Description

• WordPress tags are mini-categories or keywords that you can assign to blog posts. While categories are useful for sorting posts into different topics, tags are what allow you to classify each post in a more specific way. Suppose you own a blog about drawing. You may create categories, such as figure drawing, still life and portrait drawing. But to describe what each post contains, you can add tags such as "perspective," "anatomy," "head, "cross hatching" or "foreshortening."
  
  

Search

• Tags make it quick and easy for visitors to find specific information on a blog. When someone clicks a tag, WordPress displays a list of all posts that are assigned that tag. If a reader is browsing an Internet blog, clicking the tag "facebook" will return all posts that are tagged with that keyword, whether they are about Facebook applications, Facebook layouts or news about the social networking site. Not only does this help a visitor find relevant posts, it also encourages him to stay longer on your blog.
  
  

SEO

• Besides giving your visitors a more rewarding experience, tags also help optimize your blog for search engines. To a search engine, WordPress tags are like keywords. They tell the search engine what your site is about, which posts are related to one another and where to find information.
  
  

Publicity

• Tags are especially valuable in the free version of WordPress, which is WordPress.com. Whenever you assign a tag or category to a WordPress.com post, that post may be included in the Global Tag Listings. To prevent tag abuse, you are limited to only five to 10 tags or categories (or a combination of the two) to qualify for public listings. If your post is chosen, it can drive more traffic to your blog from other WordPress users.
  
  

Tips

• To make your tagging more effective, choose only the most relevant keywords for each blog post. Look over the post and select terms that you think readers are likely to search for. Do not add too many tags to each post. Use single or two- or three-word phrases. For better tag visibility, include a "Tags" widget to the sidebar on your blog.