Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is not just about keywords and links, but also about trust and authority. Google has significantly changed its algorithm, one of which is placing more emphasis on the importance of credibility and author biodata in its search rankings. These factors, collectively known as E-E-A-T.
- E-Experience (experience)
- E-Expertise (Expertise)
- E-Authoritativeness (Authority), and
- E-Trustworthiness (Trust)
These four sections are the most important parts of Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines, which are used to help Google manually assess the trustworthiness and authority of authors, thereby improving the quality of search results.
While Google isn’t entirely transparent about exactly how its ranking algorithm works, there’s a consensus among SEO (Search Engine Optimization) experts that credibility is an important factor. From a practical perspective, this also makes sense. People tend to trust information from credible, first-hand sources like scientists more than from anonymous writers on the internet, so content created by trustworthy individuals is likely to see a faster ranking boost.
So, if you want to make sure your content has the best chance of ranking high in search engines, the author bios on your site are a big factor. And, if you want Google to recognize the authors you use on your site, you need to provide that information in a structured way. That’s where Author Schema comes in.
While most Blogger templates only feature “BlogPosting” schema, if you look closely, you’ll find Author schema. In this post, we’ll explain how Author schema works, why you should use it, how to implement it, and what it looks like once implemented.
1. What is Schema Author?
Schema Author is a type of Structured Data Markup language that helps search engines identify the identity of the author listed on a web page.
Schema Author can include information such as the author’s name, job title, qualifications, image, social media profiles, and more. This information helps search engines understand who the author is and what their credentials are, potentially improving the E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness) of a website in the eyes of Google GSC search engines.
Schema Author markup is usually described in the broader context of a web page’s content and metadata. If you have an article written by an author, Schema Author markup can be written inside the BlogPosting/Article schema. This allows search engines to understand the relationship between the author and the specific article they have written.
2. Benefits of Implementing Author Data Structure
There are many benefits of using Author structured data on your website. In addition to displaying author biodata information on Blogger pages, adding Author schema to your Blog can also increase SEO value so that it is attractive in Google results. Let's look at some of them and how they affect the usability and visibility of your website in search results:
a. Better Search Engine Understanding
Author Schema Markup helps search engines understand not just the content but also the context and authority behind each article post or piece of content on your site. This is especially important for topics that require expertise and trustworthiness (e.g., health, law, finance, or technical knowledge). By identifying the author, search engines can evaluate the credibility of the content based on the author’s reputation and expertise.
b. Better Content Trust
For websites that cover specific or niche topics, showcasing the author’s expertise can significantly increase the perceived trustworthiness and quality of the content. This means including a visible bio for the author as well as embedding Markup for search engines.
c. Potential for Higher Click-Through Rate (CTR) in Search Results
Although Google’s Authorship program has ended, structured data, including Author Schema, can still contribute to rich snippets and enhanced search listings. These enhanced listings can make search results more engaging, potentially increasing CTR.
d. Social Media Connections
Author Schema can include social media links, which helps connect an author’s contributions to their social media presence. This increases the author’s overall visibility and authority and also allows readers to follow or connect with authors they like on social media.
d. Future-Ready Content
Finally, search engines are constantly evolving, and the emphasis on context, authority, and trustworthiness of content will only increase in the years to come. Implementing structured data like Author Schema Markup ensures that your content can continue to benefit from the changes in how search engines evaluate and rank content as AI-generated content becomes more prolific.
3. How to Use and Implement Author Schema Markup
Both website owners and authors benefit from properly implemented Author Schema Markup, so let’s take a look at how it works and how to use it on your website/blog.
a. How Author Schema Markup Works
From a technical perspective, web crawlers (like Google) can more easily understand structured data that conforms to pre-defined patterns than unstructured data on a web page. In other words, while Google may be able to figure out the author of a web page from the content on the page, it can more easily determine this if the page uses Author Schema Markup.
This markup can be included as JSON and is usually combined with the BlogPosting, Website or WebPage schema. But most Bloggers generally implement the Author schema with the BlogPosting schema.
b. Implementing Author Schema Markup Manually
First, let's look at implementing JSON-LD Author Schema metadata. By adding this data inside the