# SEO schema Human Guide

## What This Is For
Checks structured data implementation across JSON-LD, Microdata, and RDFa, then recommends schema improvements for richer search results. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for search and SEO workflows: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the SEO schema agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for SEO schema.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the SEO schema guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- Scan page source for JSON-LD `<script type="application/ld+json">`
- Check for Microdata (`itemscope`, `itemprop`)
- Check for RDFa (`typeof`, `property`)
- Always recommend JSON-LD as primary format (Google's stated preference)
- Check required properties per schema type
- Validate against Google's supported rich result types
- Relative URLs (should be absolute)
- Flag deprecated types (see below)
- **HowTo**: Rich results removed September 2023
- **SpecialAnnouncement**: Deprecated July 31, 2025
- **CourseInfo, EstimatedSalary, LearningVideo**: Retired June 2025
- **ClaimReview**: Retired from rich results June 2025

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: Detection, Validation, Schema Type Status (as of May 2026), ACTIVE (recommend freely):, VIDEO & SPECIALIZED (recommend freely):, NO RICH RESULTS — KEEP FOR AI:, DEPRECATED (never recommend):, Generation, Common Schema Templates, Organization.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- Check required properties per schema type
- DEPRECATED (never recommend):
- Generate valid JSON-LD with all required + recommended properties
- 2024–2025 cleanup. Whenever a user asks for one of these, the
- `seo-schema` skill must explain that the type is deprecated and either
- "startOffset-input": "required name=seek_to_second_number"

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the SEO schema human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the agricidaniel/claude-seo skill entry for `seo-schema`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# Schema Markup Analysis & Generation

## Detection

1. Scan page source for JSON-LD `<script type="application/ld+json">`
2. Check for Microdata (`itemscope`, `itemprop`)
3. Check for RDFa (`typeof`, `property`)
4. Always recommend JSON-LD as primary format (Google's stated preference)

## Validation

- Check required properties per schema type
- Validate against Google's supported rich result types
- Test for common errors:
  - Missing @context
  - Invalid @type
  - Wrong data types
  - Placeholder text
  - Relative URLs (should be absolute)
  - Invalid date formats
- Flag deprecated types (see below)

## Schema Type Status (as of May 2026)

Read `references/schema-types.md` for the full list. Key rules:

### ACTIVE (recommend freely):
Organization, LocalBusiness, SoftwareApplication, WebApplication, Product (with Certification markup as of April 2025), ProductGroup, Offer, Service, Article, BlogPosting, NewsArticle, Review, AggregateRating, BreadcrumbList, WebSite, WebPage, Person, ProfilePage, ContactPage, VideoObject, ImageObject, Event, JobPosting, Course, DiscussionForumPosting

### VIDEO & SPECIALIZED (recommend freely):
BroadcastEvent, Clip, SeekToAction, SoftwareSourceCode

See `schema/templates.json` for ready-to-use JSON-LD templates for these types.

> **JSON-LD and JavaScript rendering:** Per Google's December 2025 JS SEO guidance, structured data injected via JavaScript may face delayed processing. For time-sensitive markup (especially Product, Offer), include JSON-LD in the initial server-rendered HTML.

### NO RICH RESULTS — KEEP FOR AI:
- **FAQPage**: Google retired FAQ rich results for ALL sites on May 7, 2026 (supersedes the Aug 2023 gov/health restriction). No SERP feature anymore — but flag existing FAQPage at Info (not Critical), since the markup still aids AI Mode / AI Overviews entity resolution. For genuine user Q&A pages, use **QAPage**.

### DEPRECATED (never recommend):
- **HowTo**: Rich results removed September 2023
- **SpecialAnnouncement**: Deprecated July 31, 2025
- **CourseInfo, EstimatedSalary, LearningVideo**: Retired June 2025
- **ClaimReview**: Retired from rich results June 2025
- **VehicleListing**: Retired from rich results June 2025
- **Practice Problem**: Retired from rich results late 2025
- **Dataset**: Retired from rich results late 2025
- **Book Actions**: Deprecated then reversed, still functional as of Feb 2026 (historical note)

## Generation

When generating schema for a page:
1. Identify page type from content analysis
2. Select appropriate schema type(s)
3. Generate valid JSON-LD with all required + recommended properties
4. Include only truthful, verifiable data. Use placeholders clearly marked for user to fill
5. Validate output before presenting

## Common Schema Templates

### Organization
```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "[Company Name]",
  "url": "[Website URL]",
  "logo": "[Logo URL]",
  "contactPoint": {
    "@type": "ContactPoint",
    "telephone": "[Phone]",
    "contactType": "customer service"
  },
  "sameAs": [
    "[Facebook URL]",
    "[LinkedIn URL]",
    "[Twitter URL]"
  ]
}
```