Ecommerce Glossary
Understand key terms, metrics, and technical concepts behind the tools that power online stores.
A
8 termsA/B Testing
A/B testing (split testing) is an experiment that compares two or more versions of a webpage, email, or flow to see which performs better for a specific ecommerce goal, like purchases or sign-ups.
→A/B Testing and Experimentation
A/B testing and experimentation is the controlled process of comparing two or more versions of a page, email, or feature to measure which produces better ecommerce outcomes like conversion, revenue, or retention.
→Abandoned Cart
An abandoned cart occurs when a shopper adds items to their online shopping cart but leaves without completing the purchase.
→Abandoned Cart Recovery
Abandoned cart recovery is the set of tactics and measurements used to re-engage shoppers who added items to a cart or started checkout but left before paying, with the goal of converting those carts into completed orders.
→Application Programming Interface (API)
An API is a set of rules that allows different software applications to communicate and share data with each other.
→Attribution Modeling
Attribution modeling assigns conversion and revenue credit across marketing touchpoints so ecommerce teams can understand which channels and interactions drove sales and allocate budget accordingly.
→Average Order Value
Average Order Value (AOV) is the average revenue generated per completed order; calculated as total revenue divided by number of orders and used to track transaction value and revenue efficiency.
→Average Order Value (AOV)
Average Order Value (AOV) tracks the average dollar amount spent each time a customer places an order on a website or app.
→B
2 termsBounce Rate
Bounce rate is the percentage of single-page sessions where visitors leave without interacting further with an online store or app.
→Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL)
Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) is a point-of-sale financing option that lets customers split a purchase into interest-free or low-interest installments; merchants use it to increase conversions, average order value, and payment flexibility.
→C
29 termsCall to Action
A Call to Action (CTA) is a clear instruction prompting a visitor to take a specific action on an online store, such as "Buy now", "Add to cart", or "Subscribe".
→Cart Abandonment Rate
The percentage of shopping carts that are created but not completed as purchases, expressed as a percent of initiated checkouts.
→Cart Abandonment Recovery
Cart Abandonment Recovery is the set of tactics and measurements used to re-engage shoppers who added items to a cart but left before completing checkout, aiming to recover lost orders and revenue.
→Chargeback
A chargeback is a customer-initiated dispute filed with a card issuer that reverses a card payment—used in ecommerce to recover disputed transactions and can cost merchants sales, fees, and penalties.
→Checkout Abandonment
Checkout abandonment is when a customer starts but does not complete the checkout process, leaving an initiated purchase unfinished.
→Checkout Funnel
The checkout funnel is the step-by-step path shoppers take from cart to completed purchase on an ecommerce site, measured to find where customers drop off and how to increase conversions.
→Churn Rate
Churn rate measures the percentage of customers who stop buying or cancel subscriptions over a set period; in ecommerce it quantifies customer attrition and its impact on recurring revenue.
→Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Click-Through Rate (CTR) measures the percentage of viewers who click a link, ad, or search result; it shows how well your creative, listing, or ad matches user intent.
→Cohort Analysis
Cohort analysis groups customers by shared attributes or time of acquisition to track retention, behavior, and lifetime value over time.
→Composable Commerce
Composable commerce is a modular approach where businesses select and combine best-of-breed commerce components rather than using a monolithic platform.
→Conversion Rate
Conversion rate is the percentage of website visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase or signing up for a newsletter.
→Conversion Rate Optimization
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is the systematic process of increasing the percentage of visitors who complete a desired action (purchase, signup) on an ecommerce site by testing, measuring, and improving user experience and funnel performance.
→Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is the systematic process of increasing the percentage of visitors who complete a desired action on an ecommerce site—buy, subscribe, or add to cart—by testing, analysis, and site improvements.
→Cost Per Click (CPC)
Cost Per Click (CPC) is the average amount you pay each time a user clicks a paid ad; for ecommerce, it measures ad spend efficiency before conversion and helps calculate acquisition cost.
→Cost of Goods Sold
The direct, variable costs tied to producing or purchasing the products you sell, recorded when inventory is sold.
→Cross-sell
Cross-sell is the practice of recommending complementary or related products to customers during their purchase journey to increase average order value and per-customer revenue.
→Customer Acquisition
The process and strategy of attracting new customers to an online store through targeted channels, campaigns, and measurement to drive revenue growth.
→Customer Acquisition Cost
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is the total average expense to acquire a new paying customer, including marketing, sales, and overhead, divided by new customers acquired.
→Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is the average amount a business spends on sales and marketing to acquire one paid customer, measured across a defined time period or channel.
→Customer Data Platform (CDP)
A Customer Data Platform (CDP) is software that collects, unifies, and activates individual-level customer data from multiple ecommerce systems to build a single customer view for marketing, analytics, and personalization.
→Customer Lifetime Value
Customer Lifetime Value (LTV or CLV) is the forecasted net revenue a single customer generates over the entire relationship with your ecommerce business, typically adjusted for gross margin and retention.
→Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV)
Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) estimates the total revenue (or profit) a single customer will generate over their entire relationship with your ecommerce business, helping prioritize acquisition, retention, and spending decisions.
→Customer Lifetime Value (CLV / LTV)
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV or LTV) is the total revenue or profit a business expects to earn from a customer over the entire relationship, used to prioritize acquisition, retention, and product decisions.
→Customer Lifetime Value (CLV or LTV)
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV or LTV) estimates the total revenue or gross profit a customer will generate for a business over the entire time they remain an active buyer.
→Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) predicts the total revenue a business can expect from a single customer account throughout the relationship.
→Customer Lifetime Value (CLV/LTV)
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV or LTV) is the projected gross revenue a single customer will generate for your ecommerce business over their entire relationship, typically measured using purchase value, purchase frequency, and average customer lifespan.
→Customer Retention
Customer retention is the practice of keeping existing customers engaged and encouraging repeat purchases through service, personalization, and lifecycle marketing.
→Customer Retention Rate
Customer Retention Rate (CRR) measures the percentage of existing customers a business keeps over a time period — a core ecommerce metric that shows how well you keep buyers returning.
→Customer Segmentation
Customer Segmentation divides an ecommerce business's customers into groups based on shared attributes—behavioral, demographic, or value—to tailor marketing, product, and service decisions.
→D
4 termsDirect-to-Consumer
Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) is a business model where manufacturers or brands sell products directly to end customers through their own online and physical channels, bypassing traditional retailers.
→Distributed Order Management
Distributed Order Management (DOM) is the system and business process that routes, reserves, and fulfills customer orders across multiple warehouses, stores, and carriers to optimize delivery time, cost, and inventory use.
→Dropshipping
A retail fulfillment model where an online store sells products it does not stock; suppliers ship orders directly to customers on the store’s behalf.
→Dynamic Pricing
Dynamic Pricing is a pricing strategy where a seller adjusts product prices in real time or regularly based on demand, inventory, competition, and customer signals to optimize revenue and margins.
→E
9 termsE-commerce Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
E-commerce Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving an online store's visibility in organic search results to attract relevant shoppers, increase qualified traffic, and grow sales without paid ads.
→Ecommerce SEO
Ecommerce SEO is the practice of optimizing an online store so product, category and brand pages rank and convert from organic search, increasing profitable traffic and revenue.
→Ecommerce SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Ecommerce SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the practice of improving an online store's visibility in organic search so potential buyers find product and category pages, increasing qualified traffic and sales.
→Ecommerce Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Ecommerce Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the practice of improving an online store's visibility in organic search results so more relevant shoppers find product and category pages, increasing traffic and revenue.
→Electronic Data Interchange
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is the standardized digital exchange of business documents between systems to automate orders, invoices, and logistics.
→Email Automation
Email automation is the use of rules and software to send targeted, timed email messages (welcome series, cart recovery, post-purchase) to ecommerce customers without manual sending.
→Email Deliverability
Email deliverability is the percentage of sent marketing and transactional messages that are accepted by recipients' mail servers and reach an inbox or spam folder—critical for ecommerce revenue and customer touchpoints.
→Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) for Ecommerce
An ERP for ecommerce is a central software system that connects inventory, orders, finance, purchasing and fulfillment so merchants run operations from one source of truth.
→Exit Intent
A website trigger that detects when a visitor is about to leave and displays a targeted message or offer to retain them.
→F
30 termsFraud Detection
Fraud detection is the set of tools and processes used to identify and block unauthorized, suspicious, or fraudulent orders and payments in ecommerce—protecting revenue, margins, and customer experience.
→Fraud Detection and Prevention
Fraud detection and prevention is the set of tools, rules, and processes ecommerce businesses use to identify, stop, and reduce fraudulent transactions and abuse to protect revenue and customers.
→Fulfillment & Logistics
Fulfillment & Logistics: the end-to-end process and systems that pick, pack, store, and deliver ecommerce orders—covering warehousing, shipping, returns, and the operational costs and timing that affect customer experience and margin.
→Fulfillment & Shipping Operations
Fulfillment & Shipping Operations are the end-to-end processes that pick, pack, ship, track, and return ecommerce orders—covering warehouse work, carrier selection, packaging, and last-mile delivery.
→Fulfillment Automation
Fulfillment automation is the use of software, machines, and integrated workflows to perform order fulfillment tasks—picking, packing, labeling, shipping, and returns—with minimal manual intervention for ecommerce businesses.
→Fulfillment Center Operations
Fulfillment center operations are the set of processes and systems a business uses to receive inventory, pick, pack, ship orders, and handle returns—focused on speed, accuracy, and cost for ecommerce fulfillment.
→Fulfillment Operations
Fulfillment operations are the end-to-end processes that pick, pack, ship, and manage orders for an ecommerce business, including returns and carrier management to deliver products to customers efficiently.
→Fulfillment Optimization
Fulfillment optimization is the systematic improvement of order processing, packing, shipping, and returns to reduce cost, speed delivery, and increase accuracy for ecommerce businesses.
→Fulfillment Orchestration
Fulfillment orchestration is the automated coordination of inventory, warehouses, carriers, and order rules to route and fulfill ecommerce orders optimally across multiple partners and channels.
→Fulfillment Rate
Fulfillment Rate measures the share of received orders that are successfully prepared, shipped, and delivered as promised; it shows how reliably an ecommerce operation turns sales into fulfilled customer orders.
→Fulfillment and Inventory Management
Fulfillment and inventory management is the combined process of storing, tracking, picking, packing, and shipping products plus managing stock levels, replenishment, and related costs for ecommerce businesses.
→Fulfillment and Logistics
Fulfillment and logistics are the processes that pick, pack, store, ship, and return ecommerce orders, plus the inventory, warehousing, transportation and customer-facing steps that make delivery happen.
→Fulfillment and Logistics Automation
Fulfillment and logistics automation uses software, machines, and integrations to move orders from purchase to delivery with minimal manual steps, improving speed, accuracy, and cost for ecommerce operations.
→Fulfillment and Logistics Management
Coordinating order processing, warehousing, transportation, and returns so customer orders move from cart to delivery efficiently, cost-effectively, and accurately.
→Fulfillment and Order Management
Fulfillment and order management is the combined process of receiving, processing, and delivering customer orders (including returns) and the systems that coordinate inventory, shipping, and order status across sales channels.
→Fulfillment and Order Management (FOM)
Fulfillment and Order Management (FOM) is the combined process and systems that receive, pick, pack, ship, track and reconcile customer orders—covering inventory allocation, shipping, returns and related operations for ecommerce businesses.
→Fulfillment and Order Routing
Fulfillment and order routing is the process and rules an ecommerce business uses to decide which warehouse, fulfillment partner, or carrier handles each order, then pick, pack, and ship it to the customer.
→Fulfillment and Returns Management
The operational system and processes that take an ecommerce order from placement through delivery, and handle returns/reverse logistics so orders are fulfilled correctly, cost-effectively, and customers stay satisfied.
→Fulfillment and Reverse Logistics
Fulfillment and Reverse Logistics describes the end‑to‑end processes for delivering orders (fulfillment) and handling returns, repairs, and exchanges (reverse logistics) for ecommerce businesses.
→Fulfillment and Shipping Operations
Fulfillment and shipping operations are the end-to-end processes that receive ecommerce orders, pick and pack products, hand them to carriers, and manage transit and returns to deliver products to customers reliably and cost-effectively.
→Fulfillment and Shipping Optimization
The continuous process of reducing shipping costs, shortening delivery time, and improving order accuracy and customer experience by tuning warehouse operations, carrier selection, packaging, and policies for ecommerce businesses.
→Fulfillment and Third-Party Logistics (3PL)
Fulfillment and Third-Party Logistics (3PL) is the outsourcing of order storage, picking, packing, shipping, and returns to a specialist provider—used by ecommerce brands to scale operations and improve delivery performance.
→Fulfillment and Warehouse Management
Fulfillment and Warehouse Management is the set of processes, systems, and practices that receive, store, pick, pack, ship, and return ecommerce orders to meet customer expectations while controlling cost and inventory accuracy.
→Fulfillment and Warehousing
Fulfillment and warehousing is the set of operations that receive, store, pick, pack, ship and handle returns for ecommerce orders — covering physical inventory storage, order processing and the facilities or 3PLs that run those tasks.
→Fulfillment and order orchestration
Fulfillment and order orchestration is the end-to-end process and decision layer that routes, allocates, and executes customer orders across inventory, warehouses, carriers, and services to meet delivery, cost, and customer-experience targets.
→Fulfillment by Amazon
Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is a service where Amazon stores, picks, packs, ships, and handles returns for sellers, making products Prime-eligible and outsourcing order fulfillment.
→Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA)
Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is Amazon's service where sellers send inventory to Amazon warehouses and Amazon stores, picks, packs, ships orders, and handles customer service and returns.
→Fulfillment by Third-Party Logistics (3PL)
Fulfillment by Third-Party Logistics (3PL) means outsourcing warehousing, picking, packing, shipping, and returns to an external logistics provider so an ecommerce brand can scale operations without running its own fulfillment centers.
→Fulfillment, Shipping, and Returns Operations
The end-to-end operational processes that pick, pack, ship, and process returns for ecommerce orders—covering warehouse workflows, carrier management, customer-facing shipping experience, and reverse logistics.
→Funnel Analysis
Funnel analysis measures how users move through defined steps toward a goal (like checkout) to find drop-offs and improve conversion rates.
→G
1 termH
3 termsHeadless Commerce
Headless commerce decouples the frontend presentation layer from the backend ecommerce functionality, allowing greater flexibility in user experience design.
→Headless Commerce Architecture
Headless commerce architecture separates the ecommerce back-end (product, cart, checkout, order systems) from the front-end presentation layer via APIs, letting teams build custom storefronts and experiences without changing core commerce logic.
→Headless eCommerce
Headless eCommerce is an architecture that decouples the storefront (presentation layer) from the backend commerce engine, using APIs to connect them so teams can build flexible, faster, and multi-channel shopping experiences.
→I
16 termsInfluencer Marketing
Influencer marketing uses trusted content creators to promote products and drive traffic, conversions, and brand awareness for online stores.
→Inventory Forecasting
Inventory forecasting is the process of predicting future product demand to plan purchase orders, stock levels, and replenishment for ecommerce businesses using historical sales, lead times, and seasonality.
→Inventory Management
Inventory management is the process of tracking, ordering, storing, and optimizing the stock of products a business sells so it has the right items, in the right amounts, at the right time.
→Inventory Management System
A software system that tracks, controls, and optimizes stock levels across channels to prevent stockouts, reduce holding costs, and streamline fulfillment.
→Inventory Management System (IMS)
An Inventory Management System (IMS) is software and processes that track stock levels, locations, orders, and replenishment for ecommerce businesses to reduce stockouts, overstocks, and fulfillment errors.
→Inventory Management Systems
Software and processes that track stock levels, SKUs, locations, and orders across sales channels to prevent stockouts, reduce excess inventory, and support ecommerce operations.
→Inventory Management and Demand Forecasting
Inventory management and demand forecasting is the combined practice of controlling stock levels and predicting future customer demand so ecommerce businesses minimize stockouts and excess inventory while supporting sales.
→Inventory Management and Forecasting
Inventory management and forecasting coordinates stock levels and demand prediction so ecommerce businesses hold the right products, at the right time, in the right quantities to meet demand while minimizing cost.
→Inventory Management and Replenishment
Inventory management and replenishment is the process of tracking stock levels, forecasting demand, and ordering or producing goods so products are available when customers want to buy.
→Inventory Management and Stock Optimization
Inventory management and stock optimization is the process of controlling stock levels and replenishment rules to meet customer demand while minimizing holding costs, stockouts, and lost sales for ecommerce businesses.
→Inventory Reconciliation
Inventory reconciliation is the process of comparing recorded stock levels in your systems with physical counts and resolving differences so your ecommerce inventory data matches reality.
→Inventory Turnover
Inventory turnover measures how many times a business sells and replaces its stock over a period, usually using Cost of Goods Sold divided by average inventory—key for cash flow and operational efficiency.
→Inventory Turnover Rate
Inventory Turnover Rate measures how many times a business sells and replaces its inventory over a period; it's calculated from cost of goods sold and average inventory and helps ecommerce teams manage stock, cash, and margins.
→Inventory Turnover Ratio
Inventory Turnover Ratio measures how many times a store sells and replaces its inventory over a period; it compares cost of goods sold to average inventory to gauge stock efficiency.
→Inventory and Order Management
Inventory and Order Management is the combined set of processes, systems, and rules used to track stock (SKUs), fulfill customer orders, and control replenishment so businesses meet demand with minimal carrying costs and delays.
→Inventory and Order Management (OMS)
Inventory and Order Management (OMS) is the system and processes that track stock levels, route and fulfill customer orders, and synchronize availability across sales channels to reduce stockouts and fulfillment errors.
→K
1 termL
4 termsLanded Cost
Landed Cost is the total per‑unit expense to get a product into your warehouse or a customer’s door, including product price, shipping, duties, taxes, insurance, and handling.
→Landing Page Optimization
Landing page optimization is the process of improving a webpage that visitors arrive on—usually from an ad, email, or search—so it converts more visitors into customers, leads, or the next funnel step.
→Last Mile Delivery
Last mile delivery is the final step of getting an order from a fulfillment hub or carrier to the customer’s doorstep or pickup point; in ecommerce it describes the operations, time, and cost of that last leg.
→Loyalty Program
A structured rewards system that incentivizes repeat purchases and engagement by granting points, discounts, or exclusive benefits to customers.
→M
10 termsMarketing Automation
Marketing Automation uses software to automate, personalize, and measure marketing tasks across email, SMS, ads and onsite channels to increase revenue and efficiency.
→Marketplace
A marketplace is an online platform that connects multiple independent sellers with buyers, handling listings, search, payments, and often fulfillment and customer support.
→Marketplace Facilitator
A Marketplace Facilitator is a platform or business (like a marketplace or e-commerce platform) that facilitates third-party sales and is legally required in many jurisdictions to collect and remit sales tax on those transactions.
→Multi-Touch Attribution
Multi-Touch Attribution (MTA) assigns fractional credit for a sale or conversion across multiple marketing interactions, helping ecommerce teams understand which channels and touches contributed to revenue.
→Multi-channel Fulfillment
Multi-channel fulfillment (MCF) is the process of storing, picking, packing, and shipping orders that come from multiple sales channels—your DTC site, marketplaces, retail partners—using a single fulfillment network or coordinated set of warehouses.
→Multi-channel Selling
Multi-channel selling is selling products through two or more sales channels (own website, marketplaces, social, wholesale) so customers can buy where they prefer, increasing reach and revenue.
→Multi-tenant SaaS Architecture
A software design where a single application instance serves multiple customers (tenants), keeping their data and configurations separate while sharing compute and maintenance, commonly used by ecommerce SaaS platforms.
→Multichannel Attribution Modeling
A method for assigning credit to multiple marketing touchpoints across channels to understand which interactions drove a sale or conversion, helping ecommerce teams allocate marketing spend.
→Multichannel Fulfillment
Multichannel fulfillment is a fulfillment strategy where a single inventory and logistics setup picks, packs, and ships orders for multiple sales channels (store, marketplace, wholesale) to meet channel-specific rules.
→Multichannel Selling
Multichannel selling is the practice of listing and selling the same products through two or more sales channels (own website, marketplaces, social, wholesale) so a business reaches customers where they shop.
→N
1 termO
16 termsOmnichannel
A coordinated commerce strategy that delivers a seamless customer experience across online and offline channels using unified data and processes.
→Omnichannel Commerce
Omnichannel commerce is an integrated retail approach that connects online and offline sales channels, inventory, and customer data to give shoppers a seamless experience across web, mobile, social, marketplaces, and physical stores.
→Omnichannel Fulfillment
Omnichannel fulfillment is the process of delivering customer orders from multiple inventory locations and sales channels as a single coordinated system, using store, warehouse, or provider networks to meet customer expectations quickly and cost-effectively.
→Omnichannel Marketing
Omnichannel marketing is the coordinated strategy of engaging customers across multiple online and offline channels so their experience, messaging, and data are seamless and consistent across touchpoints.
→Omnichannel Retail
Omnichannel retail is a coordinated approach to selling where a brand gives customers a unified experience across online and offline channels, sharing inventory, data, and fulfillment to let buyers move seamlessly between channels.
→Omnichannel Retail Strategy
An omnichannel retail strategy coordinates online and offline sales, marketing, inventory, and customer data so shoppers get a consistent, connected experience across channels and touchpoints.
→Omnichannel Retailing
Omnichannel retailing is a business approach that delivers a unified shopping experience across online and offline channels by linking marketing, inventory, fulfillment, and customer data so customers can buy, return, or engage seamlessly.
→Omnichannel Strategy
An omnichannel strategy coordinates sales, marketing, inventory, and customer service across all online and offline touchpoints so customers have a consistent, connected buying experience.
→On-site Personalization
On-site personalization is the practice of adjusting an ecommerce site's content, product suggestions, and user flows in real time to match an individual visitor's attributes, intent, or behavior to increase conversion and lifetime value.
→Order Fulfillment
Order fulfillment is the end-to-end process of receiving, picking, packing, shipping, and handling returns for ecommerce orders so a customer receives what they bought on time.
→Order Fulfillment & Logistics
Order Fulfillment & Logistics is the end-to-end process that moves ecommerce orders from confirmation to the customer’s doorstep, including receiving, picking, packing, shipping and returns management.
→Order Fulfillment and Logistics
Order fulfillment and logistics is the end-to-end process of receiving, picking, packing, shipping, and managing returns for ecommerce orders to deliver the right product to the right customer on time.
→Order Fulfillment and Management
Order Fulfillment and Management is the end-to-end process and systems that receive, process, pick, pack, ship, track, and handle returns for ecommerce orders, including rules and tools (OMS/WMS/3PL) that coordinate those tasks.
→Order Management System
An Order Management System (OMS) is software that tracks orders from purchase through fulfillment and return, coordinating inventory, shipping, and customer updates for ecommerce businesses.
→Order Management System (OMS)
An Order Management System (OMS) is software that tracks, manages, and fulfills customer orders across sales channels and inventory locations.
→Order Management System (OMS)
A software platform that centralizes order capture, fulfillment, inventory, and returns across sales channels to ensure accurate, timely order processing for online stores.
→P
37 termsPay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising
Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising is an online ad model where advertisers pay each time a user clicks their ad; commonly used by ecommerce brands to drive targeted traffic and sales.
→Payment Card Industry
The Payment Card Industry (PCI) is the ecosystem of banks, card networks, processors, and standards that enable and secure credit and debit card payments.
→Payment Fraud Detection
Payment fraud detection is the process and systems ecommerce businesses use to identify and stop fraudulent transactions (stolen cards, bots, friendly fraud) before they cause chargebacks, revenue loss, or operational cost.
→Payment Fraud Prevention
Payment fraud prevention is the set of tools, rules, and processes an ecommerce business uses to detect, block, and recover from fraudulent payments (including card-not-present and chargeback fraud) to protect revenue and customer experience.
→Payment Gateway
A payment gateway is the service that securely authorizes and processes online credit card and digital payments for an e‑commerce store.
→Payment Gateway Integration
Payment gateway integration connects your online store to payment networks so customers can pay securely; it handles authorization, tokenization, and routing between checkout and your payment processor.
→Payment Gateway and Fraud Prevention
A payment gateway securely routes customers’ card and digital payments to the payment network while fraud prevention identifies and blocks fraudulent transactions to protect revenue, margins, and customer trust.
→Payment Orchestration
Payment orchestration is a software layer that routes, manages, and optimizes electronic payments across multiple gateways and processors to improve authorization rates, reduce declines, and simplify operations for ecommerce merchants.
→Payment Processing
Payment processing is the system that authorizes, moves, and settles customer payments for ecommerce sales—covering authorization, routing, fees, settlement and reconciliation.
→Payment Processing Integration
Payment Processing Integration is the technical connection between your ecommerce checkout and the payment services (gateway, processor, acquiring bank) that authorizes, captures, and settles customer payments.
→Payment Processing and Fraud Prevention
Payment processing and fraud prevention is the combined set of systems and practices that accept, authorize, settle customer payments and detect or stop fraudulent transactions for ecommerce businesses.
→Payment Service Provider
A Payment Service Provider (PSP) is a third-party platform that enables online stores to accept, process, and manage digital payments securely across multiple methods and currencies.
→Personalization
Personalization is tailoring product recommendations, content, pricing, or experiences to individual customers using their data and behavior to increase relevance and conversion.
→Personalization & Product Recommendations
Personalization & product recommendations are tactics and systems that tailor product suggestions and site content to individual shoppers’ behavior, signals, or segments to increase relevance and revenue.
→Personalization & Recommendation Engines
Systems that tailor product suggestions, content, and experiences to individual shoppers using behavior, product signals, and business rules to increase conversion, average order value (AOV), and retention.
→Personalization Engine
A personalization engine is software that uses customer data and rules or machine learning to show individualized product, content, and promotion experiences for ecommerce visitors to increase conversion and revenue.
→Personalization Engines
A personalization engine is software that uses customer data and algorithms to deliver tailored product, content, or offer experiences across ecommerce touchpoints to increase relevance and revenue.
→Personalization and Recommendation Engine
A system that tailors product suggestions and site content to individual shoppers using behavioral data, preferences, and business rules to increase conversion and revenue.
→Personalization and Recommendation Engines
Systems that use customer data and algorithms to show the right products or content to each shopper, increasing relevance, conversions, and average order value for ecommerce brands.
→Personalization and Recommendation Systems
Personalization and recommendation systems are software-driven methods that surface tailored product, content, or offer suggestions to individual customers based on behavior, context, and signals to increase relevance and sales.
→Personalization and Recommendations
Personalization and recommendations are targeted product or content suggestions tailored to an individual shopper using their behavior, preferences, and context to increase relevance, conversions, and revenue.
→Personalization and behavioral targeting
Personalization and behavioral targeting use customer actions and data (browsing, clicks, purchase history) to tailor marketing, product recommendations, and on-site experiences that increase relevance and conversions for ecommerce businesses.
→Personalized Marketing
Personalized marketing tailors messages, product recommendations, and experiences to individual customers using their behavior, preferences, and data to increase relevance and conversions.
→Personalized Product Recommendations
Product suggestions shown to individual shoppers based on their behavior, profile, or context to increase relevance, conversions, and revenue on ecommerce sites.
→Personalized Recommendations
Personalized recommendations are automated product or content suggestions tailored to an individual shopper’s behavior, profile, and context to increase relevance, conversion, and average order value.
→Point of Sale
The Point of Sale (POS) is the system where a retail transaction is completed, combining hardware and software to accept payment and update sales and inventory in real time.
→Point of Sale (POS)
Point of Sale (POS) refers to the system and place where a customer completes a purchase—hardware and software used to process sales, payments, and receipts for ecommerce brands and physical retail.
→Print on Demand
Print on Demand (POD) is a fulfillment model where products are produced only after a customer orders them, letting ecommerce brands sell customizable, low-inventory items without upfront bulk manufacturing.
→Product Detail Page
The Product Detail Page (PDP) is the individual product page in an online store that presents images, descriptions, price, and purchase options to drive conversion.
→Product Information Management
Product Information Management (PIM) is a centralized system that collects, enriches, and distributes consistent product data and digital assets across channels for an online store.
→Product Information Management (PIM)
Product Information Management (PIM) is a system and process that centralizes, standardizes, and distributes product data (descriptions, attributes, images) to sales channels so ecommerce teams can sell more accurately and efficiently.
→Product Listing Ad (PLA)
A Product Listing Ad (PLA) is an online ad format that displays product image, title, price and merchant details from a product feed—commonly used on platforms like Google Shopping to drive product-level traffic and sales.
→Product Listing Page
A Product Listing Page (PLP) displays a set of products or search results with imagery, prices, filters, and sorting to help shoppers discover and compare items.
→Product Recommendation Systems
Product recommendation systems are software that suggests items to shoppers—using behavior, product data, and business rules—to increase relevance, conversions, and revenue on ecommerce sites.
→Product Recommendations
Product recommendations are algorithm-driven suggestions of products shown to shoppers to increase relevance, engagement, and conversion in an online store.
→Progressive Web App
A Progressive Web App (PWA) is a web-based storefront that behaves like a native mobile app—fast, installable, offline-capable—improving mobile conversion and retention for ecommerce sites.
→Progressive Web App (PWA)
A Progressive Web App (PWA) is a web application that uses modern browser capabilities to deliver an app-like experience to users.
→R
18 termsRecommendation Engine
A recommendation engine is software that suggests products or content to shoppers based on data (behavior, purchases, attributes) to increase relevance, conversion, and revenue for ecommerce sites.
→Recurring Revenue
Recurring revenue is the portion of a company's income that is predictable and repeatable — typically from subscriptions, memberships, or regular repeat purchases — providing ongoing cash flow for ecommerce businesses.
→Referral Marketing
A customer-acquisition strategy that rewards existing customers for referring new buyers to an online store, improving acquisition and retention.
→Remarketing
Remarketing is the practice of showing targeted ads to previous website visitors or customers to re-engage them and drive conversions.
→Repeat Purchase Rate
Repeat Purchase Rate is the percentage of purchasers who return to buy again within a chosen period; it measures how many customers make at least two purchases and indicates loyalty and retention.
→Retargeting
Retargeting is the practice of showing targeted ads or messages to people who previously visited your online store to bring them back and complete a purchase.
→Retargeting (Remarketing)
Retargeting (remarketing) is the practice of showing targeted ads to people who previously engaged with your ecommerce site, app, or emails to recover interest and drive conversions.
→Retargeting and Cart Abandonment Recovery
Retargeting and cart abandonment recovery are marketing tactics and systems that re-engage shoppers who left before buying—using ads, emails, SMS, or onsite messages to recover lost orders and revenue.
→Retargeting and Remarketing
Retargeting and remarketing are marketing tactics that show ads or messages to people who previously visited your site or interacted with your brand, with the goal of bringing them back to convert.
→Retention Marketing
Retention Marketing is the set of tactics and programs ecommerce teams use to keep existing customers buying more often, increase customer lifetime value (LTV), and reduce churn after the first purchase.
→Retention Rate
Retention Rate measures the percentage of customers who continue to buy from your ecommerce store over a given period; it shows how well you keep customers after their first purchase.
→Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA)
Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) is the process and reference used to approve, track, and manage product returns in ecommerce—often paired with an RMA number and a return rate metric to measure returns.
→Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) Process
The Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) process is the structured workflow retailers use to approve, track, and complete product returns or exchanges—connecting customer requests to logistics, refunds, and inventory updates.
→Return on Ad Spend
Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) measures the revenue generated for each dollar spent on advertising, expressed as a multiple or ratio.
→Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)
Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) measures how much revenue your advertising generates for each dollar spent; it’s calculated as ad-driven revenue divided by ad spend and used to evaluate marketing efficiency.
→Return on Investment (ROI)
Return on Investment (ROI) measures the percentage return generated on a specific investment compared to its cost, indicating profitability and efficiency.
→Returns Management (Reverse Logistics)
Returns management, or reverse logistics, is the end-to-end process of handling returned products—inspection, refund/exchange, repair, restock or disposal—with the goal of minimizing cost and customer friction for ecommerce businesses.
→Reverse Logistics
Reverse logistics is the process and systems used to handle returned, repaired, recycled, or end-of-life products from customers back through a merchant’s supply chain, focused on cost recovery, disposition, and customer experience.
→S
21 termsSMS Marketing
SMS Marketing is the use of permission-based text messages to engage customers, promote offers, recover carts, and drive measurable sales for online stores.
→Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is paid search advertising and the tactics around buying visibility on search engines to drive targeted traffic, conversions, and revenue for ecommerce businesses.
→Search Engine Optimization
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the practice of improving a website’s visibility and traffic from unpaid (organic) search results to increase relevant visits, conversions, and revenue for ecommerce businesses.
→Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the set of technical, content, and authority practices that increase an ecommerce site's visibility in unpaid search results, driving qualified organic traffic and potential customers.
→Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for Ecommerce
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for Ecommerce is the practice of improving an online store’s visibility in organic search so it attracts relevant shoppers, increases conversions, and drives sustainable revenue.
→Search and Merchandising
Search and merchandising is the combined practice of on-site search, relevance tuning, and product promotion that connects shopper queries to the right products to increase conversions and revenue.
→Search and Product Discovery
Search and product discovery is the on-site system and process that helps shoppers find products using search queries, filters, recommendations, and merchandising—so businesses convert intent into purchases.
→Searchandising
Searchandising combines onsite search and merchandising techniques to tune product discovery—ranking, filters, autocomplete, and promotions—to increase conversions and revenue from customers who use site search.
→Shopping Cart Abandonment
Shopping cart abandonment is when an online shopper adds items to a cart or starts checkout but leaves without completing purchase, reducing conversion and revenue for ecommerce businesses.
→Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate
Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate measures the percentage of shoppers who start a checkout (or add items to cart) but leave before completing a purchase, showing lost conversion opportunities.
→Shopping Cart Software
Shopping cart software is the application that builds and manages a customer’s online cart and checkout flow—handling product selection, cart persistence, pricing, taxes, shipping, and handoff to payment and fulfillment.
→Stock Keeping Unit (SKU)
A Stock Keeping Unit (SKU) is a merchant assigned alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies a specific product variant for inventory, sales, and fulfillment tracking in ecommerce and retail.
→Subscription Billing
Subscription billing is the system and process that charges customers on a recurring schedule for access to products or services, handling invoicing, payments, proration, trials, and revenue recognition for ecommerce businesses.
→Subscription Billing Model
A subscription billing model is a recurring-payment system businesses use to charge customers on a regular cadence (monthly, annual, metered) for ongoing access to products or services.
→Subscription Billing and Management
The systems and processes that collect recurring payments, manage subscriber lifecycles (proration, upgrades, cancellations, dunning) and report subscription revenue for ecommerce businesses.
→Subscription Billing and Recurring Payments
Subscription billing and recurring payments are the systems and processes that charge customers on a repeating schedule (monthly, yearly, etc.) for ongoing products or services in ecommerce.
→Subscription Billing and Recurring Revenue
Subscription billing is the system that charges customers on a repeating schedule; recurring revenue is the predictable income generated from those ongoing charges in ecommerce and DTC businesses.
→Subscription Commerce
Subscription commerce is the business model and operational system for selling goods or services on a recurring-billing basis, enabling merchants to collect repeat revenue, manage renewals, and optimize lifetime value.
→Subscription Management
Subscription management is the system and processes a merchant uses to sign up, bill, retain, and service recurring customers for physical or digital products, covering billing, churn handling, plan changes, and analytics.
→Subscription and Recurring Billing
Subscription and recurring billing is a business model and payment process where customers pay on a scheduled basis (e.g., monthly) for ongoing access to a product or service; it covers signup, automatic invoicing, payment collection, renewals, and dunning in ecommerce.
→Subscription and Recurring Billing Management
Subscription and Recurring Billing Management is the process and systems used to sell, bill, collect, and retain subscription customers—handling recurring payments, dunning, pricing, and analytics for ecommerce and DTC businesses.
→T
3 termsThird-Party Logistics
Third-party logistics (3PL) is outsourcing warehousing, pick-and-pack, shipping, and returns to an external provider that handles fulfillment and transportation for your online store.
→Third-Party Logistics (3PL)
Third-Party Logistics (3PL) is outsourcing warehousing, order fulfillment (pick, pack, ship), and returns to a specialist provider that operates fulfillment centers and carrier relationships for ecommerce brands.
→Third-Party Logistics (3PL) Fulfillment
Third-Party Logistics (3PL) fulfillment is outsourcing order storage, picking, packing, shipping, and returns management to a specialized provider who operates warehouses and fulfillment services for ecommerce merchants.
→U
3 termsUpsell
An upsell is an offer presented to a shopper to buy a higher‑value product, upgrade, or add‑on at point of purchase to increase average order value and incremental revenue.
→Upselling
Offering a higher‑value product, upgrade, or add-on at the point of purchase to increase average order value and customer lifetime value.
→User Generated Content (UGC)
User-generated content (UGC) is any text, image, video, rating, or review created by customers rather than the brand, shared publicly and used to influence buying decisions.
→W
2 termsWarehouse Management System (WMS)
A Warehouse Management System (WMS) is software that controls how inventory is received, stored, picked, packed and shipped in a warehouse to improve accuracy, speed and cost for ecommerce businesses.
→Webhook
A webhook is an automated message sent from one app to another when a specific event occurs, enabling real-time data synchronization.
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