Structured Data Implementation Guide

This guide explains how to add structured data to blog posts for better SEO and rich snippets in search results.

Basic Article Structured Data

All blog posts automatically get the basic Article structured data. No extra steps required!

How-To Structured Data (for tutorials)

For tutorial-style posts, add these fields to your post’s front matter:

howto_time: PT30M  # Estimated time using ISO 8601 duration format (PT30M = 30 minutes)
howto_steps:
  - name: "Step Title 1"
    text: "Step description 1"
  - name: "Step Title 2"
    text: "Step description 2"
  - name: "Step Title 3"
    text: "Step description 3"

Example:

---
title: How to Install Jekyll on Windows
# Other normal front matter...
howto_time: PT20M
howto_steps:
  - name: "Install Ruby"
    text: "Download and install Ruby from ruby-lang.org"
  - name: "Install Jekyll"
    text: "Open command prompt and run: gem install jekyll bundler"
  - name: "Create New Site"
    text: "Run: jekyll new my-awesome-site"
---

FAQ Structured Data

For posts where you want to include FAQs, add this to your front matter:

faqs:
  - question: "Frequently asked question 1?"
    answer: "Answer to question 1"
  - question: "Frequently asked question 2?"
    answer: "Answer to question 2"

Example:

---
title: Jekyll vs WordPress
# Other normal front matter...
faqs:
  - question: "Is Jekyll faster than WordPress?"
    answer: "Yes, Jekyll is typically faster because it generates static HTML files that can be served quickly with minimal server processing."
  - question: "Is Jekyll more secure than WordPress?"
    answer: "Jekyll typically has better security because it doesn't have a database or server-side processing, eliminating many common security vulnerabilities."
---

Testing Your Structured Data

After implementing structured data, test it using Google’s Rich Results Test.

  1. Deploy your site
  2. Copy your page URL
  3. Paste it into the Rich Results Test
  4. Check for any errors or warnings