What’s this about Google My Business & Menus?
This is an extract from TWIS SEO News & Updates 14 July 2017.
At last! Google Local, in the US at least, is showing a menu tab for some restaurants. I can’t wait to be rid of the horrible PDF download, pinch and zoom. Read about it & how to move from PDF to HTML and structured data.
If you would like to discuss ways to structured data can help your web visibility, please feel free to contact me.
#GoogleLocal #StructuredData #Redirects
Menu Tab Hits Google Local
Summary:
- The most frustrating part of restaurant hunting may be near to an end as Google inserts a menu tab into the local listing.
- This will let users check out the menu before deciding to book, or confirm that .
- It may also mean an end to the infuriating over-blown restaurant websites with impossible to find PDF menus.
- I can’t wait personally, although this only appears to have made it to select restaurants in the US currently.
- Try the wings, they look good.
Actions to take:
- If you haven’t already, it really is time to retire the PDF menu in favour of an HTML solution.
- Use the Schema.org structured data markup for restaurants and menus, as Google doesn;t have a specific structured data type for this yet.
- Don’t forget to 301 redirect the URL for the old-school PDF menu to the shiny new marked-up HTML page, and update any internal links pointing to it.
- Contact me if you would like to discuss this further.
Discussion:
The single most frustrating thing about choosing a restaurant is the download and opening of the PDF menus that most seem to use. It’s nearly as annoying as the Flash sites that all restaurant websites were built in. It was so prevalent, I thought it was a law that all restaurant sites had to run on Flash.
Even though this is currently US only, and it is not for every restaurant, it’s a good move forward, and will hopefully eventually wend its way to more global listings.
It makes a good deal of sense to use structured markup for the HTML version of the menu – that would really help Google and others interpret and index the menu.
Generally, if you run a restaurant, and you get a lot of searches, or visits to your menu, it makes a huge amount of sense to get this done. PDF menus are from the dark ages.
More info:
Mobile First is NOT Mobile Friendly
TL;DR
- Google Local is rolling out a menu tab for restaurants in the US.
- No specific structured data type in Google for this, by there is Schema.org markup.
- Use it and get rid of menu PDFs.
- Read The State of SEO in mid-2017.
- Read about how Google’s Mobile First Index is not Mobile Friendly.
Thanks for reading. If you would like to discuss what these changes mean for your web property, or would like to know how to implement them, please feel free to contact me.
