form of content that has been backed by an incentive (normally financial) that users will post in order to bring more recognition to the brand.
When searching for an influencer to post sponsored content relating to your business, the larger following they have, the bigger the reward they require.
Verified
In order to be verified on any social media platform, you must be either a public figure, celebrity or brand that reaches the specific account and eligibility requirements that the platform has.
Once verified, you will receive a blue check mark against your handle and will have access to a multitude of benefits. You can gain access to new app features before the public and you can DM other verified accounts with a higher chance of them seeing it. The blue tick will also contribute to an increase in trustworthiness and brand awareness from followers.
If you want a copy of these definitions, click the button below to download The Sundae Agency’s PDF version of this glossary.
