E-A-T in eCommerce store development
EAT means Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.
Expertise—means one should be an expert in the field, has to show the skill for the Main Content. Expertise is extremely relevant for financial, medical or legal websites. The appreciable thing is that any site could showcase its expertise if the content is useful and truthful for users.
Authoritativeness—An eCommerce developer needs to show that he or she is an authority of the Main Content. This could be derived from the expertise of writers or yourself. If the page is a forum or community discussion, the conversation quality drives authority. Although credentials are important, so do personal experiences such as reviews.
Trustworthiness—Manifest to users that they could trust the organization or the brand or the creator of the Main Content, the Main Content itself and the website. Trustworthiness is important particularly for eCommerce sites that inquire users for information on their credit card. Everything about the website must make users feel safe.
With eCommerce app development and mobile app development, E-A-T is important. E-A-T simply is a human-understandable concept and not a ranking factor. It’s used by Google as a description of the performance they want for the search algorithm. It’s a broad concept, which circumscribes many characteristics of low and high-quality websites. It is all about the quality of the website.
Optimizing E-A-T on an eCommerce site
The big thing in SEO these days is Expertise, Authority, and Trust. It is derived from the QRG or from the Google Search Quality Rater Guidelines. QRG is a document that Google provides to its worldwide team of search quality raters, who measure the search results quality of Google. Moreover, it describes the way they have to rate websites. Basically, it explains what Google wants for the search algorithm to perform.
Everywhere throughout the QRG, E-A-T is referenced everywhere, to be exact 135 times. It is clearly an integral consideration in the ranking process.
Actionable eCommerce E-A-T Strategies
1. Quality content crafted by subject experts. The written content quality on a site makes or breaks visitor trust. This is especially true for new visitors. It goes without saying that the text must be free from grammar and spelling errors. The key is hiring the services of a professional copywriter to write content to the website.
2. Create useful and rich content on the product page. Product pages constitute a big opportunity to make a website different and stand out from the competition. Showcase expertise through providing amazing content that other websites do not have. Comparison tables, 360 imagery, and product videos are examples of useful and rich information that help visitors make an informed decision.
3. Product aftercare content. Offering aftercare content is a terrific way of showcasing both authority and expertise for high-ticket items. It shows customers how to maintain, care and get the most value of the products.
4. Create an amazing About Page to bring a brand to life. A big part of E-A-T is to demonstrate that there are real persons responsible for the site. QRG tells raters to check out the ‘About’ page on sites and utilize it as a credibility indicator.
5. Showcase a team of experts. As a trusted and reputable eCommerce store, the website has to include comprehensive information on the business. The ideal way is for every eCommerce website to have a ‘Meet the Team’ section with bios and pictures of the staff.
6. Publish top-of-funnel content/blog. Most people, before they do an online purchase would go through a research stage. They would look for informational content to compare prices, read reviews and learn about the product they are considering buying. Value-adding content could inform prospective buyers and establish the expertise of the brand further.
7. Make timely content that demonstrates thought leadership. Thought leadership is perfect for showcasing authority. A website should be the place to learn about the subject matter. Publishing frequent, fresh and timely content relevant to the audience and products reinforce the association towards the product and the customer.
E-A-T is a funny old thing and the SEO community argues about it all the time. However, the reality is that most likely it has ‘little’ direct influence on SEO. E-A-T is not a ranking factor but helps develop a strong brand.
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Henrik Adams is an experienced eCommerce developer, who worked with one of the leading Magento Development Company—Sparsh Technologies. He likes to write about eCommerce development, web development, marketing, sales and more about current trends. Follow him on Twitter. |
