What does the code actually say?
It restates what the page already says, in a form a machine can read. Google Search Central's "Introduction to structured data markup in Google Search" recommends a format called JSON-LD, a block of text in the page's code that visitors never see. One line of it, for a guesthouse, might read: {"@type": "LodgingBusiness", "checkinTime": "14:00", "petsAllowed": true}.
This glossary does the same thing. Each entry carries a DefinedTerm, which tells search engines the term and its one-sentence definition, and an FAQPage block holding the questions at the end. Nobody reading the page sees either.
The rule that matters most: the markup must match what is visible on the page. Google's structured data guidelines say not to mark up content visitors cannot see, and breaking them can cost a site its rich results.
What can structured data get you in Google today?
Less than it used to, and still something. Google has narrowed which rich results it shows, and each type has its own rules:
| Markup type | What Google may show | For a small guesthouse |
|---|---|---|
| Event | The event in Google's event listings, with date and place | Worth it for dinners, workshops and festivals |
| Local business | Helps Google confirm hours, address and contact details | Useful, though your Business Profile carries more weight |
| Review snippets | Stars under a result | Not for reviews of your own business on your own site, under Google's rules |
| FAQ | Questions under a result | Limited to government and health sites since August 2023 |
| Breadcrumb | The page's place in the site, instead of a long address | A small tidy-up, often added by the website builder |
What did event markup do for a Katoomba guesthouse's winter dinners? (example figures)
A guesthouse in Katoomba with eight rooms runs Yulefest dinners through June and July, a Blue Mountains tradition of Christmas in winter, at $110 a head. Each dinner date had a page on the website, but the pages were plain text. The owner added Event markup to each one, with the date, start time, price and address.
Over the season, Search Console's Performance report, filtered by search appearance, showed the dinner pages appearing about 3,100 times in Google's event listings, with 140 clicks. The booking system traced 26 dinner bookings to those visits, about $2,860, most of them from people who had not stayed at the guesthouse before. Several of them booked a room for the night as well.
How do you add it and check it?
Most website builders add some markup on their own, and plug-ins such as Yoast or Rank Math on WordPress add more, through settings rather than code. For anything custom, Google's Rich Results Test shows which rich results a page is eligible for and flags errors, and Search Console lists every page with markup Google has found, with any problems.
Where does structured data meet CoraVision?
CoraVision meets structured data through the visits and bookings it brings, because it reads Google Analytics 4 visits by channel, key events and revenue every night once connected. A season of event pages can then be judged by bookings, not impressions. Checking the markup itself happens with the Rich Results Test open in a session you start with Cora, and any change to your website is yours.
Questions
Will schema markup lift my rankings?
Google does not describe structured data as a ranking boost. It helps Google understand the page and can make it eligible for richer listings, which can earn more clicks. Google also says eligibility is no guarantee that a rich result will appear.
Why did my FAQ dropdowns disappear from Google?
In August 2023, Google limited FAQ rich results to well-known, authoritative government and health websites, so most business sites stopped getting them. The markup does no harm if it stays, and other search tools may still read it.