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TUMBLR 101: HOW TAGS WORK! (May 2017)

Tags vs. Search

The tumblr search function will search the tags and captions of all new (i.e. not reblogged) posts that do not contain an external link. 

EXAMPLE: www.tumblr.com/search/perioddramaedit returns posts that mention perioddramaedit, either in the body of the post or in the tags

The tumblr /tagged/ function returns all the posts in a tag in reverse-chronological order. Popular tags on tumblr may have years worth of posts in them.

EXAMPLE: www.tumblr.com/tagged/perioddramaedit returns posts tagged perioddramaedit in the first 5 tags.

Read more about Tags vs Search

The first 5 tags!

The first 5 tags are your best bet! 

Only the first 5 tags show up in tracked tags. Tracked tags are more reliable than search if you want your content to be seen and / or reblogged.

Put the important tags (ex. show name, actor name, artist name) in the first 5 tags.

Only the first 20 tags show up in search.

Only the first 20 tags will cause the post to show up in the tag on your blog (i.e. asoiafuniversity.tumblr.com/tagged/resources)

So start with the important tags for tracked tags / search, then add tags like “my edits” or “mine” for your own blog organization, and then add FEELINGS and TAG COMMENTARY at the end. 

Only new posts will show up in public tracked tags or search. Reblogs will not show up in tracked tags or search.

Avoid unnecessary punctuation. Apostrophes ’ are ok to use, but tags with a slash / or a hyphen - or a plus sign + or an equal sign = will NOT show up in tracked tags. 

External Links

Posts with external links will NOT show up in search. 

See a list of sites that tumblr no longer allows linking.

Posts with external links WILL show up in tracked tags. So use tracked tags and put the important tags in the first 5 tags!!

Tagging Etiquette

Don’t tag your hate; it’s considered rude

If you use anti tags like #ANTI SHIPNAME, everyone who is searching for SHIPNAME will see your anti post. Don’t use SHIPNAME when creating your anti tag if you don’t want people to get upset about it. 

Don’t put something that isn’t an edit in an edit tag. People are going into the edit tag to look for edits and if your post isn’t an edit, it defeats the purpose of the edit tag. 

Don’t spam the tags. 

Reblog; don’t repost

The OP (original poster) will often read your tags when you reblog a post, so if you say something nasty in the tags, the OP will (probably) see it. Say something nice instead!

Other useful tips:

Install new-xkit-extension to improve your tumblr experience

How to go to a specific date/time in any tag

More info on tumblr’s search and discovery

Popular ASOIAF fandom edit tags

I just read a fic from 2013 and left a comment on the end. The author responded within 3 hours.

So, I’ve seen a ton of Twitter users talking about making and sharing their new tumblr blogs, to escape Elon Musk’s “anti censorship” bullshittery. First of all: welcome! I know it’s looking bleak over there; especially for trans people. But, now that you’re here, I’m here to tell you all about tumblr etiquette, how this website works, and how it’s different from Twitter. Because you can’t come onto here acting like it’s Twitter, lest The Beast get to you.

First, here are a small handful of tips and tumblr facts!

Your likes and who you are following are automatically set to public. You can make them private in your settings!

You can block tags from the settings, too.

There are lots of bots on here. If you’re not careful, you could be mistaken for one! The main way you can avoid this is changing your icon and header from the defaults. Adding a bio helps too!

You can queue and schedule posts so that your account posts throughout the day.

Like Twitter, tumblr has a radical feminist and TERF problem. However, they’re pretty easy to spot. There are lots of guides out there to help you learn how to spot tumblr TERFs!

Tumblr, for the most part, does not have any celebrity or brand accounts.

Your tumblr follower count is private.

You can have multiple accounts with the same email, and they’re very easy to switch between! These are called “sideblogs”.

Your main page is not a “timeline”. It is a “dashboard”!

You can have a custom desktop theme using HTML! Think like ye olde MySpace days. There are tons of pre-made tumblr themes available, if you’re not already proficient in HTML; including free ones!

Now, let’s talk tumblr etiquette and how it’s different from Twitter. You’re a tumblr user now! It’s time to start acting like it!

Don’t just like posts. They don’t increase visibility whatsoever. The way that you can help posts that you like is reblogging them to your blog. Especially for art!

We don’t say “oomfs” or “oomfies”. Just “mutuals” is fine, thanks!

Adding onto a post with pointless comments is frowned upon. If all you have to say it “this is so true,” or something else to that effect, you should put that in the tags of your reblog.

Most people don’t have carrds or rentries on here. Some of us do, but it’s not an obligation like it is for Twitter.

Similarly, we don’t censor words like “die” and “death”. Posts about wanting to brutally murder people in power go viral all the time, and it’s completely allowed. I’m serious! Enjoy your newfound freedom!

Blocking isn’t a big deal here. Get rid of any weird notion you have that morality is linked to blocking certain people.

But lastly, and most importantly:

Drop your discourse at the door.

If you try to post about most of the things that Twitter users discourse about, you will be laughed off the site. Especially Twitter LGBT+ discourse. Posts actively mocking topics of Twitter discourse go viral on here regularly.

Tumblr has mostly healed since its discourse-ridden days, and it’s now much more chill. Of course, discourse still happens, but it is so easy to avoid now. For a lot of us, tumblr is the last pleasant social media site left, so don’t ruin it.

Here is a list of discourse-related things that tumblr users don’t do:

Most of us don’t do callout posts, unless it’s something actually serious (like that one blog that had a human slave).

Everything that you heard on Twitter was “exclusive” to certain LGBT+ groups is used by just about everyone on here. Bi women use the double venus symbol on here. You’ll just have to learn to live with that.

In particular, I want to emphasize how much we don’t do flag discourse. To the point that somebody caring about flag discourse of any kind is how we tend to identify an ex-Twitter user.

On here, you will never have to see another slur discourse post again, unless you actively seek it out.

You’re free.