Schema markup guide for independent service businesses.
Schema types, required properties, and implementation guidance for hotels, restaurants, spas, medical practices, law firms, and tour operators.
Schema markup is JSON-LD code embedded in a website's HTML that explicitly declares what a business is, where it is, and what it offers in a format AI systems and search engines can parse directly. The correct schema type for the category is critical: LodgingBusiness for hotels, Restaurant for restaurants, Physician for medical practices, and so on.
Without the correct type and all required properties, AI systems cannot classify the business with confidence and will not consistently recommend it. With correct schema, the business becomes machine-readable.
The schema type reference table
| Business Type | Primary Schema Type | Key Additional Types |
|---|---|---|
| Hotel / B&B / Inn | LodgingBusiness, Hotel | FAQPage, BreadcrumbList, OfferCatalog |
| Restaurant | Restaurant, FoodEstablishment | Menu, FAQPage, BreadcrumbList |
| Day Spa / Med Spa | SpaOrBeautyParlor | Service, FAQPage, HealthAndBeautyBusiness |
| Medical / Dental | Physician, Dentist, MedicalClinic | MedicalSpecialty, FAQPage |
| Law Firm | LegalService, Attorney | Service, FAQPage |
| Tour Operator | TouristAttraction, TouristTrip | Event, FAQPage |
| Wellness Retreat | Resort, LodgingBusiness | SpaOrBeautyParlor, FAQPage |
Universal required properties
// Required for every business type: "@type": "[correct type]", "name": "Exact legal business name", "url": "https://yourdomain.com", "telephone": "+1-xxx-xxx-xxxx", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "Street address", "addressLocality": "City", "addressRegion": "State abbreviation", "postalCode": "ZIP code", "addressCountry": "US" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": 00.0000, "longitude": -00.0000 }, "image": ["https://yourdomain.com/images/main.jpg"], "aggregateRating": { "@type": "AggregateRating", "ratingValue": "4.8", "reviewCount": "312" }, "sameAs": [ "https://maps.google.com/?cid=...", "https://www.tripadvisor.com/..." ]
Category-specific required additions
Hotels: checkinTime, checkoutTime, numberOfRooms, priceRange, amenityFeature.
Restaurants:servesCuisine, hasMenu, acceptsReservations, openingHoursSpecification, priceRange.
Medical:medicalSpecialty, isAcceptingNewPatients, availableService, healthPlanAcceptance.
Legal: areaServed, knowsAbout, makesOffer, hasCredential.
Spas: hasOfferCatalog, openingHoursSpecification, priceRange.
Tour operators:duration, touristType, availableLanguage, itinerary.
How to validate your schema
Two tools, both free: Google Rich Results Test (search.google.com/test/rich-results) and the Schema Markup Validator (validator.schema.org). Run both. A schema can be structurally valid but not pass Rich Results, or pass Rich Results but still have structural warnings.
FAQ
The primary business entity schema lives on the homepage. Service pages benefit from Service schema. FAQ pages use FAQPage schema. BreadcrumbList should appear on all non-homepage pages.
Google ignores invalid schema. Errors in the Rich Results Test mean the schema is not producing rich results and may not contribute to AI classification. All errors should be fixed before completion.
Yes. JSON-LD is added to the HTML head section. The complexity is getting all required properties correct for the specific schema type.
No. Schema markup is for search engines and AI systems. Open Graph tags are for social platforms and link previews. Both are needed.