Search engines are pretty smart, but they are still limited.
You may have heard the term, schema markup, but what is it? How does it work and what does it do for your SEO efforts?
Well pal, you’re in luck.
I’m going to break down what schema markup is. How to go about getting it up and running for your website. And what they do for your SEO efforts.
So what's the big idea?
Schema markup is a dramatically underutilized tool that helps search engines to better understand your website.
Essentially, they help to give the context that people inherently understand by looking at the page.
Think about it like this. If I say I’m holding a hammer, you understand that a hammer is probably made from metal and wood. Has a blunt end for driving nails, and a claw for pulling them.
A computer inherently lacks this context that we “just have”. Schema markup is designed to fill in that gap and give the context to computers that they lack.
A website with proper Schema Markup can receive more eye catching, and complete listings in search results on Google that searchers are more likely to click on.
72.6% of webpages on the first page of Google use Schema markup but only 30% of all websites implement it.
That’s a cryin’ shame, because not only do pages with schema markup get 40% higher click through rates, but the rich results (fancy pants search engine results) that they help to create get 58%
The history of schema markup
Launched back in the good ol’ days on June 2nd, 2011. Schema.org is a joint effort between Bing, Google, and Yahoo. With Yandex coming on soon after in November of that same year.
As stated above, it is an attempt to give additional context to the text and information presented to a search engine.
Schema markup, actually was not the first attempt to create a standardized “language” for defining information on the web. GoodRelations, actually predated it. Launching in 2009, GoodRelations sought to do the same thing. Give consistent, machine readable, information about products.
However, instead of attempting to become competing standards. GoodRelations was folded into schema markup.
I’ll spare you most of the technical details about how the data works and is integrated into your website. As much of the process has matured in a way that no longer needs manual code implementation, in most cases.
But for the curious gumshoes, there are 811 Types, 1484 Properties, 14 Datatypes, 89 Enumerations, and 495 Enumeration members that you can look at on Schema.org here.
Implementing Schema Markup properly
While the exact process for implementing schema markup varies depending on what tools you are using to create and manage your website, I will go over how to implement Schema Mark up on the most popular website building platform, WordPress.
For those of you who are on other platforms such as Wix or rolling your own. You’ll have to look up the process for yourself, but rest assured that it has only become easier and easier over the years to integrate schema markup into your website.
Schema Markup on WordPress
- Install a plug-in like Yoast SEO or AIOSEO for full control over your SEO work on your website or keep it simple with a focused plugin like All in one Schema Rich Snippets.
- Schema – All In One Schema Rich Snippets
- All in One SEO – Powerful SEO Plugin to Boost SEO Rankings & Increase Traffic
- Yoast SEO – WordPress plugin
- Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools
- Other plugins are also available if you need more specific schemas that are not added by one of the above plugins
- Use the plug in to set up schema mark up for each page and article on your website. Filling out all relevant information and letting the plug-in automatically add the required code to your website.
- Customize different pages with different schema types as needed
- About us page
- Contact page
- Product pages, etc.
- Other types are available as well such as for recipes, events, and more. Use the most appropriate type for your pages and products. If in doubt refer back to the documentation to find the most appropriate markup to use.
Schema Markup for Other Platforms
- If you don’t use WordPress there may be other ways of implementing schema mark up for your website that does not require coding.
- Seach for a solution like Schema App Total Schema Mark up for Shopify
- You can also manually implement it by adding it to your website manually.
- Generate your code using a tool such as Merkle Schema Markup Generator or Schema.dev.
- For Shopify you’ll want to add this to the appropriate .liquid template file
- product.liquid OR product-template.liquid for a specific product
- artilcle.liquid for a specific article.
- Header.liquid for the schema about your business or website.
- Add the schema code to the top of the template with the “@context” and “@type” attributes.
- This article goes into more detail about how to manually implement schema markup in Shopify.
- Verify that your schema markup is correct with Google’s validation tool.
- We recommend that you first test that the code is valid before you go live with it.
- Rich Results Test – Google Search Console
- For other website management software, the exact process will differ, but it will be like the process for Shopify, if you don’t have access to a premade plugin or want to roll your own solution. Requiring the code to be manually added to each appropriate page or template file, depending on how your website works.
But wait, how does it help with my rankings?
Well, here’s the rub. It’s not a “direct” ranking factor. You defiantly won’t rank spam or lazy, low effort content with schema markup being slapped on it. Put lipstick on a pig, it’s still a pig.
But what it can do is help search engines better understand and sift through your website. Giving you an edge against everyone else, and it’s an edge that you should be taking advantage of.
Schema markup doesn't have to be hard
Getting your website set up with schema markup has never been easier with the tools that are available today. However, you want to make sure that it is implemented correctly.
That’s where experts like us come in. If you want help with your SEO efforts, contact us and we’ll create a bespoke digital marketing plan to help your business shine.
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