A fresh consumer phenomenon is called “tagging” or “folksonomies” (short for folks and taxonomy). Tagging is potent because consumers are producing an organisational structure for online content. Folksonomies not only enable people to archive content under tags, but, even better, share it with others by filing it under a global taxonomy that they created.

Here’s how tagging works. Using sites such as del.icio.us – a bookmark sharing site – and Flickr – a photo sharing site – consumers are collaborating on categorising online content under certain keywords, or tags.

For example, an individual can post photographs from their iPhone on Flickr and file it under the tag “iPhone.” These images are now not only visible under the individual user’s iPhone tag but also under the community iPhone tag that exhibits all images consumers are generating and filing under the keyword. There are currently over two million images with the tag iPhone on Flickr.

Tagging is catching on because it is a natural complement to search. Type the word “blogs” into Google and it it unable to tell if you are searching for information about how to launch a blog, how to read blogs, or just what a blog is. Large and small sites alike are getting wise the folksonomy train. They are rolling out tag-like structures to help users more easily locate content that is relevant to them.

Although tags are far from perfect, marketers should, nevertheless, be employing them to keep a finger on the pulse of the public. Start subscribing to RSS feeds to monitor how consumers are tagging information related to your product, service, company or space. These are living focus groups that are available for free, 24/7. Folksonomy sites can also be carefully utilised to unleash viral marketing campaigns – with a caveat. Marketers need to be transparent in who they are, why they are posting the link/photos and, of course, avoid spamming the services.

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1. Viral Marketing: What Works and What Does Not
2. Viral Marketing Goes Mobile
3. Successful Forum Viral Marketing