Schema markup is vocabulary from Schema.org that you embed in your page's HTML to explicitly tell search engines what your content represents—whether it's a product, article, local business, recipe, event, or one of 800+ other types. Instead of guessing from your text, Google reads the structured data and can display enhanced search features like rich snippets, knowledge panels, or carousels. A concrete example: you run a plumbing company in Ottawa. Without schema, Google sees your business name and address as plain text. With LocalBusiness schema, you mark up your NAP (name, address, phone), service hours, service area, and aggregate rating. Google can then show your star rating, hours, and phone number directly in local pack results, increasing click-through by 20–35% in our portfolio tests. Another example is Article schema for blog posts. You specify headline, author, datePublished, and image. Google may show your featured image in Top Stories or add a byline and date under your snippet, which builds trust and can lift CTR by 10–15%. FAQ schema is particularly strong for question-driven content—each question/answer pair can expand in search results, occupying more SERP real estate and sometimes appearing in People Also Ask boxes. Common schema types we implement at Ottawa SEO: - Product (price, availability, reviews) - LocalBusiness (NAP, hours, geo coordinates) - Article or BlogPosting (author, date, publisher logo) - FAQ or HowTo (step-by-step instructions or Q&A pairs) - Event (date, location, ticket info) - BreadcrumbList (navigational hierarchy) You add schema as JSON-LD script in your page head (Google's preferred format), microdata inline in HTML, or RDFa. JSON-LD is cleanest because it sits separately from visible content. Always validate with Google's Rich Results Test before publishing. Schema won't directly boost rankings, but the CTR lift from rich results often correlates with ranking gains over weeks because Google interprets higher engagement as relevance. We've seen pages jump 3–7 positions after implementing schema and earning featured snippet real estate, though correlation isn't causation—better CTR and lower pogo-sticking likely drive the ranking benefit.