A quick reminder on what schema is and why we need it
Schema is a piece of structured data or code (i.e. something an algorithm can understand) that describes the content of a page, website, or piece of content. Schema is able to help Google understand the type of content by giving the schema what is called a schema type. Schemas have many different types such as NewsArticle, Organization, Audio, Video, etc. and they all serve the same purpose of making your content easier for search engines to read
Implementing multiple schema types
Implementing a single schema type (like NewsArticle) is relatively simple. However, adding more than one schema type requires some additional work to make both types readable by Google. In order to have multiple schema types, a graph schema type is required. A graph is just an array of schemas, with each item in the array being a type of schema.
How a schema graph works
The below is an example of how to practically apply graph schema to your website. This particular example has two types: NewsArticle and Organization each with its own unique properties.
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@graph": [
{
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"mainEntityOfPage": {
"@type": "WebPage",
"@id": "https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/anc-offers-strong-endorsement-of-eskoms-just-energy-transaction-following-lekgotla-2021-09-07"
},
"headline": " ANC offers strong endorsement of Eskom’s just energy transaction following lekgotla",
"image": [
"https://cisp.cachefly.net/assets/articles/images/resized/0000960872_resized_cyrilramaphosa206072020.jpg"
],
"datePublished": "2021-09-07T10:05:00+02:00",
"dateModified": "2021-09-07T16:37:14+02:00",
"author": {
"@type": "Person",
"name": "Terence Creamer"
},
"publisher": {
"@type": "Organization",
"name": "Engineering News",
"logo": {
"@type": "ImageObject",
"url": "https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/template/logos/amp_logo_en.png"
}
}
},
{
"@type": "Organization",
"name": "Engineering News",
"url": "https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/",
"logo": "https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/template/logos/amp_logo_en.png",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"addressCountry": "XXX",
"addressLocality": "XXX",
"addressRegion": "XX",
"postalCode": "XXX",
"streetAddress": "XXX"
},
"founder": "XXX",
"email": "mailto:XXX",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/XX/",
"https://twitter.com/Forbes",
"https://www.youtube.com/user/forbes",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/XXX"
]
}
]
}
What’s next?
That’s it for this article. Adding multiple schemas to your content isn’t difficult but testing is critical to ensure your content is being indexed correctly. Luckily Google makes this incredibly easy with their Rich Results Test – a free tool that will validate your schema and provide guidance on how to fix issues.
RankMath Pro
We’re a proud affiliate of the leader in SEO automation for WordPress.
If you are using WordPress then we also highly recommend relying on plugins like RankMath Pro. RankMath pro is an excellent tool for automating schemas, as well as adding multiple schema types to your WordPress website with just a few clicks. You can also set custom fields, utilize hundreds of schema types and most importantly do all of this without having to write a line of code.
Got more questions? Here are some of our clients’ most asked questions
Is there a limit to how many schema I can add?
No, you can add as many schemas as you want! With that said, it’s critical that you don’t overdo it as you want Google to index your content correctly. Using schema types that aren’t relevant to your content can lead to your content not being indexed.
How can I add schema to my website without development?
There are many ways to add schema to a website. For WordPress we recommend using either RankMath pro or Yoast SEO. For Shopify you can use an app called Smart SEO.
