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Product Taxonomy
International Association of Better Business Bureaus
The International Association of Better Business Bureaus (IABBB) serves as the umbrella organization for Better Business Bureau (BBB) networks across North America. As a nonprofit consortium, IABBB supports local BBB chapters that provide business reliability information to consumers seeking trusted service providers.
THE CHALLENGE:
ABBB required a comprehensive overhaul of its business classification system to enhance user experience across local BBB digital platforms. The organization's existing taxonomy had evolved organically over time, resulting in inconsistent categorization logic and suboptimal discoverability for consumers searching for service providers.
The strategic imperative centered on improving the customer journey: consumers needed intuitive, standardized business categorization to efficiently identify and evaluate potential service providers. IABBB sought to audit, rationalize, and standardize its business type framework while establishing formal governance protocols for future category management.
THE SOLUTION:
Our team executed a comprehensive taxonomy transformation program combining diagnostic assessment, architecture redesign, and governance framework development.
Taxonomy Development and Standardization
We conducted systematic evaluation of IABBB's existing business type categories, benchmarking against industry classification standards including NAICS and SIC codes. Through iterative stakeholder collaboration, we rationalized the category hierarchy, eliminating redundancies and establishing logical groupings aligned with both institutional standards and consumer search behaviors. We enhanced discoverability through comprehensive keyword and synonym mapping, capturing regional terminology variations and colloquial search patterns.
Pilot Validation and Governance
Using a phased approach, we developed a representative taxonomy branch as proof of concept, incorporating stakeholder feedback before full-scale execution. The engagement concluded with formal governance documentation defining decision criteria, maintenance protocols, and standards for adding new business categories as market conditions evolve.
THE OUTCOME
The standardized business taxonomy established a robust foundation for improved consumer search experiences across BBB platforms. The rationalized category structure, enhanced with comprehensive keyword associations and aligned with industry classification standards, positioned IABBB to deliver superior service provider discoverability while maintaining long-term taxonomy integrity through formal governance frameworks.