The blue title on Google, what it should say
Two lines decide whether people click on you. You can write them yourself. Here's how, with an example.
Arnaud5 min
The ID card hidden in your website
Nobody sees it, but Google reads it: who you are, what you do, where. What it holds, what it doesn't do, and how to check yours.
ArnaudNovember 12, 20266 min
The key points
- Your site's ID card is its structured data: a small block in the code, invisible to your visitors, that files your name, your business type, your address and your hours.
- Google uses it to understand your pages and for some rich results. It has to say exactly what the page says.
- For AI tools, it isn't enough: some of them don't read it when they open a page. So write the same details in plain text on your site too.
Summarize withChatGPTClaudePerplexity
A person sees right away that a page is about a garage in Annecy. A machine has to work it out. The ID card helps it stop guessing.
What is a website's ID card?
Professionals call it structured data. It's a tidy list hidden in the page's code: one field for the name, one for the business type, one for the address. Your visitors never see it.
On a plumber's site, for example, it says: plumber, in Annecy. In one line, a machine knows which box the business goes in. Google states that it uses this data to understand what a page is about.
What it holds
For a local business, four details do most of the work.
The ID card of a local business
| Field | Example | What it's for |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Your company name | Not being mixed up with a namesake |
| Business type | Plumber, restaurant, accounting firm | Being filed in the right category |
| Address and area | Your town, your service areas | Saying where you work |
| Contact and hours | Phone, opening days | Answering people as they search |
What you don't say clearly,a machine guesses
A plumber's example
Take a plumber in Annecy, a made-up example. On the page, a visitor reads a sentence. In the code, the record files the same facts into boxes, and a machine has nothing left to interpret.
A plumber's record, as a machine files it
| Field | What it says |
|---|---|
| Type | Plumber |
| City | Annecy |
| Area | Annecy and around |
| Hours | Monday to Saturday |
| Phone | Their number |
When someone asks an AI for a plumber open on Saturdays near Annecy, those details help it answer, as long as they are also written in plain text on the page. In a test published by RESONEO in January 2026, ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini did not read this block when they opened a page on demand, during a conversation.
The most common mistakes
Four mistakes to fix
| Mistake | What happens |
|---|---|
| A different address on the site and on your Google profile | The machine no longer knows which one is right |
| Opening hours never updated | A customer makes the trip for nothing and doesn't come back |
| The record only on the home page | Your service pages stay unexplained |
| Details that are not on the page | Google may ignore them: the record has to say what the page says |
How to check yours
Ask your provider whether your site has structured data, and which kind. If they can't answer clearly, take note. Our online analysis looks at this too.
Run the free analysis of your site: in a few minutes it shows you what machines read.
What it doesn't do
A well-filled card won't put you first on its own. It removes one source of error. You still need good pages, real reviews and an up-to-date Google listing.
Does it help with AI answers?
For a long time, this record mostly served to get rich results in Google, the results that show more than a plain blue link. For its AI answers, Google states that structured data is not required and that no special markup is needed. It still recommends it for the rest of Search.
For ChatGPT, Claude or Perplexity, nothing is guaranteed, as the test above shows. So the rule is simple: whatever the record says, the page has to say too, in readable text. The record files, the text proves.
Keep one limit in mind: nobody controls what an AI answers. A clean record and clear text improve your chances of being understood correctly, but they never guarantee a mention. To see where you stand, read how to tell if AI tools cite you.
One record per type of page
The record doesn't say the same thing everywhere. Your homepage presents the business. A service page presents that service. An article presents its author and date.
What each page can declare
| The page | What its record files |
|---|---|
| Homepage | The business, what it does, its address, its hours |
| Service page | The service, the area covered, the business offering it |
| Article | The title, the author, the date |
What about FAQs? Since May 2026, Google no longer shows them as rich results. Keep them on your pages for your visitors, in plain text: that text is what counts.
A five-page site doesn't need a big project for this. When it's planned from the start, every page ships with its record and there's nothing more to think about.
The same address everywhere
The record doesn't live alone. Google and AI tools also find your Google Business Profile, your pages and the directories you appear in. If your name is written three ways, or an old number is still floating around, they can get it wrong.
Take ten minutes. Look up your business, note the name, address and phone number everywhere they appear, and fix whatever differs. It's probably the cheapest check in all your SEO.
What you can ask your web provider
You don't have to read the code. Ask three simple questions, and have them show you the result.
Three questions, no jargon
| What you ask | What you should get |
|---|---|
| Which pages have a record? | A list, not just the homepage |
| What does the record on my service page say? | The same service and area as the page |
| Who updates it if my hours change? | A name, and a timeframe |
If we didn't build your site, that's not a problem: we audit all sites. To work in the code, we need access. If your platform doesn't allow it, we pass the instructions to your provider.
All of that is part of our visibility work, and every site we build launches with its ID card.
Arnaud
Managing director
Arnaud designs your websites, from experience to interface, and their visibility on Google and AI.
Read next to go further
SEO: why it takes 3 to 6 months
SEO is slow, and nobody can promise you first place. What happens during those months, and what can move faster.
Arnaud5 minWhat to get ready before you launch an ad
A clear offer, a page to land on, a way to measure. The list of what has to be ready so you don't pay for nothing.
Manon6 min
