Schema markup has become a hot topic among active SEO’s recently and theres plenty of reason why, if used correctly it can greatly increase your SERP visibility and presence. Yet it seems that many SEO’s and Web Developers are slow to adopt the new markup and I believe it’s time to clear a few things up. Let’s start from the top:
What Exactly is Schema Markup?
Schema markup is simply a set of HTML tags know as “schemas” that you can add to your web pages to give search engines a better idea of what the page is presenting. There are schemas for a variety of different things including books, movies, recipes, tv series, images, songs, videos, events, & much more.
Below is an example of the schema code for a movie:
Source: http://schema.org/Movie
Original HTML:
With Microdata (Schema markup added):
How it Looks in Google after Schema is added:
As you can see simply adding the schema markup allowed IMDB to show their proprietary rating system right in the SERP along with the important information about the movie, making it much easier for the end user to visualize and find their results.
Why SEOs Need to be Using Schemas
A lot of SEOs spend way too much time focusing on the non-RCS (Real Company Sh*t) aspects of SEO (more on RCS in my earlier post) Getting caught up in link building schemes and stuffing their target keywords without in-depth research into the market and the copy that converts in that market. All of this “non-RCS” activity can make SEOs forget that their job at the end of the day is to Optimize their sites for Search Engines, and using Schema markup properly does exactly that. By optimizing your sites with Schema Microdata you are positioning yourself ahead of the curve of Web Designers & SEO’s and making your sites stand out in SERPs.
Schemas and the Knowledge Graph
Google’s new Knowledge Graph is already paving new ground for SEO’s and Webmasters as Google continues to find new ways to help searches find what they are looking for in the simplest, most user friendly fashion. Knowledge Graph is also beginning to use Schemas to pull the data presented to users, more specifically using the “Organization Markup“. By utilizing this simple markup you can tell Google which logo you prefer to use for your organization and they will automatically pull it and use it for their Knowledge Graph. This was traditionally done by using the Google + page of the Organization.
Here is an example:
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Nicely said. Schema markups should be a part of every web page nowadays. They are relatively simple to add, and it makes certain elements, such as your address, logo, reviews, etc., easier for search engines to understand, and that’s what SEO is all about. Not to mention the fact that by adding schemas, your web page will stand out more in search engine results. All great reasons to start using schemas on your site asap. –David @ Touch Point Digital
Hey David,
Thanks for the input! As good SEO’s Schema cannot be ignored and I am surprised to not see more Schema markup on sites with competitive SERP rankings, leaving us good SEO’s plenty of opportunity to dominate more keywords!
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