SEO-Guidelines-Smartcrawl/smartcrawl/schema-markup.md

Schema / Structured Data

SmartCrawl provides both pre-built schema types and a custom schema builder. Schema markup generates rich results in search (star ratings, FAQ dropdowns, event dates, breadcrumbs, etc.) that significantly increase SERP visibility and click-through rates.

Pre-Built Schema Types

SmartCrawl includes the following ready-to-use types:

Schema Type	Rich Result	Best For
Article	Article metadata	Blog posts, news articles
Web Page	Page metadata	Static pages
FAQ	Expandable Q&A in SERPs	FAQ pages, service pages with Q&A sections
HowTo	Step-by-step instructions in SERPs	Tutorial content, guides
Product	Price, availability, rating	WooCommerce products
Local Business	Knowledge panel, maps	Business homepages, location pages
Recipe	Rich recipe card	Food/recipe content
Job Posting	Job listing in Google Jobs	Career/hiring pages
Movie	Movie info panel	Entertainment/review sites
Course	Course listing	Educational offerings
Book	Book info panel	Book reviews, author sites
Software Application	App info	Software product pages
Event	Date, time, location in SERPs	Event listing pages
Rating / Review	Star ratings	Review pages (use only with genuine reviews)
Video	Video thumbnail in SERPs	Pages with embedded video
Person	Person knowledge panel	About pages, team pages
Organization	Org knowledge panel	Company about pages

Custom Schema Type Builder

SmartCrawl includes a free custom schema builder for creating schema types not in the pre-built list. Features:

• Define unlimited custom schema types
• Three property structures: Simple, Nested, or Collection
• Associate custom schemas with specific posts, pages, or taxonomies
• Full JSON-LD output

Priority Schema Types to Implement

Tier 1 — Every site should have these

1. Organization — Set globally in SmartCrawl's Schema settings

   • Business name, logo URL, contact info
   • Social media profile URLs (sameAs)
   • Founding date, description

2. LocalBusiness (for businesses with a physical location or service area)

   • 60+ subtypes available (e.g., MotorcycleDealer, EducationalOrganization, ProfessionalService)
   • Full NAP: name, street address, city, state, ZIP, country
   • Telephone, email
   • Opening hours specification
   • Geo coordinates (latitude, longitude)
   • Area served
   • Price range

3. BreadcrumbList — Automatic when Breadcrumbs module is enabled

Tier 2 — Add where applicable

4. FAQ — Any page with Q&A content

   • Can generate expandable FAQ directly in search results
   • Each question/answer pair is a separate Question entity
   • High-visibility rich result

5. Event — For event-based businesses

   • Start date, end date, location
   • Offers (price, availability, URL)
   • Performer/organizer
   • Shows date/time/location directly in SERPs

6. Course — For educational offerings

   • Course name, description, provider
   • Duration, schedule
   • Price, enrollment URL

7. Article / BlogPosting — For blog content (usually default)

Tier 3 — Situational

8. Product — WooCommerce (auto-handled)
9. Video — Pages with embedded video content
10. HowTo — Instructional/tutorial content
11. Person — Individual portfolio/about pages

LocalBusiness Schema Setup

This is the most important schema for local businesses. Set it up in SmartCrawl > Schema > Types.

Required Properties

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "LocalBusiness",
  "name": "Alaska Safe Riders",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "123 Main St",
    "addressLocality": "Anchorage",
    "addressRegion": "AK",
    "postalCode": "99501",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "telephone": "+1-907-555-0123",
  "url": "https://alaskasaferiders.org"
}

Recommended Additional Properties

{
  "openingHoursSpecification": [
    {
      "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
      "dayOfWeek": ["Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday"],
      "opens": "09:00",
      "closes": "17:00"
    }
  ],
  "geo": {
    "@type": "GeoCoordinates",
    "latitude": 61.2181,
    "longitude": -149.9003
  },
  "areaServed": {
    "@type": "State",
    "name": "Alaska"
  },
  "priceRange": "$$",
  "image": "https://example.com/logo.png",
  "sameAs": [
    "https://www.facebook.com/yourbusiness",
    "https://www.instagram.com/yourbusiness"
  ]
}

LocalBusiness Subtypes

SmartCrawl supports 60+ subtypes. Choose the most specific one that applies:

Category	Examples
Automotive	AutoDealer, AutoRepair, MotorcycleDealer, MotorcycleRepair
Education	EducationalOrganization, School, DrivingSchool
Professional	ProfessionalService, Consultant, LegalService
Health	MedicalBusiness, Dentist, Physician
Food	Restaurant, Bakery, BarOrPub, CafeOrCoffeeShop
Entertainment	EntertainmentBusiness, MovieTheater, NightClub
Home	HomeAndConstructionBusiness, Electrician, Plumber
Store	Store, ClothingStore, HardwareStore, SportingGoodsStore

WooCommerce Product Schema

When enabled, SmartCrawl:

• Replaces WooCommerce's default schema (avoids duplicates)
• Auto-fetches product reviews and aggregate ratings
• Supports both simple and variable products
• Includes MPN, SKU, priceValidUntil
• Adds offers with price, currency, availability

Enable via: SmartCrawl > Schema > WooCommerce Product Open Graph

Person Schema

As of v3.15.0, Person Schema can be limited to specific pages when Organization Schema is enabled globally. Useful for:

• Team member pages
• Author bio pages
• Individual portfolio sites (e.g., Chelsea Paige Mann)

Validation

Always validate schema after deployment:

1. Google Rich Results Test — checks if your schema qualifies for rich results
2. Schema.org Validator — validates JSON-LD syntax
3. Google Search Console > Enhancements — monitors schema errors across your site over time

Common Schema Mistakes

Mistake	Fix
Duplicate schema from multiple plugins	Deactivate other SEO plugins' schema output
Using Review schema without genuine reviews	Only add if you have real, verifiable reviews
Missing required properties	Check Google's structured data documentation for requirements per type
Wrong LocalBusiness subtype	Use the most specific applicable type
Schema on pages it doesn't apply to	Only add schema types relevant to the page content