Schema Markup

How does schema markup actually work?

Schema markup uses a shared vocabulary from Schema.org, a standard backed by Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Yandex. You wrap facts about your page in named types, such as Organization, Product, FAQPage or Review. A search engine reads these labels and no longer has to guess what your content means.

The recommended format is JSON-LD, a small script that sits in your page separately from the visible HTML. That separation makes it simple to add, maintain and update without touching your design. Older formats such as Microdata and RDFa embed labels directly into your markup and are harder to manage at scale.

What are the most common schema types?

Most Australian businesses only need a handful of types to cover the pages that matter. The highest-value ones are usually:

• Organization or LocalBusiness confirms your name, address, phone and service area, anchoring your brand as a real entity.
• Product and Review can surface price and star ratings directly in search results.
• FAQPage and HowTo mark up questions and steps that AI engines love to quote.
• BreadcrumbList and Article clarify site structure and content authorship.

A concrete example

Say a Parramatta cafe wants its opening hours and rating to appear in search. The page already shows this to humans. Schema markup repeats it in a format machines trust, like this simplified JSON-LD:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "CafeOrCoffeeShop",
  "name": "Your Cafe",
  "address": "Parramatta NSW",
  "openingHours": "Mo-Fr 07:00-15:00",
  "aggregateRating": {
    "@type": "AggregateRating",
    "ratingValue": "4.8",
    "reviewCount": "212"
  }
}

With that in place, Google can show a star rating and hours in the listing, and an AI engine can confidently state the cafe is open and well reviewed when a user asks. The facts stay accurate because they are written once and read everywhere.