WordPress is a popular and powerful content management system that allows you to create and manage websites, blogs, and online stores. One of the features that WordPress offers is the ability to use tags to organize your content. Tags are keywords or phrases that describe what your content is about. They help your readers to find related posts on your site, and they help search engines to understand and index your content better. In this tutorial, we will explain what are WordPress tags, how to use them correctly, and what are the benefits and drawbacks of using them.

What are WordPress tags?

WordPress tags are optional metadata that you can add to your posts or pages. They are similar to categories, but they are more specific and flexible. Categories are hierarchical and broad, while tags are flat and narrow. For example, if you have a blog about travel, you can use categories to divide your content into regions, such as Europe, Asia, or Africa. Then, you can use tags to add more details, such as countries, cities, attractions, or activities. For instance, you can tag a post about Paris with “France”, “Eiffel Tower”, “Louvre Museum”, or “Croissant”.

You can add tags to your posts or pages from the WordPress editor, either from the sidebar or from the toolbar. You can also create and manage tags from the Posts > Tags or Pages > Tags menu in your WordPress dashboard. You can add as many tags as you want to each post or page, but it is recommended that you use no more than 10 tags per post.

How to use WordPress tags correctly?

WordPress tags can be useful for both your readers and search engines, but only if you use them correctly. Here are some tips on how to use WordPress tags effectively:

  • Use descriptive and relevant tags that match the content of your post or page. Avoid using generic or vague tags that do not provide any information or value.
  • Use consistent and accurate spelling and capitalization for your tags. For example, do not use “WordPress” and “wordpress” interchangeably, as they will be treated as different tags.
  • Use commas to separate multiple tags. Do not use spaces or other symbols, as they will be included in the tag name.
  • Do not use too many tags for each post or page. Too many tags can confuse your readers and dilute your SEO ranking. Aim for 5 to 10 tags per post.
  • Do not use the same tags as your categories. This can create duplicate content issues and reduce your SEO performance.
  • Do not use tags that are too broad or too specific. Too broad tags can make it hard for your readers to find relevant content, while too specific tags can limit your audience and visibility.
  • Use tag clouds or tag lists to display your tags on your site. This can help your readers to navigate your site and discover more content. You can use widgets or plugins to add tag clouds or tag lists to your sidebar, footer, or other areas of your site.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of using WordPress tags?

Using WordPress tags can have some advantages and disadvantages for your site. Here are some of them:

Benefits

  • Tags can help your readers to find related content on your site and stay longer on your site.
  • Tags can help search engines to understand and index your content better and improve your SEO ranking.
  • Tags can help you to create internal links between your posts or pages and increase your site authority.
  • Tags can help you to generate more traffic from social media platforms, such as Twitter or Facebook, where hashtags are widely used.

Drawbacks

  • Tags can create duplicate content issues if you use the same tags as your categories or if you do not set up proper canonical URLs for your tag pages.
  • Tags can reduce your SEO performance if you use too many or irrelevant tags that do not match the content of your post or page.
  • Tags can clutter your site design if you display too many or large tag clouds or tag lists on your site.

Conclusion

WordPress tags are optional metadata that you can add to your posts or pages to describe what your content is about. They can help your readers to find related content on your site and help search engines to understand and index your content better. However, you need to use them correctly and wisely to avoid potential problems and optimize their benefits. In this tutorial, we have explained what are WordPress tags, how to use them correctly, and what are the benefits and drawbacks of using them. We hope this tutorial was helpful and informative. If you have any questions or feedback, please let us know in the comments below. Thank you for reading!

0

Categorized in:

Blog

Tagged in:

,