E-E-A-T Checklist to Future-Proof Your Website Content
Google wants content that people can rely on. E-E-A-T — Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trust — is the lens used to evaluate that reliability, with extra scrutiny for topics that affect health, money and safety. While E-E-A-T isn’t a single ranking factor, Google’s guidance explains that its systems look for signals that line up with those qualities and weigh them more heavily for YMYL topics. Recent ranking and policy updates also tightened the net around low-value and spammy content.
In March 2024, Google refined core ranking systems to cut unoriginal results and introduced new spam policies targeting scaled content abuse, site reputation abuse and expired domain abuse. Google expected a 40% reduction in low-quality results, later noting about 45% after rollout. If you publish at scale or host third-party content, these policies matter.
Start with people-first content
Google’s “people-first” guidance urges creators to show original insight, avoid thin rewrites and make intent clear. A practical way to check your pages is to ask “Who created this, how was it produced and why was it published?” Transparent authorship, stated methods and user-centred purpose set the base for Trust.
If you work with the best SEO agency, insist that every long-form page carries a visible byline that links to an author profile detailing credentials, topics covered and editorial standards.
Experience: show you’ve done the work
Search raters and users both look for signs that you’ve actually used the product, tested the service or undertaken the steps you describe. Include first-hand details, measurements, photos, screen recordings, or data tables that prove you did the work. Where automation or AI assists, add a short note explaining the process and where humans reviewed or verified facts. This meets the “How” and supports Trust.
Teams from like SEO experts Sydney such as Top SEO Sydney formalise this with evidence checklists: original images per section, repeatable steps, and a summary of limitations so readers know what to expect.
Expertise: demonstrate qualifications without puffery
Make it obvious why the author can speak on the topic. Give a concise biography, relevant certifications, publications and speaking roles. For medical, legal or financial advice, add review notes from a qualified reviewer. Use structured data on articles and include recommended properties so Google can parse author information; validate with the Rich Results Test and google ads specialist near me.
Authoritativeness: earn and show recognition
Authority grows when respected sites reference your work. Link out to credible sources that support claims and use thoughtful internal linking to cluster related topics. Google’s starter guide also reminds publishers to treat external links carefully and add rel="nofollow" where you don’t want association.
A clean site architecture helps here. Clear hubs, crawlable navigation and sensible anchor text do more for understanding than flashy widgets. If you’re planning a redesign, prioritise readability, mobile performance and accessibility as part of your web design brief.
Trust: remove friction and signal accountability
Trust is the anchor. Publish an About page with real people and ABN details, a contact page with phone and physical address, and a privacy policy that matches your data practices. Avoid intrusive interstitials, label ads, and add bylines and timestamps on all newsy pages. Keep comments moderated and apply rel attributes to user-posted links.
Cross-check your publishing model against Google’s spam policies. If you host third-party content, ensure close oversight, topic alignment and editorial control; “site reputation abuse” is now explicitly covered and enforceable. Anyone running scaled content programs needs stronger QA and unique value on every page.
Consistency across channels helps people verify you. Align bios, business names and NAP details on your website, Google Business Profile and major social platforms; that tidy footprint also supports social media marketing performance.
AI and automation: be open, keep quality high
Google is neutral on how content is created. What matters is usefulness and compliance with policies; disclose significant automation, explain editorial checks, and avoid scaled production aimed at search manipulation. That aligns with both the “How” guidance and the spam policies introduced alongside the March 2024 core update.
When you promote guides or case studies, keep claims grounded. Resist templated pages that promise outcomes without evidence. Raters don’t directly control rankings, but their evaluations help confirm whether systems are returning helpful results, so align with the same signals they review.
The practical E-E-A-T checklist
- Authorship and accountability: visible bylines, linked author pages, credentials, contact routes, editorial policy, and review notes where appropriate.
- Evidence of experience: original photos, measurements, screenshots, test methodology, failure notes, and “what we’d do differently next time”.
- Technical clarity: valid structured data for Articles; consistent internal linking; sensible URL structure; avoid manipulative patterns like doorway or scaled thin pages.
- Links with intent: cite reputable sources, add rel attributes where needed, and avoid link schemes.
- Policy alignment: audit for site reputation abuse, expired domain reuse, and scaled content abuse before publishing or partnering.
Regularly review traffic dips against these points, then update or consolidate weak pages. If you rely on agencies, set reporting cadences that cover authorship, evidence and policy compliance rather than just rankings. A steady, user-first approach keeps you aligned with Google’s published guidance and gives your content a longer life on Search.