Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Microformats
What are Microformats?
Microformats, according to Microformats.org, are a set of simple, open data formats built upon existing and widely adopted standards. Instead of throwing away what works today, microformats intend to solve simpler problems first by adapting to current behaviors and usage patterns (e.g. XHTML, blogging).
Rich Snippets
What are Rich Snippets?
Rich Snippets, according to Google, are detailed information intended to help users with specific queries. For example, the snippet for a restaurant might show the average review and price range; the snippet for a recipe page might show the total preparation time, a photo, and the recipe’s review rating; and the snippet for a music album could list songs along with a link to play each song. These rich snippets help users recognize when your site is relevant to their search, and may result in more clicks to your pages.
OK that's enough geekspeak. =)
How can Microformats help in SEO? If you are not familiar with Rich Snippets, Google designed Rich Snippets to summarize the content of a page in a way that makes it even easier for users to understand what the page is about. Rich Snippets are available in Google Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs).
The example above shows a rich snippet for a hotel review. The snippet brings attention to the site whenever it's listed in the Google's search results. If you compare it with other site listings, user's attention is brought to the site stands out because of the stars and high ratings.
The Rich Snippets gives more detailed information about a site and provides higher click-thru rates according to studies.
So how are these Rich Snippets implemented?
Microformat will be the your next best friend. Microformats are simple codes that you can use to identify specific kinds of data, like products, people or events, in your web pages.
Google currently only supports six (6) major Microformat types. These are:
hCard
hCard is a simple, open format for publishing people, companies, organizations on the web.
hReview
hReview is a simple, open, distributed format, suitable for embedding reviews (of products, services, businesses, events, etc.).
hReview-aggregate
hReview-aggregate is a format for embedding review information (of products, services, businesses, etc). Whereas hReview is intended for an individual review, hReview-aggregate is meant for summary information about a collection of user or critic reviews about an item.
hProduct
hProduct is a microformat suitable for publishing and embedding product data.
hCalendar
hCalendar is a simple, open format for publishing events on the web.
hRecipe
hRecipe is a simple, open, distributed format, suitable for embedding information about recipes for cooking.
Use the Google Webmaster Tool's Structured Data Testing Tool / Rich Snippet Tool to test your Microformat markups. This tool tests for your site markup's validity. It returns errors and offers suggestions on how to fix these errors.
Microformats may not improve your site's keyword rankings but by adding these markups you improve your site's click-thru rates which indirectly informs your site's importance to Google. More click-thrus means more prospects which could ultimately lead to more sales.
More power to your businesses and have a blessed Merry Christmas!
What are Microformats?
Microformats, according to Microformats.org, are a set of simple, open data formats built upon existing and widely adopted standards. Instead of throwing away what works today, microformats intend to solve simpler problems first by adapting to current behaviors and usage patterns (e.g. XHTML, blogging).
Rich Snippets
What are Rich Snippets?
Rich Snippets, according to Google, are detailed information intended to help users with specific queries. For example, the snippet for a restaurant might show the average review and price range; the snippet for a recipe page might show the total preparation time, a photo, and the recipe’s review rating; and the snippet for a music album could list songs along with a link to play each song. These rich snippets help users recognize when your site is relevant to their search, and may result in more clicks to your pages.
OK that's enough geekspeak. =)
How can Microformats help in SEO? If you are not familiar with Rich Snippets, Google designed Rich Snippets to summarize the content of a page in a way that makes it even easier for users to understand what the page is about. Rich Snippets are available in Google Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs).
 |
| Rich Snippets - Reviews |
 |
| Google Search Results |
The Rich Snippets gives more detailed information about a site and provides higher click-thru rates according to studies.
So how are these Rich Snippets implemented?
Microformat will be the your next best friend. Microformats are simple codes that you can use to identify specific kinds of data, like products, people or events, in your web pages.
Google currently only supports six (6) major Microformat types. These are:
- hcard – Marking up business card / profile info
- hReview – Individual user reviews
- hReview-aggregate – A summary of hReviews
- hProduct – Marking up products, prices, and all product-related things
- hCalendar – Event dates and appointments
- hRecipe – Marking up recipes and their ingredients
hCard
hCard is a simple, open format for publishing people, companies, organizations on the web.
 |
| hCard - Profile |
 | |||
| hCard - Organization |
hReview is a simple, open, distributed format, suitable for embedding reviews (of products, services, businesses, events, etc.).
 |
| hReview - Movie |
hReview-aggregate
hReview-aggregate is a format for embedding review information (of products, services, businesses, etc). Whereas hReview is intended for an individual review, hReview-aggregate is meant for summary information about a collection of user or critic reviews about an item.
 |
| hreview-aggregate - Restaurant |
hProduct
hProduct is a microformat suitable for publishing and embedding product data.
 |
| hProduct - Acme Anvil |
hCalendar
hCalendar is a simple, open format for publishing events on the web.
 |
| hCalendar - Conference |
hRecipe is a simple, open, distributed format, suitable for embedding information about recipes for cooking.
 |
| hRecipe - Pommes Frites |
Use the Google Webmaster Tool's Structured Data Testing Tool / Rich Snippet Tool to test your Microformat markups. This tool tests for your site markup's validity. It returns errors and offers suggestions on how to fix these errors.
Microformats may not improve your site's keyword rankings but by adding these markups you improve your site's click-thru rates which indirectly informs your site's importance to Google. More click-thrus means more prospects which could ultimately lead to more sales.
More power to your businesses and have a blessed Merry Christmas!
