When someone in Delhi searches for "best salon in Lajpat Nagar" or "CA near Connaught Place," the listings that stand out—the ones showing star ratings, opening hours, and a phone number right in the search results—get the clicks. Those enhanced listings are powered by schema markup, and adding it is one of the highest-return, lowest-cost things a local business can do for its visibility.
This guide explains what schema markup is, which types actually earn rich snippets in 2026 (this matters more than ever—Google has retired several once-popular types), and exactly how to implement and test it for your Delhi business.
A quick reality check up front: Google has been pruning structured data features. FAQ rich results were deprecated on 7 May 2026 and no longer appear in search, and HowTo rich results have been gone since 2023. If an older guide tells you to add FAQ or HowTo schema to "get rich snippets," that advice is now out of date. This guide focuses only on the types that still work.
What Schema Markup Actually Is
Schema markup (also called structured data) is a standardised vocabulary—from Schema.org—that you add to your website's code to describe your business and content in a way search engines understand precisely. Instead of leaving Google to guess that "10 AM–9 PM" is your opening hours or that "4.8" is your rating, you label it explicitly.
When Google understands these details, it can display them as rich snippets (also called rich results)—the star ratings, prices, hours, and other enhancements that make your listing larger and more eye-catching than a plain blue link. More space and more information mean more clicks, often without ranking any higher.
Importantly, schema markup itself is not a direct ranking factor. Its value is in earning rich results and helping search engines (and increasingly AI systems) understand your business accurately.
The 2026 Reality: What Still Earns Rich Snippets
This is the part most guides get wrong. Google removes structured data display features when they get abused at scale, so the list of "what works" has shrunk. Here's the honest picture for 2026:
Still produces rich results in Google Search:
- LocalBusiness — your name, address, phone, hours, price range (the core type for any local business)
- Review / AggregateRating — star ratings (subject to Google's rules on genuine reviews)
- Product — price, availability, ratings (for e-commerce)
- Event — dates, location, tickets
- Article — for blog and news content
- BreadcrumbList — the breadcrumb trail in your listing
No longer earns a SERP feature (don't rely on these for snippets):
- FAQPage — the rich result was deprecated in May 2026. The markup is still a valid Schema.org type and Google still reads it to understand pages, but it won't expand your listing.
- HowTo — fully deprecated since 2023; the documentation has been removed.
For AI search (AI Overviews and similar), Google says no special schema is required, but any structured data you use should match the visible content on your page. Accurate, genuine markup helps machines understand and potentially cite your business—so the work isn't wasted even where a visible snippet isn't guaranteed.
Why This Matters Especially for Delhi Local Businesses
Local search is competitive and intent-rich. For a Delhi business, schema markup helps you:
- Stand out in the local pack and "near me" searches with accurate hours, location, and contact details.
- Show star ratings that pull the eye and signal trust against competitors who haven't bothered.
- Reinforce your NAP (Name, Address, Phone)—consistency between your website schema and your Google Business Profile strengthens local trust signals.
- Help Google place you correctly for locality searches across CP, Saket, Dwarka, Rohini, and the rest of NCR.
The Format to Use: JSON-LD
Google recommends JSON-LD, a block of structured data you drop into your page's code—usually inside the <head>, wrapped in a <script type="application/ld+json"> tag. It sits separately from your visible content, so you don't have to restructure your HTML. (Two older formats, Microdata and RDFa, exist but JSON-LD is cleaner and preferred.)
Step-by-Step: Add LocalBusiness Schema
Step 1: Pick the most specific business type
Schema.org has specific subtypes under LocalBusiness—Restaurant, Dentist, BeautySalon, Store, Electrician, LegalService, and many more. Use the most specific one that fits; fall back to LocalBusiness only if none matches.
Step 2: Gather your details
You'll need your exact business name, full Delhi address, phone number, website URL, opening hours, price range, a photo URL, and your social profile links.
Step 3: Build the JSON-LD
Here's a complete, copy-ready example for a Delhi business (a café shown here—swap the @type and details for yours):
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "CafeOrCoffeeShop",
"name": "Your Business Name",
"image": "https://www.yoursite.com/storefront.jpg",
"@id": "https://www.yoursite.com",
"url": "https://www.yoursite.com",
"telephone": "+91-11-12345678",
"priceRange": "₹₹",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "Shop 12, Inner Circle, Connaught Place",
"addressLocality": "New Delhi",
"addressRegion": "Delhi",
"postalCode": "110001",
"addressCountry": "IN"
},
"geo": {
"@type": "GeoCoordinates",
"latitude": 28.6315,
"longitude": 77.2167
},
"openingHoursSpecification": [{
"@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
"dayOfWeek": ["Monday","Tuesday","Wednesday","Thursday","Friday","Saturday","Sunday"],
"opens": "10:00",
"closes": "22:00"
}],
"sameAs": [
"https://www.instagram.com/yourbusiness",
"https://www.facebook.com/yourbusiness"
]
}
</script>
A few notes:
- Use the international phone format (
+91-...). addressCountryis"IN";addressRegionis"Delhi".priceRangecan be symbols (₹₹) or a range.- Every detail in the markup must also be visible on the page—marking up information that isn't on the page violates Google's guidelines.
Step 4: Add ratings (carefully)
If you display genuine customer reviews on your site, you can mark them up to become eligible for star ratings. But Google prohibits self-serving reviews—you can't simply invent an aggregate rating for your own business. Ratings must come from real customers and be visible on the page. If your reviews live on Google or other platforms, focus your review-collection efforts there rather than fabricating on-site ratings.
Step 5: Add it to your site
- WordPress / WooCommerce: plugins like Yoast SEO, Rank Math, or Schema Pro add and manage structured data with minimal or no coding.
- Shopify: many themes include basic schema; apps can add or enhance LocalBusiness and Product markup.
- Custom or static sites: paste the JSON-LD block into the page's
<head>.
Step 6: Validate before and after
Always test your markup:
- Google Rich Results Test — confirms whether your page is eligible for rich results.
- Schema.org Validator — checks that your syntax is valid.
Fix any errors or warnings, then let Google re-crawl (you can request indexing in Search Console to speed this up). Rich snippets can appear within days to a few weeks, but Google decides whether to show them—valid markup makes you eligible, not guaranteed.
A Product Schema Example (for E-commerce)
If you run an online store, Product markup is among the most valuable, since it can surface price, availability, and ratings:
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Product",
"name": "Handloom Cotton Kurta",
"image": "https://www.yoursite.com/kurta.jpg",
"description": "Handwoven cotton kurta, made in Delhi.",
"brand": { "@type": "Brand", "name": "Your Brand" },
"offers": {
"@type": "Offer",
"url": "https://www.yoursite.com/products/kurta",
"priceCurrency": "INR",
"price": "1299",
"availability": "https://schema.org/InStock"
}
}
</script>
Note priceCurrency is "INR". Only mark up products and prices that genuinely appear on the page.
No-Code Tools to Generate and Test Schema
You don't need to be a developer:
- Schema generators (free online tools) build the JSON-LD from a simple form.
- WordPress plugins (Yoast, Rank Math, Schema Pro) handle it automatically.
- Shopify apps add or extend schema for stores.
- Google Rich Results Test and the Schema.org Validator confirm everything works.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Chasing deprecated types. Don't add FAQ or HowTo schema expecting rich snippets in 2026—those features are gone.
- Marking up invisible content. Every claim in your schema must appear on the page; otherwise it breaks Google's guidelines.
- Fake or self-serving reviews. Inventing ratings can earn a manual penalty. Keep reviews genuine.
- Using a vague type. Choose the most specific LocalBusiness subtype that fits.
- Inconsistent NAP. Your name, address, and phone in schema should match your Google Business Profile and website exactly.
- Skipping validation. Always test before and after; a small syntax error can disqualify the whole block.
Quick-Start Checklist
- Choose the most specific LocalBusiness subtype for your business.
- Gather accurate NAP, hours, price range, photo, and social links.
- Generate the JSON-LD (by hand, a generator, or a plugin).
- Ensure every detail also appears visibly on the page.
- Add the markup to your site's
<head>. - Add Product or genuine Review markup if relevant.
- Validate with the Rich Results Test and Schema.org Validator.
- Request indexing and monitor results over the following weeks.
- Keep your schema consistent with your Google Business Profile.
The Bottom Line
Schema markup is one of the few SEO tasks that's quick to implement, cheap (often free), and capable of visibly improving how your business appears in search. For Delhi local businesses, the priorities are clear in 2026: nail your LocalBusiness markup, add Product schema if you sell online, use genuine Review markup where you can, and don't waste effort on the FAQ and HowTo types Google has retired. Implement it, validate it, keep it consistent with your Google Business Profile—and let your listing do more of the work of winning the click.
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