Publisher Insight
Designing Categories and Sections for a Local News Website
A useful taxonomy balances familiar reader language, editorial ownership, and a manageable archive.
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Start with how readers describe their interests
Ask readers and review search queries to learn how people look for local information: by neighbourhood, civic issue, service, school, or event. Use familiar labels and avoid creating a category for every short-lived subject.
Keep geography and topic distinct where possible. A story can belong to a city desk and a public-health topic without a duplicate page for every combination. Decide whether location pages are useful editorial products or merely filters.
Give every section an owner and purpose
For each category, document its audience, scope, editor, contribution rules, and whether it belongs in navigation. Merge sections that overlap and retire empty ones thoughtfully.
Use a controlled vocabulary for tags and review it regularly. Unmanaged tags create near-duplicate archives, inconsistent spelling, and confusing internal links. Assign tags for recurring entities or themes when they help readers browse coverage.
Protect search and archive quality
Write useful introductions for important section pages and provide clear links to current and foundational coverage. Ensure pagination and canonical behaviour are consistent, and prevent thin filter combinations from producing indexable pages without reader value.
Before reorganising a live taxonomy, inventory URLs and traffic. Map moved sections, update internal links, use redirects where needed, and monitor indexing after launch. A navigation improvement should not erase a valuable archive.
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