What Does It Mean If My Schema Says WebSite?
If I look under the hood of your digital presence and the first thing I see is Schema: WebSite, I already know your developer was just trying to check a box and move on.
In the world of structured data (the behind-the-scenes code that tells Google what you actually are), there is a massive difference between an Internet Entity and a Physical Business.
What Is Schema Markup?
The Schema Markup, or just schema is a block of code that tells search engines and AI information about your company.
Here is an example:
"@type": "Organization",
"@id": "https://bizpin.pro/#organization",
"name": "BizPinPro",
"url": "https://bizpin.pro",
"telephone": "+1-540-391-0404",
"email": "contact@bizpin.pro",
"logo": {
"@type": "ImageObject",
"url": "https://bizpin.pro/assets/logo-trimmed.svg"
},
"description": "BizPinPro builds and manages professional digital foundations for small businesses. Websites, SEO, Google Business Profile management, email hosting, and monthly reporting, done for you completely.",
"foundingDate": "2024",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "5172 Godbey Ct",
"addressLocality": "Dublin",
"addressRegion": "VA",
"postalCode": "24084",
"addressCountry": "US"
},
"geo": {
"@type": "GeoCoordinates",
"latitude": 37.0871808,
"longitude": -80.7208622
},
"openingHours": "Mo-Sa 08:00-17:00",
"contactPoint": {
"@type": "ContactPoint",
"telephone": "+1-540-391-0404",
"email": "contact@bizpin.pro",
"contactType": "customer service",
"areaServed": "US",
"availableLanguage": "English"
},
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/bizpinpro/",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/bizpinpro/",
"https://x.com/bizpinpro",
"https://g.page/r/CfBVNNrUAeMkEBM/"
]
That block is the main block of code to tell the automated systems things like location, phone number, email address, hours, etc. There are many more lines that this in my schema to give as much information to the automated systems as possible. These should be in the code of the homepage so when Google or any other system searches, it will find the important information.
Just below this is a very important one:
"@type": "LocalBusiness"
This one line tells what kind of business you are, whether an internet only presence "WebSite" or a local business "LocalBusiness."
The Identity Mix-Up
The WebSite schema type is designed for entities that exist only or primarily as web platforms. Examples are Wikipedia, Facebook, or a blog about cat memes. It tells Google: "I am a collection of pages on the internet, and I am not a brick and mortar location at all."
So what happens when you're a plumbing company with seven trucks, two office locations, and a service area covering three counties, but your schema says "WebSite"?
Google thinks you're a blog.
Not a business. Not a local service provider. Just a collection of pages on the internet.
When you use WebSite schema instead of LocalBusiness, you are failing to tell Google the most important thing: Where you are and how to hire you.
How Do I Check My Schema?
Go to your homepage on a desktop or laptop computer, right-click anywhere not on a picture, click "View Source". You can search manually or hit [Ctrl] + F to find and enter "@type" and if your site says "WebSite", then it needs fixing.
Next, you call the person that developed your site, tell them they are incompetent (you may want to skip this step if you actually want it fixed by them), and tell them to fix the schema in your site, because it is wrong.
If they don't know what you're talking about, well, I think you know you need someone else to fix it.
