Taxonomy
What is Taxonomy?
Taxonomy refers to the system of organizing products and content into structured categories, subcategories, and hierarchies. Also known as data taxonomy or category structure, it helps retailers maintain consistent product organization, improve discoverability, and optimize metadata for search engines.
Why Taxonomy is Important for eCommerce SEO?
A clear taxonomy enhances product categorization and ensures that search engines and shoppers can navigate your catalog easily. Properly structured categories and metadata hierarchy improve internal site search, boost SEO performance, and reduce customer confusion.
Creating a Taxonomy for eCommerce
- Define broad categories and drill down into logical subcategories (e.g., Clothing → Dresses → Evening Dresses).
- Standardize attribute names and values for products.
- Align taxonomy with metadata hierarchy for consistent indexing and filtering.
- Use AI or PIM tools to maintain taxonomy across large catalogs.
Taxonomy Examples for Retail Brands
- Fashion: Apparel → Tops → T-shirts → Graphic Tees
- Footwear: Shoes → Sneakers → Running Sneakers
- Accessories: Bags → Handbags → Leather Handbags
Benefits of a Well-Structured Taxonomy:
- Improves product discoverability for shoppers and search engines.
- Enhances navigation and filtering across the catalog.
- Supports SEO by creating logical, crawlable structures.
- Simplifies catalog management and consistency across channels.