Mastering Local SEO Schema: A Complete Guide to Structured Data and Rich Results

These days, businesses in all industries must have a strong presence online in order to survive. Even businesses targeting customers in the local area must be easy to find online as consumers will often turn to a search engine like Google to find local businesses. So, how can you create a strong online presence to attract customers in the area? One of the most effective strategies to implement is Local SEO schema markup. This can seem daunting at first, so this post will tell you all you need to know to get started to boost your visibility online and attract customers to your business. Let’s get started.

What is Local SEO Schema Markup?

So, what exactly is local SEO schema markup, and how does it affect my online visibility? Essentially, this is a structured data markup code that tells search engines like Google what your website is about. Structured data uses the standardised schema vocabulary, which makes it easy for search engines to understand your website - this can help to improve your ranking in local searches and makes it easier for your target customer to find you.

The Importance of Local SEO Schema Markup

Search Engine Journal explains why structured data matters:

“Structured data acts as a translator, turning your website’s content into a format that search engines can easily understand and classify.

This allows Google, large language models (LLMs), and other engines to identify key information such as your business hours, location, services, and customer ratings.

The better search engines understand your site, the more likely they are to display relevant information to users.”

Essentially, this means that Local SEO schema markup will enhance your visibility in local searches. This can lead to an increase in organic traffic as well as visitors to your business. Additionally, pages with structured data are eligible for rich results (rich snippets), which go beyond the standard blue link and provide extra info like carousels, images, and other non-textural elements. Rich results lead to a higher click-through-rate (CTR), which will always be beneficial for any business as it leads to more traffic and interest in your business.

How To Implement Structured Data for Local Pages

Choose the Appropriate schema.org Category

First, you simply need to choose the appropriate scheme.org category, which is essentially the specify category that your business falls under. There are various categories to choose from, such as Restaurant, HardwareStore, Medical/Clinic, etc. If there is no category that fits your business, you can choose the general schema.org/LocalBusiness.

Implement Required Schema Properties

Next, you will need to include the following required schema properties for validation and to avoid disqualification from rich results. The required properties include:

• url: The URL of the landing page.

• name: Name of the business.

• openingHours: Business operating hours.

• telephone: Business contact number.

• image: A relevant image (e.g., storefront).

• logo: A link to your business logo.

• address: Business address visible on the landing page.

• geo: Geographical coordinates of your business.

• areaServed: The service area, preferably specified as a ZIP code.

• mainContentOfPage: The primary content of your landing page.

Add Highly Recommended Schema Properties

There are then Schema properties that are not required but highly recommended to enhance online visibility. These include:

• review: A review of your business (only if the local landing page has visible reviews).

• aggregateRating: The overall rating based on multiple reviews. Ensure compliance with Google’s Review Rich Results guidelines.

• FAQPage: Mark up FAQ sections with this schema to appear as FAQ rich results.

• alternateName: Alternative names for your business, e.g., “Acme Inc.” vs. “Acme Stores.”

• sameAs: Links to third-party profiles like Facebook, YouTube, or Wikipedia.

• hasMap: A link to your business’s location on Google Maps.

• breadcrumb: Structured navigation schema to improve rich results in SERPs.

• department: Internal departments or services within your business.

• priceRange: A general indicator of your pricing, such as “$$$.”

Validate Your Schema Markup

It is then a matter of validating your schema markup to ensure that it qualifies for rich results. Fortunately, there are a few handy tools available that make it quick and easy to test your schema markup. Google provides a Rich Results Testing Tool, which previews which rich results can be created by your structured data.

Measure Performance

As with all digital marketing strategies, you should always measure the performance to assess the effectiveness of your schema implementation and identify areas where improvements could be made. The best way to do this is with the use of third-party tools like Semrush’s “SERP feature” reports that show the aggregate rich results from your website. Keep in mind that you should be performing regular updates on your structured data as your business changes and grows, so this should be viewed as an ongoing process.

Why Hire A Digital Marketing Agency?

Schema markup can be a powerful tool when it comes to enhancing your online visibility, particularly for businesses looking to attract local customers. It can also be a complex, time-consuming, and ongoing task. Therefore, it is smart to hire the services of an experienced digital marketing agency specialising in SEO. They will be able to enhance your local SEO to boost traffic to your website and attract local customers. The internet is a fiercely competitive marketplace, so it is always worthwhile using the services of an experienced agency that will help you leapfrog the competition and make it easier for your customers to find you online.

Local SEO schema markup is one of the most effective ways for a business to attract local customers and create a strong presence online. Consumers will often turn to local searches when looking for businesses in the area, so it is vital that you are easy to find online. This can be challenging in a competitive online landscape, so you want to make use of strategies like local SEO schema markup to boost your visibility online. This will provide search engines with structured data about your website, which will improve your chances of appearing in rich results and increasing traffic to your website.