What is schema markup and which schema types does your website need?
Structured data in plain English, plus the handful of types most sites actually use.
Schema markup is a block of code that states, in a format machines agree on, what a page is about: this is a business, this is its address, this is a service, this is the author, this is the question and this is the answer.
Your page already says those things in prose. Schema says them again in a structure that leaves no room for interpretation. That is why it matters more for AI answers than it ever did for blue links.
The types most sites actually need
- Organization: your business name, logo, social profiles, contact points. One per site, usually sitewide.
- LocalBusiness: address, hours, service area, phone. Essential if customers find you geographically.
- Service: what each service page sells, described as a thing rather than a paragraph.
- Article: headline, author, publish and update dates. This is where authorship gets attached, which feeds directly into EEAT.
- FAQPage: question and answer pairs stated explicitly. The most directly quotable type there is.
- Product: price, availability, reviews, for anything you sell.
- BreadcrumbList: where this page sits in the site, which helps a machine understand your structure.
Rules that keep it from backfiring
Use JSON-LD, not inline microdata. Only mark up what is visibly on the page, because marking up content a user cannot see is a guideline violation and can cost you rich results. Keep it accurate when the page changes. And do not add every type you can find: a page wearing six schema hats is less clear, not more.
Where it comes from
Some of it should be automatic. A well built template emits Organization, Article and Breadcrumb schema without anyone thinking about it, which is how we handle it in custom web development. The page specific types, FAQ and Service in particular, are editorial and belong with the content work. Our longer explainer on website schema for SEO and AEO covers the implementation detail.
Related: How do SEO, AEO, and GEO work together?, Is SEO built into your custom web development?, How does LevelUp Digital approach content for AEO?, SEO services