JSON-LD
JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data) is the recommended format for structured data markup that search engines and AI engines use to understand page content. It is the data format behind Structural Pressure.
Why JSON-LD Over Microdata
JSON-LD is embedded in a <script> tag separate from the HTML markup. This makes it easier to maintain, less error-prone than inline Microdata or RDFa, and recommended by Google. It also allows complex entity relationships through @graph architecture without cluttering the visible HTML.
@graph Architecture
The @graph property allows multiple schema entities in a single script tag. Instead of separate scripts for Organization, WebPage, and Article, a single @graph array contains all entities connected through @id references. This is the foundation of Schema-Stitch.
How AI Engines Use It
AI engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity parse JSON-LD to understand entity types, relationships, and authorship. Complete JSON-LD with author, organization, and sameAs references gives AI engines confidence in the source's authority, increasing citation probability.
Related Terms
- Schema-Stitch — Linking entities across pages using @id
- Structural Pressure — The pillar built on JSON-LD architecture
- Schema @graph — The multi-entity container format
- Knowledge Graph — Google's entity database fed by JSON-LD