{"id":1762,"slug":"extractability-prose-vs-records-mechanism","title":"Mechanism summary — structured catalogues expose attributes as data; prose/PDF/images lock them in a format no filter can reach","kind":"reference","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","dev","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["ai-citation","structured-content","extractability"],"reference_body":"**Claim (synthesis):** A structured catalogue is a body of records (products OR any structured knowledge) in which each item is described by defined, independent attributes. Because the attributes are exposed *as data* rather than buried in prose or pixels, the catalogue can be (a) queried and filtered by visitors via faceted search, and (b) read by machines — search engines, AI answer engines, and downstream tools. The same content rendered as prose or a PDF is not query-eligible and is not individually indexable per record.\n\n**Source:** Synthesis of [[uspto-patent-structured-vs-unstructured-searchable-by-data-type]], [[integrate-io-mongodb-structured-vs-unstructured-definition]], [[google-structured-data-mechanism-recipe-example]].\n\n**Confidence:** Industry-consensus (combining primary-source definitions with primary-source search-engine documentation).\n\n**Why this matters for Candid:** The mechanism statement we point clients at when explaining *why* records-not-prose is not a stylistic preference but a functional one. Anchors [[rule-one-indexable-page-per-record]] and the AI-citation framing in [[ai-citation-eligibility-via-structured-records]].","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[{"slug":"integrate-io-mongodb-structured-vs-unstructured-definition","title":"Structured vs unstructured data — Integrate.io / MongoDB definition: predefined schema, every record consistent, sorting/filtering/querying straightforward","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"uspto-patent-structured-vs-unstructured-searchable-by-data-type","title":"USPTO Patent 8,700,594 — structured data is \"searchable by data type\"; unstructured data (bitmaps, audio, text docs) is not","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"google-structured-data-mechanism-recipe-example","title":"Google Search Central — structured data labels each individual element so users can search by ingredient, calorie count, cook time","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-searchable-structured-catalogue-working-tool-june-2026","title":"Research brief: the searchable, structured catalogue as a working tool — when records-not-prose pays off (June 2026)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"ai-citation-eligibility-via-structured-records","title":"AI-citation eligibility via structured records — DIRECTIONAL; vendor-blog driven, Google's own position is \"not a direct ranking factor\"","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-build-catalogue-when-records-numerous-changing-multi-attribute","title":"R1 — Build a searchable, structured catalogue when records are numerous, change often, or carry several independent queryable attributes","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-one-indexable-page-per-record","title":"R3 — One indexable page per record (distinct URL per item / variant) — per Google's merchant-listing guidance","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-self-service-fails-on-findability-deliver-via-structured-records","title":"R5 — Self-service most often fails on findability; deliver self-service via structured, queryable records, not un-queryable documents","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"}]},"created_at":"2026-06-21T13:17:12.605Z","updated_at":"2026-06-21T13:17:12.605Z"}