When it comes to SEO (search engine optimization), have you ever heard of E-E-A-T? It stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. The term was derived from Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines. This 176-page document is what human Quality Raters use for assessing the quality of search results.
The assessments will then be sent back to Google and used to improve the algorithm and ensure the highest quality, most authoritative content is at the top of the search rankings.
Google’s View on E-E-A-T
You may wonder why Google cares about E-E-A-T. One reason is that Google is trying to ensure that searchers can trust the advice they receive from sites ranked well on Google.
This is something that matters in some niches more than others. The main issue Google is focused on is how E-E-A-T impacts important aspects of searchers’ lives – like finances or health. In fact, the idea of E-E-A-T first gained attention during the “medic” update launched by Google in 2018. This update targeted Your Money, Your Life blogs that had lower E-E-A-T.
Consider it like this – if you have some problematic medical symptoms and search Google to discover what is wrong with you, what type of sites do you want Google to display at the type of SERPs (search engine results pages) – random posts from unknown bloggers or reputable medical websites.
However, E-E-A-T is not just something that blogs offering financial or medical advice should pay attention to – taking steps to improve E-E-A-T for your website will improve your overall search rankings, regardless of what niche your website or blog is in.
How E-E-A-T Impacts SEO
E-E-A-T is crucial for SEO because Google cares about it. This means the better your blogs adhere to E-E-A-T guidelines, the better they will rank in search results.
E-E-A-T impacts SEO indirectly, too. It is not just Google that cares about E-E-A-T – people coming to your site do, too. While your readers may not use the official name for it, they still care if your blog seems trustworthy and authoritative.
Consider this scenario – you are searching for something online and click the first two results in Google. One website seems professional, with high-quality content written by an expert in the field. The other seems low-quality, and the writer does not know much about the topic you need information on.
Which blog would you continue to read? For most, the authoritative and trustworthy one will win every time.
If you have a low E-E-A-T blog, readers will leave. This lets Google know your blog did not provide a good UX – user experience. In turn, this can result in a lower rank in search engines.
It is clear that E-E-A-T is important and something that will not go away any time soon. While this is true, it is just one part of SEO. If you need more information on this, you can contact our team, which offers affordable SEO for small businesses.
Effective Ways to Improve E-E-A-T for Your Blog
Now that you know why it is so important, it is a good idea to learn how to improve the E-E-A-T for your blog.
Link to Authoritative Sources
This is a simple tip, but one that can be highly effective. When you create a blog, consider how you could make it better. Adding authoritative links would be effective in reaching this goal.
For example, if you have a food blog and make a health claim or add nutritional information, link to a reputable source on that information.
By adding authoritative sources (when appropriate), your blog will seem more credible and trustworthy in your readers’ eyes and Google.
Edit Your Blogs Before Posting
Having well-edited blog posts will make your site more trustworthy and authoritative than those that are full of grammar, punctuation, and spelling mistakes.
Part of our affordable SEO for small businesses is quality content that meets the needs of Google and your readers.
Create Longer Blog Posts
Writing longer blog posts will usually mean they are more trustworthy and authoritative. This is because they will be more comprehensive and answer a person’s question more completely.
While this is true, longer posts are only sometimes better. A longer post full of fluff or irrelevant information is less valuable or authoritative than a shorter one written well.
Higher quality, longer blogs usually provide a much better user experience and help you establish yourself as an authority in your specific niche. Authoritative, high-quality content will naturally attract backlinks, which is another sign that Google uses to rate a website’s adherence to E-E-A-T guidelines.
Never Hide Your Identity
According to Google, knowing who is responsible for a website is important. This is an important part of assessing E-E-A-T for most websites. Higher-quality pages will include clear information that ensures users trust the site and the information it contains. Including information about the person responsible for the site’s content is also necessary.
The Quality Raters will then be asked to assess this based on the type of website you have.
This means that you must make it clear who you are. Do not make it challenging for readers and Google to know who is responsible for the site. At the very least, your site needs an “About Me” page. This can be linked to your menu bar. If possible, include a short bio on each site page (this can be below a post or on the sidebar).
If you publish guest posts on your website, make it clear who is authoring each one. It is also wise to include their credentials.
Make the About Page Awesome
An easy and effective way to increase E-E-A-T is by creating a quality “About Me” page that explains who you are and what qualifications you have to write on the topic of your site.
You do not have to include official awards or qualifications; however, this can help. Your personal successes count, too.
Make Your Credentials Known
If you have any official expertise, be sure this is clear when creating your website. Some of the credentials to include are academic qualifications, authoritative sites, awards, publications you are in, and sites you are featured on. The goal is to include anything that shows you are an authority or expert in your niche.
All of this will help improve your E-E-A-T for readers and Google.
Borrow Authority
Another way you can legitimize your website is by “borrowing” authority from other professionals in the niche. There are a few effective ways to do this, which include the following:
- Guest posts created by experts in your niche
- Interviews with experts in your industry
- Having experts vet the content you create
- Creating roundups of expert advice
Having an expert in the field vet the content you create is not something many bloggers have to do. However, if you are in the YMYL space and you do not have personal expertise, it may be an effective way to get around your issue of having no credentials.
For example, if your blogs are focused on healthy eating but do not have official nutrition qualifications, you can have a nutritionist vet your posts. This will help give your blog and website more trustworthiness and authority.
Write Guest Posts
Writing guest posts for other blogs in your niche is an easy and fast way to improve authoritativeness. When you do this, it can help to improve your credibility with Google and with your readers. After all, if you are not an authoritative or trustworthy person, the blog owner will not post your content on their site.
If you want to find sites that offer guest posts, you can conduct a Google search for [Your Niche] and write for us. You can also reach out to bloggers whom you know and ask if you can post content on their sites.
You can take this concept to another level by pitching article ideas to newspapers and magazines.
Create a Presence on Social Media and Remain Present
Even if social media is not the most effective way to drive traffic to your site and blog, it can help in small ways. Being present on social media will boost your E-E-A-T since social media provides another external validation that shows you are an expert and know your niche.
It is worth mentioning that you do not have to spend multiple hours a day on social media to earn the E-E-A-T benefits. Just be present on the channels that matter to your niche. Complete your bios and update things from time to time.
We Can Help Improve E-E-A-T for Your Website
If you are ready to improve E-E-A-T for your website, we can help. Our company offers affordable SEO for small businesses. With our help, you can achieve your goals and be viewed as an authority in your niche.
The first step is to contact our office so we can evaluate your existing efforts. We are ready to help you achieve your goals and get more visibility for your site.
By, Peter Roesler, President of Small Business SEO. 25+ years in marketing! Yippee.
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