Aqueous Digital

A guide to structured data and why it matters for AI search

A standardised way of providing information about a web page, structured data is quickly becoming one of the most important elements of effective SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) – especially in an era of AI search.

Pages with organised and well-deployed structured data help search engines like Google, and AI technology, to understand the context and relevance of published content.

As a result, it’s more likely to be presented in a more appealing way on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) – whether that’s in the form of rich results, featured snippets, or within AI Overviews.

That’s why for businesses, properly utilising structured data in SEO means greater visibility, higher click-through rates, and improved chances of standing out.

What is structured data?

Structured data is simply information that’s organised in a particular way.

This data is formatted to make it both easily readable and understandable by humans and machines.

This is typically achieved using a well-defined schema or data model, which provides a set structure for the data.

Akin to a spreadsheet that has specific headings for each column, structured data is commonly presented in tables, rows, and columns, with each field containing a specific type of data relating to its category and value.

This format makes it possible for search engine algorithms to pick up and understand the data posted by a website.

What is an example of structured data?

One of the main structured data examples is names and contact details because these specific pieces of information can be consistently identified and organised across different web pages.

For example, the name of a person or organisation, or their contact details, can be tagged in a way to assist search engines with understanding exactly what that data represents.

By using structured data markup, a business can tag their name, address, phone number, and other relevant information, making it easier for any search engines to find and display this information in a useful and consistent manner.

What is structured data markup in SEO?

In SEO, structured data markup can be added to web pages to help search engines understand the content more clearly.

Using standardised formats, such as JSON-LD, Microdata, and RDFa, it labels different important elements for products, reviews, events, recipes, and FAQs.

A common structured data example in SEO is on a recipe page.

The markup identifies key elements of the recipe including the ingredients, cooking time, and calorie count for the dish, giving search engines extra context that allows them to display this information directly in SERPs as a rich result.

Google recognises three main formats of structured data markup for SEO purposes, including:

JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data)

As Google’s preferred format, this type of structured data is easy to implement since it’s added as a script in the <head> of a webpage and ensures the code is separate from visible content.

Microdata

Microdata is embedded directly into the HTML of a page and requires adding attributes to the existing HTML elements, which can make code more complex.

RDFa (Resource Description Framework in Attributes)

RDFa is like Microdata, but more flexible. It uses HTML5 attributes to describe elements and link data and is often used in more complex data publishing scenarios.

How does Google use structured data?

While it may seem insignificant or unimportant to implement structured data, it holds a high value – especially when it comes to how search engines like Google understand and display content.

This is because structured data is a type of metadata that communicates the meaning of a page’s content in a format that search engines can easily interpret.

Unlike the visible text and images on a page, structured data works behind the scenes, in a similar way to HyperText Markup Language (HTML) tags, providing Google with additional context about what each element represents.

For example, while Google can often identify an image on its own, structured data can specify that the image is of a particular product, including details like price, availability, or review ratings.

This removes ambiguity, prevents search engines from having to rely on algorithms to collect the information, and helps them to display content in richer, more useful, and engaging ways like rich snippets or AI Overviews.

Google Ads feature image 3 strikes article

When businesses are grappling with a whole host of competitors, using structured data can give them an edge and help cut costs for special services that could achieve the same result.

This is because rich snippets are known to significantly improve the click-rate to these websites.

What are the SEO benefits of structured data?

While structured data itself isn’t a direct ranking factor, it can improve your website’s visibility in search results and often increases click-through rates.

It can help by:

Supporting search engine understanding

Schema markup provides a standardised vocabulary that makes structured data easier for search engines to interpret. By clarifying what each element on your page represents, search engines can better match your content to user search intent.

Structured data boosts the chances of your content appearing as rich results in the SERPs, displaying additional information and helping your site stand out from competitors. Rather than relying solely on meta descriptions, search engines can extract this information directly from your page’s markup.

Structured data enhances your brand’s trustworthiness by showcasing positive customer feedback in SERPs and increasing the visibility of How-to and FAQ snippets, demonstrating expertise and helping users find answers quickly.

Structured data makes it easier for search engines to show key product details such as pricing, availability, discounts, and delivery information. This helps your products to appear more appealing compared to competitors’ alternatives.

FAQ and How-To schema allow your business to directly answer users’ questions in search results, improving the overall customer experience and positioning your business as a reliable source of information.

Pages with structured data are more likely to appear in rich results, which naturally leads to higher engagement through clicks, conversions, and ultimately improved ROI.

Structured data helps search engines and AI systems interpret your content accurately. It ensures your content can be understood by machine learning tools and cited in Google’s AI summaries or other generative AI responses, such as ChatGPT.

Structured data can enhance job listings by displaying important details like company logos, ratings, and reviews. Well-marked job postings improve visibility and make your company more attractive to potential candidates.

The importance of structured data for AI search optimisation

AI has inarguably transformed the SEO landscape.

Now, digital marketers are responding by optimising websites not just for traditional search engines, but for AI-driven search experiences.

One of the most effective tools in this adaptation is structured data.

As explained above, structured data supports Google and other AI systems with understanding both the context and relevance of your content.

According to the results of Search Engine Land’s head-to-head schema experiment, pages with well-implemented schema are more likely to not only achieve the best organic rankings, but also appear in Google’s AI Overviews.

And why is it important to appear in AI Overviews? With some sources suggesting 18% of global searches now display these AI-generated summaries, AI Overviews are no longer a fringe feature.

As these summaries sit at the very top of the SERPs, users no longer need to scroll or click through to find a clear and concise answer to their question.

The result? Many top-ranking businesses are seeing a significant drop in organic traffic to their website.

If your brand is referenced or cited directly in AI-generated answers, you’ll achieve sought-after visibility in a world where traditional click-through opportunities are shrinking.

How do you verify structured data?

Verifying structured data entails checking its compliance with the defined schema, guaranteeing consistency and completeness, verifying uniqueness of specific fields and confirming its accuracy and relevance.

This process involves validating data types, formats, grappling with missing values, checking for duplicate values in unique fields and cross-referencing with reliable sources.

The specific methods can vary based on the data type and context, and could involve SQL queries for relational databases or data validation libraries for programming languages like Python or R.

It’s a good idea to compare the performance of your pages that don’t have structured data to those which do to see what types of results you are getting.

The main way to initiate this process is to carry out a run prior to implementing structured data and then test your web page after it is enforced.

Although this can be complicated as page views can vary on a single page for different reasons, it’s still worth carrying out.

Identify suitable pages
  • Review your site for pages without structured data – prioritise those with a backlog of data in Google Search Console
  • Select evergreen pages (not seasonal or time-sensitive) that consistently attract readers, so you can generate meaningful, long-term performance insights
  • Add the appropriate schema markup to your selected pages.
  • Use formats like FAQ, Product, HowTo, or Local Business depending on the type of content.
  • Test your structured data using Google’s Rich Results Test or Schema Markup Validator.
  • Confirm that your markup is error-free and properly implemented.
  • Review Search Console performance reports for these pages.
  • Filter results by URL to measure impressions, clicks, and rich result visibility.
  • Use these insights to refine your structured data strategy and roll it out across more pages.

What tool can you use to test for errors in structured data?

There are many tools to check for mistakes in structured data.

However, it’s important to select a tool that matches the specific format of your structured data because this will give you the best results.

For example, JSONLint is a well-known tool used to check and reformat JSON – a format often used to exchange data.

If you have XML documents, you can use an XML Validator. This tool makes sure your XML documents follow an XSD schema. If you’re using CSV files, CSVLint is a useful tool.

It checks if your file can be read.

For SQL, SQLFiddle is a good platform. It lets you test and share SQL queries. Similarly, if you have YAML files, you can use YAML Lint to check them.

Google’s Schema Markup Testing Tool is another complete tool for checking schema markup or other types of structured data.

Discover why structured data is important with Aqueous Digital

Whether you’re looking for another example of structured data or want to explore how an SEO expert can advise you on a specific structured data testing tool?

Speak to the SEO professionals at Aqueous Digital today.

As a family-run digital marketing agency, we have years of experience in the field of SEO, helping businesses to achieve the best results possible and giving you confidence that your digital marketing efforts are in safe hands.

To learn more about the services we offer or to have a chat with one of our hard-working members, why not schedule your free, no-obligation consultation today?

If you want to discuss your business requirements or clarify what to expect from our SEO services and packages, call us on 0800 285 1424 or send your enquiry via email to hello@aqueous-digital.co.uk.

More Articles

Aqueous Digital
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. Please review our full Aqueous Digital Cookie Policy for more details.