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Rich Snippets – Reusable Schemas

Google uses structured data that it finds on the web to grasp a page’s content and to gather information about the web and the world in general, such as information about the people, books, or companies that are included in the markup.

Google Search also uses structured data to present that content in a richer appearance in search results. This is called a rich result and can include star ratings, prices, cooking times, and more.

So, by implementing structured data on your site, you can provide search engines with additional information about your content, which can enhance the appearance of your search results in the form of rich snippets.

The Reusable Schemas feature from Squirrly SEO is a tool that automates the process of adding structured data, specifically JSON-LD structured data markup, to your website’s content, helping you save precious time.

With this feature, you can seamlessly create reusable custom structured data templates that incorporate data from your custom fields and completely automate schema generation for your custom post types.

This way, you’ll no longer have to manually add custom structured data every time you publish a new page or post that belongs to a custom post type.

Here’s a breakdown of how the Reusable Schemas feature works:

Activate the Reusable Schemas Feature

  • Go to Squirrly SEO > All Features and search for Reusable Schemas. Then use the toggle shown in the image below to activate the Reusable Schemas feature.

Once you activate the feature, you will be able to reach it by navigating to Squirrly SEO > Reusable Schemas > Schemas

Create a Reusable Schema Template

  • To create a Reusable Schema Template, go to Squirrly SEO > Reusable Schemas > Schemas and click on Create Reusable Schema.

You’ll then see a list of all the available schema types. Select the Schema type you want to use for your Schema Template by clicking on the “+” symbol.

Clicking on the “+” symbol will open up a panel where you can start editing and customizing your Schema Template.

Match Custom Fields to Your Schema Template

In case you have custom fields on your page or custom post type (such as product prices, event dates, or recipe ingredients), Squirrly’s Reusable Schemas feature lets you match these fields to your Schema Template.

If you want to customize your Reusable Schema Template with custom fields, you can add the Reusable Schema in one of two ways:

  • Through Squirrly SEO Snippet > Rich Snippets when you’re in Edit Post mode.
  • Through Bulk SEO > Rich Snippets.

Please note that Squirrly SEO can only match custom fields to your Schema Template for URLs that already have some custom fields filled in.

Squirrly SEO will look at all the fields you’ve completed for a certain custom post type and then grab all those fields and automatically create new Patterns for them!

Thanks to this matching process, you’ll be able to simply use a custom pattern like {{customfield(field_name)}} in your schema template. Squirrly will automatically replace these custom patterns with the actual values from your custom fields when the schema is generated.

For example, you can use {{customfield(total_sales)}} in your template, and Squirrly SEO will automatically fill in the actual values from your custom fields.

To integrate the custom fields data in your schema, select corresponding patterns from the list that Squirrly automatically provides. Squirrly will then integrate it into your schema.

Once you complete a reusable schema with all the details and all the new patterns, you can save it for later usage.

NOTE! Using the Reusable Schemas feature, you can match any custom fields, including those generated using plugins like Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) and those generated by certain themes used on your site.

Squirrly will retrieve the data for all custom fields that have an assigned value.

Create Schema Templates for Custom Post Types

A great way to use the Reusable Schemas feature is to create templates for different post types you have on your websites, including custom post types.

Whether you have products, listings, portfolio items, events pages, or others, you can create Reusable Schema Templates tailored to each post type and match the relevant custom fields.

Automatic Schema Generation

Once you’ve set up your schema templates and field matches for a post type, you can use Squirrly to automatically apply this structured data to ALL pages that belong to that post type.

This means you won’t have to manually add structured data every time you publish a new page or post that belongs to said post type.

You set this up once, and Squirrly will automatically implement the configured structured data to all pages that belong to that post type.

A simple workflow you can use to set this up is:

  • Go to Squirrly SEO > Bulk SEO
  • Select a Post Type, like “Product”, for example.
  • Go to “Rich Snippets” and customize the Product Schema by adding the patterns/placeholders you want for that post type.

When customizing your schema, you can include any of the custom fields patterns that Squirrly has retrieved for that post type by simply clicking on them.

  • Once you’re done customizing your schema, click on “Save as Reusable“.

You will then be able to assign a name to your newly-created Reusable Schema and save it by clicking on the Save Reusable” button.

Once you’ve saved that schema as reusable and you’ve validated your JSON-LD code, you can go back to your page (in this example, our Product page), click on “Add Reusable Schema, and select the reusable schema you’ve just created for that post type.

The final step is to go to Squirrly SEO > Automation > Configuration and select the post type for which you want to add the reusable schema (in our example, it’s the Product Post Type).

Scroll down to the JSON-LD Type section and select the reusable schema you’ve created for that post type from the drop-down shown in the image below.

And that’s it!

Squirrly will automatically apply the custom structured data you’ve configured using custom fields to ALL pages that belong to the selected post type.

Again, you only have to set this up once per post type.

Your editors or authors will just have to complete the details for custom fields for your posts, pages, or custom post types. And then Squirrly SEO will automatically take all the inputs they’ve given and create the proper schemas on its own. Any author will add to your schema, without actually adding to the schema themselves.

You can customize and personalize any schema and save it as reusable, so you can cut your time at least in half.

NOTE! If you don’t want to use BULK SEO for this, an alternative would be to use the Squirrly SEO Snippet in Edit Post mode.

Go to All Posts and select a post that belongs to the post type for which you want to create a custom schema using Squirrly. Then follow the same steps outlined above to customize the schema for said post type and save it as reusable.

Reusable Schemas List

  • To reach this section, go to Squirrly SEO > Reusable Schemas > Schemas

When you create reusable schemas using Squirrly, they’ll all be organized and displayed in one central list for easy management.

For each Reusable Schema on this list, Squirrly provides details such as:

  • Name: This is the title or label you’ve assigned to the schema, making it easier to identify its purpose or type.
  • Type: Indicates the category or classification of the schema. For example, it could be ‘Event’, ‘Book’, ‘Product,’ or others.

Additionally, you have the following management options:

  • Edit Schema. This lets you adjust or update the details within the schema as needed.
  • Delete Schema. This option allows you to remove a schema from your list. However, if the schema is currently linked to a post type, Squirrly will give you a notification (shown below). This safeguard ensures you don’t accidentally delete schemas that are in active use on your website.

Templates for How-To or FAQ Content Types

Reusable Schema also allows you to create templates for How-To or FAQ content types. You can match the fields from these post types into the appropriate schema templates.

This way, you can ensure that all your How-To or FAQ content follows the same structured data format.

That’s Everything You Need to Know about Squirrly’s Reusable Schemas Feature!

Reusable Schema simplifies the process of adding structured data to your website’s content by allowing you to create templates, match custom fields, and automate the application of schema markup.

This can enhance your content’s appearance in search results and improve its search engine optimization (SEO) performance without requiring you to manually add schema markup to each individual post or page.

Give it a try!

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