Following the launch of Google For Jobs last month, many questions have been raised by employers about how to use the feature correctly.
A Google employee has published a thread in the Webmaster Central Help Forum with answers to the most frequently asked questions.
More questions are welcomed, so the FAQ might be expanded on in the future. With that said, I will recap the key pieces of information that are in there as of today.
Google For Jobs FAQ
Job Postings Not Showing Up in Search?
Using the job posting structured data does not guarantee your postings will appear in search results.
If your job postings are not showing up in Search, it’s recommended that you validate the markup using the Structured Data Testing Tool.
Further recommendations include checking your sitemap for errors, and going through your Rich Cards Report in Search Console which may highlight any potential issues.
Search Console’s Rich Cards Report will also show you which postings are currently being indexed.
Do’s and Don’ts
If you have separate mobile and desktop pages, markup should be included on all sets of pages.
Job posting markup should only be used on pages for individual job postings. It should not be included on job listings pages, such as a page that includes links to multiple job postings.
On that note, pages for job listings should not be included in your sitemap. If you choose to include them in your sitemap, then make sure they do not contain job posting markup.
Only canonical links should be provided in a sitemap – not URLs appended with a tag or other parameters.
Google prefers JSON over Microdata markup, but it will accept both. However, it’s recommended that you only use one type of markup per page.
If you end up with a sitemap that no longer has valid job posting URLs, simply removing it from the sitemap index file is not recommended. Instead, provide Google with an empty sitemap and then remove it the next day.
