Definition
What this term means
A standardised vocabulary maintained by Schema.org, a collaboration between Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and Yandex, that provides a common language for structured data on the web. Schema markup defines hundreds of entity types (Organisation, Product, Article, Person, Event, etc.) and their properties, enabling web publishers to describe their content in a way that any search engine or AI system can understand.
Why it matters
The business impact
Schema markup is the bridge between your content and AI understanding. By implementing the appropriate schema types (Organisation for your company, Product for your offerings, Person for your experts, Article for your content), you give AI systems a structured foundation for accurate interpretation. Without schema markup, AI must rely entirely on inference, which is error-prone.
Used in context
How you might use this term
“A professional services firm implemented Person schema for their consulting team, linking each consultant to their qualifications and areas of expertise. AI systems began attributing expertise correctly in responses, recommending specific consultants for relevant queries rather than just mentioning the firm generically.”