D
Deleted member 172653
Guest
Here is the technical breakdown concerning these 2 links
https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2014/09/improved-sitelinks-search-box
https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2024/10/sitelinks-search-box
1. The Rise and Fall of the Sitelinks Search Box
* The 2014 Link: This marks the beginning of the feature. Google introduced a way for users to search a specific website directly from the search results page using a dedicated search bar. To make this work, webmasters had to add the WebSite schema with a potentialAction (the code we added to PAGE_CONTAINER).
* The 2024 Link (The Game Changer): This is Google’s official "retirement" notice for the feature. As of late 2024, Google officially stopped displaying the Sitelinks Search Box in global search results. They decided to remove it to simplify the search interface, noting that usage of the box had significantly declined over the years.
2. What does this mean for the code we implemented?
We added the SearchAction schema to Sylvain's forum. Based on this 2024 update:
* The visual result is gone: Even though the code is valid and perfect, Google will not display a search bar under the "Tutoriaux Excalibur" link in the search results anymore.
* No technical penalty: Keeping the code in the template does not hurt the site. It is still valid metadata that identifies the site's search URL, but it no longer triggers a visual feature.
* Cleanliness vs. Future-proofing: Many SEO experts are now removing the potentialAction part of the WebSite schema because it’s "dead code" for Google. However, the Organization part (Logo, Name, Social Links) is still very much alive and crucial for the Knowledge Graph.
3. Strategy for 2026
Since we are now focusing on LLMO (Large Language Models) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), the focus shifts:
* AIs (like the one I am GEMINI PRO) don't need a "visual box" to understand that a site has a search function. They look at the overall structure.
* The TechArticle and SoftwareApplication schemas we just finished are way more important now than the Sitelinks Search Box. Those are the ones that allow AI to extract solutions and give Sylvain's forum credit.
We can leave the code as it is (it's harmless and valid), or we can eventually clean it up to keep only the Organization schema.
The "Search Box" era is officially over, but the "Structured Data" era for AI is just beginning.
https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2014/09/improved-sitelinks-search-box
https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2024/10/sitelinks-search-box
1. The Rise and Fall of the Sitelinks Search Box
* The 2014 Link: This marks the beginning of the feature. Google introduced a way for users to search a specific website directly from the search results page using a dedicated search bar. To make this work, webmasters had to add the WebSite schema with a potentialAction (the code we added to PAGE_CONTAINER).
* The 2024 Link (The Game Changer): This is Google’s official "retirement" notice for the feature. As of late 2024, Google officially stopped displaying the Sitelinks Search Box in global search results. They decided to remove it to simplify the search interface, noting that usage of the box had significantly declined over the years.
2. What does this mean for the code we implemented?
We added the SearchAction schema to Sylvain's forum. Based on this 2024 update:
* The visual result is gone: Even though the code is valid and perfect, Google will not display a search bar under the "Tutoriaux Excalibur" link in the search results anymore.
* No technical penalty: Keeping the code in the template does not hurt the site. It is still valid metadata that identifies the site's search URL, but it no longer triggers a visual feature.
* Cleanliness vs. Future-proofing: Many SEO experts are now removing the potentialAction part of the WebSite schema because it’s "dead code" for Google. However, the Organization part (Logo, Name, Social Links) is still very much alive and crucial for the Knowledge Graph.
3. Strategy for 2026
Since we are now focusing on LLMO (Large Language Models) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), the focus shifts:
* AIs (like the one I am GEMINI PRO) don't need a "visual box" to understand that a site has a search function. They look at the overall structure.
* The TechArticle and SoftwareApplication schemas we just finished are way more important now than the Sitelinks Search Box. Those are the ones that allow AI to extract solutions and give Sylvain's forum credit.
We can leave the code as it is (it's harmless and valid), or we can eventually clean it up to keep only the Organization schema.
The "Search Box" era is officially over, but the "Structured Data" era for AI is just beginning.
Last edited by a moderator:
