Are you familiar with Google’s secret sauce? It was introduced to its search ranking systems back in December 2022: an extra ‘E.’
An extra what?!
An extra E, or what Google refers to as “Double E-A-T”
Basically, E-E-A-T stands for:
E: Experience
E: Expertise
A: Authority
T: Trust
E-E-A-T has been the framework for evaluating search engine optimization for years. It was developed to help the actual human quality raters (yes, Google grades itself on its search results) determine if the sites that are being ranked well deserve that ranking.
But in the process it became a powerful way to assess your own web content’s quality and credibility.
Google is challenging brands to create content based on these key attributes – not only to demonstrate the depth of experience that your content conveys – but also, the degree to which a page is accurate, honest, safe, and reliable in its considerations of page quality.
In turn, the trustworthiness of your content will affect your site’s performance, i.e., how and if search engines display your brand’s content to the world.
According to Google:
“Trust is the most important member of the E-E-A-T family because untrustworthy pages have low E-E-A-T no matter how Experienced, Expert, or Authoritative they may seem.” Google Quality Rater Guidelines
Chew on that for a moment.
Untrustworthy pages will ensure that your brand is largely invisible to the world user.
Google E-E-A-T is your brand’s secret weapon. When used as a litmus for content optimization, it can elevate your messaging to new heights, promote your brand equity, and increase your brand value!
What’s more, experience, expertise, and authoritativeness are key attributes that can support the trustworthiness of your content.
Before we share how to demonstrate and elevate your brand’s E-A-A-T, it’s important to take a deeper dive into E-E-A-T attributes:
Unless you’ve been focused on this, the way you tell your brand story will likely need to change. Moving toward a framework of authority and trustworthiness and communicating expertise to boost the overall quality ranking of your content is a must!
The highest quality pages are considered trustworthy or very trustworthy and convey the main acronym attributes in one fell swoop. Your content:
This includes use of personal pronouns like ‘I,’ and often includes personal anecdotes that demonstrate a brand’s expertise. Testimonials are invaluable but are much more believable when they reflect how deeply your customers engage in your business and their direct experiences with your brand.
“A content creator with a wealth of experience may be considered to have very high E-E-A-T for topics where experience is the primary factor in trust.”
Expertise is demonstrated by verifiable facts. Examples include links to studies and research that support the value of the services that you offer. Provide author bios and information that highlight not only that your business does the work or makes the product, but that your brand and business are trustworthy and backed by the brightest and best.
And,
Underscores your brand’s trustworthiness. Your qualifications, accreditations, rewards, and business practices are the key ingredients to the highest E-E-A-T status. Consistent audits of your content help keep it current and relevant. Got case studies? The denser the better; case studies with actual statistics, proven outcomes, and solid relations can attract new users and new customers.
On the flip side, the attributes of sites with the lowest E-E-A-T ratings are:
Low E-E-A-T content encourages, depicts, or directly causes physical, mental, emotional, or financial harm to self and others, or to specific groups. The site might have a deceptive design or is deliberately created to spam an unsuspecting user. It might include hate speech or violent imagery or manipulate people into actions that cause harm/self-harm.
In this respect, E-E-A-T is another tool that Google is using to combat mis- and harmful information by directing users to the highest quality information. In turn, this helps elevate your brand equity and brand value.
Google E-E-A-T places your brand’s human element front and center. It challenges brands to revisit their content, conduct fact- and link-checking, provide expert commentary, highlight customer reviews from other sites like Google and Yelp, ensure backlinks, and create trustworthiness.
Like any great meal, E-E-A-T requires time and patience to get the flavors just right so your brand is the hottest item on the menu! Google E-E-A-T focuses on the ingredients in your Brand’s messaging stew. It’s a critical piece of your brand, but it takes more than just great content to make a great brand.
Let’s talk about how our Brand3 Content Strategy team can help you E-E-A-T your way above your competition!
