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Local Business Structured Data for SEO

How Structured Data Helps in Search Rankings

August 12, 2019 by Eddy Pareja

Google Knows Keywords are Imprecise

Different strings of words can refer to the same entity.

The same keyword phrase can describe 2 different things.

Keywords are just not a reliable way of designating real-life things.

That's why Google adopted their “Things not Strings” Philosophy and implemented the Knowledge Graph in 2012.

The Knowledge Graph is a knowledge base used to enhance Google results with information gathered from a variety of sources.

These are the problems that structured data aims to solve.

By focusing less on “strings” (keyword phrases alone) & speaking the language of Search Engines, you will improve your opportunities to rank.

Keywords are imprecise. Structured data can help clarify.
Different strings of words can refer to the same entity.
Keyword Phrases can refer to different things.
The same keyword phrase can describe 2 different things.

Knowledge Graph information is often presented to users in an infobox next to the search results.

How does understanding this help your business?

Google no longer relies on just Keywords it encounters on websites to understand the overwhelming amount of data on the internet. It's too easy for that system to be gamed.

Google increasingly uses its' Knowledge Graph to understand the world so that it can provide the best search results.

By increasing the presence of your business in Google's Knowledge Graph, you can give your business a chance to be better featured in search results.

Structured Data: An important strategy for getting your business in the Knowledge Graph.

There are many strategies for what can be called Knowledge Graph Optimization, and using Structured Data on your website is an important one.

Google Knowledge Graph Info Box
Google 'Info Box' for Elvis...this data comes from all the data Google has amassed about Elvis in the "Knowledge Graph".

What is Structured Data?

Structured data is standardized metadata which can be used to provide specific details about your website, content, and business to search engines.

So what is metadata?

Metadata is data that describes and gives information about other data, and is generally behind the scenes and not visible to website users.

It is only revealed by review of the HTML which creates a web page.

This is exactly how search engines see your web pages. Not as the gorgeous layouts with fancy fonts and images, but as a long string of characters. A search engine's job is to review those characters and to determine as much as it can from that information.

What is Structured Data for SEO?

Schema.org Structured Data Standards Structured Data Schemas are Documented at Schema.org

Schema.org was created in 2011 and is a collaboration between Google, Yahoo, Bing & Yandex to create a shared “vocabulary” for describing web content.

Schema.org is not a formal standards body. Schema.org is simply a site where the schemas that several major search engines will support are documented.

What is the point of standardizing Schema? In short...to make the web better.

Automated data extraction by search engines is great when it works, but it can be error prone because different sites can represent the same information in so many different ways.  

Markup provides a consistent way for computers to understand the data on a page, and helps search engines display information usefully in search results.

Better for Search Engines

Schema.org focuses on defining the item types and properties that are most valuable to search engines.

This means search engines will get the structured information they need most to improve search.

Better for Webmasters

Schema.org provides webmasters with a single place to go to learn about markup, instead of having to graft together a schema from different sources, each with its own rules, conventions and learning curves.

Better for Users

When it is easier for webmasters to add markup, and search engines see more of the markup they need...

Users will end up with better search results and a better experience on the web.

Why Is Structured Data Important for SEO?

Structured Data helps Google explicitly understand important information about your business. Here is an example...

First..Imagine you are Googlebot...

Your mission...

You are indexing  a web page of a roofing business.

Part of your mission is to discern the physical location of the business.

If you know the location, you can determine when it is valuable to show that business in The Google 3-Pack Search Results for local searchers in the same geographic area.

There is always another algorithm update waiting in the wings to take your job so you need to focus!

Hello, My name is Googlebot and Structured Data is my food. lol
Hello, I'm Googlebot - help me know your business physical location by using structured data. NAP

This is easy!

  • Step 1: Parse the characters on the page with your algorithm super brain.
  • Step 2: Locate a pattern of letters and numbers which has the characteristics of an address.
  • Step 3: Remark how easy this is for your super computer brain...Success!

….Well, Maybe 🙁

Why maybe?

Because we can only apply so much confidence to the idea that the address we found is relevant for the local intent we want to justify.

We can't be sure it's the address of the business.

  • It's possible the address is actually that of a business in another town for which the roofer did a job.
  • Perhaps the address is the business's old location and they are juts letting people know they have moved from there.
  • Maybe the address is that of the location of a roofing convention the roofer recently attended to learn all the latest roofing techniques.

Without some very specific cues you (Googlebot) won't be too confident that the data we found is the actual address of this roofing company.

This is where structured data comes to the rescue!

How Does Structured Data Help in this example?

Clarity...

By simply marking up a business location address with structured data, search engines can know with 100% certainty that they have the correct address for the business location.

How Can a Business Use Structured Data?

The ways in which content can be described by structured data are only limited by the available vocabulary at Schema.org. However, search engines are not actively using all of the content types described by Schema.org...yet, anyway.

Following are some common uses of structured data for business that ARE used by search engines.

Local Business

Local Business includes business details like Business Name, Address, Phone (NAP) and Business Hours, and marketing details like Logo and Social profiles.

Google Reference Link: Enhance Your Site’s Attributes on Google

Knowledge Graph Card for Local Business

Social Profile Links

Google does not show unverified profiles (for social profiles sites that allow verification) so be sure your profiles are verified.

You can specify all social profiles, but only some appear in Google results.

Structured Data for social profiles

**Note: Use the most specific schema type for your business.**

Here is an article that helps you find the most specific type.

Corporate Contact Information

Supported Phone #’s:

  • customer service
  • technical support
  • billing support
  • bill payment
  • sales
  • reservations
  • credit card support
  • emergency
  • baggage tracking
  • roadside assistance
  • package tracking

Helpful Link: Guide to Corporate Contact Info - Structured Data

Reviews

Important Notes:

**Only include critic reviews that have been directly produced by your site, not reviews from third- party sites or syndicated reviews.

**Critic reviews must allow for customers to express both positive and negative sentiments. They may not be vetted by the business or restricted by the content provider based on the positive/negative sentiment of the review before submission to Google.

Helpful Link: Google Guide to Reviews - Structured Data

More Examples of Structured Data for a Business to Explore

For reference, these are other examples of Structured Data. Some of these apply only to certain types of businesses or websites. However, the vocabulary of Structured Data is expanding and changing all the time, so a new opportunity may be just around the corner.

  • Videos

  • Articles

  • Products

  • Recipes

  • Events

  • Job Postings

  • Breadcrumbs

  • Site Links Search Box

Implementing Structured Data on a WordPress Website

Schema.org vocabulary can be used with many different encodings. The 3 main ones are RDFa, Microdata and JSON-LD.

JSON-LD is recommended by Google and also a W3C Standard, so that is the way we recommend implementing Structured Data. (See the video below showing how to implement Structured Data on a WordPress site.)

Use a WordPress Plugin for Structured Data

Here is a list of a few.

  • WP SEO Structured Data Schema Plugin* - Only does JSON, and is easy to use. Does not include Reviews. *This is the plugin we regularly use.
  • WP Customer Reviews Plugin - Focuses only on reviews. Be careful to adhere to Google guidelines for reviews.
  • RDF Translator - Convert JSON to Microdata to include manually on your site in a Text Widget, in a theme template, or with a WordPress hook. (Helpful for reaching Bing)
  • Yoast SEO - (Organization only, JSON & Open Graph Microdata. No Local Business.)

Don’t Forget To Validate!

Schema are updated and plugin authors may not keep up. After installing any structured data plugin validate your data to be sure it’s free of errors.

Use testing tools to  to test the structured data on a page.

  • Google Structured Data Testing Tool »
  • Bing Structured Data Testing Tool »
How
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Important General Guidelines to Know When Using Structured Data for Google

  • Using structured data enables a feature to be present, it does not guarantee that it will be
    present.
  • The structured data should be representative of the main content of the page (be sure it is not potentially misleading).
  • The content referred to by the structured data should be visible to the user somewhere on the page.

More info from Google about Structured Data Policies

Could you use a hand implementing Structured Data on your WordPress site?

We help clients implement Structured Data on their business websites, whether as a standalone project or part of one of our ongoing maintenance plans aimed at making your business website work smarter for you.

 

See Our Maintenance Plans
Contact Us

Did you know? Implementing Structured Data can be covered by a maintenance plan.

Check out our Plans
Category: Local SEO, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), SEO, Web Design
Eddy Pareja

About Eddy Pareja

As partner & lead developer, I specialize in WordPress backend PHP programming. I have years of experience with ASP, PHP, Flash, Javascript and just about any language used to create on the web. I love working with StudioPress themes and the Genesis Framework on WordPress. Learn more about Eddy »

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