An SEO Breakdown of Reputation as an E-A-T Factor

Authoritativeness & SEO

Authoritativeness is almost a no-brainer. It is very much like in academia where the author whose work is the most cited by his or her peers in his or her domain is recognized as the most authoritative.

This goes back to the core of SEO and how links were intended to pass authority before they were used to manipulate rankings.

Trustworthiness & SEO

The Trustworthiness factor is the most interesting part in this equation.

Beyond the theory, we now see in practice the connection between how the customer or employee experience is portrayed on review sites, news sites, forums, social media, and how it shapes the SERPs.

News and Review sites are very pertinent as they have the potential to harm a company’s reputation.

YMYL issues can often surface in negative reviews. They can also be featured in news articles.

Customer complaints about defective products, poor quality, deceitful financial practices go to the heart of the matter.

Having a bad review rating on some sites may lead to having unfavorable content consolidated at the top of search results pages in the related question pack under is your brand legit.

A negative news article can be suggested either in the search bar or in related questions.

What is of concern is that we are facing an unprecedented spread of fake and negative reviews, as well as content in general.

Unfortunately, disgruntled customers and employees tend to be more vocal than the rest of us.

Furthermore, outdated content sticks around for years, long after an issue is fixed.

Protect Your Brand Reputation with E-A-T & SEO

In the doctor example previously mentioned, there is no doubt that for equivalent level of authoritativeness, patient reviews and news articles whether fair or unfair will affect the outcome.

More than ever, it is important to curate your online brand perception.

As a result of the increased importance of trustworthiness, the retail, manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and real estate sectors as well as other industries are looking for solutions to help them manage their online reputation.

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