Meta tags, Search Engine Optimization Tips, SEO, SEO Tips

What Does Schema Markup Mean?

Do you ever wonder why certain content from your website shows up on a Google search and not others? How is that specific content selected? Schema markups determine what content from your site is provided on a search engine result page (SERPs). It is used to help search engines better understand your content and in return provide more efficient search results. Schema markup highlights the most relevant information on a webpage. This article will tell you all about schema markups. Types of schema markups, markup formats, search taggings, and more will be explained. 

What is Schema Markup?

Schema markup is the code that provides more informative search results. The code allows search engines to better understand the content on your webpage. Schema markups, also known as structured data, help users to communicate with search engines the meaning of their content. For example, if you include a number on your webpage, the search engine does not know what the number represents. If you utilize schema markups, it will clarify to the search engine that the number is actually a price, phone number, date, time, etc. There are many resources available to assist with schema markups. 

Schema markup is the smaller grey text beneath the webpage title on the SERP.  This is an example of what they look like in a search result. The way they appear differs based on the type of the schema markup. The above example is for recipes, but if the type was a person, it would usually appear in a box that includes important information about the person. Information included about a person can be their birthday, age, spouse, career, children, etc. 

Types of Schema Markup

There are many different types of schema markups that can be utilized for all kinds of content. These types are categorized by a set of properties. Additionally, the code for each type differs. Commonly used types include creative works, events, health/medical, organization, place, local business, restaurant, recipe, person, and review. For example, a recipe schema markup could include the ingredients, the cooking time and temperature, the calories, serving size, and its rating. 

How Does Schema Help SEO?

Although schema markups do not directly correlate to your SEO rankings, it is overall beneficial. Using schema markups results in a SERP displaying a web page’s information with a rich snippet. This is an organic search result that is more in-depth than a standard result. They can include graphics, reviews, or additional data. This makes your website more attractive on SERPs. Rich snippets have a positive impact on click-through-rates.

A major benefit of using schema markups is the clarification they provide to web crawlers. This is the algorithm used for search engines that runs through the websites and analyzes the data. After using the algorithm to find what data matches the search, the web crawlers provide the content on the SERPs. Schema markups clearly tell the web crawlers what data is on the website, allowing for an accurate description of website content. This produces more efficient search results. 

Schema markups provide information to the users without having them click on the webpage. It gives users a brief overview of the content available on the webpage. Based on this brief overview, users will decide if they want to visit the site. Schema markups can tell users if this webpage will be helpful without having to visit the webpage.  If you include the correct information in your markups, you will be improving the user experience.

how does schema markup help seo

What is Schema.org?

Schema.org is a collaborative effort to have an inclusive vocabulary for all search engines. Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and Yandex combined efforts to create the Schema.org vocabulary. This shared vocabulary simplified the process for webmasters and developers to use a schema and receive the largest benefit possible. Schema.org’s vocabulary is compatible with Microdata, RDFa, and JSON-LD. The vocabulary currently consists of 778 types of schema markups. The website details each type and how to create the markup for it.

If you markup your website, Schema.org is a necessary resource. It provides countless amounts of information about schemas and how to use them properly.  

The Three Markup Formats

Next, we will talk about the three different format options available: microdata, RDFa, and JSON-LD. 

Microdata

Microdata is an open-community HTML specification. It uses HTML tag attributes to name the data you want to markup. Search engines are able to interpret and analyze the data embedded in documents with HTML.

RDFa

RDFa (Resource Description Framework in Attributes) is an extension of HTML5. Similar to microdata, it uses HTML tag attributes. It can also be used in XML documents, SVG documents, HTML4, XHTML1 and XHTML5 documents. RDFa assists in marking up website content. 

JSON-LD

JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data) is a linked data format. It is fairly easy to use because it does not require HTML formatting. It annotates and structures the data on a webpage. This simplifies the process for search engines, resulting in more specific search results. JSON-LD is Google’s recommended format.

schema markup generators

What is Search Tagging?

All types of tags are used within the code of a website to provide information about the site to the search engine. Learn about meta tags, title tags, meta description tags, and search tagging below.

Meta Tags

First, meta tags are used to tell search engines what the website is about and then use that to rank the website. The meta tag is embedded in the HTML. Users are typically unaware of them. 

Title Tags

Next are title tags. These state the title of the webpage and can be found in the HTML. The title tag is the clickable part of the website in the SERP. They are extremely important because it is what the user first reads about the website. Users can decide from the title if they want to continue to the webpage or not. 

Meta Description Tags

Meta description tags are once again part of the HTML. They give a quick overview of the website. You will want to include any important information about the page that is not included in the title in this section.

Search Taggings

Search tags are the words that people mainly use when using a search engine to look something up. The more search tags you add to your site, the more exposure your company receives on a search engine. Search tagging is beneficial because it is increasing the rank of your company. The more tags you are adding, the more attractive your website becomes to users.

what is search tagging

Easy to Use Schema Generators

There are many sites available to simplify the schema markup process. Here we will highlight just four of them.

Google Structured Data Markup Helper

Google offers a Structured Data Markup Helper to assist Google users in marking up their webpages. This resource helps users but also helps themselves. By helping users mark up their web pages, it is becoming easier for Google to understand the content and data on those web pages. This allows Google to provide more accurate results on the SERP. 

The Structured Data Markup Helper also offers to mark up emails that contain certain data types, such as event, flight, hotel, restaurant, and car rental reservations. To start tagging, you simply have to select if you are marking up an email or website. Next, you chose the type of data you will be marking up. Lastly, you tag the data and view the HTML.

Hall Analysis Schema Markup Generator

The Hall Analysis Schema Markup Generator offers a schema markup generator in the JSON-LD format. It allows you to choose between six types of markups. You can choose local business, person, product, event, organization, or website. Next, the site generates the JSON-LD, which you have to add to the <head> section of your HTML document.  

Microdata Generator.com

Finally, Microdata Generator.com is another generator you can use. This site only creates schema markups for local business. Again, it is a fairly simple process to create the markup. The website prompts a few questions that need to be answered before it can be created.

Merkle Schema Markup Generator

Merkle Schema Markup Generator creates markups in the JSON-LD or microdata formats. This site offers thirteen types of schema markups that can be generated. Similar to other markup generators, you must answer a few questions about the markup you are creating.

what does schema markeup mean

Why You Should Add Schema Markups to Your Website

Schema markups simplify the process for web crawlers. They make the website content readable to these crawlers and search engines. This allows search engines to provide results that fit the search more accurately. Using schema markups results in the use of rich snippets. This will increase the click-through-rates of your website and will make your website more attractive.

However, despite the benefits of using schema markups, only about 30% of websites utilize them. Since only one-third of websites are using schema markups, it is a missed opportunity for many companies. Do not be one of the companies that misses this opportunity to improve your website and its SEO.

 

FAQs about Schema Markup

1. Does schema markup directly improve my SEO rankings?

While schema markup doesn’t directly improve your search engine rankings, it provides significant indirect SEO benefits. Schema markup helps search engines better understand your content, which can lead to rich snippets in search results. These enhanced listings with additional information, ratings, or images are more attractive to users and typically result in higher click-through rates. Better click-through rates can signal to search engines that your content is valuable, potentially improving your rankings over time.

2. Which schema markup format should I use: Microdata, RDFa, or JSON-LD?

Google recommends JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data) as the preferred format. JSON-LD is easier to implement because it doesn’t require HTML formatting and can be added to the head section of your webpage without affecting the visible content. While Microdata and RDFa are also valid options that work within HTML attributes, JSON-LD is generally considered more flexible and easier to maintain. Most schema generators also default to JSON-LD format.

3. How do I know if my schema markup is working correctly?

You can test your schema markup using Google’s Rich Results Test tool or the Structured Data Testing Tool. These free tools will show you if your markup is valid and what rich snippets might appear in search results. You can also monitor your search performance in Google Search Console, which will alert you to any structured data errors and show you how your rich snippets are performing. Look for improvements in click-through rates after implementing schema markup.

4. What types of businesses benefit most from schema markup?

While all websites can benefit from schema markup, certain business types see particularly strong results. Local businesses, restaurants, events, recipes, products, reviews, and service providers often see the most dramatic improvements in search visibility. E-commerce sites benefit greatly from product schema (showing prices, ratings, availability), while local businesses benefit from local business schema (showing hours, location, contact info). Content sites benefit from article schema, and service businesses benefit from FAQ and how-to schema.

5. Is schema markup difficult to implement, and do I need technical knowledge?

Schema markup implementation has become much easier with the availability of generators and tools. While some technical knowledge is helpful, you don’t need to be a developer to implement basic schema markup. Tools like Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper, Hall Analysis Schema Generator, and others can generate the code for you based on simple questions. Many content management systems and SEO plugins also offer built-in schema markup features that require minimal technical skills.

6. How long does it take to see results after implementing schema markup?

You may see schema markup effects relatively quickly compared to other SEO strategies. Rich snippets can appear in search results within days to weeks of implementation, assuming Google crawls and indexes your updated pages. However, the impact on click-through rates and overall search performance may take several weeks to months to fully materialize. The timeline depends on how frequently search engines crawl your site and how competitive your industry is.

7. Can I use multiple types of schema markup on the same webpage?

Yes, you can and often should use multiple types of schema markup on a single page when it makes sense. For example, a local business page might include both Organization schema and LocalBusiness schema. An article might include Article schema along with Person schema for the author and Review schema for customer testimonials. Just ensure that each schema type accurately represents the content on your page and doesn’t create conflicts. Using multiple relevant schema types can help search engines understand your content more comprehensively and potentially trigger different types of rich snippets.

 

Nick Antonopoulos

Nick Antonopoulos is the Chief Marketing officer of SEO Design Chicago. Nick has over a decade of experience in Content Creation, SEO and Digital Marketing working with small businesses all the way up to Enterprise level clients.

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