Issue 63

What is this issue?

Event listing pages are missing Event schema, preventing the event from appearing in Google's Events carousel, event rich results, and Google Maps event listings.

Without Event schema:

Your events won't appear in Google's Events carousel
Event details won't show in rich results (date, time, location)
Events won't be listed in Google Maps event listings
Users can't easily add events to their calendars from search results
Ticket links won't appear in search results

A proper Event schema should include: @type (Event), name, startDate, location, and optionally endDate, eventStatus, eventAttendanceMode, offers, description, image.

Why does it matter?

Event schema is critical for event visibility and user engagement:

Google Events carousel: Events with proper schema can appear in Google's dedicated Events carousel
Rich results: Enables event details (date, time, location, price) to appear in search results
Google Maps: Events are listed in Google Maps event listings
Calendar integration: Users can add events to their calendars directly from search results
Ticket sales: Ticket links and pricing can appear in search results
Voice search: Voice assistants can provide event details and ticket information

Resolving this issue improves your SEO health score by ensuring events are properly structured for maximum visibility and user engagement.

How to fix it

Identify event pages: Look for pages with event URL patterns (/events/, /conference/, /webinar/) or visible date/time/location information

Add Event JSON-LD structured data to the page's <head> or before </body>:

For in-person events:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Event",
  "name": "Annual Tech Conference 2024",
  "startDate": "2024-09-15T09:00:00-05:00",
  "endDate": "2024-09-16T18:00:00-05:00",
  "eventStatus": "https://schema.org/EventScheduled",
  "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode",
  "location": {
    "@type": "Place",
    "name": "Austin Convention Center",
    "address": {
      "@type": "PostalAddress",
      "addressLocality": "Austin",
      "addressRegion": "TX",
      "addressCountry": "US"
    }
  },
  "offers": {
    "@type": "Offer",
    "price": "299",
    "priceCurrency": "USD",
    "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock"
  }
}

For online events: Use "@type": "VirtualLocation" with a url property

Include required properties:
- name: Event name
- startDate: ISO 8601 format with timezone
- location: Place or VirtualLocation
Add recommended properties:
- endDate: Event end date/time
- eventStatus: Scheduled, Cancelled, or Postponed
- eventAttendanceMode: In-person, online, or mixed
- offers: Ticket pricing and availability
- description: Event description
- image: Event image URL
Validate with Google's Rich Results Test

Examples

Example 1: Missing Event Schema on Event Page

Problematic state:

<!-- Event page without Event schema -->
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Annual Tech Conference 2024</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Annual Tech Conference 2024</h1>
    <p><strong>Date:</strong> September 15-16, 2024</p>
    <p><strong>Location:</strong> Austin Convention Center</p>
    <p><strong>Price:</strong> $299</p>
    <button>Register Now</button>
  </body>
</html>

Corrected state:

<!-- Event page with Event schema -->
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Annual Tech Conference 2024</title>
    <script type="application/ld+json">
      {
        "@context": "https://schema.org",
        "@type": "Event",
        "name": "Annual Tech Conference 2024",
        "startDate": "2024-09-15T09:00:00-05:00",
        "endDate": "2024-09-16T18:00:00-05:00",
        "eventStatus": "https://schema.org/EventScheduled",
        "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode",
        "location": {
          "@type": "Place",
          "name": "Austin Convention Center",
          "address": {
            "@type": "PostalAddress",
            "addressLocality": "Austin",
            "addressRegion": "TX",
            "addressCountry": "US"
          }
        },
        "offers": {
          "@type": "Offer",
          "price": "299",
          "priceCurrency": "USD",
          "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock"
        }
      }
    </script>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Annual Tech Conference 2024</h1>
    <p><strong>Date:</strong> September 15-16, 2024</p>
    <p><strong>Location:</strong> Austin Convention Center</p>
    <p><strong>Price:</strong> $299</p>
    <button>Register Now</button>
  </body>
</html>

Example 2: Online Event with VirtualLocation

Corrected state (webinar):

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Event",
  "name": "SEO Webinar: Advanced Techniques",
  "startDate": "2024-04-10T14:00:00Z",
  "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OnlineEventAttendanceMode",
  "location": {
    "@type": "VirtualLocation",
    "url": "https://zoom.us/j/123456789"
  }
}

Example 3: Incomplete Event Schema