Schema.org

Search Engine Optimization (SEO), getting ranked, beating Google, whatever you want to call it just got changed yet again. This time however I was actually taken by surprise Google, Yahoo!, and Bing all got together and agreed on a new standard. That new standard is Schema.

So what does this mean for you and how big is this change. Currently keyword research takes you to creating long-tail keywords that are specific enough to have a good chance of “beating the system known as Google.” That was now here’s the future. Currently you try to rank for Google.com as a whole. Good news the coding in the site is all that really changes. As opposed to generally labeling for a long-tail keyword such as Andy Nathan Social Media Schmoozer. This is how you would brand yourself today.

So how does Schema change things? OK, I’ll get to the point. Schema brings search engines down to a micro level of search compared to the macro level we see today. What the hell does that mean? It means today we type in what we want and generally we get a lot of what we aren’t looking for. With the Schema change this will help sort through the mess. You may want a blog by Author: Andy Nathan today you would rank for Andy Nathan or Author Andy Nathan or Blogger Andy Nathan, etc. But the coding changes for schema takes it down to a more micro level let me show you what I mean.

Person: Andy Nathan
Awards: Social Media Schmoozer
Job Title: Social Media Schmoozer
Affiliation: Smart at the Start
Works For: Smart at the Start
Alumni Of: National-Louis University
Member Of: Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Google Plus
Contact Point: Andy Nathan
Work Location: Home
Home Location: Work Location
Gender: Male
Email: [email protected] 
Birth Date: 1/8/1979.
Death Date: Long Time from Now
Nationality: American
Related To:
Spouse: Micheli
Parents: Ed and Paula
Children: None
Sibling: Kim
Colleagues: Josh Alexander
Knows: List People You Know
Performed In: WGN, Fox News, Crains.

Follows: Who do you follow?
Address: List Address
Telephone: List Phone
Fax Number: List Fax

I know this looks tedious because it is. But at the same time no one is really going to put every field in reality only the ones they want people to find them by. At the same time however the more you put the more likely you will be found in the new schema compliant standard. This is actually a good thing over time because users have been frustrated over finding what they actually want. The Schema changes will allow searchers/users of search engines to search with pin point accuracy which has only been available to those who currently know the coding are allowed to do today. If you think of it they have been shifting this way for sometime look at Google.com, Google Local, Google Images, Google Video, Google Scholar, etc these are in essence a break down of the overall search methods. However if you use these other services you probably get better detailed information that you were actually looking for.

Joshua Alexander
www.JoshuaAlexander.net

Schema.org