Estate agents that advertise property to rent or for sale can appear for search terms such as “property to rent in Hove” in Google. Other small businesses can also do the same for different search terms that are relevant such as “electricians in Brighton”.
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One of the ways of trying to improve local visibility in Google Search is by implementing structured data on your website despite it not being a direct ranking factor.
This article provides an overview of structured data and how it can be used to help local search visibility.
What Is Structured Data?
Structured data is a type of code that helps search engines better understand the content on a webpage. When implemented correctly, it helps Google to display rich results that can include additional information such as business hours, location, reviews, and services.
For local businesses, using structured data means your website has a better chance of appearing in the local pack, Google Maps results, and relevant organic listings.
Structured Data for Local SEO
Google uses structured data to deliver more relevant results for location-based searches. If someone types “property to rent in Hove”, Google displays a list of properties and agents or businesses operating in that area.
Marking up your business location, contact details, and service areas with structured data on your website, helps signal to Google exactly where you’re based and what you offer.
Using the LocalBusiness Schema
Google recommends using the LocalBusiness schema, which is part of the broader Schema.org vocabulary. This schema allows you to define key details about your business such as:
- Business name
- Address (with full postal address)
- Opening hours
- Phone number
- Website URL
- Geo-coordinates
- Area served
- Logo
- Social profiles
This information is added to websites using JSON-LD. This is the suggested format by Google. Here’s an example for a letting agency based in Hove:
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "RealEstateAgent",
"name": "Hove Property Rentals",
"image": "https://example.com/logo.png",
"@id": "https://example.com",
"url": "https://example.com",
"telephone": "+44 1273 123456",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "10 Western Road",
"addressLocality": "Hove",
"addressRegion": "East Sussex",
"postalCode": "BN3 1AE",
"addressCountry": "GB"
},
"geo": {
"@type": "GeoCoordinates",
"latitude": 50.8278,
"longitude": -0.1707
},
"openingHoursSpecification": [
{
"@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
"dayOfWeek": [
"Monday",
"Tuesday",
"Wednesday",
"Thursday",
"Friday"
],
"opens": "09:00",
"closes": "17:30"
}
],
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/hovepropertyrentals",
"https://www.instagram.com/hovepropertyrentals"
]
}
</script>How to Use LocalBusiness Schema
- Place the JSON-LD in the
<head>of the HTML or right before the closing</body>tag. - Keep the information consistent with what’s shown on Google Business Profile.
- Use the Rich Results Test to validate your structured data: https://search.google.com/test/rich-results
- Submit the page in Search Console after implementation.
Using structured data on your website can help you appear for relevant local keyworda that people search in Google.
It also helps generate rich results in Google which is suppose to help grow click-through-rates and thus traffic to your website from search terms that are used by targeted audiences.
