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What is schema data, and what is Harding doing with it?
This is how Google explains schema data:
“Search engines use schema data (structured data with Schema.org vocabulary) to understand website content's context, turning unstructured text into machine-readable key-value pairs, which enables them to provide richer, more relevant results like star ratings, prices, or FAQs (rich results), improving visibility, click-through rates, and suitability for voice/AI searches. It acts as a roadmap, defining entities (people, products, events) and their properties (names, dates, locations) for better interpretation and enhanced user experiences in search results.“
Schema is the TLDR (Too Long Didn’t Read) version for Search and AI. They want it short and to the point, or they may move on. According to our third-party SEO (Search Engine Optimization) consultants, if we do not provide schema data, it will hurt our search results.
We have now added Schema data in the following two ways:
- For the overall Harding website to define who and what Harding is.
- For each program page, we have added specific data to better describe what we offer potential students. This includes an official job title(s) that pair well with the degree.
With these job titles, there isn’t always a perfect fit. We are contacting academic departments to let them know what we are doing. This includes providing the job data used for each program. This is to keep departments informed and to see if they can recommend any better official job titles. Even if we go with a less than perfect match, it is better than not having the data at all. If your academic department has not been contacted yet, it will be.
- Shawn Spearman