Taxonomy in the Age of Personalization

Zach Wahl and Sara Mae O’Brien-Scott spoke at the 2022 Taxonomy Boot Camp in Washington, D.C. on taxonomy’s critical role in delivering what every end user now expects—a seamless and personalized experience. Personalization is harnessed by the most successful organizations to anchor their content experience by allowing users to connect with content based on key characteristics. O’Brien-Scott and Wahl provided an understanding of how taxonomy powers personalization by detailing real-world use cases and best practices for taxonomy design for personalization. They discussed the personalization maturity scale, including how taxonomy lays the groundwork for enabling cutting-edge solutions such as recommendation engines, automated content assembly, and omnichannel delivery. They also shared expected outcomes of personalization such as increased conversion rates, a decrease in employee turnover, and stronger user engagement.