Nested Person / Author Schema

Two <script type="application/ld+json"> blocks: the Person block on the author profile page, the Article block on every content page. The @id cross-linking pattern is the mechanism — a stable URL identifies the author as an entity, and every article they wrote references that same identifier. The @id must stay stable; changing it breaks the entity connection for every article that referenced the old one.

Person block

Place on the author profile page (/about/jane-smith/ or equivalent).

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Person",
  "@id": "REQUIRED -- canonical URL for this author (e.g. https://example.com/about/jane-smith#author)",
  "name": "REQUIRED -- full display name",
  "url": "REQUIRED -- author profile or about page URL",
  "image": {
    "@type": "ImageObject",
    "url": "RECOMMENDED -- absolute URL to author headshot",
    "width": 400,
    "height": 400
  },
  "jobTitle": "RECOMMENDED -- primary professional title",
  "description": "RECOMMENDED -- one sentence authoritative bio, no marketing language",
  "sameAs": [
    "RECOMMENDED -- LinkedIn profile URL",
    "OPTIONAL -- Twitter/X profile URL",
    "OPTIONAL -- Wikipedia article URL if exists",
    "OPTIONAL -- Wikidata item URL (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q...)"
  ],
  "knowsAbout": [
    "OPTIONAL -- topic area string, e.g. Search Engine Optimisation"
  ],
  "worksFor": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "@id": "OPTIONAL -- link to your Organization @id to cross-reference entities",
    "name": "REQUIRED if worksFor present -- employer name"
  },
  "alumniOf": {
    "@type": "EducationalOrganization",
    "name": "OPTIONAL -- degree-granting institution for credentialing context"
  },
  "hasCredential": {
    "@type": "EducationalOccupationalCredential",
    "name": "OPTIONAL -- certification or credential name",
    "url": "OPTIONAL -- issuing body URL"
  }
}

Article reference

Place on each article page. author.@id must exactly match the @id in the Person block — this is the cross-link that connects content to the author entity.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "@id": "REQUIRED -- canonical URL of this article",
  "headline": "REQUIRED -- article title",
  "url": "REQUIRED -- canonical URL",
  "datePublished": "REQUIRED -- ISO 8601 date, e.g. 2025-03-15",
  "dateModified": "REQUIRED -- ISO 8601 date",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "@id": "REQUIRED -- must match the @id in the standalone Person block above",
    "name": "REQUIRED -- same full name as in the Person block"
  },
  "publisher": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "@id": "REQUIRED -- must match your Organization @id",
    "name": "REQUIRED -- same name as in the Organization block"
  }
}

Field notes

• @id is the entity anchor — every article’s author.@id must resolve to the same string as the Person @id; a mismatch breaks the entity graph connection.
• sameAs is where disambiguation happens — include LinkedIn, Twitter/X, and Wikipedia or Wikidata if they exist.
• knowsAbout signals topical authority — use the same vocabulary as the page topics you want the author associated with.
• Cross-link to Organization via worksFor.@id — both must use consistent @id values.
• Test in the Rich Results Test — errors on the author profile page suppress author signals across every article referencing the same @id.