What is EAT and why is it important?

Unless you’re brand new to SEO, there’s a good chance that you might of heard about Google EAT already. Having been around since 2014, it’s slowly become one of the most important elements of SEO. However, it’s also one of the most confusing elements – even for the experts! So, what is EAT and why should you consider it as part of your SEO strategy? Let’s find out!

EAT stands for Expertise, Authority and Trust – the three very important factors that Google considers when measuring how much trust it should place in a brand or website. Google wants to provide its users with not only useful information, but useful information that comes from a brand that they consider trustworthy. Businesses who nail this EAT strategy will see themselves promoted by Google, resulting in improved online visibility and most importantly, more visitors.

Expertise

Expertise is exactly what you imagine – a robust skill or knowledge in a particular field. If you’re offering a service or products that you have a deep understanding and knowledge of, you might be classed as an expert in that field.

Now, imagine you and your competitors are in the same room with a customer. If you had to demonstrate your knowledge to that customer, you would want to stand out and prove that you and your business are THE experts in your field, rather than your competitors.

Well, it’s the same with your website. If your website demonstrates a level of knowledge and expertise that is superior to that of your competitors, then Google will pick you as the expert and prioritise your website above others. Your website is being constantly examined and scrutinised by Google, so it’s super important to stay on top of it!

Authority

Authority is similar to expertise, in that the person or business in question is able to be trusted. Whilst expertise is a good measurement of knowledge, authority is designed to see how well you and your business, as well as your website and the content within it, are set apart by your competitors.

In your friend group, you might have certain friends that you can rely on for useful information about a particular subject. When you want to find out something about cars, your friend who is a mechanic might be the best person to ask. Or if you want to know something about Chinese cooking, your chef friend will probably know!

When people search the internet, the same rule applies. Google is searching through your content with a fine-toothed comb, looking for expertly written content and checking that your brand is the most-trusted available.

Trustworthiness

Trustworthiness is the ability to be relied on as trustworthy and honest. It’s a measurement of how well-regarded your website, brand and content are. It’s very easy to churn out copious amounts of content, but in order for it to be successful, that content must be considered trustworthy by Google.

We all know what it’s like when we find a website that we’ve never visited before. We want to purchase something from them, but we’re unsure of the website’s reliability, so we look for factors that might consider the website to be trustworthy. This is what Google does to your website.

Google measures this trust based on the backlinks it detects from other domains online. The higher the trust in the linked from domain, the more trust it puts in the linked to domain. So, if your proven trustworthy friends have consistently recommended you, you’re therefore more likely to be recommended as trustworthy, too.

So why is EAT important to my business?

If your brand or website is lacking in the above points, your customers might go elsewhere. Whilst it might seem unfair to have to battle to prove the obvious, especially when you might already consider yourself an expert, it’s never been more important to display it to the world via your website.

If your business fails to satisfy the needs of the Google algorithm or finds another page that provides a more superior experience than yours, Google will simply find another website to promote – potentially costing you customers.

How can I make sure my website factors in EAT?

It’s easy – just ask us! Here at Peppermint, our team will go through your website and give it the love and attention it needs to start ranking amongst your competitors. We’ll take a look at your website as a whole, as well as the content within it, to see how we can improve and refine to get you presenting yourself as the expert you are!

If you would like further information, just get in touch with us!