Improving E-E-A-T: How to make your website fit for the Quality Rater Guidelines

EEAT stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. These four factors are decisive for Google’s assessment of the quality of a website.

A high EEAT not only improves the ranking in the search results, but also strengthens the credibility and trust of users in your content.

In this article, you can find out why link building will play a major role again in the future and how you can improve your E-E-A-T score.

If you are wondering what these abbreviations are all about – there are already numerous articles by SEO colleagues who have already explained the topic in detail. We will focus here purely on the measures to improve EEAT.

Experience: Bring your experience to the table

The first “E” stands for“Experience” – so this is about incorporating your own experiences into your content. You can do this in several ways:

Integration into your content

The first and probably obvious measure is to share your personal experiences in your content.

Also explicitly use formulations such as“In my experience…“,“In my practical test…” etc.

Everything that lets search engines and users recognize that you really know what you’re talking about. In addition, this often opens up new opportunities to give your content an individual touch or to look at it from a new angle.

Share testimonials and case studies

Testimonials and case studies are essential to build trust and strengthen the credibility of your brand.

They offer potential customers an insight into real use cases and show how your product or service works in practice.

Advantages:

• Authenticity: You convey authenticity through real experience reports and detailed case studies. Users can identify with the situations presented and see how your solutions can help them.
• Building trust: Potential customers are more likely to trust the opinions of other users than advertising promises. Positive experiences from existing customers can therefore contribute significantly to the decision-making process.
• SEO benefits: Testimonials and case studies often offer valuable, unique content that is often rated positively by search engines.

Implementation:

• Customer interviews: Conduct interviews with your customers and create detailed reports from them. Ask about the challenges that your solution addressed and how the process went.
• Documentation of success: Show concrete figures and data that prove the success of your product or service. Graphs and diagrams can be very helpful here.
• Visual content: Supplement text reports with photos, videos and quotes from your customers to increase credibility and make the content more appealing.

Use video marketing

Video marketing is a powerful tool to improve your user experience and engage your audience. Videos are easy to consume and can convey complex information in a simple and entertaining way.

Advantages:

• Higher engagement rates: Videos capture users’ attention more than plain text. They can explain complex topics clearly and appeal emotionally.
• SEO boost: YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world and also part of the Google cosmos. You can certainly imagine the synergy effects.
• Trust and authenticity: Videos allow you to present your company and your employees personally and create a more personal connection with your audience.

Integrate testimonials and user reviews

Testimonials and user reviews are essential for providing social proof and convincing potential customers. So collect reviews diligently and ask your best customers for testimonials that you then want to present on your site.

Advantages

• Building trust: Genuine customer opinions are more credible than advertising promises. They show that your product or service really works.
• Decision support: Reviews help potential customers to make an informed purchase decision by sharing the experiences of other users.
• SEO benefits: User reviews continuously provide fresh content that is rated positively by search engines. They often contain relevant keywords that can improve your SEO performance.

Integration:

• On the website: Place testimonials and reviews prominently on your website, especially on product pages and the homepage.
• Use positive reviews in your email campaigns to increase credibility and boost conversions.
• On social media: Share satisfied customer reviews on your social media channels to reach a wider target group.

Expertise: Demonstrating specialist knowledge

The second “E” stands for “Expertise” – so this is about demonstrating your specialist knowledge. You need to make it clear that you are an expert in your field.

Author profiles: Creation and presentation

A meaningful author profile is the first step in emphasizing the author’s expertise and credibility.

A good profile should contain the following elements:

1. Full name and photo: This creates a personal connection and increases transparency.
2. Short biography: A concise biography summarizing the author’s professional career and relevant experiences.
3. Qualifications and certificates: List of relevant academic degrees, professional qualifications and certificates.
4. Contact information and links: Email address, social media profiles and links to other published work.

Presentation:

• On the website: Place the author profile visibly under each article and on a separate “About us” page.
• In the articles: Mention the author in the introduction or in the credits of the article and link to the full profile.

Topicality of the content: Regular updates and references

As an expert, you can of course back up your claims with reputable sources and are always up to date. In concrete terms:

• Content review: Schedule regular reviews of your content to ensure that it is always up to date.
• Relevant additions: Add current data, trends and insights to increase relevance.
• Example: An article about Google algorithms should be updated annually to reflect new updates and changes.
• Use up-to-date sources: Always use the latest studies, reports and articles.
• Linking and citation: Give clear references and link to the original documents.
• Example: When mentioning new SEO strategies, you should link to current studies and publications, e.g. “According to a study from 2023, published by Search Engine Journal…”.

Demonstrate professional qualifications and certificates

This point is probably self-explanatory. Of course, you want to mention qualifications, certificates and degrees that are relevant to your subject area.

Certificates and qualifications show that the author has sound specialist knowledge and is recognized. They strengthen the credibility and trust of readers in the content.

Representation:

• On the website: Add a section on qualifications and certificates on the “About us” page or in the author profiles.
• In the articles: Mention relevant qualifications in the article itself, especially if they are directly relevant to the topic.
• Example: An article on IT security could highlight the author’s certification as a “Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)” and explain what this certification entails and why it is relevant.

Authoritativeness: Building authority

The “A” stands for “Authoritativeness” – so you want to become an authority in your niche. A reputable and reliable source of information.

Here, too, we have several points of reference to prove this.

Use external links in a targeted manner

To present your content as well-researched and reliable, it is important to only link to trustworthy and recognized sources. This shows your readers that you value quality and accuracy.

Make sure that the linked content is thematically relevant to your post and offers readers additional added value. This improves the relevance of your content and strengthens trust in your information.

Also use a consistent citation style and make sure that all sources are cited correctly. This will make you appear professional and credible.

Examples:

• Scientific studies: Link to current research results and studies to support your statements.
• Industry leaders: Links to articles and white papers from recognized experts and institutions in your industry.
• Statistics and reports: Use the latest statistics and reports from renowned organizations such as Statista or the Pew Research Center.

Expand your reach with guest posts and interviews

Writing guest posts on established platforms is an effective strategy to increase your reach and authority. Yes, this is where good old link building comes back into play!

These guest articles allow you to reach a new audience and demonstrate your expertise. In addition, interviews with industry experts can create valuable connections and partnerships.

By sharing knowledge and experience, you can expand your network and benefit from the insights of others.

The association with well-known experts and respected platforms also strengthens your credibility and authority, as you are perceived as a reliable source through these connections.

Implementation:

• Identification of platforms: Search for blogs, magazines and websites that accept guest posts and are recognized in your industry.
• Create pitches: Write compelling pitches that clearly demonstrate the added value of your contribution.
• Plan interviews: Contact relevant experts and plan structured interviews that offer exciting insights.

Expand your presence on social media

In addition to your own website and guest posts, you should also have a presence on social networks. This is simply part of brand building and authority these days.

• Regular updates: Always keep your social media profiles up to date and post new content regularly.
• Engagement: Reply to comments and messages to encourage interaction and engagement.
• Cross-promotion: Link your social media profiles to your website and vice versa.

Trustworthiness: creating trust

The “T” in E-E-A-T stands for“trustworthiness“. There is a lot of spam and scam on the web, so it is quite understandable that Google prefers trustworthy sites in the search results.

Transparency

Transparency is a fundamental aspect of strengthening users’ trust in your website. A complete and clearly visible legal notice is essential. It should contain the following information:

1. Company name and legal form: Clear information about the identity of your company.
2. Address and contact details: Complete postal address as well as e-mail and telephone number for easy contact.
3. Persons authorized to represent the company: Names of the management or the board of directors authorized to represent the company.
4. Commercial register: Details of the commercial register in which your company is registered, including the registration number.

Tips:

• Easily accessible: Place the legal notice in a clearly visible location, ideally in the footer of your website.
• Completeness: Make sure that all legally required information is available in order to avoid warnings.
• Privacy policy: Add a detailed privacy policy to the legal notice that makes the handling of user data transparent.

Implementing security certificates

Security certificates are another important aspect of creating trust. An SSL certificate (Secure Sockets Layer) encrypts the data transfer between the web server and the browser and thus protects user data from unauthorized access.

SSL certificate: Make sure that your website has a valid SSL certificate. You can recognize this by the“https://” in the URL and the lock symbol in the address bar of the browser.

Minimize disruptions: Reduce pop-ups and ads

Nothing is more annoying for users than aggressive pop-ups and excessive ads. Not only can they affect the user experience, they can also undermine trust in your website.

Surely you have already lost yourself in the depths of the Internet and have been bombarded with advertising on dubious sites. Would you trust these websites with your contact details? Or take their tips to heart? I hope not.

Tips:

• Less is more: Use pop-ups sparingly and only when they are really relevant, e.g. for special offers or important information.
• User-friendliness: Make sure that pop-ups can be closed easily and do not take up the entire screen.
• Optimize ads: Reduce the number of ads to a minimum and make sure they are not intrusive.

Frequently asked questions about E-E-A-T

What is the difference between E-A-T and E-E-A-T?

E-A-T stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness – while E-E-A-T also includes Experience. The additional E for Experience refers to the practical experience and personal reports that increase the credibility and authenticity of the content.

Is E-E-A-T a ranking factor?

E-E-A-T is not a direct ranking factor, but is used by the Google Quality Rater Guidelines to assess the quality and trustworthiness of content. Websites that meet high standards in E-E-A-T have a better chance of ranking higher in the search results.

For whom is the consideration of E-E-A-T particularly important?

Taking E-E-A-T into account is particularly important for websites that deal with sensitive topics such as health, finance and security (Your Money Your Life (YMYL) industries). But companies and blogs that want to improve their credibility and chances of top rankings should also pay attention to E-E-A-T.