Schema Markup Explained

Schema Markup Explained

Structured data that tells search engines and AI systems what your content actually means — like a nutrition label for your website. Without it, AI systems have to guess. With it, you tell them.

Check Your Schema — Free

What Is Schema Markup?

Schema markup is a standardised vocabulary (defined at schema.org) that you add to your website's code. It doesn't change how your pages look to visitors — it adds an invisible layer of structured information that machines can read.

The most common format is JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data), which sits in a <script> tag in your page's HTML. Google, Bing and AI systems all support JSON-LD.

Schema Types Every Business Needs

Organization / LocalBusiness

Who You Are & Where You Are

The most fundamental schema type. Tells AI systems your business name, address, phone, website, logo and operating hours. Use LocalBusiness for physical locations.

Enables: "What is [your business]?" and "Where is [your business] located?"

Service

What You Offer & At What Price

Describes what your business offers — service names, descriptions, pricing and delivery areas. Critical for service-based businesses.

Enables: "What services does [your business] offer?" and "How much does [service] cost?"

Product

Physical & Digital Products

Name, description, price, availability and reviews for products. Enables rich product snippets in search results and accurate AI product recommendations.

Enables: Rich product cards and accurate pricing in AI answers.

FAQPage

Questions & Answers

Marks up frequently asked questions and their answers. One of the most impactful schema types for GEO because AI systems love Q&A content.

Enables: Answers appear in Google featured snippets and AI responses.

Article / BlogPosting

Editorial Content

Identifies content as articles or blog posts with headline, author, date and description. Essential for content marketing and AI attribution.

Enables: AI systems attribute information and reference your articles as sources.

BreadcrumbList

Site Navigation Context

Describes the navigation path to a page (e.g. Home → Services → Schema). Helps search engines and AI systems understand your site structure and hierarchy.

Enables: Enhanced search snippets and better site structure understanding.

Common Schema Mistakes

No Schema At All

The most common issue. Many websites have zero structured data — completely invisible to AI systems.

Only Organization

Adding company details but forgetting to mark up services, products and FAQ content.

Invalid JSON-LD

Syntax errors in the markup that prevent search engines from reading it entirely.

Mismatched Data

Schema data doesn't match visible page content — can result in penalties from search engines.

How to Check Your Schema

Free Tools

  • Interon's free audit — our AI Readiness Audit detects all schema types and identifies what's missing
  • Google's Rich Results Test — tests individual pages for valid schema markup
  • Schema.org Validator — validates your JSON-LD against the schema.org specification

Manual Check

View your page source (right-click → View Page Source) and search for application/ld+json to see your raw schema data.

If you find nothing, your website has no structured data — and AI systems are guessing about your business.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is schema markup?

Schema markup is a standardised vocabulary (defined at schema.org) that you add to your website's code in JSON-LD format. It provides an invisible layer of structured information that search engines and AI systems read to understand your business, services, products, and content.

Q: What schema types does my business need?

Most businesses need Organization or LocalBusiness schema (who you are), Service or Product schema (what you offer), FAQPage schema (common questions), BreadcrumbList (site navigation), and Article/BlogPosting for content pages. The specific types depend on your industry.

Q: How do I check if my website has schema markup?

Use Interon's free AI Readiness audit at interon-ai.com/audit — it detects all schema types and identifies what's missing. You can also view your page source and search for 'application/ld+json' to see raw schema data.

Q: What does schema implementation cost?

Interon offers Schema Implementation from R2,500, delivered in 3–5 business days. This includes adding the appropriate schema types to your key pages. Full AI Readiness Optimisation (including schema, SEO, and GEO improvements) starts from R7,500.

Q: Where is Interon based?

Interon is a South African AI Readiness consultancy based in Johannesburg, serving businesses across South Africa. Business hours are Monday to Friday, 8am–5pm SAST. Contact hello@interon.co.za or +27 83 326 9469.

Check Your Schema Markup

Interon's free audit detects all schema types on your website and tells you exactly what's missing and how it affects your AI Readiness score.

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Serving businesses across South Africa · Mon–Fri 8am–5pm SAST

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