Structured data is a small block of code, usually in a format called JSON-LD using the schema.org vocabulary, that describes a page in a way machines understand: this is a business, this is its phone number, these are its services and prices. Search engines use it to understand and display pages, and it gives AI systems clear facts to work from.
What it looks like
Visitors never see it. It sits in the page code and states facts plainly: for example, that a page is about an electrician called Brightwire Electrical, in Adelaide, with a particular phone number and opening hours. (Brightwire Electrical is a made-up business we use in examples.)
What it can do
Good structured data helps in several ways:
- It helps search engines understand who you are, what you offer and where.
- It makes pages eligible for rich results, such as prices, ratings, events and breadcrumbs, where Google supports them.
- It connects your website, Google Business Profile and other profiles as one business (what search engines call an entity).
- It gives AI systems unambiguous facts to quote.
What it can’t do
Structured data doesn’t guarantee a rich result or a ranking. Google decides when to show rich results and has narrowed some over time: FAQ rich results, for example, are now shown mainly for well-known government and health websites. The markup must also match what is visible on the page; marking up content visitors can’t see breaks Google’s guidelines.
The types most businesses need
A typical small-business site needs a handful of types:
- Organization or LocalBusiness, with a specific type such as Electrician or Dentist
- Service and Offer, for what you sell and your prices
- BreadcrumbList, for your page structure
- Article, for guides and news, with the author
- FAQPage, for question-and-answer content, which still describes your answers clearly to machines
- Product, for shops
How to check yours
Paste a page address into Google’s Rich Results Test, or into the Schema Markup Validator at validator.schema.org. Our free website scan also checks whether your pages include structured data.