Pete Gaioni, Caroline Roberts iFactory Taxonomy refers to the process of classifying your web content. It can be used to customize defined sections of your website with different themes or to display specific content based on taxonomy terms. Although taxonomy can be used in many ways, dynamic presentation of content is probably its most important function with respect to a new or redesigned website launch. Taxonomy should be driven by the business requirements of your website, with an eye towards possible future functional expansion. Here are some questions to help you determine how you may want to use taxonomy: Are there pieces of content that should be used in multiple sections of your website, depending upon context? When a user is viewing specific content, are there pieces of related content you want to show them? Are there lists of tools or links based on user type or role? Are there content areas of your site that should be edited only by a specific part of your organization? Is there a business need to support location specific content about services or events you offer? We'll look at the basics of taxonomy planning and show an example of how it gets implemented in a content management system (using Drupal as an example).

1. TAXONOMY BASICS
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS WEBCON
APRIL 28, 2016

2. AGENDA
● Introductions
● A Taxonomy Pop Quiz
● Why Taxonomy Matters
● Why Taxonomy Matters … in Web Design
● Creating a Taxonomy
● Governance
● What We’ve Learned
● Q&A

3. INTRODUCTIONS
BACKGROUND & QUALIFICATIONS

4. INTRODUCTIONS
Pete Gaioni, Partner, VP of Account Services and Strategy
Overall Experience:
12 years of experience in both web and traditional
marketing, 15 years at iFactory
Industries: Higher ed, not-for-profit, healthcare, and
consumer electronics

5. INTRODUCTIONS
Caroline Roberts, Content Strategist
Overall Experience:
16 years in web writing, content management, and content
strategy, 6 months at iFactory
Industries: Higher ed, government, financial services,
startups

6. A TAXONOMY POP QUIZ
NOT THAT WE’RE GRADING YOU OR ANYTHING

7. A TAXONOMY POP QUIZ
Multiple Choice:
Which of the following most accurately describes
“taxonomy”?

8. A TAXONOMY POP QUIZ
Option A
The hobby of preserving
animals?

9. A TAXONOMY POP QUIZ
Option B
The study of taxes?

10. A TAXONOMY POP QUIZ
Option C
Bestowing silly names on
animals?
The moth “Heerz lukenatcha”

11. A TAXONOMY POP QUIZ
If you answered “C,” you’re warm.
Taxonomy is the practice of classification.
THE ANSWER

12. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
THERE’S A REASON WE GAVE YOU A QUIZ

13. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
▪ Started with Linnaeus,
the 18th-century
botanist.
▪ Ensures a standardized
naming convention.
▪ Associates other terms
people may use.
▪ Helps people access and
understand information.
CHOOSE YOUR WORDS WISELY

14. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
▪ A proper scientific name
moves from the broad
(genus) to the specific
(species).
▪ In “Heerz lukenatcha,”
“Heerz” is the genus and
“lukenatcha” is the
species.
HOW IT WORKS

15. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS …
IN WEB DESIGN
YOU THOUGHT THIS WAS A WEB CONFERENCE, RIGHT?

16. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS ...
▪ Get the words right. (You’ll be seeing them a lot.)
▪ Get users on the same page.
▪ Rescue the user from insider jargon.
IN WEB DESIGN

17. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS ...
Taxonomy affects:
▪ Sitemap labels
▪ Metadata
▪ Search results
▪ Search suggestions
IN WEB DESIGN, PART 1: FINDABILITY

18. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
EXAMPLE: HARVARD INSTITUTE OF POLITICS @ THE KENNEDY SCHOOL SEARCH RESULTS

19. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
EXAMPLE: HARVARD INSTITUTE OF POLITICS @ THE KENNEDY SCHOOL SEARCH RESULTS
Taxonomy research
informs filters for
subject and content
type.

20. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
Taxonomy affects:
▪ Related Links
▪ More About …
▪ Events
▪ News
▪ Testimonials
▪ Tag clouds
IN WEB DESIGN, PART 2: BROWSABILITY

21. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
EXAMPLE: RUTGERS BUSINESS SCHOOL DYNAMIC CONTENT

22. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
EXAMPLE: RUTGERS BUSINESS SCHOOL DYNAMIC CONTENT
Alumni-related tags
ensure that Events and
News modules feature
alumni-specific content.

23. WHY TAXONOMY MATTERS
▪ Encourage curiosity.
▪ Curiosity + satisfaction =
happy users.
▪ Happy users convert.
▪ Conversion = meeting
business requirements.
DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

24. CREATING A TAXONOMY
BEYOND GENUS AND SPECIES

25. CREATING A TAXONOMY
▪ What are your top keywords in internal and external site search?
▪ Are there variations of common terms on your site? Which term do
you prefer?
▪ How would you describe that content to ensure it bubbles up to the
surface?
▪ For dynamic content (e.g., “Related Links”), is it contextually relevant?
▪ What content do you think users may be missing?
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF

26. CREATING A TAXONOMY
Best practices for sitemaps and menu labels:
▪ Clarify how users group site information (card sort)
▪ Ask users for various terms they would use
▪ Ask users what other content they’d like to see
▪ Create a hierarchy of word groups
▪ Beware insider jargon
USER RESEARCH

27. CREATING A TAXONOMY
Here’s what we did for a
taxonomy for a Drupal
site ...
LIKE LINNAEUS

28. CREATING A TAXONOMY
▪ Content Types: The noun (News)
▪ Vocabularies: A group of related adjectives that describe the content
type (the group of adjectives that describe the kind of news)
▪ Terms: The individual adjectives within each vocabulary (In the News,
Press Releases, Blogs)
▪ Keywords: Synonyms for the terms, which match the terms that the
users may have in their heads. These synonyms are the “secret sauce”
that helps power search and dynamic presentation of content.
LINNAEUS MEETS DRUPAL

29. ▪ Vocabularies
(the boxes that hold
terms)
▪ Terms
(phrases within the
boxes)
CREATING A TAXONOMY
▪ Content types
▪ Keywords
EXAMPLE: LINCOLN INSTITUTE OF LAND POLICY

30. CREATING A TAXONOMY
EXAMPLE: LINCOLN INSTITUTE
OF LAND POLICY
Full display for the News
Content Type.
Color-coding indicates
vocabularies consistent
across content types.

31. CREATING A TAXONOMY
EXAMPLE: LINCOLN INSTITUTE
OF LAND POLICY
Some vocabularies are
intentionally consistent
across content types.

32. TAXONOMY GOVERNANCE
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS

33. TAXONOMY GOVERNANCE
▪ Plan for existing and future content to follow the taxonomy
▪ Consider allowing contributors to pick from a list of tags versus
creating their own.
▪ Make tagging required.
▪ If you can’t tag all content, make untagged content work for you with a
separate category: “Jackpot,” “Grab Bag,” or “Surprise Inside.”
TAGS HERE, TAGS THERE, TAGS EVERYWHERE

34. WHAT WE’VE LEARNED
WHAT TO DO AND WHAT NOT TO DO

35. WHAT WE’VE LEARNED
▪ DO think about structure incrementally. Start small and then keep
“zooming out” until you can see the whole.
▪ DO think about how the taxonomy is being used and where the terms
will appear on the site (if at all).
▪ DO hold regular check-ins with UX and those building your site so they
make the most of your work. A good taxonomy makes their lives
easier.
▪ DO test content after launch to ensure that search results and dynamic
content are pertinent and reflect the taxonomy structure.
DO’S

36. WHAT WE’VE LEARNED
▪ DON’T start with a complex taxonomy. Start with something simple
and track how users interact with it before expanding.
Overcomplicated taxonomies collapse on themselves.
▪ DON’T let the exception dictate the rule. Set up your overall structure,
and then figure out where the exceptions fit.
▪ DON’T use an Excel spreadsheet to share your taxonomy with content
contributors. A spreadsheet is too overwhelming.
▪ DON’T put off tagging and re-tagging content to reflect your new
taxonomy. It’s a big job, so budget time for it, and get going as soon as
possible.
DON’TS

37. QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

38. THANK YOU