Troubleshooting Schema Markup Visibility Issues in Rank Math SEO: Ensuring Accurate Rich Results Testing
Implementing schema markup correctly is crucial for enhancing your website’s visibility in search engine results, especially when it comes to rich snippets and other enhanced displays. However, sometimes you may encounter discrepancies between the schema markup you’ve set up and what appears during testing. In this article, we explore common issues related to schema visibility in the Google Rich Results Test when using Rank Math SEO, and outline best practices to ensure your schema appears as intended.
Understanding the Issue
Many website owners utilize Rank Math SEO to implement structured data, such as Comment Snippets, Articles, and FAQs, aimed at improving search appearance. A typical scenario involves configuring multiple schemas on a page—say, for an article or comment section—and then verifying their appearance using Google’s Rich Results Test tool.
However, issues can arise when the test displays outdated or incorrect schemas, such as previously deleted ones, or shows conflicting types (e.g., an FAQ schema when you believe you’ve replaced it). This can lead to confusion and impede the optimization process.
Common Causes and Troubleshooting Steps
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Cached Data or Old Schema Markup
If a schema you previously removed still appears, it’s often due to cached versions of the page or the schema data stored in Google’s index. To address this: -
Re-submit the page for re-crawling via Google Search Console’s URL Inspection tool.
- Clear any caching plugins or server-side caches.
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Use the “Fetch as Google” feature to prompt Google to update its cache.
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Schema Conflicts or Overlapping Markup
Having multiple schemas on a page can sometimes lead to conflicts, especially if they are of similar types or overlapping in purpose. Ensure that: -
You are not unintentionally adding duplicate schema types.
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Your schema markup is correctly structured and does not contain nested or conflicting types.
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Incorrect Schema Configuration in Rank Math
Verify that the schema configurations in Rank Math are correctly assigned: -
Double-check each schema block (Comment Snippet, Article, FAQ) in Rank Math’s SEO settings.
- Confirm that the correct schema type is selected for each page or post.
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Remove or deactivate any schemas that are no longer relevant or need to be replaced.
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Code Validation Using Multiple Tools
Besides the Rich Results Test, utilize Google’s Schema Markup Validator