Do you find the "Categories" on Hubpages inhibiting?

1. 90

   Billie Kelpinposted 10 years ago

   I have often wondered if the "Category" structure on hubpages impedes more accurate listing of hubs.  There are many times that I can't seem to find the exact category for a hub or for the question/answer section. 
   
   Are categories even necessary?  What does categorization really do?  I believe it MUST be neccesary, but perhaps it "just doesn't matter" as the Bill Murray character says in "Meatballs".  If it matters, shouldn't it be better. 
   
   For example, I asked a question about languages today.  Eventually, I found foreign language in a sub-category or something.  My mind just doesn't categorize the way hubpages does, but again, perhaps categories are irrelevant, especially since search engines use keywords. 
   
   Inquring minds want to know.

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   1. 82

      Marcy Goodfleischposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, they do matter - be sure to select them thoughtfully!
      
      Writer Fox is one of the experts on this, and can explain how they help with search results. If you filter the categories as much as possible, they're more likely to be picked up by search engines. I'm probably not explaining this well - but maybe Writer Fox or one of our other resident experts will see this and chime in.
      
      As with you, I haven't always found the best category, but sometimes it's because I didn't start out with the right 'root' term that will lead to it.

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   2. 78

      colorfuloneposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I like the search to find a category on a new hub, but it is good to look and see if a category has enough hubs in sub-categories so that they have live links for search engines to crawl on those pages. Which we can see in "The Complete List of Topics on HubPages" -- http://hubpages.com/topics/tree
      
      The higher up on a category or sub-category page a hub is the better it is ranked, especially so if the other hubs in the category relate well. I doubt that search engines go as deep as the second page of a category or sub-category page to crawl (but maybe they do).

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2. 66

   lisavanvorstposted 10 years ago

   I do not like the categories we have to choose from. Often they do not reflect my style of hub.

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   Laurie Viposted 10 years ago

   I think the categories are necessary, but they could be broken down better. I agree that sometimes it is hard to find a category that fits your hub. Some categories seem rather obscure and too niche.

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   Kelsey Farrellposted 10 years ago

   I've also had problems finding the right category to add to my hubs--specifically when I was trying to post a hub about healthy eating for kids. The closest thing I could get was kid's health and it was about their health, not eating habits. Does anyone have recommendations for this or do you just plug along as you're able?

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   1. 43

      Writer Foxposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Try this one:
      http://hubpages.com/topics/food-and-coo … -kids/1605

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