Tagging guidelines

Adding metadata (AKA: tags) improves the search experience for our users. These guidelines explain tagging and choosing which ones to add to your tutorials.

What are tags

Tags are words or short phrases associated with particular pieces of content. They’re a kind of metadata that helps identify articles, making it easier to search for them. A tag can describe who the content is for, such as a beginner or advanced user, what it’s about, like painting or photo editing, or any other important information that helps identify the contents of the article — tasks performed, features used, etc.

Tag categories

Tags are divided into five categories: Skill level; Creative field; Topics; Tasks; and Tools, Menus, Panels. Each piece of content needs to be tagged for each category. The following indicates the maximum number of tags allowed per category for a piece of content.

1. Skill level

• Skill level (a.k.a. Experience level) pertains to the content's topic, not the user. You can choose only one of the three available skill level tags.

2. Creative field

• Think of these as creative domains, creative intent, or distinct areas of expertise.
• There is a short list of creative field tags to choose from.
• You aren’t limited to one creative field tag—if the content you’re tagging relates to more than one, carefully choose all that apply.

3. Topics

• Topic tags reflect the content’s overall goal or subject matter.
• This category includes:
  • General concepts (e.g. Illustration, Color, Effects)
  • Category buckets of features (e.g. Brushes, Color gradients, Creative effects)
  • Goals and outcomes (e.g. Photo retouching, Combine images, Character design)
• You have a variety of tags available to capture different aspects of your content.
• You can choose up to three topic tags. However, remember, that more does not always mean better.
  • Only the most relevant topics.
  • Two focused tags are better than three.
  • One focused tag is best, UNLESS, that one tag is generic, then we need at least two. 
    • Example: Let's say you are tagging a tutorial about How to get started with Masking in Photoshop. You choose Get Started as a topic tag. However, that tag is generic, so add Masking as a second topic tag.
• View all topic tags in our taxonomy.
  • Filter by product to see which topic tags apply to your content.

4. Tasks

• These are the actions users take as they follow instructions.
• Select only the tasks documented in the content.
• You can select up to six task tags. 
• View all task tags in our taxonomy. 
  • Filter by product to see which task tags apply to your content.

5. Tools, Menus, Panels

• This category contains the app-specific features used to accomplish tasks, such as tools, menus, and panel tags.
• Some tags refer to specific tools (e.g., Lasso tool), while others indicate generic actions by showing the command path (e.g., File > Save As)
• You can select up to 10 tools, menus, and panel tags, but select only the most important features used to execute the tasks.
• View all feature tags in our taxonomy. 
  • Filter by product to see which feature tags apply to your content.