The concept of Google’s EEAT is a cornerstone in PQ (Page Quality) evaluation, essential for improving your website’s search engine ranking and gaining the trust of your visitors.
Whether you’re a blogger, entrepreneur, or content creator, you must apply EEAT principles if you want to succeed online.
Meaning of E-E-A-T and How It Affects Your Site’s Reliability
The concept of E-E-A-T, an acronym for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trust – Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, is one of the cornerstones contained in Google’s guidelines for determining the quality and reliability of a website.
In essence, “E-E-A-T assesses whether a web page’s content is created by experts in their field, if the information provided is accurate and reliable, and if the site itself is an authoritative source on” the topic covered:
- Experience (Experience): The content must be created by people who have proven practical or personal experience on the topic. For example, think about whether you would consider a product review more reliable from someone who has personally used it, or a review from someone who has never had direct experience with the product?! The answer is obvious.
- Expertise (Expertise): This relates to the level of knowledge or skill in a particular field. To be considered competent, the content creator must demonstrate the necessary qualifications or in-depth knowledge of the topic. Who would you pay attention to for dental health advice, a dentist with years of experience, or a person without medical training?
- Authoritativeness (Authoritativeness): Authoritativeness measures how much a content creator or website is recognized as an authoritative reference in their field. One becomes authoritative through external recognition, citations from other authoritative sources, awards, or positive reviews. For example, the State Police website page dedicated to passport renewal represents the unique, official, and authoritative source for all information on passport renewal.
- Trustworthiness (Trust): According to Google’s guidelines, trustworthiness is the most important ranking factor of the four. It assesses the extent to which the page is accurate, honest, secure, and reliable. A site is trustworthy when it provides accurate, transparent, and honest information, also ensuring the security of user data. Online stores must guarantee secure payment systems and reliable customer service. Product reviews should be sincere and guide others in making purchases, rather than solely aiming to promote the product. Informational pages on YMYL topics (Your Money or Your Life) must be accurate to avoid potential harm to individuals and society. Regarding social media posts on non-YMYL topics, a high degree of trustworthiness is not always necessary, especially when the post aims to entertain the audience and presents no safety or health risks.
For Google, a site with a high level of E-E-A-T is more likely to rank better in search results, as it provides quality, useful, and reliable content.
This is particularly true for so-called YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) topics, which concern health, finance, and other areas of great impact on people’s lives.
Imagine a website promoting a miracle weight loss product, but all the information provided is misleading and not supported by reliable scientific evidence.
Even if the website creator claims to be an expert in the field, the lack of trust in the claims makes the site unreliable and negatively affects its overall E-E-A-T.
When did E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) evolve into E-E-A-T with “the addition of” Experience?
The evolution from E-A-T to E-E-A-T or Double E-A-T
, occurred in December 2022. Big G, during those days, informed us industry professionals on Google Search Central, an invaluable source for those involved in SEO and web marketing.
The original concept of E-A-T was first introduced in Google’s quality raters Guidelines (quality raters) in 2014 and has since gained increasing importance. The latest update to Google’s quality rater guidelines was in November 2023.
E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. This evolution reflects Google’s growing focus on the “importance of” direct and real-life experience in the context of a web page’s topic.
In addition to expertise, “authoritativeness, and” trustworthiness, particular relevance is now given to the “personal experience of the content creator in relation to the” topic addressed, as a key factor in evaluating the quality of a website in its search algorithms.
How do Google quality raters evaluate the E-E-A-T of websites and eCommerce sites?
When Google quality raters evaluate page quality, the E-E-A-T analysis is based on the following aspects, as reported in the updated guidelines:
- They begin by examining the “About Us” section on the website, or the content creator’s profile page. The question they ask is whether the information gives the website or content creator a degree of credibility worth rewarding.
- They search for independent reviews, citations, articles, and other authoritative sources that discuss the website or content creators. Is there an independent and reliable consensus on the expertise, “authoritativeness, or” trustworthiness of the website or content creator? Are there credible signals suggesting otherwise, namely that the website or content creator is not trustworthy?
- In some cases, they assess the level of experience and expertise by directly observing the main content of the page and analyzing sections such as reviews and comments. For example, in the case of hair-related content, they determine if there are experts in the field of hairstyling, perhaps by watching a video where they demonstrate their skills (e.g., styling hair) and reading comments from other users.
The website or content creator does not represent a reliable source if there is an obvious conflict of interest.
For example, product reviews on an eCommerce site from people who actually own the product and share their experiences are extremely valuable and credible.
On the contrary, reviews provided by the product manufacturer (Our product is extraordinary!
) or reviews from an influencer paid to promote the product do not enjoy the same degree of reliability, as they are influenced by a conflict of interest that compromises their objectivity.
Discover Google’s EEAT criteria for YMYL content
Web pages that deal with YMYL topics (Your Money Your Life) have different objectives.
If a page aims to provide information or advice on a YMYL topic, it must have a high degree of expertise to be considered reliable.
However, sometimes YMYL pages are created to share personal experiences, especially in complex life situations.
In these cases, people turn to others to share experiences, find comfort, inspiration, and learn from others.
In such situations, information from experts or authoritative sources might not fully satisfy this need for sharing and understanding.
Pages that share direct life experiences on YMYL topics are considered reliable in terms of E-E-A-T, as long as the content is accurate, safe, and consistent with the general consensus of experts.
On the other hand, some information and advice related to YMYL topics must come from qualified experts.
For instance, in the context of Financial Security (a YMYL topic), pages addressing retirement savings often provide reviews and advice from individuals with direct experience in using pension savings services.
The value of the page in this case is high because the personal experience and direct knowledge made available to others is very useful and credible.
Why is E-E-A-T important for online visibility and SEO?
E-E-A-T improves online visibility and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) for several reasons:
- Content quality evaluation: Google uses E-E-A-T as one of the main criteria to assess the quality of a web page’s content. Pages with high levels of E-E-A-T achieve higher rankings in search results, as they are seen as more helpful, reliable, and authoritative for users.
- Improving credibility and “reliability:” a high level of E-E-A-T increases the credibility and reliability of a website in the eyes of users and search engines. This is particularly important for sites dealing with YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) topics, where inaccurate information can have a significant impact on people’s lives.
- Personal experience and reputation: “the inclusion of” Experience in E-E-A-T emphasizes “the importance of” the content creator’s personal and direct experience. This aspect is crucial in cases where personal testimony adds value to the content, such as in product reviews or travel blogs.
- Responding to search intent: pages with high E-E-A-T are better equipped to respond to users’ search intentions and provide accurate and reliable answers. They improve “the user” experience and satisfaction, factors that Google considers in ranking pages.
- Building “Domain Authority (DA):” websites that demonstrate high E-E-A-T can build stronger domain authority in their field. This translates into better opportunities for quality backlinks and recognition from other authoritative sites, key factors in SEO.
- Penalty prevention: following E-E-A-T guidelines helps avoid low-quality content that could lead to penalties from search engines, negatively affecting online visibility.
Implementing E-E-A-T practices not only improves SEO but also contributes to building a solid online reputation!
Practical tips to improve your website’s E-E-A-T
Improve user experience with a user-friendly site
Ensure that your site is intuitive to navigate, with a clear structure and well-organized menus. Additionally, work on the loading speed of pages, as visitors tend to abandon slow sites.
A responsive website that adapts to different devices, including smartphones and tablets, is essential to reach a wider audience. Make sure it is!
When visitors find your site easy to use, fast, and suitable for their devices, they are more likely to stay, explore your content, and develop greater trust in your company.
Investing in user experience optimization is an important step to improve your online visibility and EEAT.
Constantly update content
“Constantly updating the content of your website maintains high” EEAT. Make sure to regularly review all information on the site, eliminating any obsolete or inaccurate data.
When visitors find updated and reliable content, they will be more likely to trust the information provided and consider your company as an authority in the industry.
Moreover, this demonstrates “commitment to quality and” accuracy of the information you share with your audience.
No to insignificant and superficial thin content
Superficial content does not provide added value. Google and other search engines prefer sites that offer quality content and penalize those with thin content.
If users find superficial content on your site, they are likely to abandon it quickly. Avoiding thin content therefore reduces the risk of being penalized.
Focus on a single topic per article
Focusing on individual topics in detail is a key practice for improving your website’s EEAT.
When articles cover a single topic in depth, they offer readers comprehensive and complete information.
This not only increases the perception of your site’s expertise and authority but also makes the content clearer and more coherent for visitors.
From an SEO perspective, content focused on a single topic tends to rank higher in search engine SERPs, as it better satisfies users’ search intent.
Therefore, creating detailed articles focused on specific topics is an effective Content Marketing strategy to improve user experience, authority, and visibility of your website.
Include links to authoritative sites in your content
Demonstrate that your information is based on thorough research and verifiable data, and increase the credibility of the content in the eyes of readers.
Search engines, like Google, tend to positively evaluate content that includes links to authoritative sources.
Citing and linking to other authoritative sources also helps establish professional relationships with experts and authorities in your field.
You can include sources as image credits, expert quotes, in-text links, references at the end of the text.
Always include the content author’s biography
Providing author information is crucial for establishing credibility and authority for both the individual and the content they produce.
Users want to know who is behind the texts they read and why they should trust the information provided.
Therefore, it’s important to include details about the author’s education, experience, and expertise in the specific field covered in the content.
This information helps readers understand why the author is qualified to discuss the topic and why the content is reliable.
This way, a bond of trust between the author and the audience is created, thus contributing to improving the website’s EEAT and providing a more positive user experience.
Optimize structured data according to schema.org standards
Structured data, or schema markup, helps search engines interpret page content more effectively, facilitating indexing and improving the presentation of your search results.
Properly using structured data, following the Schema.org standard, leads to greater visibility in SERPs, including the possibility of appearing in featured snippets or other advanced result formats.
This, in turn, increases traffic to your site and improves the user experience. You can use various types of schema.org markup, such as those with information about businesses, people, reviews, articles, FAQs, breadcrumbs, recipes, events, and more, depending on the type of content you offer on your site.
Take care of brand reputation and online communication
Create an authoritative profile for the authors of your content, highlighting their expertise and experience.
Participate in conferences and events in your field to build an offline presence. Respond professionally to comments and questions from readers.
Collect positive reviews and testimonials to increase user trust. Use Social Media to share relevant content and participate in industry discussions.
Provide complete answers to the audience’s needs. Be consistent in your online presence and communication.
Include the date within each article on the website
Demonstrate that the site is up-to-date and provides relevant and current information to users. Additionally, the date helps users assess the relevance of the information and understand if it’s still valid.
This way, “adding the” date increases user trust in the website and improves its overall EEAT. And remember to update the date every time you make significant changes to the content.
Make sure “users can easily access” customer support and important information
If “users can communicate with you easily, you’ll demonstrate commitment and transparency, increasing trust in your company. To do this, ensure that links for” customer support and pages with useful information are clearly visible in the navigation bar or website footer.
Use descriptive titles for these links so that users know what to expect when they click. Additionally, provide an intuitive guide or menu that helps users easily find the information they need.
Explain who you are transparently
Clear information about who you are, your history and values demonstrates transparency and openness. Users want to do business with entities that are clear about their identity, which creates a sense of trust.
Presenting information about your experience and expertise in your field helps demonstrate that you are a reliable source of information and services.
Moreover, telling your story and values creates an emotional connection with users. This can lead to greater affinity and customer loyalty.
Implement HTTPS certificate on the website
HTTPS encrypts data between the user’s browser and the web server, ensuring that the exchanged information is protected from unauthorized access.
This security is crucial, especially if your site handles sensitive data or financial transactions. The presence of an HTTPS certificate indicates to users that your site is secure and that their personal information is protected.
This helps build trust between users and your website. Search engines, like Google, consider HTTPS as a positive factor for ranking websites.
A site with HTTPS is more likely to achieve a better position in search results, which can increase the visibility and reliability of the site.
Quality backlinks boost your website’s Google EEAT
Quality backlinks play a significant role in “increasing the” EEAT of your website. When authoritative websites link to your site, it’s an external confirmation of your reliability and authority.
Other sites consider yours as a reliable source of information, which helps increase your authority in the industry.
This, in turn, generates trust among users visiting your site, as they see that other reference sites consider it noteworthy.
If you have a local business, create and optimize your Google My Business listing
Creating a listing on Google My Business for your local business and optimizing it for Local SEO means providing clear and accurate information about your business, such as address, phone number, and opening hours.
This improves your business’s visibility when people search for local services on Google. Additionally, positive customer reviews on the listing help generate trust among users.
Monitor and improve EEAT
Continuous monitoring and improvement are essential to ensure optimal EEAT. Use tools to track EEAT metrics, analyze data to identify where you can improve, and make sure to always follow Google’s new guidelines to keep up with the latest trends and website optimization requirements.
Among the measurement tools, we mention for example Google Analytics 4, Google Search Console, SEOZoom, SEMRush.
Contact us if you want to leverage EEAT to grow your business
You’ve understood that EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) improves your website’s visibility on Google and ensures user trust.
Investing in EEAT “optimization” will not only improve your position in search results but also the public’s perception of your company.
If you want to maximize the potential of EEAT for your business, we are ready to offer you a free consultation and personalized advice.
Together we will build an exceptional user experience, demonstrate your authority in your business sector, and gain the trust of your website visitors.
