JSON-LD for SEO Frequently Asked Questions

JSON-LD for SEO should work on every store but if there’s a problem installing, I’m happy to help.

Here’s how to install JSON-LD for SEO by enabling the app in the Theme Customizer.

Yes! JSON-LD for SEO works with both Shopify’s Online Store 2.0 themes and legacy themes.

Please reference this article on installing JSON-LD for SEO.

You’ll need to enable the Structured Data JSON-LD for SEO App Embed in the Theme Settings. Make sure you select Save after enabling the app. You can follow this guide on installing the app for your theme.

For legacy JSON-LD for SEO users, you must migrate to the latest version of the app using Shopify's App Embed. Migrating is required as we are no longer updating the old snippet.

Most themes should work out of the box with JSON-LD for SEO.

If the install process doesn’t work, I’d be happy to take a look at it and see what changes need to be made to the theme.

We’ve made the migration process as simple as possible with a quick two-step process. Migration instructions are also in the app or you can use this migration article.

• From JSON-LD for SEO’s setting dashboard, Select Theme Settings. Ensure the toggle for JSON-LD for SEO is enabled and select Save.
• Head back to JSON-LD for SEO’s setting dashboard and select Remove old snippet and finish migrating.

You can test your site to make sure JSON-LD for SEO’s code is running using this guide.

For stores using Online Store 2.0 features called the App Embed, you’ll need to enable the Structured Data JSON-LD for SEO App Embed in the Theme Settings each time you update your theme. Make sure you select Save after enabling the app. You can follow this guide on installing the app for your theme.

For legacy JSON-LD for SEO users, you must migrate to the latest version of the app using Shopify's App Embed. Migrating is required as we are no longer updating the old snippet.

Either way, you have full freedom to edit and change your theme.

JSON-LD for SEO includes the data needed by Google for Rich Snippets and Google Merchant Center.

The key pieces include:

• Business data – Organization/LocalBusiness
• Product data – Product, Offers
• Product reviews – AggregateRating
• Site search – Website
• Blog posts – Article
• Recipe blog posts – Article/Recipe
• Videos – VideoObject
• Frequently Asked Questions – FAQPage

There are probably 100+ fields that are included automatically from your Shopify data and I’m always adding more and tweaking the ones used.

If you have a detailed question about which fields are included, feel free to contact me.

After installing I’ll show you how to use the official Google tools to test your structured data so you can be confident it’s there.

Google itself can take a while before they update the search results. Google’s gotten scammed in the past by shady SEO-types so they’re cautious when they add Rich Snippets for a store.

The unofficial timelines that I’ve heard about are that it can take 8-11 weeks before you start seeing any results in Google from Rich Snippets…

… but, with the optimizations done in JSON-LD for SEO some customers start to see Rich Snippets and results within the first week.

Many customers see the results within the first month or two.

The type of Rich Results you get depends a lot on Google’s algorithm but the main ones I see feature the product price, availability, and reviews.

This article outlines the types of Rich Results you can get and has examples from real life customers of JSON-LD for SEO so you know we aren't making this up.

To add FAQSchema and qualify for FAQPage Rich Results, you’ll need to add the FAQ questions and answers to your Shopify store using a special format.

Full details on adding FAQSchema can be found in this article.

There is no real impact on your store’s page speed or performance. With Shopify’s caching off, we’ve found it takes 1-2% of the total page performance. All live stores run with caching on, so the actual performance impact is even lower (could even be zero).

There are two main causes of poor performance on Shopify:

• loading a lot of files like large images
• running a lot of JavaScript

While JSON-LD for SEO uses JSON-LD which looks and sounds like JavaScript, it doesn’t run any code in your customer’s browser. The code for the app runs on Shopify’s super-fast servers so you don’t even notice it.

So unlike other apps that add a bunch of files or JavaScript code to your store slowing it down, JSON-LD for SEO will have no impact on performance at all.

The answer 95% of the time is that the theme is coded wrong or is missing data. This is the case with the majority of Shopify themes out-of-the-box. They have structured data but it’s outdated, incomplete, and sometimes includes errors or breaks Google’s rules.

JSON-LD for SEO does not remove your theme data, we add a new set of data that is more complete.

Having more than one set of product data is normal and a common misconception from SEO consultants that there should be only one.

Google Search will use the higher-quality set of data from JSON-LD for SEO and ignore all of the structured data from your theme.

If you have JSON-LD for SEO installed, you can ignore the warnings from Google Search Console.

Search Console has a history of raising issues that don’t actually impact Google Search. I wish the Search Console report would recognize when you have good data and ignore the other data automatically, but it doesn’t.

I cover these in more detail in my article on testing the structured data.

It’s rare that another SEO app conflicts with JSON-LD for SEO, so that’s not usually a concern I have. There are lots of JSON-LD for SEO customers who use other SEO apps.

Despite what other apps or SEO consultants say, having more than one set of product data is normal and a common misconception that there should be only one. Google Search will pick the best set of data to use for its analysis. That’ll be the set from JSON-LD for SEO. They’ll ignore the other Product data.

I’ve found over time that Shopify is adding to the platform many of the core features found in most Shopify SEO apps. So the apps have been adding features that aren’t all that effective or helpful, more buzzwordy. At best they are automation tools to get ‘okay’ results, at worst they’ll hurt your SEO.

I have a large guide on Shopify SEO with a ton of details on how to improve your SEO without using another app in Shopify. If you specifically scroll down to the Shopify SEO Apps section, I also mention SEO tools outside of Shopify that don’t impact your site load times.

I just have a hard time with monthly costs when most of the features are built into Shopify directly.

JSON-LD for SEO has been in continuous development since 2015. You can view all our app updates dating back to 2017.

Here’s the full list of review app integrations I have currently. If you use any of them, JSON-LD for SEO will be able to pull in their data and format it correctly for Google.

It is possible that review apps change their code without notifying us of the change. We’ll do our best to resolve the integration as quickly as possible.

Pinterest has become a popular visual search engine and can be incredibly important to Shopify stores.

There are 4 types of Rich Pins: app, article, product and recipe Pins.

Details on how to validate your pages for Pinterest can be found in this article.

Merchant Center is a complex beast of a system that is frankly, quite fragile and suffers from complicated and confusing documentation.

But it’s absolutely the best way to run Google ads for your products.

JSON-LD for SEO provides the structured data needed for Google Merchant Center validate your product feed and what is visibly on your product page. Google's automatic item update system will also use the structured data and what is visibly found on your product page to tell Google when product prices or availability changes so your ads can automatically change too.

Many Shopify customers who also suffer from a Mismatched value (page crawl) [price] have found success by adding JSON-LD for SEO to their store. More details can be found in this article.

Shopify subscription apps that have native integrations with Shopify’s Checkout will work. Some apps, like Recharge, have multiple versions of their app running. Older versions of their apps use their own checkout and the newer version that uses Shopify’s.

If you are on an older version of the subscription app that does not work with Shopify Checkout, we will not be able to pull in their data.

You’ll want to talk with your subscription app provider to see if you have their most updated version and if they are using Shopify Checkout.

Here is the list of tested subscription apps we know work. This list is constantly evolving so if there is a subscription app you use that is not listed, contact me and we can see if we can include their data in your Offers.

The JSON-LD for SEO Annual Pro plan is $399 per year.

When you install the app you’ll get

• All the structured data needed for Google Rich Results, Google Merchant Center, Bing, and Pinterest.
• A structured data audit to ensure the app has connected your data properly.
• Unlimited app support with direct priority access to me (the owner).
• Regular updates as Google's requirements change.
• Up to 6 months of monitoring for any potential problems during the initial Rich Result process.
• Ongoing monitoring for any potential problems that may prevent Rich Results.
• A copy of Shopify SEO: Simplified, a 3-hour audio training course.

Yes, there is a 7 day free trial for the annual plan.

If you’d like to see an example of the structured data that it adds, I do have a demo store at the following URL: https://json-ld-for-seo-demo.myshopify.com

JSON-LD for SEO is an annual charge so you will be charged once per year.

Other apps might claim JSON-LD as one of their features but JSON-LD for SEO is exclusively focused on providing the very best structured data for your store.

I’ve worked one-on-one with at hundreds of different stores, both to help them understand how structured data and Google work together, as well as researching the best data to get actual results in Google (e.g. Rich Snippets). A lot of the structured data themes and apps provide are just ignored by Google.

This is important because one error in your structured data can mean you will lose or never get your Rich Snippets. I’ve seen many such errors in other apps, some errors have been around for six months at a time.

I would recommend thinking about how many sales you’d need to “make back” the cost.

1? 2? 3?

I wouldn’t be surprised to hear about JSON-LD for SEO paying back its investment within the first week or month.

So why does JSON-LD for SEO cost more than the competitors?

Because it’s a premium app that has been designed and optimized to get you results in Google, fast.

I’ll be honest, almost every store that asked this question needed this app.

The structured data built-in to most themes is broken and is missing critical data. There’s also the risk of changes to your theme breaking your structured data and losing your Rich Snippets.

So unless you’ve already reviewed your structured data and compared it to Google’s guidelines, you’ll probably benefit from the app.

If you still want to check, I’m happy to run my Structured Data Audit on your store. Just use the contact link to the right to contact support and ask for the Structured Data Audit. It’s 100% free.

That’s a great question that I wish more people would ask of anyone who sells anything related to SEO and marketing.

I’m a developer first and foremost.

I’ve learned advanced SEO as part of getting traffic to my own business and to help customers, but I’m not an SEO consultant nor do I play one on TV.

The SEO consultants I talk to and get advice from are 100% above-the-board (called white-hat in SEO jargon). They are people who have gotten the results by staying on the good side of Google and providing value to their website visitors.

Even then, I still double-check their advice to make sure it’s safe.

But anyone can say this so, I’d recommend taking a look at the reviews below. All of them are from actual paying customers, no one there has gotten a special deal or discount for providing a review (In fact, it’s against Shopify’s policies too).

You could create the JSON-LD structured data by hand for your store.

I estimate if you’re an experienced web developer who knows JSON, Liquid, and HTML it would take you about 3-5 hours to learn enough about structured data to have a basic first version created. Maybe another 5-10 hours or so to reproduce all of the data and product review integrations that JSON-LD for SEO provides.

So if you’re experienced and have 8-15 hours of free time, you totally could do it all yourself.

Though you’ll also want to budget a few hours every month to update and maintain it too. And maybe an hour or so to keep up on the news from Google and the structured data organizations. Don't forget to set aside time to test updates from Google to make sure it doesn't tank your results.

If you’d rather pay to have this taken care of and supported, it’s probably a better business decision to buy the app.