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How much time does SEO copywriting take before your rankings improve?

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How much time does SEO copywriting take to improve search engine rankings

How much time does SEO copywriting take to improve search engine rankings

I was going through a Reddit thread about whether a person should invest in SEO if he is spending good money on advertising on Facebook and other social media networks.

People also talk about how much time it takes for search engine rankings to improve.

SEO copywriting is the backbone of search engine optimization.

SEO copywriting is the backbone of search engine rankings

SEO copywriting is the backbone of search engine rankings

Search engine optimization does not exist without optimized content because if there is no content, if there is no copy, what do you optimize?

Three main components of SEO – as I understand the field – are:

  • Writing and publishing optimized content.
  • Optimizing source code so that search engine crawlers can crawl and index content without hurdles.
  • Getting backlinks from authority websites, preferably with higher page rank.
  • Interlinking existing content.
  • Increasing the time people spend on the website.

Recently Google rolled out its “Helpful Content” algorithm update that penalizes websites that solely publish content meant to improve search engine rankings, without providing any value to human readers.

This is a good step on Google’s part because what is the purpose of publishing even optimized content if your content is not solve any purpose.

Therefore, SEO copywriting can help you only if it really helps your readers.

What is SEO copywriting?

The meaning of SEO copywriting

The meaning of SEO copywriting

I’m surprised that after all these years people still ask this question.

SEO copywriting in itself is nothing.

Every useful piece of copywriting is search engine optimized automatically.

As Google has suggested in its new algorithm guidelines, always write and publish human-friendly, human-first content.

And anyway, unless you are a high-authority website with hundreds of backlinks and a domain that is very old, even if you publish top-class content, it is difficult to get higher search engine rankings in just a couple of months.

So, if you hire me for my SEO copywriting services and then you expect that your rankings should improve within two months, you are daydreaming.

Even if I give you an example of my own website, although I’m writing this blog post on “SEO copywriting” there is a slim chance it will rank well because high authority websites such as Hubspot, Search Engine Journal, Backlinko, and Neil Patel (among many more) have already ranked well on the first and the second page.

Then why am I writing on this topic if I don’t hope to rank well for “SEO copywriting”?

It improves my content depth – and this is a reason why you should publish SEO content.

To gradually improve your content depth because as your content depth increases, so do your search engine rankings.

Now coming back to the question of “What is SEO copywriting?”

The simple explanation is that it is the art of writing informative content following the best SEO practices.

These practices include:

Crafting a headline that truly represents the body content.

Using the language used by the target audience.

Using short sentences to make it easier for humans to read and for search engine algorithms to process.

Strategically using keywords and search terms within the content so that they are an integral part of your narrative.

Satisfying the search intent – with what intent people are searching for your information?

How is SEO copywriting different from SEO content writing?

Difference between SEO copywriting and content writing

Difference between SEO copywriting and content writing

Content writing is mostly for blogs and other pieces of content that is meant to inform and educate.

You follow the same conventions when writing SEO content but a big difference is that in copywriting, you convince and convert people.

In copywriting, there is a CTA.

Content writing is used for blogging, case studies and other information articles.

Copywriting is used for the main website content, email marketing campaigns, landing pages and social media advertisements.

Hence, SEO copywriting means writing search engine friendly copy with the intention of making people perform the action represented by your CTA.

How long does SEO copywriting take before your search engine rankings improve?

Your search engine rankings don’t just depend on optimized content although, your content is the base of your entire SEO strategy.

SEO experts say that there are more than 200 factors that affect your search engine rankings, and your content or copy is just one of them.

Still, from the perspective of a content writer who has attained decent rankings for a few websites merely on the strength of SEO content, how long does it take?

I’m talking from the perspective of SEO copywriting and content writing.

I have experienced this with a couple of my own websites.

If you publish content – good SEO content – everyday, and preferably multiple times in a day, you can improve your rankings in 3-4 months.

It depends on the topics you choose.

It also depends on how well you can use your keywords and how competitive those keywords are.

You need to focus on longtail keywords because main and primary keywords are already covered by other websites.

For example, if I want to rank well for search terms like “content writing services” or “SEO copywriting services”, at least right now it is near to impossible.

Therefore, I try to focus on less competitive search terms.

For example, I rank well for “content writer for accounting businesses” or “content writer for coaching websites”.

In fact, even if you search for “SEO copywriter for accounting business” you will be able to find my website in top position.

Again, coming back to how much time it takes.

If you are aiming for rare keywords that very few people use, your website can start ranking well even within a couple of weeks if you manually submit your links to Google after publishing them.

But with fair amount of competition, give yourself 3-6 months.

3-6 months when you publish content everyday on your chosen keywords.

You will need to exercise patience.

Can you improve your rankings just on the strength of SEO copywriting without getting backlinks.

I have never actively sought backlinks.

My website has backlinks but that’s because many people have linked to my blog posts on their own.

Over the past 10 years, my website has accumulated some good backlinks.

Somewhere around in 2010 I actively wrote guest blog posts for some high traffic websites and from there I got a few backlinks.

After that, I never tried, and I solely focused on publishing content on my own website.

I use a mix of SEO copywriting and content writing to keep my content search engine friendly.

My rankings are not stellar but they are good enough to give me a steady flow of work.

I don’t remember how much time my content writing website took to create a search engine presence, but I have worked on two other websites.

For both of them, I was able to start getting search engine traffic within three months.

But I published lots of content, sometimes more than 5-6 posts per day, with 4 being minimum.

Those were highly focused blog posts and back in those days (5-10 years ago) Google was not very strict.

Since most of my blog posts linked to external content, they were just 300-400 words.

Despite that, I could get them rank on the first page.

Realistically, what suggestion would I give to someone starting from scratch?

How long does SEO copywriting take before the rankings improve?

Keep a budget for 4 months if you publish one web page or one blog post every day.

If you publish twice every day then 2-3 months.

It goes without saying that how well your SEO copywriting performs depends on the degree of competition you face, but then, whenever you are starting from scratch, it is always better to focus on less competitive search terms.

How to do SEO copywriting under the Google helpful content update guidelines?

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SEO copywriting under the Google helpful content update guidelines

SEO copywriting under the Google helpful content update guidelines

The Google helpful content update is active by now.

It is propagating all over the Internet and it will take two weeks to know whether it has hit your website or blog or not.

Main topic and subtopics covered in this blog post:

Does the latest search algorithm update make SEO copywriting a bad word?

The guidelines of the new Google helpful content algorithm update specifically state that content written for search engine rankings will lose its search engine rankings.

Good quality, well-researched, and human-centric content will gain rankings.

What is SEO copywriting?

It means writing in such a manner that your content is optimized for your chosen keywords and it ranks higher on Google and other search engines.

Theoretically there is nothing wrong in trying to improve your search engine rankings if you’re looking for search engine traffic.

SEO copywriting in its true sense delivers value to humans first.

At the same time, copywriting is done in a search friendly manner.

The text is organized and formatted in such a manner that its easier to crawl and analyze it.

Yes, keywords are used strategically.

Variation of the keywords are also used.

But when I do SEO copywriting, my main purpose of using the keywords is using the language that is understood by the readers.

It is because they use the search queries in the same language they speak.

Does Google look down upon SEO copywriting?

Not exactly.

In fact, multiple times Google has made recommendations on how to write search engine friendly content – content that can be easily crawled, indexed and ranked.

Then what’s the problem?

The problem is that quite often web publishers forget that ultimately, it’s the human readers for whom content must be written and published.

They get obsessed with SEO copywriting – solely optimizing their content for search engine rankings while completely forgetting about delivering quality to human readers.

This approach is counter-productive at many levels.

Low quality content harms your interests.

Your bounce rate increases.

You don’t retain visitors.

People stop visiting your website or blog.

Your readers feel cheated and hence, they get disenchanted with your intentions.

They waste time because they come to your website or blog thinking that they have found the information they were looking for, but they don’t.

Low quality content also sullies Google’s reputation because people see that as Google’s inability to find quality content.

If a new search engine comes up with the ability to find better content, people will start using it.

Hence, Google is heavily coming down upon websites and blogs publishing low quality content.

The new helpful content algorithm update will be specially targeting websites that publish content just to improve search engine rankings.

Naturally, people who have been using SEO copywriting indiscriminately are feeling jittery.

How does Google define helpful content?

Although “helpful content” has a very literal meaning, Google advises you to ask yourself the following questions to determine whether your content is helpful to your human readers.

  • If people directly come to your website (not from Google search), will they find your content helpful and useful?
  • When you are writing about a product or a place to visit, have you personally experienced the product or visited the place to get first-hand experience?
  • After reading what you have published, are people satisfied or do they have to conduct further research?
  • Does your website or blog have a primary focus or a purpose to exist (for example, the purpose of this website is to give you information on content writing, copywriting, and content marketing).
  • Do you provide original information, reporting, research, or analysis?
  • When linking to other information sources, do you simply regurgitate existing information or add further value?

These may seem quite obvious questions but you will be surprised to know how many content publishers don’t pay attention to them.

Doing SEO copywriting under the new Google helpful content update guidelines

What all do you need to pay attention to when writing content according to the new guidelines?

Search engine optimization is always going to be one of your primary concerns.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when writing content for your own website, or for one of your clients.

Don’t write on random topics

The focus area of my blog is content writing, copywriting, sometimes SEO (because it is content related), and content marketing (which is a superset of content writing).

Although I write for websites and blogs, does it make sense to publish blogs on web design?

What about PHP programming?

JavaScript coding?

These topics may get me some traffic, but do they belong to the core focus of my website?

They don’t.

I will be writing and publishing them simply to generate search engine traffic.

I don’t have expertise in them.

I will be simply getting information from other websites and rewriting it, without adding further value.

Instead, stick to your core subject.

If you want to publish regularly, sure, sometimes it may be difficult to come up with new topics, but this is where your creativity will count.

Develop your own writing style

As a copywriter, Google or no Google, you should develop your own writing style to sound original.

Every experienced writer has their own style.

My clients often insist that I write in my style and therefore, sometimes it becomes difficult for me to collaborate with other content writers.

When you have your own manner of writing sentences and using words, even if you are getting information from other websites, you will be writing it in your own way, in your own style, and according to your own take.

Be original

This is one of the major guidelines of the latest Google helpful content algorithm update.

Don’t write and publish content that is already present – maybe in a much better form – on other websites and blogs.

Offer readers something that they cannot find elsewhere.

Develop an expertise.

As much as possible, use first-hand experience to describe products and places.

Everything that they share on this blog, I use it on everyday content writing and copywriting.

Even the blogging tips that I share, I use them on my own blog and also when I’m writing blog posts for my clients.

Don’t obsess over search engine optimization

Just because you’re doing SEO copywriting it doesn’t mean your primary concern should be getting your content to rank higher on Google.

SEO copywriting and content writing are more about using a format that is search engine friendly, and less about cramming your writing with keywords.

When writing, come to the main topic as fast as possible.

Therefore, when you talk about your main topic, if you have defined the topic according to your primary keywords, you will be naturally using your keywords.

Organize your content under various subheadings because larger font draws more attention.

In your subheadings, let your keywords appear naturally.

If they don’t appear, don’t force them.

Similarly, try to use your keywords and bulleted lists.

When I say you should use your keywords, it doesn’t mean splattering them randomly just so that they appear in your text.

Your keywords must always appear contextually.

They should be there because they should be there, not because of SEO.

Don’t unnecessarily stretch your web page or blog post

The Google update documentation advises that you should write highly focused web pages and blog posts.

There is conflicting data available on how long your blog posts (or web pages) must be to rank well.

Google in its new helpful content update guidelines says that it doesn’t matter how many words your blog post (or web page) has.

As long as your content is human-friendly, and relevant, nothing should stop it from ranking well.

Having said that, Hubspot found in a 2021 study that blog posts with 2100-2400 words perform much better than shorter blog posts.

What should you do?

As is the case with everything else, the length of your blog post should be need-based.

My average blog posts these days are 1100-1500 words.

Some blog posts rank well, some don’t.

I don’t bother much.

The messaging is more important to me.

I don’t like unnecessarily stretching my blog posts just so that they have more words.

If you needlessly include topics and subtopics, people lose interest.

They want to read what they were searching for.

They are not looking for 10 other facts.

Use your better judgement.

If you think certain topics are important to your readers, include them, otherwise don’t.

There are some topics that are necessary to make your blog post complete.

But if you feel that your blog post would be better without those subtopics, remove them.

Write in an accessible manner

Google prefers accessible content over inaccessible content.

Make sure your copy is easily readable.

Write simple sentences and paragraphs.

Don’t use over complicated words.

Make your writing scannable so that even someone who doesn’t want to read the whole thing, can make sense of it.

Screen readers should be able to read your text seamlessly.

Link to important topics if you have already written about them instead of rewriting them.

When doing SEO copywriting, think from the point of view of Google.

If your content doesn’t make sense, what is the point in getting it ranked higher?

Get a ton of traffic?

Make people click on advertisements?

Buy your affiliate products?

You know what?

People aren’t doing any of these because they are not even reading your content.

Anyway, 80 out of 100 people read your headline and don’t go beyond that.

So, it’s only the remaining 20 people who are going to care what you have written.

If they feel cheated, even they don’t convert.

From the perspective of Google, why should Google suffer if you don’t want to write quality content?

Why should people who use Google in good faith suffer because you just want them to come to your website without offering them helpful content?

With the help of artificial intelligence and natural language processing Google has enough computing power to know whether you are providing quality content or not.

Stick to the “helpful content” algorithm guidelines and you will be surprised to know how well your copywriting sounds.

 

How important are keywords when writing content?

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Are keywords important for content writing

Are keywords important for content writing

Keywords are needed for SEO content writing.

Although there are many SEO experts who have begun to say that keywords no longer matter because Google these days focuses on natural language processing rather than keywords, if you search on Google, you will observe that keywords still matter.

I will give you a small example: suppose you are looking for “SEO content writing” and the keyword does not exist on my website.

Will you be able to find my website?

Suppose I’m constantly writing web pages and blog posts on “SEO writer”, “SEO writing”, or “writing for SEO” – will you still find my website for “SEO content writing”?

You may or you may not.

It depends on how well I have been able to optimize my website and what is the nature of rankings my content enjoys on Google.

If lots of people link to my website, my blog, and individual blog posts and on those websites, they have repeatedly used the keyword “SEO content writing”, then, maybe, Google may infer that my website is about “SEO content writing”, otherwise, it is all guesswork.

On the other hand, if I have multiple blog posts and web pages talking about the topic of “SEO content writing” then there is a great chance that one of these days, you will be able to find my website for this particular search query.

Therefore, you shouldn’t ignore the keywords when writing content.

Keywords have significance other than SEO

Whenever my clients send me content writing specifications, they also send me a list of keywords.

They may want me to optimize a single blog post for 5-10 keywords, or they may want me to focus on just a single, longtail phrase.

I prefer focusing on longtail phrases.

They are easier to optimize.

They don’t dilute your optimization process.

Whenever my clients ask me to optimize a particular piece of content for 5-10 keywords, I refuse to do so.

This is because then I need to write lots of unnecessary content to cover all the keywords unless the blog post or the web page is actually comprehensive enough to be able to accommodate all 5-10 keywords.

Even when the client doesn’t mention SEO, I advise to compile a list of keywords.

Keywords are not just needed for SEO – they also give you an idea of the language people use when they are using Google.

People use conversational language when they’re searching for information.

Again coming back to my own example, I may end up spending lots of time optimizing for “SEO content writing”, whereas, clients might be searching for “need an SEO content writer” or “looking for SEO content writer”.

Maybe only those people look for “SEO content writing” who want to learn about writing SEO content.

Therefore, the language that you are using when writing content may be completely different from the language used by your target customers and clients.

For better conversion rate you must write in the language used by your visitors.

Hence, keywords are needed for two purposes:

  1. Help you write optimized content so that you can organically improve your search engine rankings.
  2. Help you get a sense of the language people use when talking about your business so that you can write your content in the same language.
  3. Help you get content writing ideas – you need to create lots of topics to write on based on the keywords you want to optimize your website or blog for.

How to find the right keywords before writing content?

When writing content, keyword research can either be done by the client, or the content writer writing the content (it depends on whether the client is ready to pay for the time or not).

There are free as well as paid methods to find the right keywords.

There are three elements you must pay attention to when finding the right keywords before writing your content:

Relevance of the keywords

How relevant the keywords you’re planning to use are?

Here I would quickly like to add that when researching for keywords, focus on probable topics of search rather than keywords like “SEO content writing”.

For example, should you optimize for “looking for SEO content writer” or “what are the benefits of hiring an SEO content writer?”

This is where search intent comes into picture.

The intent of the first search query “looking for SEO content writer” is transactional because the person submitting the query wants to hire an SEO content writer.

The intent of the second search query “what are the benefits of hiring an SEO content writer” is that the person may be thinking of hiring an SEO content writer but he or she needs more convincing.

This is commercial intent.

You may like to read Why search intent is most important when writing content for your website

Authority of the keywords

It is the depth of expertise your keywords or topic represents.

You build topical authority by writing lots of content on your chosen topic.

For example, if I have multiple web pages and blog posts talking about “SEO content writing” and if the content is relevant and many people link to it, Google will think that it is an authority keyword for my website.

Keyword authority is more about choosing a key phrase or a longtail keyword and then building authoritative content around it.

Keyword search volume

For this you may need to use a keyword tool like Google Keyword Planner.

The Google Keyword planner is less for SEO and more for bidding on Google AdWords advertisements, but if you enter your keywords, it gives you such volume.

Search volume tells you whether the keyword you want to use is popular or not.

You may rank on the first spot for your chosen keyword but if people are not searching for it, there is no use of it.

You must choose keywords for which there are a decent number of search queries being done.

Also, highly competitive keywords may be difficult to optimize.

Hence, you should use keywords that are relevant to your business, but they are not extremely highly competitive (thousands of people searching for them per day.

In conclusion, finding the right keywords are important for your content writing process both in terms of improving search engine rankings as well as helping you write in the language your target audience uses.

5 SEO copywriting tips to improve your rankings and conversion rate

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SEO copywriting tips to improve your rankings and conversion rate

SEO copywriting tips to improve your rankings and conversion rate

Effective copywriting follows a multipronged approach.

It aims to improve your search engine rankings organically.

It also aims to improve your conversion rate in addition to meaningfully engaging your visitors.

Many clients these days prefer to hire SEO copywriting services instead of content writing services because then they can get the best of both worlds.

What exactly is SEO copywriting?

Is it same as SEO content writing?

Not necessarily.

Remember that the end goal of copywriting is to convert leads.

The end goal of content writing is to generate organic traffic.

Therefore, in the conventional sense, you use content writing to generate organic traffic and then you use copywriting to convert that traffic into paying customers and clients.

Another big difference between copywriting and content writing is that when you write copy for a web page or even a blog post, there is a clearly defined CTA (call-to-action).

The purpose of general content is to provide information and generate awareness whereas the purpose of copywriting is to prompt people to take action.

SEO copywriting means writing the copy in such a manner that it also helps you improve your search engine rankings.

Just because you are writing copy to generate leads it doesn’t mean search engine rankings are irrelevant.

Just as search engine rankings are important for your average blog post, they are also important for your business web pages, for which, copywriting is required.

What type of content requires SEO copywriting?

Frankly, anything.

It is often said that copywriting is mostly required for promotional material but even when you are writing for your blog posts and articles, you can wear the hat of a copywriter and write a convincing copy to make people take an action.

This is especially important when you are writing a business blog.

Nonetheless, you may require SEO copywriting for following types of content:

  • Main website copy
  • Landing pages
  • Product descriptions
  • Blog posts and articles.

One of the biggest benefits of SEO copywriting is that it forces a writer to write both for the search engines and the users.

Listed below are 5 SEO copywriting tips that can help you improve your search engine rankings as well as conversion rate.

Make a list of questions that people ask

Google loves questions so much that it ranks web pages and blog posts providing answers to query-based questions higher than other web pages and blog posts.

Therefore, a query like, “How can I improve my SEO copywriting?” brings better and targeted results than “best SEO copywriting services”.

You can prepare a list of frequently asked questions.

You can use websites like AnswerThePublic, Quora, and Reddit to find out what questions people are asking pertaining to a certain field.

Why prepare copy based on questions?

People type complete questions – complete queries – when they ask precise questions.

If Google thinks that your answer precisely matches the question being asked, it features your content as a snippet, increasing your click-through-rate by almost 35%.

Additionally, you express yourself better when you are providing answers to straightforward questions.

It makes your copy easy flowing.

Use your main keyword in the title

The title of a web page is different from the main headline.

The title appears as a hyperlink in your search engine listings, just above the description.

In HTML parlance, it is also called “meta title”.

The headline on the other hand is the big font message that you see at the top of a blog post or web page.

They can be same, and they can be different depending on your preference and SEO needs.

People tend to click more on the links that contain the words they have just used in the query.

Your click-through-rate is important for better search engine rankings.

The more people click your search listings, the higher they begin to appear.

This is because when more people click your link Google thinks that it contains the relevant information for the query just used.

Use the language your target audience uses

This is one of the most important SEO copywriting tips.

Why is it important to use the language your target audience uses?

People normally use search queries in the language they are comfortable in.

Since a big portion of searches are voice searches these days, people search the way they speak.

They use conversational language.

Visit forums.

Spend some time on social media websites.

Directly interact with your customers and clients.

Carefully observe the way they talk to you.

The way they talk about your product or service may be completely different than how you talk about your product or service

For example, as a mobile phone manufacturer you may talk about the AMOLED display as a great feature but for a user, the benefit is that he or she can watch videos clearer than an average flat screen TV.

As a SaaS provider, you may find the feature that your software can be used on every device but for the user, the more important aspect might be that he or she can subscribe for a lesser fee instead of paying a hefty one-time fee for a bulky software.

Write for the search intent

Your SEO copywriting becomes more effective if you write your copy based on search intent.

Search intent is the intention with which an individual uses Google or any other search engine.

People have distinct intentions and when you are writing copy you should be able to recognize that distinction.

Some people are simply looking for information.

They have no intention of doing business with you right now.

They don’t need to be convinced.

They simply need to be engaged with useful, relevant information so that by the time they are ready to do business with you, they recognize you and respect your opinion.

Their search intent is informational.

Some people, although ready to do business, haven’t made up their minds yet.

They need more information.

They need comparisons

They are ready to be sold to.

They are interested in reading FAQs, product comparisons, testimonials, and reviews.

They may be searching for something like, “pros and cons of Google Workspace and Windows 365”.

Their search intent is commercial.

Then some people are ready to buy.

They are searching for something like, “the best copywriting services for my accounting website”, or, “looking for SEO copywriter”.

Their search intent is transactional.

Write your copy targeting different searcher intents for better search engine rankings and conversion.

Don’t cram multiple keywords in a single document

Sometimes to save cost client send me a long list of keywords that need to be incorporated into a single document.

This is bad both for SEO and conversion rate.

I prefer to use only three keywords when I’m writing a blog post or web page.

One primary keyword and two related keywords.

When you are given a list of 10 or 15 keywords, unnecessarily you have to write extra words to incorporate all the keywords.

This dilutes the effectiveness of your entire copywriting process.

Whether you are doing SEO copywriting for your own website or working for a client, make sure that per page or per blog post you cover just 2-3 keywords.

Write in-depth blog posts and web pages

Both Google and your human readers prefer long form content – 1300-1500 words.

My average length is 1000-1200 words.

But, writing too many words doesn’t mean you fill up your blog posts and web pages with useless information.

Write long form content only when you have highly useful information to share with your readers.

Assuming you are delivering useful information, long form content makes readers spend more time on your website.

This reduces your bounce rate.

It increases engagement rate.

It helps you build your authority.

Long form content attracts backlinks from other websites and blogs.

Since lots of information is present on a single source, and since your bounce rate is low, Google begins to improve your search engine rankings for those pieces of content.

For improving your search engine rankings as well as engagement rate, have a long-term target for your SEO copywriting projects.

This is applicable to your own website and the websites of your clients.

Don’t overcommit.

Don’t promise results within a month or so.

No matter how excellent your blog posts and articles are, you cannot deliver tangible results in one or two months.

At the minimum, make a commitment of 6 months

It takes around 6-8 months of sustained SEO copywriting to experience some observable results in terms of better rankings and higher conversion rate.

Importance of E-A-T for writing SEO content

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The importance of E-A-T for writing SEO content explained

The importance of E-A-T for writing SEO content explained

The term E-A-T came to be recognized after major Google algorithm update in August 2018. E-A-T stands for Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness – three attributes of your content that help you improve your search engine rankings.

Theoretically these are not new concepts. For more than a decade now Google is increasingly making it difficult for websites to rank well, especially those websites that publish lots of random content just to improve their search engine rankings.

E-A-T is Google’s new standard to gauge the relevance of the content that you write. It isn’t simply the quality now. Sure, quality still matters, but in addition to quality, you also need to show your expertise, your authority, and the level of trust that people show in your content.

What exactly is Google E-A-T?

The expression E-A-T began to appear in various SEO articles after a major Google update in 2018. The finer nitty-gritty of the E-A-T part of the algorithm isn’t exactly clear to anyone but in this SEO guideline, Google seems to define “low quality pages” as pages “lacking expertise, authoritativeness, or trustworthiness”. Untrustworthy pages have the lowest E-A-T quotient.

To rank well, according to the Google update, the following needs to be considered:

  • The level of expertise of the creator of the main content.
  • The authoritativeness of the creator of the main content, the authoritativeness of the main content itself, and the authority of the website.
  • The trustworthiness of the creator of the main content, the trustworthiness of the main content itself, and that of the website.

Expertise can be of two types:

  • Something like a medical journal where highly expert people write about medicine and treatments.
  • Less formal expertise such as restaurant or movie reviews.

It depends on how much the writers and their websites are trusted and believed by the readers and viewers.

The most important factors for E-A-T web pages may include

  • The main content quality and quantity.
  • The main beneficial purpose of the content (the web page or the blog post).
  • The expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness of the content as well as the content creator.
  • The reputation of the website and the author.

How to write content according to Google’s E-A-T

Google’s intention is to find and showcase the most reliable and trustworthy information to its users. This is its reason to exist. If people don’t find trustworthy information, they will stop using the search engine and another search engine may fill the gap. You need to write content keeping that in mind. Here are a few things you can do

Write content based on search intent

Why are people looking for your content? Exactly what is the information they seek to solve their problems?

Further reading: What is search intent and how knowing it improves your SEO

When people are looking for content on my website they have to reasons

  • They are looking for a professional content writer and copywriter.
  • They want tips and information on content writing and copywriting so that they can either write themselves, or link to the blog post to add value to their own content.

When people link to my content it improves my search engine rankings. Also, when people are easily able to find my content on Google they more eagerly contact me for work thinking that I can achieve the same for them (which, on many occasions, I do).

Hence, whenever you are writing your content or editing existing content make sure why you are writing, what purpose it solves, and whether it delivers exactly what the readers are looking for.

Write blog posts and web pages in question-answer formats

The reason is quite simple. People are constantly asking Google questions and Google intends to provide answers. If you already write in question-and-answer format you deliver a ready-made template to Google.

Writing in the question answer format also helps you write according to the search intent. When you answer a question, you already know what you are writing about. Similarly, when people find your content on Google they already know what answer lies ahead, and more eagerly click your link, improving your CTR, and in the process, elevating your search engine rankings further.

Increase your authority as an author

This happens over a long period of time, but ultimately, it begins to have a bearing on your search engine rankings, especially considering E-A-T (the authority part). Do people refer to you as an expert? Do they mention you as an expert or an authority figure when they link to your content? Do they recommend you?

These things are interrelated. Unless you have content people are not going to find it and if they don’t find it, how do they know that you are an expert in your field?

Now, unless they know that you are an expert (based on E-A-T), how are you going to improve your search engine rankings so that they can find your content?

It may become a vicious loop, but it doesn’t have to be. You need to begin from somewhere.

Be active on social media. Use websites like Quora and LinkedIn. LinkedIn these days have many forums you can post your answers in and once you have built a presence, you can start sharing your content over there.

Pay close attention to search engine optimization when writing content

Don’t just write and publish content because you think you are an authoritative figure in your field. Yes, this definitely matters, but you need to make it easier for Google crawlers to crawl and index your content. For that, you need to follow some SEO conventions when writing and formatting your content.

What can you do?

Use an appropriate title that truly represents what you are writing. Preferably use your keywords or an SEO tool when formulating your title.

Use headings and subheadings like <h1>, <h2> and <h3>. Use <h1> just once for the main heading of your blog post or web page. You can use the subheading tags for multiple headings to make your content scannable.

Sometimes Google crawlers don’t go through your entire blog post or web page. They just skim through the headings and subheadings and bulleted points. Make sure you have useful information in these tags.

Why pay close attention to search engine optimization when writing content?

As I mentioned, it will make it easier for crawlers to make sense of your content and increase your chances of appearing in search results.

However low your rankings are, sooner or later people are going to find your content and start interacting with it. After that, your further rankings depend on how people interact with your content. This is where writing content according to search engine optimization standards is going to help you.

Find credible data and cite authoritative sources

Content writers, especially thought leaders, do lots of research when writing content. They find research data, quote it, and then link to the original sources. This renders credibility to their writing. It’s easier to trust numbers. Find information from multiple sources so that your readers don’t have to do that, and they can find all the credible information at the single source.

If you are an organization, you should also encourage your writers to improve their authoritativeness. You can invite well known authors to write for your blog. Write and publish lots of long form content because it is considered more authoritative and informative compared to thin content. Researching and citing sources also elevates your E-A-T factor.