With the rise of AI and Chat GPT, content creation has undoubtedly become more accessible than ever before. However, this newfound ease of generating content comes with one major drawback: a complete lack of authenticity, which results in poor-quality content that no one wants to read.
So, how do you ensure you’re posting high-quality content in an era where AI-generated content has become the norm? In this blog, we’ll break down Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines and go over some of the ways you can ensure you’re posting content that search engines will want to rank and real humans will want to read and interact with.
Assess Your Content for Google’s E-E-A-T Guidelines:
E-E-A-T, which stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trust, is a set of guidelines that Google’s algorithm utilizes to assess the quality of content on the web:
- Experience: Does the content creator have necessary first-hand or life experience for the topic?
- Expertise: Does the content creator have the necessary knowledge or skill for the topic?
- Authoritativeness: Is the content creator or website known as a go-to resource for the topic.
- Trust: Does the content demonstrate experience, expertise, and authoritativeness?
Back in 2014 (when E-E-A-T was known as E-A-T), Google shared these guidelines to help website owners improve their content. Why? Because search engines like Google want to provide as good of a user experience to their customers as possible. Therefore, when assessing whether your content is “high-quality” (which can be subjective), it’s important to assess whether it meets Google’s E-E-A-T criteria as well.
1. Experience
Since AI content can’t represent genuine human experience, content produced from AI won’t be unique. High-quality content frequently showcases the content creator’s first-hand familiarity with the topic, providing compelling evidence that the suggestions offered have been thoroughly tested. This authenticity adds credibility and enhances the overall trustworthiness of the information presented.
High-quality content should demonstrate your experience by emphasizing the following:
- Establishing the presence of a genuine organization supporting your site.
- Spotlighting the experience within your organization, reflecting in both your content and services.
- Affirming that your site is backed by honest and trustworthy individuals.
2. Expertise
High-quality content should reflect the voice of an industry professional who has the knowledge, qualifications, and credentials necessary to provide reliable information. If people trust your website, it will lead to good interactions. These positive actions tell Google’s algorithm that your site is reliable and deserves a higher ranking. Moreover, cultivating expertise instills confidence in the reader, making it advisable to include:
- The author’s name.
- A detailed biography encompassing pertinent qualifications and/or links to their social media profiles.
Showcasing your team and their expertise is a great way to set yourself apart from your competitors, it also is a great way to demonstrate E-E-A-T. How do you showcase your team’s expertise? Some content ideas could include:
- Featured employee blogs
- Team biography pages
- Author pages (if your team writes blogs for your site)
- Host webinars and workshops
- Video interviews
- Blogs highlighting team member contributions to industry publications
3. Authoritativeness
Exhibiting authoritativeness is slightly more difficult since it relies on customers viewing you as an expert in your field. Showcasing your business’ authoritativeness in your content goes beyond emphasizing your business’ reputation. It also includes:
- Creating a solid structure for your content that covers all aspects of a topic.
- Earning backlinks from other reliable websites and authorities in your industry.
- Developing a digital profile or personal brand as an expert in a specific subject.
It’s important to note that authority, expertise, and experience are all connected. You can’t be an authority on a topic without experience and expertise, and the same goes the other way around. Therefore, if your content solves problems and adds value, it is an indication that you are a good source of information.
4. Trust
Content of high quality should exhibit trustworthiness. Trustworthiness extends beyond accuracy to encompass transparency, honesty, and reliability, instilling confidence in the audience. By consistently delivering valid and trustworthy content, creators not only enhance their credibility but also contribute to a positive and reliable online information ecosystem.
Strategies to ensure that your content exhibits trustworthiness includes:
- Ensure transparency about the content author’s credentials and affiliations.
- Edit your content for accuracy.
- Use reliable sources to back up all claims.
Avoid Using Stock Imagery Where Possible
While stock photos are an easy and convenient way to add visuals to your site, they often lack authenticity and fail to convey a unique message to your audience. Depending on your industry and whether you have the resources to do so, we always recommend investing in professional photography and design to create visuals that align with your brand’s identity and resonate with your target audience.
Get professional photos of your team, products, or your business at work to set your business apart from your competitors. Real imagery can also help you demonstrate Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines of experience, expertise, and trust. Customers are more likely to trust your business’ experience and expertise if they see images that reflect what your business has done. However, if you must use stock imagery, ensure that you aren’t using ones that give off that distinct stock image “look” (i.e. super generic and boring) and haven’t been used on a bunch of your competitors’ websites.
Incorporate Customer Feedback
Incorporating customer feedback, whether through compelling case studies or testimonials, is another great way to meet all of Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines. Customer feedback reflects your business’ reputation, expertise, experience, and trustworthiness. That’s because customer feedback serves as powerful social proof, allowing customers to see the real-world experiences of those who have benefited from your products or services. It also humanizes your business, instils confidence in your brand, and demonstrates your commitment to customer satisfaction.
Some other content ideas for incorporating customer feedback on your site include:
- Adding video testimonials
- Showcasing online reviews from platforms like Google, Yelp, or trust pilot
- Obtaining user-generated content (such as social media posts or videos where customers talk about their experience with your brand)
Improve the Quality of Your Content with Ontario SEO
Although not every piece of content can meet every guideline all the time, it’s important to demonstrate E-E-A-T as much as possible in your website’s content. If you need help creating high-quality content that satisfies Google’s guidelines, Ontario SEO’s Content Marketing team is dedicated to helping your craft engaging and impactful content that resonates with your target audience. From optimizing your existing content or creating a data-driven content strategy, we are here to help elevate your brand’s online presence.
