Google’s E-E-A-T & SEO Guidelines
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TL;DR: We often hear “What you don’t know may hurt you”, but do we ever consider how what we DO know can help us? In this article, we discuss how experience, expertise, authority, and trustworthiness influence your online success.
Google’s standards for search are constantly evolving, and staying on top of search engine optimization best practices is even more essential than ever for online success. One framework that guides their approach to evaluating quality is the concept of E-E-A-T.
E-E-A-T stands for experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. While this concept has been around for a while, understanding and demonstrating E-E-A-T is no longer optional; it is a strategic advantage that can boost your organic visibility, build trust, and drive success.
P.S. To show some E-E-A-T right off the bat, this article was written by an SEO Manager who started their career in the SEO industry in 2022. I’ve conducted numerous E-E-A-T audits for clients across various industries, and Workshop Digital has seen successful results from implementing changes based on E-E-A-T. Now that I’ve hopefully built up some trust, let’s get started.
Table of Contents
History of Search Quality Rater Guidelines
What is E-E-A-T?
E-E-A-T Signals
How Can I Make Sure I am Demonstrating E-E-A-T Signals?
How E-E-A-T Impacts SEO
Applying E-E-A-T to Your SEO Strategy
Common E-E-A-T Mistakes & How to Avoid Them
Wrapping Up
History of Search Quality Rater Guidelines
In February 2019, Google announced its effort to combat the circulation of false information across search, Google News, YouTube, and the company’s advertising products. It is undeniably important that search results avoid misleading, deceitful, and malicious content.
Google began publishing its Search Quality Rater Guidelines in 2013, which provide information about how Google examines pages and websites to determine if they should appear in search results. The guidelines are continuously updated, which is why it is important to stay up-to-date with SEO trends to adapt to algorithm changes and improve organic performance. To help the search engine offer reliable content, Google focuses on three key elements:
High-quality automated ranking
Helpful search features
Content policies
However, it’s easier said than done, right? To help those who want to optimize their websites and gain organic traffic, the Search Quality Rater Guidelines provide detailed information on how to achieve high-quality results. One aspect of the process is following E-E-A-T best practices.
What is E-E-A-T?
Google has confirmed its algorithm gives preference to sites that display high levels of experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness - a ranking factor that is commonly known in the industry as E-E-A-T. Simply put, E-E-A-T quantifies the quality of a webpage, and higher-quality pages will perform better in search results.
However, please keep in mind that E-E-A-T itself is not a ranking factor, but Google noted: “using a mix of factors that can identify content with good E-E-A-T is useful”.
From journalists to advertisers to businesses, providing useful, relevant, and accurate information should be the goal of all Internet users. So, what does this mean for your business? To ensure your content is working for you, and your pages have a high page quality score, let’s break down each component of E-E-A-T.
E-E-A-T Signals
Experience
The experience aspect of E-E-A-T focuses on first-hand or life experiences from the author. This can be gained through actual involvement or pure observation. For example, our blog posts are written by digital marketing experts with years of first-hand experience with the topics they discuss.
This part of E-E-A-T was added in December 2022 to differentiate Experience and Expertise (which we will get to in a bit). There are times when first-hand experience may be more valuable than having expertise. If you were looking for information about technical SEO, would you rather read an article from an experienced SEO analyst or someone with a marketing degree who has never done SEO work? That’s how experience and expertise differ: certifications and education do not always equate to real-life experience.
Expertise
Simply put, expertise means industry knowledge. According to Google, pages with a beneficial purpose must display a level of this insight—or, at the very least, include a link or citation to a source that does.
It’s important at this stage to think holistically about the topic of your web pages. Do they require specific expertise to achieve their purpose? Ultimately, this depends on your topic.
Google specifically categorizes YMYL (Your Money Your Life) pages as those that directly impact the health, financial stability, or safety of people. This includes pages from the finance, legal, and healthcare industries. In the case of YMYL verticals, formal education or knowledge is often needed. In the healthcare sector, for example, Google awards pages that are written by—or cite—those with certified medical expertise. Likewise, legal pages must include appropriate research and evidence and should represent a general consensus when possible.
Even if your website does not fall under YMYL, it is still important to demonstrate expertise. For example, websites that deal with professions or hobbies should still consider E-E-A-T. While these topics may require less formal expertise, Google still takes “everyday expertise” into account. For example, a primary care doctor is a medical care expert, but if you have a specific ailment, you may prefer to see a specialist. Both of them are experts, but the specialist’s expertise is more relevant to your needs.
Authoritativeness
Whereas expertise zeroes in on individual-level proficiency, authoritativeness focuses on the way Google views your organization as a whole (in a sense, your reputation). In the SQRG, Google notes to consider the extent to which the content creator or the website is known as a go-to source for the topic.
For example, if you are looking for information on getting a driver’s license in Virginia, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles site is a good place to find up-to-date, correct information. Not every business will have the same level of established authority as the DMV, so what can you do to help build more authority for your brand?
One way to showcase your website’s authority is finding ways to be recognized by peers in your field, whether it is through awards, being featured in news articles or publications, or even having a link back to your website. Quality is key here. Websites that mention you can be highly influential - and just a few links from several high-authority websites can be more powerful than many from low-authority sites. Another way to establish credibility is to have an “About Us” page that provides information about your business and its history, values, mission, and more.
Trustworthiness
Google has confirmed that trust is the most important E-E-A-T aspect. If a page, website, or author is deemed untrustworthy, it will have a low E-E-A-T “score”, regardless of how much experience, expertise, or authority it may seem to have. It’s essential to focus on your user by asking and answering relevant questions. Creating content with the goals of your users in mind is one of the best ways to build trust. Trust can also be shown through off-page sources, such as third-party review sites, which are taken into account when assessing the reputation of a business.
Looking at page quality rating guidelines, Google advises raters to look at:
What the website or content creators say about themselves
What others say about the website or content creators
What is visible on the page (including the main content and sections such as reviews or comments)
How Can I Make Sure I am Demonstrating E-E-A-T
Signals?
Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines have only increased our accountability as Internet participants. As marketers and business owners continue to publish content—no matter its purpose—it’s important to do so with intent and integrity. This helps users get the best information possible and your website performs better in organic search.
This is done by:
Leveraging an appropriate level of expertise across your on and off-page efforts
Striving to accomplish specific goals with each piece of content and your overall presence online
Being transparent about the intent of your web pages
How E-E-A-T Impacts SEO
To have a high page quality (PQ), your websites or pages must have a purpose, so it’s important to understand your goals. Once you have your purpose and goals, identify what type of information is relevant and useful in conveying that purpose. Websites that don’t benefit users receive the lowest possible rating. According to Google, you should determine the purpose, assess if the page is harmful, and determine the user intent. A high-quality page would serve a beneficial purpose and achieve it well.
Applying E-E-A-T to Your SEO Strategy
The Search Quality Rater Guidelines provide detailed information on what is assessed in terms of E-E-A-T:
These specific examples of what Search Quality Raters look at can help you begin to make sure your website is optimized for E-E-A-T. To ensure your search engine optimization strategy aligns with the E-E-A-T guidelines, we recommend focusing on four primary areas: content quality, author profiles, source credibility, and user experience. Each of these reinforces a component of E-E-A-T and how users and search engines perceive your site. Let’s break them down.
Online Reputation
The Search Quality Rater Guidelines note that a company’s online reputation is taken into account when rating a website. The guidelines state, “Reputation research applies to both the website and the actual company, organization, or entity that the website is representing”. Customer reviews are also taken into account when assessing the reputation of a website.
To improve (or prove) your online reputation, we recommend:
Track unlinked brand mentions: Monitor unlinked brand mentions regularly.
Claim & optimize third-party listings: Update any unclaimed third-party listings, such as your Yelp profiles, and respond to any reviews.
Local Presence
Every attempt should be made to make your business a credible organization online. Some things to consider include:
Optimize Google Business Profiles: Ensure your Google Business Profile listings are up-to-date and fully optimized.
Encourage reviews: Ask happy customers to leave reviews on your listings.
Provide visuals: Include updated imagery in each listing.
Author Reputation & Experience
Google states in the Search Quality Rater Guidelines that every page should have a clear author, so the content creator must have enough information online showing they have enough experience or expertise to write about the topic at hand. Some things to keep in mind are:
Keep author profiles updated: Ensure information online about any authors is up-to-date, such as LinkedIn profiles.
Highlight real-world experience: Add first-hand experience information in each blog post.
On-Site Expertise
Finally, you can also show a positive reputation on your actual website through certifications, awards, and designations. The Expertise aspect of E-E-A-T focuses on showing credibility, so there are multiple ways to do so on your website:
Showcase your achievements: Create an Awards page to show proof of your expertise and great work.
Highlight testimonials and results: Post reviews from customers on the website, and create case studies to further showcase trust.
Provide organization information: Create an “About Us” page to show who is responsible for the website and prove trustworthiness. Provide ways for customers to contact your team with an optimized contact page.
Together, these practices not only align with Google’s E-E-A-T principles but also ensure that your overall strategy is focused on users, which contributes to stronger organic performance.
Common E-E-A-T Mistakes & How to Avoid Them
E-E-A-T and other parts of the Search Quality Rater Guidelines can be hard to implement; they are not as cut-and-dry as technical SEO or other more straightforward processes. As a result, there are a few common pitfalls about E-E-A-T.
Common Misstep #1: Thinking E-E-A-T is a “One and Done” Type of Strategy
The E-E-A-T signals are not a “set it and forget it” tactic. It is important to keep in mind that this is an ongoing strategy that should be kept in mind for any future projects. Failing to maintain relevant, updated information may cause your website and organization to not fulfill all of the E-E-A-T factors. Conduct regular reviews of website content and stay informed on Google updates to maintain compliance with E-E-A-T.
Common Misstep #2: Not Being Transparent
Transparency is a large part of E-E-A-T because it aligns with building credibility. Being transparent can be shown by author biographies, an “About Us” page, or even having contact information for specific departments so people can easily get the help they need. One example of this is from the Guidelines themselves:
The guidelines instruct raters to find the contact page to see if users can contact the organization with any questions or issues.
Common Misstep #3: Focusing on Driving Sales Instead of Helping Customers
Users are often looking for information, not just a sales pitch. In reality, focusing on driving sales should be by helping customers, rather than focusing on one over the other. Prioritize making informational content to address common questions and customer needs. Responding to negative reviews also demonstrates that you care about the customers and are committed to improving.
Wrapping Up
As Google’s algorithms and systems are becoming smarter, it’s important to stay updated on new search trends and make sure your website is helpful for users. E-E-A-T is a long-term investment and a continuous process to build trust and authority over time. Start evaluating your own site’s E-E-A-T elements and make gradual improvements in content quality, author reputation, and overall online authority.
If you have any questions about E-E-A-T, feel free to reach out to our SEO team (I promise we are experienced and trustworthy!).
