Google EATing Up High-Authority Content

With Google’s Core Update complete, many web admins and ecommerce business owners are returning to the drawing board. Some have been hit harder in the rankings than others, but they all want to keep their site in Google’s good books.

In evergreen SEO, content remains king and will likely stay so indefinitely. But what’s becoming clearer by the day is how the major search engines are handing kudos and better SERP rankings to those who produce high-authority content.

As for what this means, the exact definition of ‘authoritative’ is open to interpretation. Though where authority content for SEO purposes is concerned, it means focusing on four essential things with every in-depth piece published:

1. Detailed and thorough articles that provide helpful information

2. Strong focus on solving genuine problems and answering questions

3. Providing actionable insights, advice and recommendations

4. Making every effort to build ongoing trust with the reader

Essentially, what the major search engines are trying to say is what they have been saying all along. When producing content that ranks well for SEO purposes, focus on the reader – not the search engine’s crawlers.

The EAT Approach

For some time, the so-called E-A-T approach has been the recommended course of action for those looking to climb the ranks in Google. In theory, by fulfilling each of the three requirements of E-A-T, you should be coming up with consistently superior content of an authoritative nature.

If you are unaware of what the whole thing means, here’s a breakdown of how to win over Google with your E-A-T:

• Expertise: In this context, expertise means flexing your academic and professional muscles. It means demonstrating to the reader that you are a genuine expert in your field, with sufficient experience and relevant knowledge to discuss the subject.

  An author's bio, contact information, and links to their social media pages can all help confirm the writer's expertise. In addition, some pages have been known to perform better, with an introductory paragraph right at the top outlining the author's background and professional experience.

• Authoritativeness: You could refer to this as the article's ‘meat and gravy’ – the selection of facts and information to be included and in what order. In theory, an authoritative piece of writing should be a condensed version of a much broader research piece that took several hours to assemble.

  Think of it as answering an essay question in an exam. Your answer isn’t a comprehensive overview of everything you know about the topic but a collection of key facts, insights, and information that answer the question and demonstrate your knowledge.

  Even from skimming the piece, it should be evident that the writer is a knowledgeable and authoritative figure in their niche.

• Trustworthiness: Last up, trustworthiness is a measure of three essential things. The first is accuracy, which means ensuring that everything you say in the piece without exception is 100% factual and can be backed up.

  Secondly, honesty and transparency go hand in hand. Rather than expecting people to trust and respect you, you need to give them a reason to do so.

Lastly, impartiality with a complete lack of bias is usually the way to go. With comparatively few exceptions, high-authority content is factual instead of opinion-based. Editorials and opinion pieces can be just as authoritative but must be approached from a somewhat different angle.