Google has over 200 ranking factors. I concentrate on the psychology side of what this giant of a search engine wants from a website’s copy & blog pages to match a user search.
EEAT stands for experience, expertise, authority and trust.
Can you write and offer your orgnisation’s online presence that includes EEAT?
Ever heard of the acronym in digital marketing “E-E-A-T”? This is Google’s framework to distinguish high-quality content and I am going to take you through its meaning and how you can achieve searchable content in this blog!
“Without a strategy, content is just stuff, and the world has enough stuff.”
Arjun Basu
Ever since the inception of Internet Marketing, the importance of creating “High-Quality Content” has only increased. Content is still very much the heart of a brand, and decides the success or failure of a marketing strategy.
Generative AI sources content across the internet and gleans from high ranking search results. The emphasis from Google is on quality content, this is a no brainer as free low quality GenAI content is pouring into the web.
In its Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines, published in 2014, Google first introduced the E-A-T Concept (yes, the extra “E” has since beeen added – read on). Since then, it is one of the prime topics of discussion for many SEOs and Digital Marketers. After the Google Algorithm Update, released in August 2018, E-A-T has grabbed the spotlight, meaning yes, check your website tech is working but that should be a given. In the last couple of years Google “Raters” have confirmed that EXPERIENCE is another quality evaluation requirement it wants, hence E-E-A-T.
It’s the content and the way it’s researched, drafted and implemented into a website blog and thereafter marketing strategies that make a huge difference.
In this post, I’m going on a detailed tour on the subject of what Google and other Search Engines consider essential factors to creating high-quality content. I want to help you understand how to ensure you write to adhere to Google’s needs to start ranking effectively.
Here are four factors to consider:
- What is E-E-A-T?
- What is Y-M-Y-L?
- How E-E-A-T is evaluated?
- Is E-E-A-T a ranking factor?
What is E-E-A-T in Content Writing and Digital Marketing?
The technical description goes like this, “it helps a webmaster understand what Google looks for in a web page.” Clearly an acronym E-E-A-T stands for:
E – Experience
E – Expertise
A – Authority
T – Trust
Putting it simply, Google et al are loaded with content on different subjects and there is so much noise on the internet. But not all this content shares genuine information. Google upholds its reputation for being the best because it offers searchers E-E-A-T answers, so if it didn’t have rules on what web content is trustworthy for (as an example), then relying on details without being policed (I’m not just talking GDPR), could take a great toll financially, physically or even mentally on a searcher.
Example: “debt recovery advice” – if someone searches with this “keyword” (phrase), thousands of results will appear on the search engine results pages (“SERPs”).
Each page provides some information about the topic, but Google can’t decide which page, among these hundreds of thousands, gives us genuine answers to the queries. This is when E-E-A-T comes into the picture!
E-E-A-T helps Google to prioritise the results based on the Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness of any web page and its contents.
How E-E-A-T is evaluated?
How E-E-A-T is evaluated for a particular web page is the biggest headache for digital marketers and SEO specialists. I have come across detailed discussions about the different aspects of E-E-A-T. But remember, the Search Quality Guidelines do not provide any direct answers, it gives us CLUES.
I’ve spent a long time analysing those clues and now I’m going to share my findings with you.
EXPERIENCE
When Google is determining our webpage quality, its Raters consider the “creator’s” first-hand experience of the information it is publishing.
Would you trust a person who has had first-hand experience of a service or product, or a third party’s review? Google is signaling that it values the content creator’s credentials, reputation, and first-hand experience with the particular topic.
Google measures experience by asseessing first-hand experiences.
“Does content also demonstrate that it was produced with some degree of experience, such as with actual use of a product, having actually visited a place, or communicating what a person experienced?”
News and feedback are so important. Never, ever buy reviews….
EXPERTISE
In real life, who do we consider an expert?
Someone who has exceptional knowledge, experience and skill in a particular subject. They are someone who has the answers to all the related queries on that particular subject. For the YMYL (your money or your life topics *) websites, Google prefers the opinions and comments of an EXPERT to a layperson giving similar information.
However, the search engine’s take on ‘Expertise’ is slightly different with Google accordingly stating that, “only sharing knowledge is not enough to have the traffic flooded on the website from the search engine.”
Google prioritises how knowledge is presented to the readers.
If you want to create high-quality content for your web pages, it’s important to understand Google’s take on “Expertise”.
- How the information is presented matters a lot! We need to maintain a fine balance so that, all the details are shared in a digestible manner for the searchers. There are readers of different levels – beginners, intermediate, and advanced. The information shared should be understandable for all.
- The visual appearance also plays a very important role to decide the Expertise level of the content. Using relevant images and videos can help readers (see learning styles below). Google wants the subject to be elaborate, but not laborious for the readers to get the insight.
- Always try to answer the follow-up queries of the readers. A particular search may include so many different queries, those queries should also be answered in the correct order. To simplify the approach, use quality external or internal links.
*YMYL websites which have content that is inaccurate, a lie or deceptive; could cause a negative impact on the reader’s happiness, health, safety, or financial stability.
Here’s a list of websites and companies that need to look extra carefully at their content as they are YMYL based, but if you are like me and love research then here’s the whole Google Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines at your fingertips, scroll down to Clause 2.3 of the Guidelines to find out more about YMYL content.
Straight from the Guideline, the points below can help determine whether a topic is YMYL, and therefore can assess the following types of harm that might occur:
- Health or Safety: Topics that could harm mental, physical, and emotional health, or any form of safety such as physical safety or safety online.
- Financial Security: Topics that could damage a person’s ability to support themselves and their families.
- Society: Topics that could negatively impact groups of people, issues of public interest, trust in public institutions, etc.
- Other: Topics that could hurt people or negatively impact the welfare or well-being of society.
Right, I’ve covered E-E-A-T’s Expertise and now I’m onto A for Authority!
AUTHORITY
While expertise is about sharing knowledge and skill, authoritativeness is all about the reactions after recognising the expertise.
Google has been considering “PAGE RANK” since its beginning to understand the authority of a particular domain. This is certainly one of the most reliable signs of authority for a website.
This isn’t directly related to creating high-quality content, but it’s important to know how your content is going to be accepted or what steps to follow to improve the acceptance, followed by authoritativeness.
Here are 4 Authority Pointers
- Quality Links
- Name mentions
- Social Sharing
- Great Reviews
When your website receives links from other relevant websites, this certainly is a huge factor that gains authority for your website. The website authority grows proportionately with the number of quality links. Earning links from genuine and relevant websites improves domain authority. This is one of the best endorsements for your website from another website. Also, remember that it’s not the quantity, but the quality of links that matters the most.
Apart from links, a simple mention of your name on other relevant and high-authority websites is also a determining factor for Google and other search engines about your website’s authority.
Social sharing is yet another very important indicator of the high authoritativeness of a website or a particular web page. Numerous social platforms are around. If your content is being largely shared, this is a sign of growing authority.
What Google perceives as a real authority builder is when the search with your brand name increases. It’s a measure for the search engines of your brand authority, and I don’t mean on a small scale with you telling your friends and family, I’m talking about people who don’t know you searching for your brand name as the place to go for whatever you are offering.
In a nutshell, however, your website receives recognition – be it Links, Shares, Name Mentions, Reviews, etc, as long as these are from genuine sources, this will help improve the AUTHORITY of your website.
TRUST
TRUST is a very important factor for any brand to grow on the internet platform. Google is keen on promoting those brands on the SERPs that have earned the trust of the visitors.
While Expertise and Authoritativeness help gain better ranking, Trustworthiness is also a positive catalyst in that sense. It’s important that visitors to your website feel the six need states (research from Google):
- Surprise Me
- Help Me
- Reassure Me
- Educate Me
- Impress Me
- Thrill Me
There are certain ways to do that and along with creating high-quality content.
Anyone can share their views about a particular brand, product, or service on the internet. Not all of those are helpful to develop trust for your brand. Google considers reviews on Trustpilot, Facebook, Google Business Profile (was Google My Business) as genuine and this improves the trustworthiness (there can be negative reviews of course, but if dealt with properly it’s a valuable “platform” for trustworthiness).
Acquiring a highly positioned rank for your strategic keywords on Google doesn’t happen overnight. Have a look at these effective steps below, if you follow them in a consistent manner, they will really help to improve the trustworthiness of your business (and its online marketing strategy).
- Stating clearly how to contact the website owner is a sign that your approach is genuine. You should mention the physical address, contact details, etc. Websites that seem generic may be seen as spam.
- Search Engines prefer clearly stated Terms and Conditions on the website and don’t forget in the UK all business websites must, by law, have updated Privacy Notices.
- Selling products or services through a website has become very easy! E-commerce websites must be secured as they deal with Confidential Customer Details (CCD). Acquiring SSL certification shows you are keen to protect those details from being misused by third-party users. This makes you trustworthy to Google. Data protection, GPDR laws and cybercrime aside, Google Chrome is starting to penalise websites with the HTTPS or an SSL Certificate.
- If you are receiving payments through your website, there has to be a clear Refund and Return Policy as this earns the trust of the users, as well as Google.
No matter if your website falls under the category of YMYL or not, if you are sharing some information or creating blogs and articles on the website, it’s always good to share valid information about the Author.
TRUST is a relative matter. As per Google’s algorithm, a website must obtain viewers’ trust in the specific subject matter that it deals with.
High-Quality Content: Decode Google’s viewpoint
Google, let’s face it, is the powerhouse of all Search Engines in the world. The reason being? It provides genuine and high-quality answers to any queries.
Google has evolved a lot as a Search Engine and it pays genuine attention to its “User’s Interest”. It’s almost IMPOSSIBLE now to rank content that doesn’t share correct information with its savvy readers. Google is always updating its Search Algorithms for more advanced and accurate results. SEO digital marketers are forever researching Google’s changes and are keen to decipher its algorithms, but for obvious reasons…Google is tight-lipped about that!
After analysing thousands of websites, I’ve short-listed a few important FACTORS that Google and other Search Engines consider important to create high-quality Content.
In-depth discussion
Accurate information
Relevant images and infographics
Genuine resources
E-E-A-T and Google Ranking
Google (or any other Search Engine for that matter) does not directly answer queries related to ranking factors. However, after analysing the Guidelines, I can safely say that E-E-A-T is an influential element for a website determined to achieve improvement in its ranking.
The number of high-quality backlinks is definitely one of the most important factors for higher rankings. It’s easy for Google engineers to identify those web pages with the highest numbers of backlinks through customised programming.
You know…Expertise | Authoritativeness | Trustworthiness is a concept built for humans and reacted by humans. However, all these factors are indicators of a genuine website. You can earn authority and trustworthiness only when your expertise is presented in an understandable manner to the readers.
Remember, Google is a robot. You are writing for humans and human emotions.
Key Takeaways from Google’s E-E-A-T and High-Quality Pages
First to remember, Google never entertains misleading information, especially on the YMYL websites.
E-E-A-T works as a framework that guides how TOP CONTENT should look and read like! Like many other Search Engines, Google’s highest priority is focusing on satisfying its searchers’ intent.
Google says high-quality pages should have the following characteristics:
- High level of Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness E-E-A-T).
- A satisfying amount of high-quality main content, including a descriptive or helpful title.
- Satisfying website information and/or information about who is responsible for the website. If the page includes financial transactions, then it should satisfy consumer service information.
- Positive website reputation for a website that is responsible for the main content (MC) on the page. Positive reputation of the creator of the MC, if different from that of the website.
E-E-A-T doesn’t need to instil fear with too much “technical noise”, but if you are going to write the main content on your site and thereafter add fresh, informational content through blog pages, remember to address E-E-A-T, especially if you are a YMYL company, and inject the correlating state emotion into the piece.
Don’t have time to write effective blogs or articles? No problem, ASK ELAINE.