Being a Shopify entrepreneur, I have realized that SEO structured data has a great potential for improving organic traffic. The solutions and technologies I have tried have helped increase the store’s performance on the search engines in today’s digital competition.
From my dealings, I can say that structured data markup is not only a major factor in getting better search engine results but is also the main source of earning rich snippets, which in turn increases the click- through rate.
I have reached a point where I can say that structured data markup is imperative to SEO strategy in modern days. With the consistent changes Google makes non-stop, I always make sure to keep up with the new SEO methods, which are necessary for a Shopify store’s success.
In this article, I will present my thoughts on the way structured data functions in the SEO process, how it is used, and the numerous benefits it offers to the owners of Shopify stores like me.
SEO structured data, what is it?
The research and my practice can describe SEO Structured Data as a common language that structured data is displayed in which makes search engines understand your content better than before.
The way we implement structured data markup is by giving more information about our content to the search engines. Consequently, and as a result, they can display our site in a more interesting way, like rich snippets.
The fact that the search engines use algorithms to scan and make sense of the website content was the most significant lesson I got. Although they can recognize normal HTML,
I believe structured data helps them to get the hang of the things like product prices, availability, reviews, and other vital information about our products. So, it is not in doubt that the clearest website structure let Google think that we truly deserve the place we have on the search engine.
How Is The Organization of Data Influenced by Structured Data?
My studies involving structured data have proven to me that the format plays key role as far as search engine visibility is concerned. Such format provides a more detailed description of our site’s content to search engines then they can serve in the search results easily. The gains I see are:
Enhanced visibility: One of the observations that I have made is that e-commerce pages with structured data are more likely to be promoted in rich snippets, for instance reviews, product features, and pricing information. These are visually appealing, easy to pick out results on SERPs.
Better engagement rates (CTR): Increased organic search traffic is the number one advantage of rich snippets for me, and I have also seen how many more people participation comes with the expanded visibility they bring.
Lower Exit Rates: My experience so far has been that when users have more clarity about what is on the page before clicking them, they are more likely to stay on that page and engage with the content.
Voice search optimization: I have noticed that structured data has performed well in voice search times as it made the results offered by search engines more accurate.
How to Add a Structured Data to a Shopify Store?
My experience with implementing SEO Structured Data on my Shopify store illustrated to me that it is a relatively easy task if done properly. However, Shopify has no built-in rich snippets, which I have found out that it could be added to a store with a series of steps.
1. Use a Shopify Structured Data App
One thing that I found to be the easiest way to add structured data markup to any Shopify store was taking the help of an app which is exclusively designed for this purpose.
A good number of these applications generated structured data now provide vendors an option of automatically applying structured data to their store’s code.
Modules of the app that I can mention are the Smart SEO, JSON-LD for SEO, and the Schema Plus for SEO. These apps are responsible for the automatic generation of the structured data markup for the products, blog posts, and collections.
This is done to ensure that the content is properly displayed for Google search engine to correctly index and understand it.
Although this software puts in significant effort, setting a suitable version according to my requirements and checking if it is well-matched with Google’s current SEO guidelines is the least I have to do.
2. Manually Adding JSON-LD Markup
If you are willing to make changes in your Shopify theme’s code, then a better alternative that I found was the manual application of structured data. I usually go with JSON-LD which I perceive to be a more human-friendly method to apply structured data.
Here is how I injected the JSON-LD schema code into the Shopify Store:
Log in to your Shopify admin portal. Go to Online Store > Themes section and click Edit Code.
It would be necessary to navigate to the relevant liquid file of the page being modified, specifically the product page or blog post page, etc.
Enter the appropriate JSON-LD schema code.
3. Testing the Structured Data
One can never understate the significance of structured data. As per my own experience, tests always come in handy if structured data is applied. I make use of tools available for free by Google and that gives me the idea of whether my structured data markup is implemented properly or not. Among them are:
Rich Results Test: This instrument demonstrates you the way your page is displayed in Google’s rich results and it spotlights any errors in your markup.
Search Console: I resort to Google Search Console as the main platform for tracking the progress of my site in terms of structured data. It notifies you if your markup has been noticed and if any glitches or errors need to be taken care of.
What Structured Data Types to Add to Shopify?
Through my work with Shopify websites, the structured data types that I have mostly encountered have been all flexible to add and thus depended on the businesses in question. The following are types that I find the most suitable for application:
Product Structured Data
For all e-commerce stores, product schema, in my opinion, is a must. This markup traffic price, inventory status, and reviews to be demonstrated in the search engine results.
I have also noticed that this would not only increase the chances of getting the items highlighted in rich snippets but also produce more accurate and eye-catching listings that would easily appeal to the potential clients.
Review and Rating Schema
In this connection, I note that the inclusion of reviews and ratings is among the things that turn any store into a level above the others.
The review schema is the tool that adds stars next to the product in the search results, which I have realized is a good way of enabling the user to know exactly about the product and, in this way, helps I to build more confidence and trust.
Breadcrumb Schema
When it comes to my practice, it is a fact that the breadcrumb structured data is a helpful tool to search engines to get the knowledge of the website’s navigation hierarchy.
The breadcrumbs materialize on the SERPs and offer the users a clearer idea of the site’s structure, enabling better navigation and improved user experience.
FAQ and How-to Markup
There should be only one rule: If a Shopify store has FAQ areas or any kind of descriptive how-to content, then adding FAQ and How-to schema is a good idea. I believe that these special results are very useful because they appear directly in search results and provide users with all answers quickly without requiring a click through to the website.
The Advantages of Structured Data on Shopify Stores
My structured data work has illuminated the fact that Shopify store proprietors can lean on several key benefits:
Enriched Snippets: The utilization of structured data has been instrumental in the pictures of product listings to be inserted including the pricing and also having the ratings in the results of the engine. As a result, these rich snippets, in a nice way, push up the attractiveness of the listing so, people become more prone to clicking on them.
High Click-Through Rates: More often than not, structured data makes a difference in visibility and so a larger part of the audience is attracted. I gained such a high-volume ranking that I re-currently experience the cases of the stressed out traffic machines.
Improved Search Engine Visibility: My opinion is that Google prefers websites that support a good user experience. The application of structured data extends the search engines’ knowledge hereby the rank and visibility raise.
Great User Experience: I have seen structured data to be a source of immediate information to customers since it presents answers directly in the search results. This makes their browsing experience better besides they get help in making a better choice.
Conclusion
Throughout the time of my life as a Shopify merchant, I have come to the realization that SEO structured data is paramount for the growth of this type of businesses.
By providing the search engines with more in-depth information about our products and content, we not only increase our chances of being featured in rich snippets but also we will exert ourselves to make the store visible and by that, we will guarantee of more organic traffic.
Although the structured data insertion procedure might scare you off for the first time, you will see by yourselves that it is worthy.