Instagram’s use of Folksonomy, and using it to succeed.

“Instagram Logo Transparent” by Zenspa1 is licensed by CC BY2.0

Hashtags are Instagram’s key use of folksonomy; the practice of collaboratively creating ‘tags’ to annotate and categorize content. Today this can also be referred to as ‘social tagging’ or ‘social indexing’. The use of hashtags on Instagram opens up your image to a variety of specific aspects of said content depending on what you choose to ‘tag’ it as.

 

 For example, an image of a building of historical significance can be labeled by its name, its location, an event, person or movement or other categories directly linked with the content itself as well as broader tags such as #architecture or #beautiful and other adjectives you would use to describe said picture. The former method of tagging something is called narrow folksonomy. It is when a few users, primarily the content creator tag the object with a very specific or limited number of terms. The latter method is known as using a broad folksonomy. This is where the object is tagged with a variety of terms from a variety of vocabularies in an effort to create a larger amount of metadata for it. 

To use folksonomies and tag successfully on Instagram, using both broad and narrow indexes is the best way to get your image or video across to its intended audience. The narrow folksonomies will index your content to a very specific audience, mainly the ones directly and most interested in your type of content. While the broader folksnomies open up your image to a wider audience, making it more accessible to audiences outside of the more specific ones as defined by the narrower tags.

“Cute grey kitten” by Nicolas Suzor is licensed under CC BY SA- 2.0.

For example. a picture of a kitten could be narrowly defined by #cat, and target cat-lovers and those wishing to look up cats specifically, but using a broader tag such as #adorable alongside this will attract both those interested and looking for cats, as well as those more casually interested in anything adorable as well. While the narrow folksonomy usage could garner you an audience of cat-lovers, the broader indexing alongside this will net you both a very specific following as well as views and online interest from a more loosely interested and casual demographic. This is an ideal way to net yourself your targeted following as well as generating interest from outside of it.

 

Tips for creating a good piece of online content.

“social media” by Sean MacEntee is licensed under CC BY 2.0

It’s kind of ridiculous how easy it is for anybody to put something up on the internet. At the same time, it’s also kind of ridiculous how hard it is for someone to even begin to get their content seen by people online. With billions of voices all fighting to be heard through the same channels and platforms, the average user needs to bring a lot more to the table to avoid being caught in the current of online irrelevancy.

Being a part of a course at university dedicated to online content generation, I have researched and discovered many different methods and approaches you can take to make your voice heard. Naturally, I think it best to pass these tips on, and hopefully someone will be able to use some of what I say to better their own online endeavors.

AUDIENCE.

If you don’t know who you you’re writing or publishing material for, how can you be creating anything at all? Before you write anything, you need to know what it is you’re aiming to create, what is the purpose of this piece and WHO this piece is going to cater for. Is it a wide audience? Or a specific one? Do you cater to the average consumer? Or a niche one? You can’t create any kind of good content without keeping an audience in mind, because no one is going to read your piece if they don’t find your content compelling enough for them.

Typically specific, niche and specialized audiences will be easier to garner more interest. Targeting an audience with rare and unique content is much easier to do than cater to the thousands. Especially when it comes to marketing your product, as reaching out to a much more defined group is a much simpler task than advertising in a way that encompasses many groups of people.

PLATFORM.

Deciding what platform you wish to publish your content is just as an important decision as deciding what to write. A platform defines your content more than one might initially think, as every website and social network has their own traits, strengths and weaknesses. For example, creating a page on Facebook is a good way to get a quick established following due to it being typically a network for you and those that you already know. Whereas Twitter allows you to garner an audience much more easily with those that you don’t. Researching what platform is right for your content will be a major contributor regarding the success and popularity of your content.

Choose a platform that will make it easier for your targeted audience to access and consume. Your ideal platform is the one that makes consumption of your product as easy and accessible as possible.

CONSISTENCY.

Creating a Twitter with highly contrasting types of content and formality isn’t a good way to keep an audience. If half of the content you produce is highly professional and business based, and the other informal and linked to you more personally, you are going to quickly lose the audiences for both of the types of content you are producing. People are not going to stick around for one half of your work they like when they have to put up with the half that they don’t.

Establish your formality, tone, audience and themes early on and stick to them so that your audience knows exactly what your content is about. If you need or want to create “different” content, then on whatever platform you are using, create another account for it. You will have an easier time keeping a following if they are being given the content they were promised.

As well as this, make sure that your content is being delivered to your audience frequently. It goes without saying that no one is going to stick around and wait for that blog you promised them in a week’s time 6 months ago. Be consistent in both your content, and the frequency of its delivery.