Structured Data & Schema

Structured data is machine-readable markup that tells AI systems exactly what your content means - the clearest signal you can send to answer engines.

JSON-LD is Google's preferred schema format - placed in a script tag in the head or body, it separates markup from HTML while being fully machine-readable.

FAQPage schema marks up Q&A pairs that appear as rich snippets in SERPs and are heavily cited in both AI Overviews and PAA boxes.

HowTo schema marks up step-by-step instructions with tools, materials, and time estimates - triggering rich how-to snippets and AI step citations.

Speakable schema (WebPage.speakable) marks content sections optimized for audio playback by Google Assistant and smart speakers.

Article, NewsArticle, and BlogPosting schema signal content type, author expertise, and publication date - all signals AI systems use for authority and freshness scoring.

Organization schema establishes your brand entity in Google's Knowledge Graph - sameAs links to Wikipedia, Wikidata, social profiles, and Google Business Profile are critical.

Product schema with Offer, AggregateRating, and Review nested types triggers price, availability, and rating rich results - and powers AI shopping answers.

AggregateRating and Review schema trigger star ratings in SERPs - one of the highest CTR boosters and a strong trust signal for AI answer selection.

LocalBusiness schema and its 200+ subtypes define NAP data, opening hours, geo-coordinates, and service areas - essential for local AEO.

The sameAs property links your schema entity to authoritative external identifiers - Wikipedia, Wikidata, VIAF, ISNI - creating an unambiguous identity signal for AI.

Person schema marks up author entities with credentials, sameAs links, and knowsAbout - directly feeding Google's E-E-A-T author signals for AI citations.

BreadcrumbList schema adds clickable breadcrumb trails to SERP listings, improves site structure signals, and helps AI understand page context within site hierarchy.

Event schema marks up upcoming events with date, location, organizer, offers, and mode - triggering event rich results and AI event-query citations.

VideoObject schema with clip and seekToAction properties enables timestamp-based video rich results and positions video content for AI video citation.

ClaimReview schema marks up fact-check articles - used by Google's Fact Check Explorer and increasingly cited by AI systems for accuracy validation.

A schema audit identifies missing markup, errors, noncompliant implementations, and coverage gaps - prioritizing fixes by SERP and AI impact.

Google's Rich Results Test validates schema implementation and previews eligible rich result types - the first check before deploying any schema.

News publishers can use Speakable schema to mark article sections for Google News Podcast and Assistant audio playback - driving audio answer inclusion.

Recipe schema with ingredients, steps, cook time, and nutrition triggers rich recipe cards in SERPs and AI cooking-query citations.

Health and medical schema types - MedicalCondition, Drug, MedicalClinicalTrial - must meet strict E-E-A-T standards and are subject to Google's health content policies.

Dataset schema makes statistical data discoverable in Google Dataset Search and AI systems - turning your original research into a citable authority asset.

Nested schema stacks multiple types in a single JSON-LD block - e.g., Article > Author (Person) > Organization - providing richer context to AI systems.

Schema errors can trigger manual actions, reduce or eliminate rich result eligibility, and damage AI system trust in your content - knowing the rules is essential.