Library·SOP·SEO
Help Google understand your WordPress article by checking its author, dates, image, and article settings in Rank Math.
Last reviewed: · Editorial review
Clarity, structure and references reviewed in this version. This is not a test in a live account.
Help Google understand your WordPress article by checking its author, dates, image, and article settings in Rank Math.
This SOP covers:
This does not cover:
Structured data is information in a format search engines can read. Rank Math may already add it, so check one public Post before changing a setting or adding schema.
In WordPress, open the published item from Posts and confirm it is an ordinary article or blog post, not a Page or product. Open its public URL in another tab. Compare the reader-facing headline, byline, any displayed dates, and main image with the post title, actual author, original publication record, and Featured Image. Keep the public tab open for the final comparison.
Open Google's Rich Results Test, enter the public post URL, and select Test URL. Check whether the result contains an Article item and whether any errors, warnings, or second Article items appear. This is your starting result; do not add a new schema item yet.
In WordPress, open Plugins > Installed Plugins and confirm Rank Math SEO is active. Check that another active SEO or schema plugin is not also set to produce article markup. If the test found one accurate Article item and Rank Math is the only SEO plugin, keep the existing item and continue to check its source values. If another generator is active or ownership is unclear, have the site administrator choose one owner before continuing.
Rank Math uses information already stored in WordPress and the site's identity settings. Correct those sources so the markup agrees with the article and its publisher.
Correct only the post source fields that are wrong. Use the lettered checks below to compare the headline, author, dates, and Featured Image with the real article.
Check that the WordPress post title matches the headline readers see at the top of the article. If the existing schema headline is wrong, correct the Article item's HEADLINE field in Schema Builder in the later Article-schema check.
Choose the WordPress user who actually wrote the article or is credited by the site. If the byline uses a different public name, ask the content owner to correct the author profile or the page's byline before you continue.
Use the editorial record to confirm when the article first went live. WordPress records a modified time when a genuine content update is saved; do not invent or backdate dates to make the article look newer. If a date seems wrong, confirm the record with the content owner instead of assuming the editor has a separate manual modified-date field.
In the Post settings sidebar, select Set featured image and choose the image that best represents the article. Use an image that appears with the article or clearly depicts its subject, not the site logo. If no relevant image is available, leave this field unset.
Open Rank Math SEO > Dashboard and check the Schema (Structured Data) module. If it is off, turn it on so Rank Math can produce the Article markup, then save the setting.
Open Rank Math SEO > Titles & Meta > Local SEO. Compare each setting with the right site record in the short checks below; keep accurate values and save only a correction.
Compare Person or Company with the site's known identity. Keep the current choice if it is accurate; change it only when reliable site information shows it is wrong.
For Website Name, use the public brand shown in the site header or About page. Separately, for Person/Organization Name, use the actual publisher named in reliable business, profile, or About information. They can differ. Keep each correct value and ask the owner only if its source is unclear or conflicting.
If the site uses a real logo, confirm the selected image is that logo and keep it when correct. Select the real logo only if the current choice is wrong; leave an alternate name empty when the site has none.
Save the Local SEO settings only if you changed one or more values. If the existing identity was already accurate, leave it unchanged.
Open Rank Math SEO > Titles & Meta > Posts and review the two separate settings using the lettered checks below. If you change either default, select Save Changes, reopen Posts, and confirm it stayed saved. If both current values are already accurate, leave them unchanged; no save is needed.
In the Schema Type dropdown, choose Article for ordinary article Posts. This selects the schema family; the next setting chooses the Article subtype.
In the separate Article Type control, Blog Post is the more specific choice for ordinary blog Posts; general Article is also valid. Keep an accurate current Article choice. Use News Article only for actual news reporting.
This default applies to existing Posts with no per-post schema selection as well as new ones. Change it only if it describes the Posts that use the default; if Posts vary, leave it and use the individual Post setting instead.
In the WordPress block editor (Gutenberg), click Rank Math in the top bar, then open Schema in the sidebar. Check the existing item, headline, and saved result using the lettered checks below.
In the Rank Math sidebar’s Schema tab, check Schema in Use. Click the pencil/edit icon to open an existing Article. If none exists, use Schema Generator to add one Article item once; do not add a second item.
In Schema Builder, the HEADLINE field defaults to %seo_title%. Compare it with the article. A website-name suffix alone is not an error; keep the automatic value when it accurately identifies the article. If it is wrong, use %title% when that matches the article, or enter an accurate headline in this item.
Select Save for this Post in Schema Builder. Reopen Schema and confirm Schema in Use still shows one suitable item.
Use Google’s Rich Results Test to read the saved public URL. Check the article values and errors; a passing test shows Google can read supported markup, but cannot promise a special Search result.
Save the WordPress post with the main editor button shown on your site—Save or Update. Rank Math’s Schema Builder has its own Save for this Post action. If the values and output were already correct, leave them unchanged.
Run the public URL through Google’s Rich Results Test again. Confirm it detects one suitable Article or Blog Posting item. Compare its headline, author, dates, image, and publisher details with the saved sources. Resolve critical errors; optional recommendations are not proof the item is invalid.
Use the final test result to find each incorrect source, correct it, save the post, and test the same public URL again. The lettered checks below map common mismatches to their source.
A website-name suffix alone does not make an Article headline wrong. If the text is inaccurate, correct the WordPress title when it is wrong; if the source title is correct, change the existing Schema Builder HEADLINE to %title% when it matches or enter an accurate headline, then retest.
For an author mismatch, set the post’s Author to the person actually credited in the article. If the public byline and WordPress author disagree, ask the content owner which is accurate before changing either.
For a date mismatch, compare the output with the original publication record and any genuine saved modification time. Do not change a correct date to satisfy the test; ask the content owner to resolve a conflict in the source record.
For an image mismatch, select the relevant article image as the WordPress Featured Image. Leave it unset if no suitable image exists; do not use the site logo as a substitute.
For a publisher mismatch, correct Rank Math’s site identity with the site owner’s confirmed person-or-organization name and real logo, if used.
If more than one Article item appears, or the source of an incorrect value is unclear, stop and ask the site administrator to identify the generator. Do not switch off an unknown plugin or theme setting.
