What we eat has a direct influence on our health. The same applies to your website.
The healthier a website’s E-A-T, the higher its value and the more likely it is to perform well in the search engine rankings.
But what is E-A-T and just why is it so important?
E-A-T is an acronym for E (Expertise) A (Authority) T (Trust) and it was established a few years ago by Google as part of its push to give users the best experience possible and the best search results possible. Google uses E-A-T to assess websites in terms of the quality of their content and their relevance and will reward those with good ‘E-A-T-ing habits’ with higher rankings.
Even though E-A-T was first introduced some time ago, most website managers really started to take notice of it when Google put it front and centre of its major 2018 Update, commonly referred to as the ‘Medic Update’. The search engine giant has even said that it is in its top three factors when it comes to assessing page quality.
In short, building your website’s E-A-T is critically important in setting your business up for online success.
The greater a website’s E-A-T rating, the more likely it is to rank well in the search engine pages and the greater the likelihood of more website traffic and increased conversions.
Let’s look at what each of the components of E-A-T involves and then investigate ways of incorporating it into your website.
This relates to the author of the main content on the page. Who created the content? What are their credentials? What qualifies them to be recognised as an expert?
The person who created the content on the page needs to be an expert in their field. This will obviously be more important for sites that offer professional advice, eg a law firm or a financial advisor and it is possible to prove expertise by sharing details of the content creator’s qualifications, credentials and expertise. Google may even consider someone to be an ‘expert’ if they have life experience in a particular area.
This refers to several elements of a website, namely the content, the primary content creator or author and the website itself.
Is the author respected as an industry leader or spokesperson? What is their background? How does a user know that they are acknowledged as an authority? Does the content have authority? Testimonials, case studies, links to published articles, industry awards, accreditations, membership of professional bodies and reviews are valuable proof of the creator’s standing in the industry and the quality of the content.
As with authority, trust refers to the content, the primary content creator or author and the website itself.
Does the quality of the content reassure the user that its creator is trustworthy? Do users feel secure on the site? Can they trust your business? Are you presenting as a reliable and honest business? Is the information on your website accurate?
There are plenty of ways of adding E-A-T to your website, and I want to show you some effective strategies that I’ve learnt in my many years as an SEO specialist and digital marketing expert in Perth.
Here are some of my tips for optimising your website’s E-A-T and improving its rankings, performance and traffic.
Of course, not all of the above apply to every website. Each website is unique and you need to implement things that will impact on your particular target market and which will benefit your specific users. But whatever your business and whatever your industry, optimising your website’s E-A-T is critical to online visibility and success.
My business, Blue Cherry Online Marketing, has been helping businesses across Australia be seen and found online and achieve tremendous e-commerce success. My focus as an SEO specialist in Perth is to achieve outstanding results for my clients without breaking the bank, and the many reviews on my website are testimonies that can be done!
If you’d like more information on how to improve your website’s E-A-T, specialist SEO advice or simply a friendly obligation-free chat about your online visibility, get in touch through the website or give me a call on 08 6313 3935. I’m here to help!
You might also enjoy: 6 Top B2B Marketing Tips and Top Five E-Commerce Tips To Take Your Website To The Next Level
Karen Dauncey has been working in SEO since 2003. She specialises in helping businesses get found online through Google using Search Engine Optimisation (SEO).
Karen's wealth of SEO knowledge and practical digital marketing experience comes from running her own SEO and Google Ads agency, Blue Cherry Online Marketing since 2008. Karen has optimised over 1000 websites, managed millions of dollars' worth of spend on Google Ads and has a solid understanding of the constantly shifting industry of digital marketing and SEO. This gives her a unique advantage when it comes to being able to recommend the right online marketing strategies for your business.
She is the founder and creator of The SEO School an online SEO Course to help teach business owners how to do their own SEO. She regularly delivers educational programs for both Local, State and Federal Government and was an advisor for the ASBAS Digital Solutions Program. Karen’s passion and commitment to help small business owners get found online is the driving force behind her online school, making SEO advice accessible to all with free resources and online courses.
Karen has attended search engine conferences in London, Stockholm, Adelaide and Sydney, and was also invited to attend a pilot Business Coaching Course at Google’s Head Office. She has a Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing in the UK.
She is also the co-owner of the Digital Experts Directory, an online directory for female serviced-based businesses to promote their business (with a great backlink for SEO).
To keep up to date with the latest in SEO, join her Facebook group The SEO School Community or follow her on Facebook
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