Tagging guidelines

Adding metadata (AKA: tags) is a way to improve the search experience for our users. These guidelines explain what tagging is and how to choose which tags 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, tools used, etc.

Tag categories

Tags fall into five different categories: skill level, creative field, topic, task, and tool.

Skill level

• Skill level (AKA: Experience level) refers to the topic of the content, not you or the user.
• There are 3 Skill level tags, and you can select only 1.

Creative field

• You could think of these as creative domains or distinct areas of expertise that a piece of content might be most associated with.
• 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.

Topic

• Topic tags reflect the content’s overall goal or subject matter.
• This category includes:
  • General concepts (e.g. Illustration, Color, Effects)
  • Category buckets of tools and features (e.g. Brushes, Color gradients, Creative effects)
  • Goals and outcomes (e.g. Photo retouching, Combine images, Character design)
• There is a wide range of tags so you can accurately capture different aspects of your content.
  • Example: Let’s say tutorials covering character design, a type of illustration, are tagged only with the “Illustration” topic. Searching the term “character design” would return everything with an “Illustration” topic tag. That’s a lot of content for the user to sift through! If those tutorials were tagged with both “Illustration” and “Character design”, the search results would be more usable and specific.
• You aren’t limited to one topic tag. If your content relates to more than one topic, goal, or overarching idea, then feel free to choose up to 5 topic tags for the tutorial. However, it’s good to remember, more does not always mean better.

Task

• These are the actions users take as they follow the content’s instructions.
• Select only the tasks documented in the content.

Tool

• This category contains the app-specific features used to accomplish tasks, such as tools, panels, and menu commands.
• Some tags are the names of particular tools (e.g. Lasso tool) and others are generic commands that show the menu path (e.g. File > Save As).
• You can select an unlimited number of Tool tags, but be sure to select only the tools, panels, and menu commands mentioned in the content.

Choosing tags

Here are some principles to help you think through your options if you are unsure of which tags to choose.

If the content states it, tag it

• If your tutorial explains how to take a particular action, talks about a given subject of importance, or says to use a specific tool, assign the corresponding tags in the Topic, Task, and Tool categories.
• Sometimes, you as the expert knows that a particular Creative Field, Topic, or Task encompasses what the content is describing, even though it isn’t explicitly mentioned. In these instances, use your best judgment, but remember that going too broad will not help the user find your content.
  • Example: A tutorial called “Make selections” may not explicitly call out a Creative Field—most tutorials won’t. But you, as the SME, chooses both the Photography and Graphic Design creative fields because you know these main topics discussed in the tutorial would fit well in both of these fields.

More isn’t always better

• In general, a piece of content should relate to only a few Topic tags. If the content feels like it falls into more than 5 topics, you’ll likely find that information among the Task tags. On the other hand, it’s sometimes hard to choose between Topic tags that seem similar. In that case, see "Repetition isn't helpful" below for help deciding.

Put yourself in your user's shoes

• If you are questioning whether or not to use a certain tag, put yourself in your user's shoes. Ask yourself:

"If I search for content using this tag, would I expect to see this content?"

Repetition isn’t helpful—narrowing down is

• The goal of tagging is to zero in on the unique properties of each piece of content. Instead of assigning multiple tags with the same meaning in different categories, choose tags that capture different, more specific facets.
  • Example 1: The Web tag is available in both the Creative field and Topic categories. If you selected Web for Creative field, it would be redundant to select it for Topic too. Choose tags that build on the previous one, like Web design or Assets instead.
  • Example 2: Similar but distinct tags exist in Creative field and Topic. For example, Painting & Illustration is a Creative field tag, while Painting and Illustration are both Topic tags. Let’s see how to navigate these options logically:
    • Let’s say your content discusses how to design characters. The Painting & Illustration tag is the obvious choice for Creative field. In the next tag category, Topics, you have the option to choose from the tags Painting, Illustration, and Character design. All of these could technically apply, and Illustration is closer to the subject matter, but Character design is exactly spot on. Therefore, choosing both Illustration and Character design Topic tags would ensure a user could find your content under the Painting & Illustration Creative field.

How to search tags

Enter "@" and text in the search field to quickly filter tags. Results will appear as you type. This is especially useful when there are a lot of tags in a category. 

Tips: If you aren’t finding a tag you expect to

• Make sure your search term matches the category
  • E.g. Search Pen tool in the Tool category, not Topic
• Search using a specific noun, not a verb or multi-word phrase
  • E.g. Search mask, not create mask or how to create a mask
• Search using singular terms, not plural, -ing words, or past tense
  • E.g. Use mask, not masks, masking, or masked