What is structured data (schema.org and JSON-LD)?

Why it matters

Search engines are good at reading text but they still guess. Structured data removes the guesswork. It can make a page eligible for rich results such as review stars or FAQ-style features, and it gives AI assistants clean facts to extract about a business: name, address, opening hours, services and ratings.

The types most useful to local businesses

• LocalBusiness (and subtypes such as Dentist or LegalService): name, address, phone, opening hours, area served.
• Organization: logo, social profiles and contact details.
• FAQPage: questions and answers that appear visibly on the page.
• BreadcrumbList: the path to the page, which Google can show in results.
• Review and AggregateRating: only when the reviews are genuine and visible on the page, following Google’s guidelines.

JSON-LD in practice

JSON-LD sits in a script block in the page and does not alter what visitors see. Google recommends it over older formats because it is easier to maintain. The markup must match the visible content of the page: marking up information that users cannot see is against Google’s guidelines.

How to implement and check it

1. Choose the types that genuinely describe the page.
2. Add the JSON-LD with accurate, current values.
3. Test with Google’s Rich Results Test and the Schema Markup Validator.
4. Monitor warnings in Google Search Console and update when business details change.

How Starboost handles it

Structured data is part of our technical work on every site we manage, and an important part of making a business easy to cite for AI assistants. See our GEO agency page.