Classroom Transcript: Tags vs. Keywords

The following is the transcript of our “Tags vs Keywords” Localist Lesson. 

In this Localist Lesson, we’ll be breaking down when and how you should use Tags and Keywords within your Localist platform.

Classification

If they sound similar, that’s because they are! The best way to define Tags & Keywords it to first start by defining another piece of Localist Classification -- your Filters. These are the links prominently and permanently displayed in your platform’s sidebar. As such, they should be broad, user-centric and used consistently throughout the year. This would include categories such as Fundraiser, Family-Friendly or Workshop. So, what do you do when you need ultra-specific or temporary categorization? Enter Tags & Keywords. 

Displaying

Tags & Keywords are both free-text labels that are assigned to events. Functionally they’re the same, however Tags are publicly displayed on the event details page. In comparison, Keywords are hidden from the public and only seen by search engines.

While both are indexed by Localist and search engines, Keywords can be used for things like common misspellings. If you enter the misspelling as a Keyword then users searching with that spelling will still discover your events.

Adding

As for adding Tags & Keywords, this is only available on the Admin Add Event Form. Admins can add Tags & Keywords to their own events or any events they are Allowed to edit. Additionally, a Platform Admins, Calendar Managers, and Event Managers can also include Tags & Keywords in both a Bulk CSV upload or in a CSV feed. Since Tags & Keywords are free-text, they are not available in the Public Event Submission Form. This ensures your organization isn’t overrun with slightly different variations of the same Tag or Keyword.

That said, when an admin starts typing, Localist will suggest already existing Tags or already used Keywords. These suggestions will also display how many events are currently assigned, but you can also refine event results in admin according to a Tag or Keyword. When entering Tags & Keywords, be sure to hit enter after each one to ensure they are saved with the event.

Using

Once Tags & Keywords are saved in an event, they can be used in two ways.

End User Browsing

Clicking on a Tag from the event details page will take users to the search results for all events assigned to that Tag. Just like when clicking a filter, they’ll see all events assigned to that Tag as well as links to subscribe to the results.

Admin Promotion

This would be for when you want to pull short-term or ultra-specific events into a Channel or Widget. For Tags, these would be things like festivals, conferences, holidays or traditions. Keywords come into play with Promotion when you need to add specific information that you wouldn’t necessarily want your Users to see, such as indicating the event belongs on your Partner’s widget with the Keyword PartnerWidget. This way you can as specific as you need without worrying about users stumbling across internal details.

Review

Tags & Keywords are only different in the way that they display, with Tags being displayed publicly on the Event Details Pages and Keywords being hidden from public view. Other than that, they are both:

• Used as free-text fields only available on Admin Add Event Form
• Are indexed to be used in internal and external searches
• Are meant for ultra specific or temporary categorization needs for end user browsing or admin Promotion

Pairing Tags & Keywords

Here's a few examples of how Tags & Keywords work together and with your Filters. As you can see, the Classification gets more specific from left to right: For example, “Holidays & Celebrations” is a Filter that encompasses happenings throughout the year, while the Tag "Halloween" is only relevant for one month, and the Keyword "ScreamFest2018" can be used to collect specific events in a Channel or Widget.    

Related Article: Intro to Classification