Google is constantly changing how results are shown and this not only presents us with new challenges, but it also gives us the opportunity to improve our ranking. One of the latest updates to Google is the FAQ schema which some of you may be familiar with. If not, don’t worry because we have put together an FAQ page schema guide to help you get on track. We’ll talk you through using WordPress and Yoast as well as using Google Tag Manager to get this up and running. Keep reading to hear more about this important topic.
What Is FAQ Schema?
If you have never heard of an FAQ schema before then you may be sitting there wondering what is FAQ schema. FAQ stands for frequently asked questions and these are usually added to a website in order to make things easier for visitors and the company behind the site. Many websites do not have an FAQ in place, but this can be a mistake when it comes to ranking and fitting in with Google’s ever-changing requirements. In 2019, the FAQ schema is one that you should be following in order to have your website show up when your potential customers ask the right questions. While you can have an FAQ page in place, it might not always show up properly if it hasn’t been properly marked up to Google’s standards. This is where the FAQ schema comes into play.
What Does Google Require?
When creating your FAQ schema, Google has set out some guidelines that you should follow. If you don’t spend time working on your FAQ section, then you risk not having your page show up and losing out on those valuable visitors. It is important that you are using this tool in the right situations as a simple page that allows visitors to submit their own answers would not be suitable in this case.
Google requires your FAQ page to be written by you with no possible answers set out by visitors to the site. If you have a product support page that comes with some of these FAQs, then you can also use this to rank.
Try to avoid using this if you are hosting a forum page or a general product support page. You must avoid using text that might be filtered out by Google including graphically violent or obscene text. Google has put together a handy guide of what to include so make sure to have a look at this before moving ahead with your FAQ schema.
Using Google Tag Manager For Your FAQ Schema
If you are hoping to add your FAQ markup using Google Tag manager, then this is possible without any coding knowledge. There are some simple steps that include first making sure that you are meeting the guidelines set out by Google as detailed above. You then need to consider the JSON-LD code which is a scripting language that works well with Google’s markup for structured data. We have included some of the code that you can edit to match your page below. Make sure to remove the ‘insert question here’ etc in order to make sure that this meets your requirements.
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "FAQPage",
"mainEntity": [{
"@type": "Question",
"name": "INSERT QUESTION HERE",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "INSERT ANSWER HERE"
}
}, {
"@type": "Question",
"name": "INSERT QUESTION HERE",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "INSERT ANSWER HERE"
}
}, {
"@type": "Question",
"name": "INSERT QUESTION HERE",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "INSERT ANSWER HERE"
}
}, {
"@type": "Question",
"name": "INSERT QUESTION HERE",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "INSERT ANSWER HERE"
}
}, {
"@type": "Question",
"name": "INSERT QUESTION HERE",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text":"INSERT ANSWER HERE"}
}]
}
</script>
Once you have added your code, you need to make sure that you configure your Google Tag Manager properly. You’ll need to add a new tag and choose the custom HTML tag and then add the code as detailed before. This is quite complicated but once you get the hang of it, you should be able to figure out it.
Using Yoast For Your FAQ
Using Yoast For Your FAQ Schema
If you are using WordPress for your site, then you might find that it is easier to use Yoast to implement your FAQ Schema. Yoast comes with plenty of tools and it can be simple to get your site up and running in line with Google’s requirements. First, you will need to head to the backend of your WordPress site. Here, you’ll find the new block editor feature which allows you to enter text.
Choose the ‘FAQ’ feature and start to add in the questions and answers that are relevant to that page. Make sure to add in only relevant questions and answers that are correct. You can add images here which might come in handy depending on the kind of FAQ you are hoping for. As you can see, this is a really simple solution with no code involved but it does require your site to be running on WordPress with access to Yoast SEO. It is very quick to do, and it can really change the way that your site is seen when your potential visitors are on the hunt for an answer.
Is It Worth It?
While you might not believe adding an FAQ section is that important, you will find that it can make a big impact on your SEO and the visibility of your site. It is possible that you already have an FAQ section on your site, but it has not been optimised correctly in line with the latest Google FAQ Schema requirements. Make sure to consider everything that we have discussed in this guide and you should be able to get your FAQ up and running in no time at all. You want your site to appear authoritative and with the right answers to the right questions, you can really achieve this through your FAQ schema.