{"id":1832,"slug":"google-structured-data-eligibility-not-ranking-correction","title":"Google documentation — structured data makes pages ELIGIBLE for rich results, NOT a generic ranking boost (\"enables a feature to be present, does not guarantee that it will be present\")","kind":"reference","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","dev","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["schema-org","editorial-discipline","structured-data-mechanics","rich-results-eligibility"],"reference_body":"**Claim (verbatim from Google):** *\"Using structured data enables a feature to be present, it does not guarantee that it will be present.\"* Structured data confers **rich-result eligibility**, not ranking.\n\n**Source:** developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/sd-policies — current.\n\n**Confidence:** Verified (primary documentation).\n\n**Why this matters for Candid:** Direct refutation of the widespread vendor claim that \"schema markup boosts rankings.\" Anchors [[rule-schema-is-eligibility-not-ranking-stop-claiming-otherwise]] and pairs with [[mueller-no-generic-ranking-boost-for-structured-data]].","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-website-as-working-surface-june-2026","title":"Research brief: the website as a working surface of the business — four capabilities, AI-citation decoupling, freshness as a real signal (June 2026)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"mueller-no-generic-ranking-boost-for-structured-data","title":"John Mueller (Google) via Search Engine Journal — \"There's no generic ranking boost for SD usage\"","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"google-faq-rich-results-deprecation-may-2026","title":"Google has been NARROWING rich-result features — FAQ rich results deprecated May 7, 2026; seven types retired June 2025","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"gap-no-independent-primary-evidence-schema-improves-ai-citation","title":"GAP — no independent or primary evidence that schema markup ITSELF improves AI-answer citation; vendor claims (FAQ schema → 2.8× citations, author schema → 3×) are single-source and unverified","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"},{"slug":"capability-structured-queryable-data","title":"Capability 1 — structured, queryable data: content stored as records with fields, types and relationships so it can be filtered, sorted, searched, and assembled on demand","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"rule-schema-is-eligibility-not-ranking-stop-claiming-otherwise","title":"R2 — Schema markup is rich-result ELIGIBILITY, not a ranking boost; stop claiming otherwise in client materials","kind":"rule","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}]},"created_at":"2026-06-21T13:17:17.744Z","updated_at":"2026-06-21T13:17:17.744Z"}