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Schema, a language that is universally understood by the search engines. Schema Markup is complicated when you have to find out how to do it for thousands of pages in a way that scales and is cost effective. It tells the search engines what the site or the specific page is all about in layman terms.
Schema is something many people are aware of but you will be surprised by how many websites do not implement schema. Schema is a great way to utilize all available real estate the Organic Search results have to offer. Started in 2011, it is no news to many within the industry but is something that is often neglected by many SEOs and Webmasters.
Improving SEO Real Estate and Organic Click Through Rates is vital when working for clients; Schema is a great tool to have in your arsenal when working towards these KPIs for clients. With 27% of the internet being powered by WordPress knowing how to effectively use Schema on any WordPress site is key.
1. Schema is vital for SEO
Google themselves have stated that seeing an increase in the click-through rate of a certain page may result in that given page seeing a boost for a specific keyword. In addition to Schema helping to improve organic click-through rates, you are able to further optimise what is shown in the Organic Search results. Reviews, Stock, Price & Events are just some of the things that Schema communicates to Google.
2. Automating Schema for WordPress
Working for an SEO Agency, automation and ways to improve efficiency is key. WordPress and the range of plugins available allow you to easily and effectively automate the process of adding schema to pages. SEO is hard work so take a moment from your day and check out the below guide that will save you a lot of time!
3. What are the main types of Schema?
Before going ahead and adding Schema to a website it is important to take a step back and think about which types are relevant for the site you are working on. Is it really of any use to add stock schema to a site that sells no products? To help you get the creativity following some of the main types of Schema are below
4. Review Schema
Review schema is a great wait for your aggregated reviews to show up within the Organic SERPs - this allows searchers to quickly see how popular a product is and particularly on mobile makes your listing stand out significantly more than the other results.
5. Product Price Schema
The addition of price schema to a website is another great way to capitalise on the available SEO Real Estate. Adding this is a great way for users to get a snapshot of the product prior to clicking through to the site. It is important to note that if priced higher than competitors this could negatively impact your Organic CTR
Recommended: 5 Effective Ways to Secure Your WordPress Website From Cyber Attack
6. Job Section Schema
The implementation of Google’s job section providing a new enriched preview box in the Organic SERPs is a great way for businesses to attract new talent or if you are an apprenticeship provider find new applicants.
Interested in finding out a bit more on the different types of Schema? You can head over to the Google Search Console forum for Schema and also the SchemAPP site where all types of Schema are listed.
7. Plugins for WordPress
One of the many benefits to using WordPress is the vast amount of plugins that are available - Whilst Schema can be added without the need for plugins it is definitely a whole lot easier and more efficient to use a plugin.
8. A handy Schema Plugin, Schema Pro
Schema pro is one of the plugins that we have used internally here at Digital NRG - Schema Pro and other similar plugins make it very easy to add Schema to a WordPress website. Simply install the plugin, follow the optimisation steps and you are good to go.
The guys over at Schema pro have a great installation wizard with their plugin and some in-depth resources for those looking to get started with the Plugin
9. What about a Free Schema Plugin for WordPress?
In addition to the Schema Pro plugin, Brainstorm force also provide a free WordPress plugin called All In One Schema - This, essentially, has the same functionality as Schema pro but users are limited to certain settings. The main downfall to using the free version is that the automation aspect is not possible, you will have to manually add Schema on each page.
The table below is a great comparison between the two tools allowing you to see which will work for your needs.
A great thing to do with these plugins is to experiment and try different things.
10. The Structured Data Testing Tool is your new best friend!
Upon the successful addition of schema on you or your client's website, the next step is one of the most vital parts of installing Schema. Google has a very handy tool to check Schema and Structured Data MarkUp on websites - It provides actionable insights on any warnings or errors found with the Schema that is present on a site. It will also highlight where in the code the error lies allowing you to easily fix the problem.
An important thing to note is that Schema is still ok if warnings show up within the tool - It may be that you do not want to include certain parts within Schema such as the price but you still want product Schema. An error is something you will need to watch out for.
11. Custom Schema placement on WordPress
Aside from using plugins, there are other ways to add Schema to WordPress websites. Adding custom schema to dedicated pages is a great way to add Schema to a site. The best way to do this is by using a Schema generation tool to generate the code which you can then add to the text view of any WordPress page.
On the SchemAPP website there is a tool just for this called the Schema Generation Tool - This allows you to create dedicated and custom schema for a given schema type. Using this tool is simple and easy, follow the steps provided and your code will generate on the right hand side.
Once you have created the code on the right hand side of the tool, copy and paste this into the relevant WordPress page in the HTML view and run through the data testing tool. There you go, Schema will now be on the site and firing correctly.
The key takeaways
A lot has been covered in this article and I hope that you now have some new found knowledge on Schema, why it is important and how to use this on your WordPress website. Some key things to remember are:
- Make sure your site is making the most of WordPress and the ease at which Schema can be added
- Organic CTR is considered a ranking factor and Schema can help improve this through better Organic SERP Real Estate
- There are many types of Schema out there, only use what is relevant and applicable for you and the site you are working on.
- Plugins are your friend - Both Schema Pro and All in one Schema will make your experience using schema a lot more enjoyable.
- Constantly verify Schema when first added with the Google Data Testing Tool
Author: Jack Roebuck
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