Schema Markup Guide: JSON-LD Examples for Indian Businesses

If your business website has a good design and decent content but your Google listing looks plain, structured data is one place to look. A schema markup guide is only useful if it reflects what Google supports today, and that changed in 2026.

This post explains what schema markup is, which types are worth adding to an Indian business website, what to skip, and how to add and test JSON-LD without breaking your pages. It is written for owners and marketers who will brief a developer, and for developers who want a checklist.

What is schema markup and why use JSON-LD?

Schema markup is a block of structured data, written in the Schema.org vocabulary, that labels the facts on a page so search engines can read them without guessing. For example, it states that "Arham Technology" is an organisation, that a number is a phone number, and that a figure is a product price.

You can write it in JSON-LD, Microdata or RDFa. Google's structured data documentation says all three are fine, but recommends JSON-LD in most cases. It lives in a single <script type="application/ld+json"> tag, so you can add or edit it without touching the visible HTML.

The one rule that matters most: mark up only what a visitor can see on the page. Markup that describes content that is not there breaks Google's guidelines and can lose you rich result eligibility.

Is FAQ schema still worth adding after the 2026 change?

No, not if your goal is a Google rich result. Google deprecated the FAQ rich result, and it has not appeared in Google Search since 7 May 2026, according to Google's Search Central updates log. Google also planned to remove the FAQ report and Rich Results Test support later in 2026.

You do not need to delete existing FAQPage markup, because it remains valid Schema.org and Google has said unused structured data does not cause problems. But don't pay for a new FAQ schema project on the promise of expanded search results.

Keep writing clear question-and-answer sections. They help readers, and they are the kind of self-contained text that AI answer tools quote. Our guide to answer engine optimization covers that side of the work.

Which schema types does a business website need?

Most Indian business sites need five or six types, matched to the page they sit on. Google keeps a list of supported features in its structured data gallery, and the types below all appear in it.

Service pages have no dedicated Google rich result, but a Service block still states what you offer and who provides it. Treat that as clarity for search engines and AI tools, not as a guaranteed feature.

What does LocalBusiness JSON-LD look like for an Indian address?

A LocalBusiness block needs at least a name and a PostalAddress, and Google also recommends geo coordinates and opening hours. Use the most specific subtype that fits, such as Dentist, RealEstateAgent or Store. Here is a pattern with placeholder details:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "LocalBusiness",
  "name": "Example Interiors",
  "url": "https://www.example.com/",
  "telephone": "+91-22-5555-0100",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "12 Example Road, Andheri East",
    "addressLocality": "Mumbai",
    "addressRegion": "Maharashtra",
    "postalCode": "400069",
    "addressCountry": "IN"
  },
  "openingHoursSpecification": {
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday", "Saturday"],
    "opens": "10:00",
    "closes": "19:00"
  }
}
</script>

Keep the name, address and phone identical to your Google Business Profile and directory listings. Inconsistent details are a common reason local signals look weak. Our local SEO guide for Indian businesses explains how to keep them aligned.

How do you add and test schema markup step by step?

Add schema in this order and test each stage, so one mistake does not hide behind another.

1. List your page types. Note which templates you have: homepage, contact, service, blog post, product.
2. Map one schema type to each template. Use the table above and skip types with no matching content.
3. Generate the JSON-LD from your real data. In a CMS or a Shopify theme, build it from fields such as title, price and publish date, rather than hard-coding values that will go stale.
4. Put the script in the page head or body of the server-rendered HTML, so crawlers see it without running heavy JavaScript.
5. Run the Rich Results Test on a live or staging URL and fix every error. Warnings on optional fields can wait.
6. Validate generically with the Schema Markup Validator to catch Schema.org syntax problems that are not Google-specific.
7. Submit key URLs through Search Console's URL Inspection tool, then monitor the enhancement reports for errors after deployment.

Google's guidance is to use the Rich Results Test during development and the status reports afterwards, because templates can break structured data after release.

What are the most common schema markup mistakes?

The mistakes below come up repeatedly in site audits, and each is avoidable.

• Marking up invisible content. Adding reviews, ratings or FAQs to the markup that no visitor sees.
• Fake or self-written reviews. Reviews should be real. Google's guidelines restrict self-serving review markup for local businesses and organisations.
• Wrong types. Using Product on a category page or a service page. Google's product snippets work for pages focused on one product.
• Stale values. Prices, stock or opening hours in schema that no longer match the page.
• Duplicate or conflicting blocks. A theme, an SEO plugin and an app all printing their own Organization markup.
• Treating schema as a ranking trick. It describes your content; it does not replace good content, speed or links.

For Shopify stores, themes and apps often output Product markup already. Check what is there before adding more, and read our Shopify SEO fixes for related checks.

How Arham Technology approaches schema markup

We treat structured data as part of technical SEO, not a plugin to switch on. For clients of our SEO services, the work usually runs like this:

1. Audit what exists. We crawl the site and list the structured data already output by themes, plugins and apps, including errors and duplicates.
2. Map schema to templates. We agree which types belong on which page types, based on the content you actually publish.
3. Implement in code. Markup is generated from your data fields, so it stays accurate when prices, authors or dates change.
4. Test and monitor. We validate with the Rich Results Test and the Schema Markup Validator, then track Search Console reports and fix regressions after releases.
5. Align with content and local profiles. Business details are kept consistent across the site and your Google Business Profile.

When a site is being built or rebuilt, we add this at the template level during website development, which is cheaper than retrofitting it later. Our SEO-friendly website development guide shows where it fits in the build.

What should you do next?

Start with an inventory. Open your homepage, contact page, a service page and a blog post in the Rich Results Test and note what is detected. Remove duplicate blocks, correct any mismatched business details, then add the missing Organization, LocalBusiness, Article and BreadcrumbList markup.

If you would like a specialist to audit and implement it, see our SEO services or contact Arham Technology with your site URL. We will tell you what is missing and what is not worth doing.