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The GS1 Digital Link explained for SEO Jedis (and their clients)

The GS1 Digital Link explained for SEO Jedis (and their clients)

Executive summary: 

This post is part of a series that dives deep into the power of data for e-commerce. You can find the other posts here:

  1. The Power of Product Knowledge Graph for E-commerce
  2. Touch your SEO: Introducing Physical SEO
  3. The GS1 Digital Link explained for SEO Jedis (and their clients)
  4. The Only Thing Missing in Your Omnichannel E-commerce Strategy is…

In this updated post, part of our Product Knowledge Graph Series, we delve deeper into the evolving landscape of search engine optimization, highlighting the pivotal role of GS1 Digital Link and product page optimization for e-commerce websites. Building on our previous insights, we now incorporate key takeaways from the 2024 edition of the Global Forum and insights from Andrea Volpini’s enlightening presentation on leveraging GS1 Web Standards in SEO. This post aims to equip you with a comprehensive understanding of the next frontier in SEO and how GS1 Digital Link serves as a cornerstone for optimizing e-commerce product pages.

The digital age continues to redefine SEO practices, making it crucial for businesses and individuals to stay abreast of the latest trends, research, and applications. The GS1 Digital Link standard emerges as a game-changer, offering a seamless way to connect consumers with precise product information, thereby enhancing the online shopping experience.

  1. What is GS1 Digital Link and Why Is It Important for SEO?
  2. How GS1 Digital Link Works – Insights from the 2024 Global Forum
  3. Leveraging GS1 Web Standards in SEO
  4. How Can You Use GS1 Digital Link for SEO
  5. Enhancing E-commerce Page Optimization with GS1 Digital Link
  6. GS1 Digital Link as only the Tip of the Iceberg called Product Knowledge Graph
  7. GS1 Digital Link Quick Reference for Your Next Client
  8. Conclusion

What is GS1 Digital Link and Why Is It Important for SEO?

GS1 Digital Link (GS1 DL) is a descendant of the well-known barcode but can carry much more data than its antecedent. And this alone reduces the need for multiple codes on a pack. Something more, GS1 DL provides a standard way of expressing data in a format that can be used on the Web, which can directly put a product through its barcode in a linked environment. 

Case in point, a GTIN (the unique product identifier that provides accurate and rich product information to Google, Bing and other marketplaces) can be encoded into a Web address, following GS1 Digital Link standard specifications. The latter is essential, as GS1 standards are the most widely used system of standards in the world, much like W3C are, and with them, anyone can convert a GTIN into a web address. 

So here is how GS1 Digital Link works.

Let’s look at “Dal Giardino Extra Virgin Olive Oil Exclusive Selection” as a reference product. Its unique product identifier is GTIN 9506000134369, which corresponds to a GS1 barcode that you will find printed on its bottle label. Using this unique ID we can obtain its web address https://id.gs1.org/01/9506000134369. Now this one looks like a normal URL, but it’s a linked data URI instead and can: 

  • Redirect the end-user to the product information page
  • Provide structured information about the olive oil that machines like Google understand (using schema.org or GS1 Web Vocabulary)     

Technically speaking, GS1 digital link specifications express GTINs as URLs. Also, GS1 Digital Link is an element of the structured data pack in https://schema.org/Product and provides the structure for information about a product, such as expiration dates, nutritional and medical product data, warranty registration, troubleshooting instructions, even social media links. 

It is important for SEO because with GS1 Digital Link, as with any unique identifier, the product URL and Unique Identifiers are separated, meaning together with the web page, a URI contains all the data good for the crawlers separated from the page. 

Case in point, visual search.

Insights from the 2024 Global Forum

The 2024 Global Forum was a pivotal event for understanding the advancements and practical applications of GS1 Digital Link in SEO and e-commerce optimization. During this forum, Andrea Volpini shared invaluable insights into how GS1 Digital Link is revolutionizing how we think about product data on the web.
GS1 Digital Link extends the power of traditional barcodes by transforming them into gateways to a wealth of online information about a product. Unlike conventional barcodes limited to storing a product’s Global Trade Item Number (GTIN), GS1 Digital Links can connect consumers and search engines directly to dynamic online content. This could include nutritional information, user manuals, social media pages, and even augmented reality experiences, all accessible through a single scan.

Leveraging GS1 Web Standards in SEO: Key Takeaways from Andrea Volpini’s Presentation

Andrea’s presentation at the 2024 Global Forum highlighted several key points:

  1. Seamless Integration: GS1 Digital Link seamlessly integrates with existing web technologies, making it easier for brands to connect their physical products with their online presence. This integration enhances the visibility of products in search engines, contributing to more effective SEO strategies.
  2. Enhanced Consumer Experience: By providing direct access to a wide array of product-related content, GS1 Digital Link significantly improves the consumer experience. This direct engagement boosts brand loyalty and increases the chances of conversion.
  3. Visual Search Optimization: Andrea emphasized the role of GS1 Digital Link in optimizing for visual search, a rapidly growing area in SEO. With smartphones increasingly recognizing products through cameras, GS1 Digital Link ensures that products are readily identifiable and linked to relevant online content.
  4. Future-Proofing SEO: Adopting GS1 Digital Link is a step towards future-proofing SEO strategies. As search engines evolve to prioritize direct, meaningful connections between physical products and their digital counterparts, GS1 Digital Link positions brands at the forefront of this shift.

Incorporating these insights from the 2024 Global Forum, it’s clear that GS1 Digital Link is not just a tool for enhancing product visibility online; it’s a comprehensive strategy for bridging the gap between the physical and digital worlds, ensuring that products are discoverable, engaging, and relevant in the ever-evolving landscape of search.

How Can You Use GS1 Digital Link for SEO

In the evolving landscape of search engine optimization, the emergence of visual search has marked a significant shift, particularly in e-commerce. As highlighted by Semrush, visual search engine optimization is becoming increasingly important, with mobile devices playing a pivotal role in the consumer shopping journey. Recent studies indicate that 62 percent of consumers strongly prefer visual search capabilities, underscoring the need for swift and intuitive product discovery and identification on mobile platforms.

Visual search caters to users’ immediate needs and enhances the overall shopping experience by seamlessly integrating with GS1 Digital Link standards. This integration offers a more direct and informative approach to product identification. Unlike traditional search methods, where users may scan an item with Google Lens and sift through various results, GS1 Digital Link enables a single scan of a product’s barcode to unlock a comprehensive product information network. This streamlined process facilitates instant access to detailed product data, thereby simplifying the decision-making process for consumers.

The application of GS1 Digital Link extends beyond visual search, offering substantial benefits for e-commerce page optimization. By leveraging GS1 Digital Link, businesses can ensure that their product pages are optimized for search engines and equipped to meet modern consumers’ evolving expectations. This approach enhances visibility and discoverability and contributes to a more connected and informative online shopping environment.

Two Visual Search Scenarios:

  1. Traditional Visual Search: Users encounter a product of interest, use Google Lens to scan it, and navigate through various search results to find relevant information.
  2. GS1 Digital Link Enhanced Search: Users scan the barcode of a product using GS1 Digital Link, instantly accessing a wealth of specific information about the product, streamlining the search and discovery process.

The integration of GS1 Digital Link into visual search and e-commerce optimization strategies represents a forward-thinking approach to meeting the demands of the digital consumer, ensuring a more efficient, informative, and satisfying shopping experience.

Enhancing E-commerce Page Optimization with GS1 Digital Link

As Aleyda Solis aptly advises: 

Our goal with category pages should be then to feature information that confirms the features/functionalities/USPs of that particular set of products, clarifies any common doubts about them, informs about any existing offers and why/how the user is in the best place to buy them, as a salesperson would do at a physical store at that point in the customer journey.

(Cit. Optimizing Content in Category Pages while Keeping its Commercial Nature)

Now add to that some algorithmic power a GS1 Digital Link. The content for category and product pages will serve the user’s intent and, on top of it, provide them with a richer than expected experience by serving machines what they want – clean and structured data.

Further, once connected these data can be accessed via the GS1 Digital link, that is from any store through a scan, given there is a barcode on the product.

Optimizing content with markup will also allow Google and other search engines to populate search features, such as product Knowledge Panels or Google’s mobile Popular Products carousel. And what is more important in the age of entity-based search: create connections within the Knowledge Graph for easier entity recognition

The more structured data we enrich content with, the better we will serve the transaction experience by readily providing information about prices, availability, reviews, videos, accessories, and other product details.

GS1 Digital Link as only the Tip of the Iceberg called Product Knowledge Graph

“For My Ally is the DATA, and a Powerful Ally It Is.” 

Just like structured data became a thing for SEO with the introduction of Google’s Knowledge Graph and gained popularity as more SEO professionals began helping online retailers leverage unique identifiers and structured data, these days another tool for greater visibility in search and quality traffic is on the way – the product knowledge graph. It is one way to approach structured data in a novel way from an SEO perspective.

Put simply, a Product Knowledge Graph is an e-commerce specific form of knowledge graph built to improve product findability and end-user experiences by enriching a brand’s content with data. Made of structured data and extended product markup, injected across both editorial and product content, a product knowledge graph is built on top of the product database to link all data together combining both structured information, (for instance, the list of products for a brand) or unstructured (for example the descriptions related to a collection of products). 

Structured DATA and GS1 Digital link can be part of this product knowledge graph, playing an important role in better customer experience and richer results

Structured data binds the data about products, brands, product categories, product features, reviews, hi-resolution images, shipping data, FAQs and a lot more. And GS1 Digital Link just serves as the portal to this ecosystem of product information. As a standard, it helps us bring the data (in the product knowledge graph) into the end user’s hands.

In the example below, you can see what a product knowledge graph can render in terms of rich results across a number of Google services. 

This pretty much is product-graph powered SEO – it is about enriching the content about an entity with a cluster of other entities and pages.

Read our e-commerce SEO case study to learn more about the results you can achieve by building a Product Knowledge Graph for your website.

To use the table we used and the visual search scenarios, creating your own product knowledge graph is the other logical step. And it can be taken by using the GS1 Digital Link. And that is enriching the network of data with more connections – a structured data in your physical product code included. 

More on Product Graphs and Joe (the hyperconnected customer using them) is available here.

GS1 Digital Link Quick Reference for Your Next Client

To circle back to the coal mine metaphor (i.e. helping people find diamonds without dirtying themselves in the coal), SEO is all about finding ways to give readily structured precious pieces of data to search engines. And as SEO is turning to data graphs, (as Bill Slawski put it “The Web as a data is the new direction for SEO), the better the data, the more valuable diamonds. 

On the Web, better data means highly-connected data. And this is what SEO professionals have been doing – weave content, data and links together to connect the dots (actually, the nodes) for crawlers and ultimately get more sophisticated data to appear in search results. 

However, with the ever-increasing sophistication of search engines, the time has come to add another element to the SEO value proposition. The SEO community now is to communicate to potential and existing clients the mission-critical role of links between data to the talk about why keywords, content, relevancy matter and traffic.

To help spread the word about the Web of data and SEO’s role in it, we created this list as an executive summary for the client who needs more context for your next SEO move.

  • What is structured data and what is GS1 Digital Link?

Structured data is data that describes objects in a formal way. On the Web it is used to mark up pages, one of the most popular standard for markup being schema.org. In Plain English, it is this thing that makes types of snippets like review, recipe, video, and news article snippets appear when you search for something on the Web. Read Our Web Story

GS1 Digital Link provides the standards-based structure for the data about a product. GS1 Digital Link carries information such as expiration dates, nutritional and medical product data, warranty registration, troubleshooting instructions, even social media. In Plain English, this is a barcode that can carry tons of connected data. Read Our Article

  • How structured data and GS1 Digital Link benefit SEO? 

People scan, search, compare, look for all kinds of data on the Web. The more structured and granularly linked these data are, the more visible and easy to digest they are by people’s (serch engines, apps, APIs and assistants – think Google, Alexa, Google Merchant centre) 

  • Give me the numbers [Gimme ROI]

1. Increased Google Real Estate for 2 months.

2. In 2 months, we generated 20.500 additional organic clicks that would have otherwise cost our client 51.250$ on Google Ads.

Check more numbers from structured data success stories here .

Conclusion

As we’ve explored, GS1 Digital Link is not just a tool but a game-changer in the SEO and e-commerce landscape. The 2024 Global Forum has illuminated its potential to revolutionize how products are discovered and engaged with online. Armed with these insights, SEO professionals and digital marketers are better equipped to navigate the future of search engine optimization. Embrace the power of GS1 Digital Link and propel your e-commerce strategies into a new era of visibility and success.

WordLift can help you build your product knowledge graph. Let us show you how. Book a call with our team of experts.

Mastering Brand SERP: 3 E-commerce Case Studies Unveiling Success

Mastering Brand SERP: 3 E-commerce Case Studies Unveiling Success

In the ever-competitive realm of e-commerce, where many customer journeys commence with a search query, mastering the Brand Search Engine Results Page (SERP) is not just beneficial; it’s essential. The first page of search engine results has evolved into a crucial battleground for brand visibility and authenticity. 

Knowledge panels, which occupy prime digital real estate and provide a comprehensive snapshot of a brand’s identity directly in search results, are central to this battlefield. This case study delves into the strategic journey of securing knowledge panels for three distinct e-commerce brands, highlighting the transformative impact of optimized Brand SERP on their online presence and customer engagement.

Table of content: 

  1. The Imperative of Brand SERP in E-commerce
  2. The Role of Knowledge Panels in Shaping Brand Perception
  3. Case Study: Securing Knowledge Panels for 3 E-commerce Brands
  4. Key Steps for E-commerce Brands to Gain Google Knowledge Panels
  5. Conclusion

The Imperative of Brand SERP in E-commerce

In today’s digital age, where a brand’s online visibility can significantly impact its market success, mastering the art of Brand SERP becomes a crucial endeavor. For e-commerce brands, frequent direct searches for brand names and products mean owning this space is equivalent to controlling the narrative. 

A well-optimized Brand SERP leads to enhanced visibility and serves as a vital touchpoint for engaging potential customers. First impressions are formed here, and consumer decisions are heavily influenced, making it a pivotal element in the digital consumer journey.

The Role of Knowledge Panels in Shaping Brand Perception

Knowledge panels are not just repositories of information; they are powerful tools that can shape the public perception of a brand. They serve to:

  • Offer Immediate Information: Knowledge panels provide quick access to a wealth of authoritative information about a company.
  • Showcase Company History: They relay the brand’s story, values, and evolution to the consumer.
  • Detail Product Offerings: Panels can list and describe a brand’s products and services.
  • Influence Consumer Trust: Knowledge panels help build trust with potential customers by presenting verified facts.
  • Impact Decision-Making: The easily accessible information in knowledge panels can influence consumer purchasing decisions.
  • Establish Credibility: A knowledge panel can elevate a brand’s status, demonstrating its established presence in the market.
  • Enhance Visibility: They increase a brand’s visibility on search engine results pages, which is crucial for online success.
  • Assert Dominance: A knowledge panel is a sign of dominance and a credible presence in a competitive marketplace for eCommerce brands.

For e-commerce brands, securing a knowledge panel is to achieve more than visibility—it’s about establishing and maintaining a dominant, credible presence that stands out in a highly competitive digital marketplace.

Case Study: Securing Knowledge Panels for 3 E-commerce Brands

In this SEO case study, we uncover what sets apart the success stories of LN-CC, Casadei, and Moorer in the world of e-commerce:

  • Individuality in Branding: Each brand’s distinct identity and unique value proposition were amplified through their knowledge panels.
  • Strategic Digital Gains: The knowledge panels have resulted from deliberate and thoughtful digital strategies tailored to each brand’s strengths and market presence.
  • Collective Significance: The success of these brands highlights the power of knowledge panels not as isolated victories but as a consistent, scalable strategy for digital growth.
  • Model for Diverse E-commerce Platforms: The achievements of these brands serve as a replicable blueprint for other e-commerce entities looking to bolster their digital influence and authority.

This case study is distinctive because it illustrates the efficacy of knowledge panels across varied e-commerce websites, proving their worth beyond mere SEO enhancements to actual business growth and brand development.

Now let’s start by getting to know these brands.

1. LN-CC

LN-CC, or Late Night Chameleon Café, stands at the intersection of fashion, music, and art, offering an eclectic mix of luxury apparel and lifestyle products. The brand’s journey to acquiring a knowledge panel reflects its commitment to presenting products and creating a distinctive brand ethos. The knowledge panel serves as a digital anchor, enhancing LN-CC’s visibility and solidifying its position as a contemporary culture and style curator.

source image

2. Casadei

Casadei represents the epitome of Italian luxury in women’s footwear. Known for its elegant designs and impeccable craftsmanship, the brand’s acquisition of a knowledge panel elevates its online profile, offering instant recognition and credibility. This digital milestone clearly indicates Casadei’s established legacy and its resonance with a sophisticated clientele.

source image

3. Moorer

Moorer specializes in high-end outerwear, combining functional elegance with Italian style. The achievement of securing a knowledge panel for Moorer not only enhances the brand’s digital footprint but also showcases its commitment to quality and luxury. This recognition is a powerful online tool, driving visibility and reinforcing Moorer’s reputation as a purveyor of premium outerwear.

source image

Key Steps for E-commerce Brands to Gain Google Knowledge Panels

Now, let’s delve into the specific optimizations implemented to secure these knowledge panels for the brands:

Ensuring Data Consistency

This is crucial. Maintain uniformity in the brand’s information across various platforms. It includes the brand’s description, contact details, and product offerings.

Steps for Data Consistency

  • Develop a clear and concise brand description.
  • Update this description consistently across platforms like the brand’s official website, social media profiles (e.g., LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook), and other relevant business directories or platforms (e.g., Google My Business, industry-specific directories).

These actions ensure consistent data across various online platforms, which is crucial for gaining Google’s trust for an e-commerce brand. In addition to maintaining uniformity in the brand’s online presence, e-commerce brands should also leverage public relations efforts to influence similar consistency on external websites that they cannot manage directly, like news outlets or industry-specific publications. This comprehensive approach helps build a strong, cohesive online presence, which is vital for securing a Google Knowledge Panel.

Implementing Structured Data for E-commerce Knowledge Panels

Building on the strategies already discussed, let’s explore the critical role of structured data in harnessing the power of Google’s Knowledge Graph for e-commerce brands. This step is essential in ensuring that search engines can effectively interpret and display critical brand information, which plays a significant part in successfully acquiring a Knowledge Panel.

To optimize your e-commerce brand for Google Knowledge Panels, implement Organization Markup on your homepage. Key attributes include:

  • name: Your organization’s official name.
  • description: A brief organization description.
  • url: Official website URL.
  • mainEntityOfPage: Main entity reference on the page.
  • logo: URL of the organization’s logo.
  • contactPoint: Contact details.
  • address: Physical address.

In addition to the basic attributes, these are very important for enhancing your e-commerce brand’s E-E-A-T:

  • LegalName: Your brand’s formal legal name, establishing authenticity.
  • sameAs: Essential for linking social profiles and other associated URLs, assisting Google in understanding all your brand’s online connections.
  • parentOrganization: If your brand is part of a larger organization, mentioning this can utilize the larger entity’s authority for SEO benefit.
  • vatID: A new attribute as of November 2023, highlighting your brand’s legitimacy and compliance.

Here is the JSON-LD example:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "@id": "https://www.brandwebsite.com#organization",
  "name": "Brand Name",
  "url": "https://www.brandwebsite.com",
  "logo": "https://www.brandwebsite.com/logo.png",
  "contactPoint": {
    "@type": "ContactPoint",
    "telephone": "+1-800-123-4567",
    "contactType": "customer service"
  },
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "123 Brand Street",
    "addressLocality": "City",
    "addressRegion": "State",
    "postalCode": "12345",
    "addressCountry": "Country"
  },
  "sameAs": [
    "https://www.facebook.com/brand",
    "https://www.twitter.com/brand",
    "https://www.instagram.com/brand"
  ],
  "parentOrganization": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "@id": "https://www.parentcompany.com#organization",
    "name": "Parent Company Name",
    "description": "Parent Company Description",
    "legalName": "Parent Company Legal Name Inc.",
    "mainEntityOfPage": "https://www.parentcompany.com",
    "sameAs": [
      "https://www.facebook.com/parentcompany",
      "https://www.twitter.com/parentcompany"
    ]
  },
  "legalName": "Brand Legal Name Inc.",
  "vatID": "VAT123456"
}
</script>

Conclusion

The digital quest for a Google Knowledge Panel is not just about visibility; it’s a comprehensive strategy to authenticate and solidify a brand’s presence in the digital ecosystem. The case studies of LN-CC, Casadei, and Moorer illuminate the pathway for eCommerce brands to amplify their online footprint.

Through meticulous data consistency, structured data implementation, and leveraging the nuances of SEO, these brands have achieved a notable enhancement in their Brand SERP, positively impacting their customer’s journey. This journey underscores the potential for any e-commerce brand to enhance its digital authority and gain a competitive edge in the marketplace.

How Schema Affects Rankings in Google: Is Markup a Ranking Factor?

How Schema Affects Rankings in Google: Is Markup a Ranking Factor?

The use of schema markup in SEO is a hot topic, with many pondering its direct effect on rankings. WordLift experts, alongside adjunct professor Steve Wiideman, delve into this debate, examining whether Schema markup merely correlates with user signals or actively boosts SEO rankings. Their insights shed light on the intricate relationship between structured data and search engine algorithms, offering a nuanced understanding of Schema’s role in the digital marketing landscape.

Table of content: 

  1. Understanding Schema Markup
  2. Schema Markup: Myth vs. Reality
  3. Structured Data and Its Impact on SEO
  4. Google Schemas and SEO Scores
  5. SEO Fundamentals Before Implementing Schema Markup
  6. The Debate: Is Schema Markup a Ranking Factor?
  7. Leveraging Schema Markup for SEO Advantages
  8. Measuring the Effectiveness of Schema Markup

Understanding Schema Markup in SEO

Schema markup, a set of HTML tags known as structured data, is crucial for search engines to parse and display web content effectively. It provides explicit details about elements such as authors, product ratings, or event timings, enhancing the way information is presented to users. This enhanced presentation often takes the form of rich snippets, which can significantly improve user engagement with search results. 

The inception of Schema.org, a collaborative effort by major search engines, marked a significant step towards a more semantic web, enabling a consistent display of diverse online content. With a vast array of data types available, Schema.org empowers different websites, from local businesses to e-commerce platforms, to structure their content in ways that improve visibility and user experience.

Demystifying Schema Markup and SEO

The true value of Schema markup in SEO is often obscured by myths, such as the belief that it directly influences search rankings. In reality, while Schema is not a ranking factor, it plays a vital role in helping search engines understand web page content, which can indirectly affect SEO performance. 

Rich snippets, generated from detailed metadata provided by Schema, can make search results more compelling and lead to higher click-through rates. Positive user behavior, driven by these enhanced results, can contribute to a website’s authority and potentially improve its rankings over time. Thus, Schema markup is not a shortcut to the top of SERPs but a strategic practice that can enhance a site’s online presence and user engagement.

The Role of Structured Data in Modern SEO

Structured data transcends traditional SEO by catering to the needs of voice search and the Knowledge Graph. It ensures that content is not only visible but also well-represented in Google’s interconnected database, which is increasingly accessed by voice-activated devices. 

As the digital landscape evolves, the clarity and accessibility provided by structured data becomes more critical, enabling content to be leveraged by new technologies and search methodologies. By adopting structured data, websites can optimize their content for a future where voice search and intelligent assistants play a dominant role in how users interact with online information.

Google Schemas and SEO Scores

Google’s adoption of Schema markup is a testament to its commitment to delivering precise and relevant search results. By integrating Schema, website owners can delineate their content with greater specificity, allowing Google to index and showcase their pages more effectively. This level of detail is essential for the search engine’s algorithms to provide users with the most pertinent information for their searches. 

Although Schema does not directly impact rankings, it refines the representation of data within analytics platforms. SEO scores, which are influenced by these analytics, consider the implementation of structured data as a sign of a site’s optimization. The resulting rich snippets and enhanced search features contribute to user engagement, which in turn can elevate the site’s perceived value. These user interactions are captured in SEO scores, offering insights into a site’s potential reach and efficacy. In summary, while Google’s Schema markup may not be a direct lever for improving SEO scores, its indirect influence through user experience and engagement is a critical factor in the optimization equation.

SEO Fundamentals Before Implementing Schema Markup

Before diving into the implementation of Schema markup, it’s essential to have a solid grasp of SEO fundamentals. The four basic SEO factors to consider are quality content, keyword optimization, site architecture, and backlinks. These elements form the bedrock of any successful SEO strategy, ensuring that your website is valuable to users, easy to navigate, and recognized as an authority by search engines. 

The importance of establishing this solid SEO foundation cannot be overstated; without it, even the most meticulously structured data may not perform to its full potential. When integrating Schema with existing SEO strategies, best practices include conducting a thorough audit of your current SEO performance, identifying the most relevant Schema types for your content, and ensuring that the markup is implemented correctly without errors. By doing so, Schema markup becomes a powerful addition to your SEO arsenal, complementing and enhancing the visibility and user experience of your already optimized content.

Structured Data Audit

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The Debate: Is Schema Markup a Ranking Factor?

While structured data has never been and likely never will be a direct ranking factor, its role in SEO cannot be dismissed. Proponents argue that Schema helps search engines like Google understand content more effectively, aligning it with user intent and improving match accuracy in search results. Critics, however, caution against viewing Schema as a shortcut to higher rankings. Case studies and expert insights, such as those from John Mueller, suggest that while Schema’s technical correctness doesn’t elevate page quality by itself, it can lead to more relevant search placements and improved click-through rates (CTR), especially in the context of Search Generative Experience (SGE).

Insights on Structured Data from SEO Expert Steve Wiideman

Our partner, Steve Wiideman, brings to light compelling case studies that delve into the practical applications and outcomes of structured markup in SEO. His experiences with an e-commerce client reveal the transformative power of rich results in search engine visibility and user engagement. By experimenting with various Schema itemtypes, Steve’s team was able to elevate the client’s search result appearance, leading to a notable increase in click-through rates and, eventually, an improvement in search rankings.

The meticulous approach to testing and measuring the impact of structured data provides invaluable insights into how subtle changes in search result presentation can significantly influence user behavior and, by extension, SEO performance. Steve’s findings underscore the importance of structured markup not as a direct ranking booster but as a catalyst for enhancing user experience and relevance, which are key to long-term SEO success.

We have a few interesting stories to share with structured markup. The first involves an e-commerce client who had standard blue links, black text within the search results, while many competitors had image carousels, ratings, inventory quantities, and other rich results. 

We tested adding different itemtypes to different product categories to see if we could improve our search appearance. It took about a week before we started seeing listing appearance improve, 3 weeks for some itemtypes. We measured CTR on purchase-intent search terms via Google Search Console and saw significant improvements across the board By 90 days, we began to see rankings improve.

The second test we ran was entity-based, with emphasis on the Thing itemtype, using About and Mentions sub-itemtypes referencing wikipedia.org pages to help Google better understand the meaning of important words used in the copy. We ended up actually swapping out some of the copy to incorporate the terms from wikipedia.org versus our semantic variation. 

Within approximately 6 weeks we began to see a lift in impressions in Google Search Console for several of the competitive terms we were targeting. Once again, rankings did not immediately change. It wasn’t until around the 120 day mark that we could see an obvious upward trend line of ranking improvements.

Our takeaways that these changes impact user search behavior due to the higher engagement (click and stay) from the richer results, along with improving relevancy factors that signal search engines to display the listing for additional search queries to see how users interact with those listings. Over time, search engines may infer that the increase in user signals indicates that a listing is more helpful, resulting in higher rankings.

In other words, it’s not the structured markup that produced the higher rankings, it’s the higher user engagement and keyword relevance indicators that signaled the search engines to boost the rankings after several months. 

Leveraging Schema Markup for SEO Advantages

To harness the full potential of Schema markup for SEO advantages, it’s crucial to implement strategies that go beyond mere inclusion. Thoughtful integration of Schema can lead to improved rankings by enhancing the way content is understood and displayed in search results. Successful case examples, such as those shared by SEO experts like Steve Wiideman, demonstrate that when Schema is tailored to highlight key product features or entity relationships, it can result in richer search results and higher user engagement. For instance, e-commerce sites that have added detailed product information through Schema have seen a marked increase in click-through rates and, over time, improved rankings due to the positive user behavior signals sent to search engines. 

To optimize Schema effectively, it’s essential to focus on the most relevant types for your content, ensure the accuracy and completeness of the data provided, and regularly monitor the performance impact through analytics tools. By aligning Schema implementation with broader SEO goals, webmasters can create a synergistic effect that improves search visibility and enhances the overall user experience, contributing to long-term SEO success.

Measuring the Effectiveness of Schema Markup

To accurately gauge the effectiveness of Schema markup, it’s essential to employ a variety of tools and methods that can track and analyze its performance. Utilizing platforms like Google Search Console can provide insights into how structured data affects search result features and user interactions. Additionally, advanced analytics tools, such as the WordLift Looker Studio Connector, offer a deeper dive into the data. These tools can help webmasters understand the direct correlation between Schema implementation and key metrics like website traffic, engagement rates, and conversion. By analyzing this data, you can observe trends and patterns that indicate the success of Schema in enhancing search visibility and user experience. Based on these insights, it’s possible to make informed adjustments and refinements to Schema strategies, ensuring that they remain aligned with SEO objectives and continue to drive measurable improvements. Constant monitoring and optimization of Schema markup are crucial for maintaining its efficacy in a dynamic search landscape.

Unlock Your SEO Potential: Measure the Benefits of Schema Markup on SEO Performance

Entity-Oriented SEO: How Entity Linking Can Boost Your Performance

Entity-Oriented SEO: How Entity Linking Can Boost Your Performance

Table of content

  1. Content Operations and Content Marketing of the Future
  2. The Brand Aspect of Your Content
  3. Understanding information extraction
  4. Named entity linking (NEL) and SEO – smart search performance optimization
  5. How applied entity linking can help online businesses in marketing content operations?
  6. The key for Successful Content Teams and Unified Marketing Communication
  7. Why designing for Content Clarity Matters
  8. How Does Entity Linking Help With Entity-oriented SEO and E-E-A-T?
  9. The present and the future of SEO are entity-oriented

Content Operations and Content Marketing of the Future

When I first delved into technical SEO, I decided to take the Web of Data course at the Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering in Skopje. Back then, I never could have envisioned myself becoming a part of the content marketing and content engineering landscape. As time went on, it became evident that content marketing and SEO held significant importance and became part of the computer science world, too. Even though we must differentiate between semantic SEO and entity SEO, both play crucial roles in today’s digital landscape.

Numerous articles address the subject of entity SEO and entity-based SEO. However, many of them overlook a fundamental aspect. They typically recommend the following practices:

  1. Repeatedly using the same keywords.
  2. Incorporating related phrases and synonyms related to the topic with significant entity salience.
  3. Covering interconnected topics, among others.

Yet, a critical aspect often remains unexplored: what do we do with these entities once we identify them in the text, and what follows in the process? How do we disambiguate them? How can we link them to existing definitions on the web and connect them to the vast knowledge bases available, ensuring clarity in our content? The synergy between technology and content has grown increasingly pronounced in recent years, particularly with the advent of new generative AI experiences. We must carefully consider how we structure our content operations and assemble editorial teams. How do we train people to have a holistic, semantic, yet entity-oriented approach to SEO that is human-first?

We must establish strategies, procedures, and skill enhancement programs to empower individuals to seamlessly bridge the backend of search, leveraging entity linking and knowledge disambiguation, with the front end. This connection should be showcased through knowledge panels and a SEO content strategy that prioritizes a human-centered approach. It might sound like a standard narrative, but I’ve had the experience of working at agencies twice and in-house twice. With over four years of consulting in technical SEO engineering, you’ll face challenges similar to what we encountered, especially if you don’t have a dependable digital partner in the mix.

The Brand Aspect of Your Content

Let’s be clear: if you communicate robotically, you won’t meet people’s expectations or provide the necessary information. Your brand will appear unattractive. That’s why achieving the right balance is crucial. You must learn to speak like a human but in a way that is also understandable to a machine.

Here’s an example to illustrate this point. I have a friend, an SEO expert named Sara Moccand Sayegh, whose aunt is a journalist. Sara says, “When my aunt speaks, I swear to God I only grasp about half of what she’s saying. She explains concepts in overly complex terms that most people can’t follow.” Just like Sara’s aunt, many businesses tend to communicate in a convoluted manner. This leaves me wondering: How can a machine understand your brand story if I, as a human, can’t comprehend what your business is trying to convey? If I’m having trouble grasping it, I seriously question whether a machine could understand it. The crux lies in striking the right balance, ensuring satisfaction on all fronts. The key is mixing your brand with the semantics and the machine logic, all of these three simultaneously.

Understanding Information Extraction

Search engines have become part of our daily lives. We use Google, Bing, Yandex, Baidu, DuckDuckGo, etc. as the main gateway to find information on the Web. We use Facebook or LinkedIn to search for people, associations, and events. We rely on Amazon or eBay for product information and comparisons, while when it comes to music we like to play stuff on YouTube or Spotify. We are decreasingly reliant on apps’ features to find connections, dispatches, notes, timetable entries, etc. We’ve grown habituated to anticipating a search box nearly near the top of the screen. We also increased our expectations to get fast responses back while we search for things.

This is how we and machines developed the use to connect information needs with information concepts and precisely how the fields of information retrieval and information emerged. Search queries are expressions of our information needs while the ranked lists of information objects are the answers provided back to the searcher.

In the past, while search engines were in the early development phase, it was easy to play with keywords and links and use shady techniques to easily rank on search engines. Now, with the development of advanced technologies and algorithms like Multitask Unified Model (MUM) and Locked Image Tuning (LiT) we need to embrace more intelligent solutions and carefully crafted content to answer user queries in the best possible way and provide a satisfactory user experience.

When dealing with natural language queries, we need to distinguish between named entities and concepts.

Named entities are real-world objects and they can include:

  • persons like Martin Splitt, John Mueller, Sundar Pichai;
  • locations like Mountain View, Silicon Valey;
  • organizations like Google, Pinterest;
  • products like Google Assistant, and Google Cloud;
  • events like Search UnConference, Knowledge Graph Conference, etc.

Concepts are the opposite of named entities and they represent abstract objects. Some examples include:

  • mathematical and philosophical concepts like distance, axiom, quantity;
  • physical concepts or natural phenomena like gravity, force, and wind;
  • psychological concepts like emotion, thought, and identity;
  • Social concepts like authority, human rights, and peace.

Named Entity Linking (NEL) And SEO – Smart Search Performance Optimization

In many information extraction applications, entity linking (EL) has emerged as a crucial task in understanding named entities through their linked descriptions obtained from a knowledge base like YAGO, Wikidata, DBPedia, and similar. This process is better to know as semantic mapping or semantic linking in the computer science world:

The first step of the entity linking process is entity extraction where we need to obtain the list of named entities in the text. A named entity compared to a casual entity is an entity that is already defined in a knowledge base or an NLP model;

The second step is candidate entity ranking where after analyzing the user query we obtain several entity candidates in a ranked order. E.g. depending on the context, the entity [apple] can refer to the fruit or Steve Jobs’s company;

Entity interpretation is the final step where we decide on the best candidate for a given query input from the user and use this candidate to retrieve more information from a knowledge base back.

Entity linking can boost your SEO performance by improving:

  1. Your mobile results: entities help improve mobile capabilities and mobile-first indexing which became dominant in search and it’s growing every year.
  2. Natural language and image understanding for rich snippets: things like photos, customer ratings, and product reviews belong in this group.
  3. Translation optimization: synonyms, homonyms, context clues and query facets, and entity disambiguation help in translation improvements.
  4. Increased traffic and conversions: entity linking and entity disambiguation help search algorithms understand your content better and distribute it to more targeted users so that you’ll have more visits back and increased chances to convert them into customers.

How Applied Entity Linking Can Help Online Businesses In Marketing Content Operations?

In the realm of marketing content operations, applied entity linking offers a myriad of advantages:

1. Enhanced Content Relevance: By seamlessly connecting entities in your marketing content to pertinent information in a knowledge base, you ensure content accuracy and currency. This, in turn, delivers valuable and pertinent information to your audience, fostering heightened engagement and trust.

2. Personalization and Targeting: Entity linking empowers you to grasp the context of your content more comprehensively. Armed with this knowledge, you can segment your audience with finesse, thereby delivering tailored content to distinct customer groups, augmenting the likelihood of conversions and customer satisfaction.

3. SEO Optimization: Search engines prioritize semantically rich and contextually relevant content. By employing entity linking to link relevant entities to their corresponding knowledge base entries, you can optimize content for search engines, bolstering search engine rankings, and amplifying organic traffic to your website.

4. Enhanced Content Recommendations: The act of linking entities in your content grants you valuable insights into the relationships between various topics and concepts. This knowledge is instrumental in providing users with more accurate and relevant content recommendations, thereby heightening engagement and prolonging their stay on your website.

5. Streamlined Content Curation: For online businesses grappling with copious amounts of content, entity linking comes to the rescue, streamlining content curation processes. Understanding the entities mentioned in different pieces of content enables more efficient organization and categorization, simplifying the user’s quest to find what they seek.

6. Real-time Updates: With each update to your knowledge base, entity linking ensures that your marketing content automatically reflects the latest information. This serves to maintain content accuracy and reduces the time spent on manual content updates.

7. Competitive Analysis: Entity linking can be harnessed for competitive analysis as well. By scrutinizing the entity mentions in your competitors’ content, you gain invaluable insights into their strategies, focus areas, and market positioning.

8. Sentiment Analysis and Brand Monitoring: Understanding the entities mentioned in the content, customer reviews, or social media posts facilitate sentiment analysis and brand monitoring. This insight enables you to gauge how customers perceive your brand or products, empowering you to take appropriate actions based on feedback.

9. Improved customer service: Entity linking can also be used to improve customer service. For example, if a customer contacts your company with a question about a product, you can use entity linking to quickly find the relevant information in your knowledge base. This can help you provide more accurate and helpful answers to customer questions.

10. Reduced costs: Entity linking can help you reduce costs in a number of ways. For example, it can help you save time by automating the process of linking entities to knowledge bases. It can also help you save money by reducing the need for manual research.

Overall, entity linking is a potent tool capable of enhancing various marketing content operations. If you seek ways to boost your SEO, craft more informative and captivating content, personalize content for individual users, boost brand awareness, elevate customer service, or trim costs, then incorporating entity linking into your strategy should be a thoughtful consideration.

Ready to turbocharge your SEO efforts and see your organic search performance soar?

The Key for Successful Content Teams and Unified Marketing Communication

We frequently engage in in-depth semantic and content SEO conversations with Sara Moccand Sayegh and Jason Barnard at Kalikube. I’m consistently impressed by the clarity of their insights. My interactions with them have been incredibly enlightening, offering me valuable lessons in content marketing. Through our friendship, I’ve honed my ability to pose the right questions, enhancing my writing clarity, my guidance in developing the next generation of superstar content strategists, and my overall refinement of the art of crafting content.

We unanimously concur that employing entity linking and context is essential for ensuring your message is conveyed clearly on the page. This approach serves to reaffirm and reinforce the content, enabling the machine to grasp it accurately and subsequently disseminate it effectively. We said it multiple times already, but I’ll repeat it: we need to design for clarity, and we do this to avoid uncertainty in our brand communication. 

Why Designing For Content Clarity Matters

I’m sure you’ve had the experience of searching for a brand or product on Google and being impressed by the wealth of information on the search engine results page (SERP). You’ve also harbored a desire to have a similar presence for your company. So, how can we secure these coveted knowledge panels and information-rich pages for brands? It all boils down to entity linking, which significantly aids understanding and disambiguating content. It’s as straightforward as that. No tricks, no secrets behind them. Intelligent content disambiguation is what does the magic.

Discover how to set up WordLift to trigger a knowledge panel, watch this video. 

How Does Entity Linking Help With Entity-oriented SEO and E-E-A-T?

I appreciate the visionary approach that WordLift and Kalikube embody because we need creative thinkers in the content industry, especially during this AI-first era. It’s imperative to prepare for the age of search-generative experiences, consolidate your content strategies, bolster your content understanding, and craft your content comprehensively.

Embark on a journey towards content excellence with a trusted partner by your side. Connect with one of our experts today!

Entity linking is a pivotal element in SEO, playing a substantial role in bolstering expertise, experience, authority, and trustworthiness, often abbreviated as E-E-A-T. These attributes are vital for achieving high rankings in search engines, especially when dealing with YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) content. Here’s how entity linking contributes to E-E-A-T:

1. Expertise:

  • Elevated Content Quality: Entity linking enriches content by weaving together pertinent entities and concepts, demonstrating a profound grasp of the subject matter.
  •  Authoritative Endorsement: Effective entity linking can underscore that the content is either authored by experts or substantiated by reputable sources, reinforcing its credibility.

2. Authority:

  • Citations and References: By incorporating entity links, a content piece can establish its authority by referencing trustworthy sources, experts, or citations within the text, thus enhancing the trustworthiness of the presented information.
  • Verification Through Corroboration: Linking entities to authoritative external sources allows for cross-verification, further solidifying the reliability of the content.

3. Experience:

  • User-Centric Design: Thoughtful entity linking ensures that content is structured and presented in a user-friendly manner, ultimately enhancing the overall user experience.
  • Enhanced Relevance: Entity linking forges connections between related topics and concepts, affording users a comprehensive and informative experience.

4. Trustworthiness:

  • Credible Attribution: Entity linking attributes information to reputable sources or experts, thus augmenting trust in the content.
  • Transparency and Clarity: By implementing proper entity linking, content transparency is bolstered as the sources of information are made explicit, further enhancing trustworthiness.

In summary, entity linking in SEO establishes expertise by crafting informative and authoritative content, contributes to authority by leveraging citations and cross-verification, elevates user experience and content relevance, and reinforces trustworthiness by attributing information and enhancing transparency. These elements are paramount when building E-E-A-T and improving search engine rankings, particularly for content centered around critical subjects like health, finance, and more.

Entity-Oriented SEO Is The Future Of The Search

Entity-oriented search and optimization give context to your website. That is why it’s important to work with entities because they help to connect the world’s information together and therefore get relevant results back when searching.

One effective way to do so is to use a specific type of schema markup that will contain all the entities in the ABOUT and MENTIONS schema attributes. Another, more advanced way is to create a knowledge graph out of your content and publish it as linked open data on the Linked Open Cloud. 

This is exactly what we do with WordLift. We make a shift from the typical link-building mindset and keyword-oriented search to entity-oriented search and a more advanced link-building approach that employs entity linking between the entities and their respective descriptions in popular knowledge bases. We are also a proud member of the DBpedia Association and actively contribute to the growth of Wikidata. Wordlift is publishing high-quality web-scale knowledge by following Tim Berners Lee’s 5-star principles from CMS and the e-commerce platform. This means also building links with other public graphs.

One thing is clear: user needs are constantly evolving and it is becoming harder to keep up. Do stuff that matters and make use of linked open data to stay relevant.

Mastering the Art of Getting a Google Knowledge Panel: Step-by-Step Guide

Mastering the Art of Getting a Google Knowledge Panel: Step-by-Step Guide

In today’s digital age, online visibility and reputation are paramount. Whether you’re an individual building your personal brand or a business seeking growth, capturing the attention of your target audience is essential.

What Is a Google Knowledge Panel?

A Knowledge Panel, commonly seen on Google’s search results page, is an informative and visually appealing box that provides users with concise details about a specific person, place, organization, or topic. It serves as a quick-reference hub that offers essential information, images, links, and key facts, often making it unnecessary for users to click through multiple search results to gather relevant details. These panels are generated by Google’s Knowledge Graph, an extensive database that helps Google understand the relationships between various entities on the web.

Why Knowledge Panels are Important?

So far, we have seen what the Knowledge Panel is, but why is it so important? Here are 12 good (if not very good) reasons why the Knowledge Panel is essential for your visibility or your company or brand.

  1. Enhances Online Presence and Reputation: Knowledge Panels boost online visibility and reputation, making it easier for people to find and learn about the entity.
  2. Conveys Credibility and Trustworthiness: A Knowledge Panel suggests credibility and trust, encouraging users to engage with and trust the entity.
  3. Offers Control Over Information: Entities can manage and verify the information presented, ensuring accuracy and relevance.
  4. Facilitates Efficient Self-Presentation: Knowledge Panels provide a streamlined platform for presenting key information, saving time and effort.
  5. Encourages Engagement and Connection: With links to official websites and social media profiles, Knowledge Panels facilitate direct engagement and connections with the audience.
  6. Enhances Brand Recognition (for companies): For businesses, Knowledge Panels prominently display logos and key information, boosting brand recognition.
  7. Provides Direct Access to Resources (for companies): Companies can use their panels to direct users to official websites, increasing website traffic and engagement.
  8. Supports Local Businesses (for companies): For local businesses, Knowledge Panels include location details, aiding physical visits.
  9. Offers a Competitive Advantage (for companies): A well-maintained Knowledge Panel can provide a competitive edge by driving more traffic and conversions.
  10. Gains Customer Insights (for companies): Entities can gain insights into what users are looking for through their Knowledge Panel and adjust their strategies accordingly.
  11. Aids in Crisis Management (for companies): In times of crises or controversies, companies can use their Knowledge Panel to share official statements and control the narrative.
  12. Ensures Consistency and Accuracy (for companies): Companies can ensure that the information presented is accurate and consistent across online platforms.

How Do I Get A Google Knowledge Panel? A Case Study

In this case study, I’ll delve into how I secured my existing Google Knowledge Panel, highlighting my mistakes and strategies that proved successful.

I want to thank Jason Bernad (The Brand SERP Guy) for generously sharing invaluable insights and valuable tips that have been instrumental in my journey.

What I Did Wrong on My Journey to a Knowledge Panel?

Let’s begin with what I did wrong and the pitfalls to avoid, which can significantly prolong the process of acquiring your Knowledge Panel.

In my quest for a Knowledge Panel, I navigated the complexities of sourcing information from platforms like Wikipedia and Wikidata. While it’s generally advised against attempting a Wikipedia page about oneself due to Wikipedia’s stringent guidelines, I chose a different path and created a Wikidata page.

At first, this seemed like a straightforward path to acquiring my Knowledge Panel. It was a seemingly simple process. However, my journey took an unexpected turn. After a few months, my Wikidata page was removed, and with it, I lost my hard-earned Knowledge Panel.

It’s clear that restoring a Knowledge Panel can be much tougher than starting from scratch. In this case, Google saw the removal of my Wikidata page as a credibility and reliability concern.

What I Got Right?

Now, let’s delve into the correct steps I followed during my journey to acquire my Knowledge Panel.

Google Yourself

In this initial step, take the time to search for your name on Google. It’s essential to understand what information Google has compiled about you. Pay close attention to how your Search Engine Results Page (SERP) appears. Identify what information is accurate and relevant, and equally important, pinpoint any inaccuracies or discrepancies that may be present.

Segment Your SERP Page into Pages You Control and Pages You Don’t Control

When referring to ‘Pages You Control,’ it encompasses all pages where you have the authority to modify content directly. 

This includes: 

  • your LinkedIn Page, 
  • all your Social Profiles
  • any websites you manage

When referring to ‘Pages You Don’t Control,’ this refers to other websites where your name has been mentioned but over which you have limited or no direct influence.

Ensuring Data Consistency: The Vital Step to Your Knowledge Pane

Now, we arrive at a pivotal step in the process. To secure your Knowledge Panel, data consistency is the key. The concept is straightforward: Google must encounter consistent information about you across various sources to build trust. You take a significant stride toward your goal by diligently maintaining this consistency in your personal data across multiple sites.

In order to achieve data consistency, I took the following steps:

  • I crafted a concise self-introduction.
  • I added this introduction to the following platforms:
    • My LinkedIn profile, Twitter, and Facebook.
    • My page on the Wordlift site.
    • My personal website.
    • Several other platforms where I have access and can modify data, such as Zoominfo and Crunchbase.”

These actions ensure consistent data across various online sources, which is crucial for gaining Google’s trust. Also, consider using PR efforts to achieve similar results on external websites you can’t manage directly.

Building Authority: Demonstrating Your Credibility

In this step, it’s crucial to back up the claims made in the previous actions. Google needs to be convinced of your expertise and professionalism before granting you a Knowledge Panel.

Achieving authority can be accomplished through various means, and here are some valuable suggestions:

  • Publishing relevant and valuable content: Share insightful content within your niche. This not only showcases your specialization but also helps Google understand your expertise. When shared through your social channels, it amplifies your reach and impact. Crafting genuinely helpful content often piques people’s curiosity, prompting them to search for more information about you on Google. This heightened interest can significantly contribute to your journey towards obtaining a Knowledge Panel.
  • Hosting Webinars: Like creating valuable content, conducting webinars can enhance search engines’ understanding of your expertise. They generate curiosity among your audience, prompting them to seek more information about you. Additionally, webinars diversify your Knowledge Panel by incorporating multimedia elements, offering a broader perspective that may include content from platforms like YouTube.

The Role of Structured Data in Obtaining a Knowledge Panel

In addition to the previously mentioned strategies, let’s delve into the crucial role of structured data in harnessing the power of the Knowledge Graph.

Where Should I Implement Structured Data and What Type of Markup is Required?

In my case, I’ve applied structured data to two key pages:

On both of these pages, I’ve incorporated essential structured data, including:

  • Utilizing the ‘Person‘ Entity Type: This classification is used to define the type of entity you are, which, in this case, is a person.
  • Crafting a Description for the ‘Person’ Entity: I’ve ensured that the description aligns with the one used across multiple platforms, creating consistency.
  • Employing the ‘sameAs’ Property: Within the ‘Person’ Entity, I’ve used the ‘sameAs’ property to list all the previous websites mentioned, such as social media platforms and related sites.
  • Leveraging the ‘knows’ Property: This is a crucial element that connects the ‘Person’ Entity type with a community of experts in the same industry. This is particularly valuable when Google can corroborate the same information about you on other websites. For instance, if you’ve conducted a webinar with another SEO expert in your industry and utilize the ‘knows’ property, you benefit from the authority of that individual, as Google can retrieve this data from other websites as well. Naturally, this approach will encourage you to create entities for other experts within your industry.

Continuous Optimization of Your Entity Page

Furthermore, it’s crucial to continue curating the information on your pages. This involves adding additional ‘sameAs’ on the structured data level when you have new websites to reference and expanding your ‘knows’ properties as you broaden your network of industry experts.

FAQs

  • What is a Google Knowledge Panel?

A Google Knowledge Panel is a concise information box that appears in search results, offering essential details about a person, place, organization, or topic. It’s generated by Google’s Knowledge Graph, simplifying information access.

  • Why are Knowledge Panels important?

Knowledge Panels boost online presence and trust, convey credibility, offer information control, and enhance brand recognition. They facilitate engagement, provide direct access to resources, and grant a competitive edge.

  • How can I get a Google Knowledge Panel?

To secure a Knowledge Panel:

  • Google Yourself to understand your current online presence.
  • Segment Your SERP Page into controlled (e.g., LinkedIn) and uncontrolled pages (external mentions).
  • Ensure Data Consistency by maintaining accurate information across platforms.
  • Build Authority through valuable content and webinars.
  • Implement Structured Data on your Entity Page and website.
  • Continuously Optimize your information by updating ‘sameAs’ references and ‘knows’ properties.
  • What should I avoid in my journey to obtain a Knowledge Panel?

Avoid creating a Wikipedia page about yourself and creating a Wikidata page, as it may lead to complications.

  • How can I build authority for a Knowledge Panel?

Build authority by sharing valuable content, hosting webinars, maintaining data consistency, and using PR efforts.

  • What is the role of structured data in obtaining a Knowledge Panel?

Structured data, including ‘Person’ Entity type, ‘sameAs,’ and ‘knows’ properties, ensures organized and consistent information, helping search engines understand your expertise.

  • Why is continuous optimization important in the Knowledge Panel journey?

Continuous optimization involves updating your information, adding references, and expanding ‘knows’ properties to maintain a relevant online presence and improve Knowledge Panel chances.

Ready to take your website to the next level? Watch this exclusive video tutorial where Jason Barnard guides you through setting up WordLift to unlock the potential of Knowledge Panels!

From Strings to Things: SEO Add-On for Google Sheets by WordLift [New]

From Strings to Things: SEO Add-On for Google Sheets by WordLift [New]

Table of contents:

  1. What is SEO Add-On for Google Sheets?
  2. Introducing the Content Expander feature
  3. What is the difference with WordLift?

Start performing Entity Analysis with the New SEO Add-on for Google Sheets™

What is SEO Add-On for Google Sheets?

SEO Add-on for Google Sheets™ by WordLift is the extension that lets you gain an edge over your competitors through semantic keyword research and entity analysis.

Starting with entity extraction, you can determine if the content contains the appropriate semantic annotation and relevant entities to improve your ranking on Google.

In a few clicks, you can analyze the entities behind a search query and the entities behind a web page (whether it’s your page or a competitor’s) and develop a semantic content strategy that determines which entities can enrich your content and beat the competition.

The Entity Analysis is straightforward and supports hundreds of languages with many different alphabets (any language natively supported by WikiData).

It includes:

  • The list of entities with links to DBpedia or WiKidata,
  • The confidence level of each entity (a value from 0 to 1 that takes into account factors such as thematic relevance and contextual ambiguity),
  • The ranking of the entities in the SERP (this data is obtained during the analysis of the entities to which a query refers),
  • The number of occurrences in the text (i.e., how often the entity appears in the mentioned content).

You can select the most relevant entities, and the SEO Add-on will automatically create the JSON-LD for you!

To know which search queries you should boost, you can connect the SEO add-on to your Google Search Console and sort the analysis based on your traffic data. Here you will also find a column with the “Opportunity Score“, which suggests which search queries you should target to choose the best ones for your content.

Learn how to use the SEO Add-on for Google Sheets, watching this demo👇

Introducing the Content Expander Feature

The Content Expander feature is designed to elevate the content creation process by integrating relevant entities into existing material. By taking advantage of this feature, you can fill in the gaps in your content with important entities that are key to improving your search engine rankings.

How it Works

1. Start with Your URL and Target Entities

Begin by providing the URL of the page you’re working on, along with a list of entities you intend to incorporate into your content. These entities could be crucial keywords, concepts, or topics related to your content.

2. Generate Customized Text

With just a click, our SEO Add-on analyzes the provided URL and entities, and dynamically generates text that integrates these entities into your content. This ensures that your content not only meets the highest quality standards but also ranks higher in search engine results.

3. Copy and Paste

Once generated, the optimized content is readily available for you to copy and paste directly into your document. This streamlines the content expansion process, saving you time and effort.

Elevate Your Content Strategy

The Content Expansion Feature empowers you to enhance the depth and relevance of your content. By intelligently integrating essential entities, you’ll witness a marked improvement in your content’s performance on search engines.

The SEO add-on for Google Sheets™ is included in the Business+E-commerce plan, and only by purchasing this plan you can use the content expander. This feature is not included in the subscription you can purchase on StackSocial. To learn more, talk to our team.

What is the difference with WordLift?

“Things, not strings”

Amit Singhal, Google SVP of Engineering, 2012

This is the Semantic Web.

Entities that stand for an idea, concept, person, or place, are the real star of Semantic SEO. Google and the search engines are using more and more entities to figure out how to rank websites and web pages. 

Therefore, keyword research is no longer enough. This is where our SEO add-on comes into play. With a few simple clicks, you can analyze and compare entities either by search queries or URLs or both and find the ones that are really relevant for your website to get a better search engine ranking.

Indeed, once you have identified the entities most relevant to your business, you can copy and paste the JSON-LD into your website to speak Google’s language and see your organic traffic grow. 

If you are already using WordLift, you can analyze the entities and compare the entities annotated in your content with the entities that rank for the search query, as well as those of competitors, and then figure out how to optimize the content to rank better on Google.

WordLift is an AI-powered SEO tool that analyzes your content, identifies the most relevant concepts for your business, and allows you to insert semantic markup without needing any technical knowledge. These relevant concepts are the entities and are collected in a vocabulary. By relating the entities to each other, you can build the Knowledge Graph. It’s the infrastructure behind your website that allows Google and search engines to understand what you are talking about, and to see the relationships between pages and content, and their value.

This way, your website will rank better and get more organic traffic. Not only that, but users searching for products, services, or businesses like yours will find information that is more relevant and they will spend more time on your website and you can increase the conversion rate.

SEO Add-ons for Google Sheets™ and WordLift plugins are different, but they can work together to automate your SEO and save you more time, energy, and even money.

When you use the SEO Add-on together with WordLift, you can analyze entities and optimize your content so that Google and the search engines understand what you are talking about, and you get better rankings and more organic traffic to your website.

So, to sum up, what are the benefits of using the SEO Add-on for Google Sheets™?

  • Understand how to rank for a specific search query;
  • Learn how to optimize the ranking of your favorite content;
  • Compare a glance entity between competing URLs, search queries, or both;
  • Analyze the semantic spectrum you need to cover a specific topic.

The SEO Add-ons for Google Sheets™ is included in the Business+E-commerce plan. Or you can purchase it separately on StackSocial. Be aware that the Content Expander feature is not included in the subscription you can purchase from StackSocial.

If you buy the Add-On and want to add WordLift to your SEO tools, you’ll get a special discount. To learn more, talk to our team of experts.