Let’s discuss a critical shift that is happening in the world of search that directly impacts your marketing strategy's online visibility, lead generation, and brand authority - and, therefore, your growth and profitability. It’s all about artificial intelligence.
AI structures, now embedded in all search engines, have pulled the rug out from under our usual digital marketing strategies. For example, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and keyword-focused content are no longer working to draw targeted traffic the way they have in the past. Firms that have worked hard for years on their content strategy are finding that the return on their effort in traffic and visibility is declining. Even paid search is costing more and providing lower returns.
Don’t despair! There is an answer and a workaround for the AI search dilemma —schema markup (aka structured data). This little-known special code has become essential for ensuring that search engines and AI-driven platforms(i.e., Google) see, interpret, and present your business correctly. As you may know, being found in search is critical to the long-term growth of your business.
As CEO, you may never have to deal with the technical task of putting schema markup on your company website - but that doesn’t mean it’s not your responsibility to make sure it happens as part of your strategy. Without getting too technical, let’s review why we need to prioritize schema markup as part of our marketing strategy and what to do next.
Schema Markup is not new. According to Wikipedia, Google, Bing, and Yahoo collaborated to create a common vocabulary for structured data markup on web pages in 2011. Schema acts as a roadmap for search engines, helping them accurately understand your company, services, and products.
For us in renewable energy, this means:
Without structured data, search engines are left to guess the context of your content, which could lead to misinformation or lower rankings in search results.
Schema markup enables rich search results, where additional information—such as star ratings, pricing, product details, and job postings—appears directly in search listings.
For us, this means:
✅ Higher Click-Through Rates (CTR): Listings with rich results stand out and attract more engagement (ie. visits to our website or phone calls).
✅ Increased Leads: More visibility leads to more inquiries and conversions.
✅ Enhanced Trust and Credibility: Prospects see detailed information upfront, positioning you as a leader in the renewable energy space.
Example: If we use schema markup on our solar panel product pages, Google can display pricing, availability, and customer reviews directly in search results—leading to a stronger competitive edge.
🔹 Key takeaway: We need to implement schema markup across key service and product pages to take advantage of these enhanced search results.
AI tools like Google’s AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Perplexity are increasingly pulling data directly from websites to provide answers—often before a user even clicks on a link. According to a recent report from SEER, this is killing click-through rates (the rate at which the searcher actually clicks through to your website) for organic and paid searches.
Without schema markup, AI could misinterpret your company or services, leading to inaccuracies that damage your credibility.
Schema Markup ensures:
🔹 Key takeaway: Structure your website data so that AI-driven search tools categorize your brand correctly and position you as an authority.
Search engines are evolving from keyword-based rankings to entity-based search. This means Google is prioritizing the relationships between topics, brands, and services rather than just individual keywords.
For example, instead of ranking for “solar panels near me,” schema markup allows Local Google Search to identify your company as a leading solar solutions provider in specific locations. This makes your business more discoverable—even when users aren’t searching for exact keyword matches.
Image of a business with Schema Markup:
🔹 Key take away: We need to shift from keyword-driven SEO to structured, entity-based optimization using schema markup.
By implementing schema markup, we create a Knowledge Graph that links all relevant information about our business—our products, services, team members, locations, and industry connections. Having a solid Knowledge Graph within our website is the ticket to play in the new AI dominated world of search. Without a good search game, we will become invisible to the world.
This is crucial because:
🔹 Key takeaway: We need to start with high-quality, original content on our website and then annotate our content using types and properties from the Schema vocabulary, including rich content like images and videos.
We should start by adding structured data to: ✅ Product and service pages (solar panels, wind turbines, battery storage) ✅ Customer reviews and testimonials ✅ Job postings to improve hiring visibility ✅ Locations and service areas to boost local search rankings
We can use HubSpot’s AI Search Grader to first uncover your Brand’s visibility in AI search engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini.
We can use Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper and Rich Results Test to implement and verify schema markup.
If you use WordPress, HubSpot, or Shopify, we can apply schema markup using plugins. Otherwise, you’ll need a website development team to manually add JSON-LD schema code to your website.
Structured data isn’t a one-time fix. We need to test, optimize, and expand schema implementation as new services and products are added.
I cannot stress enough how crucial schema markup is to your future visibility and growth. The landscape of search and AI is shifting rapidly, and we cannot afford to fall behind. Without structured data, we risk losing visibility, credibility, and ultimately, potential business opportunities.
By implementing schema markup, we ensure that Google and AI-driven search engines recognize you as a leading renewable energy business, driving more qualified traffic and positioning your company as the industry authority it deserves to be. This is not just an SEO enhancement; it is a long-term investment in the sustainability and growth of your business.
We have the opportunity to take control of how your brand is perceived in search and secure a competitive advantage in an AI-driven world. Let’s make this a priority now—before your competitors do.
Next Step:
Give this article to your marketing team for implementation. Or request a consultation with Essential CMO.
Essential CMO is your Fractional Chief Marketing Officer for the renewable energy industry and is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan with clients across the United States and Canada. Essential CMO is owned by Marketing Monsoon, LLC, a growth agency specializing in lead generation, client acquisition, and customer engagement with alternative energy, healthcare-related, and HR consulting companies. To schedule a Marketing Clarity Call, contact us at 866-851-1793 or schedule a call online.