{"id":8989,"date":"2023-04-11T13:46:43","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T13:46:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/"},"modified":"2023-04-11T13:46:43","modified_gmt":"2023-04-11T13:46:43","slug":"how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/","title":{"rendered":"How to build an E-E-A-T strategy for local SEO"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While many SEO practitioners will smirk at the term \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/google-e-e-a-t-guide-seo-394191\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">E-E-A-T<\/a>\u201d and immediately the<\/p>\n<p>ink about what\u2019s for lunch, they aren\u2019t necessarily wrong. <\/p>\n<p>To achieve E-E-A-T, various crucial \u201cingredients\u201d must seamlessly come together and result in quality.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>This article explores how to incorporate local SEO tactics into an E-E-A-T strategy.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#So_what_is_E-E-A-T\" >So what is E-E-A-T?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Why_does_E-E-A-T_matter_for_local_SEO\" >Why does E-E-A-T matter for local SEO?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Experience_How_are_you_doing\" >Experience: How are you doing?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Local_reviews\" >Local reviews<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Google_Business_Profile_posting\" >Google Business Profile posting<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Employee_bios\" >Employee bios<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Customer_photos\" >Customer photos<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Experience_cant_be_simulated\" >Experience can\u2019t be simulated<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Expertise_Why_are_you_qualified\" >Expertise: Why are you qualified?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Local_service_pages\" >Local service pages<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Blog_posts\" >Blog posts<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Expertise_drives_quality\" >Expertise drives quality<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-13\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Authoritativeness_What_are_you_known_for\" >Authoritativeness: What are you known for?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-14\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Citations\" >Citations<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-15\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Community_involvement\" >Community involvement<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-16\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Knowledge_sharing\" >Knowledge sharing<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-17\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Authoritativeness_drives_recognition\" >Authoritativeness drives recognition<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-18\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Trust_Why_are_you_the_best\" >Trust: Why are you the best?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-19\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Third-party_website_reviews\" >Third-party website reviews<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-20\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Google_Business_Profile_reviews\" >Google Business Profile reviews<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-21\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Trust_is_invaluable\" >Trust is invaluable<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-22\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/11\/how-to-build-an-e-e-a-t-strategy-for-local-seo\/#Local_E-E-A-T_strategy_is_challenging_but_worth_it\" >Local E-E-A-T strategy is challenging but worth it<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"So_what_is_E-E-A-T\"><\/span>So what is E-E-A-T?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>SEO practitioners laud E-E-A-T as the cornerstone of long-term organic growth. Developed as part of <a href=\"https:\/\/static.googleusercontent.com\/media\/guidelines.raterhub.com\/en\/\/searchqualityevaluatorguidelines.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Google\u2019s search quality rater guidelines<\/a>, E-E-A-T stands for experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. <\/p>\n<p>Whenever a Google algorithm rolls out, Google\u2019s recommendations fall back on E-E-A-T factors <a href=\"https:\/\/developers.google.com\/search\/docs\/fundamentals\/creating-helpful-content#eat\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">without fail<\/a>:\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGoogle\u2019s automated systems are designed to use many different factors to rank great content. After identifying relevant content, our systems aim to prioritize those that seem most helpful. To do this, they identify a mix of factors that can help determine which content demonstrates aspects of experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness, or what we call E-E-A-T.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Google\u2019s statement here is fairly wordy, the key takeaway is crucial \u2013 Google\u2019s automated systems look for E-E-A-T elements in online content.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_does_E-E-A-T_matter_for_local_SEO\"><\/span>Why does E-E-A-T matter for local SEO?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Several key local SEO tactics relate directly to E-E-A-T:\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/#h-experience-how-are-you-doing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Experience<\/a><\/strong>: Google Business Profile posting, local employees, customer photos.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/#h-expertise-why-are-you-qualified\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Expertise<\/a><\/strong>: Local service pages, blog posts.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/#h-authoritativeness-what-are-you-known-for\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Authoritativeness<\/a><\/strong>: Local links.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/#h-trust-why-are-you-the-best\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trustworthiness<\/a><\/strong>: Local reviews.<\/p>\n<p>An SEO practitioner will leverage a unique competitive advantage by incorporating these local tactics as part of a larger E-E-A-T strategy.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>E-E-A-T wasn\u2019t designed as a series of weights or ranking factors \u2013 it\u2019s a singular emphasis on quality. By achieving a high-quality customer experience, a website is duly rewarded with high-impact rankings.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how each local SEO tactic can be incorporated into an E-E-A-T strategy.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Experience_How_are_you_doing\"><\/span>Experience: How are you doing?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>As the <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/google-doubles-up-at-e-with-updated-search-quality-raters-guidelines-e-e-a-t-390343\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">newest factor of E-E-A-T<\/a>, experience emphasizes the customer\u2019s perspective. <\/p>\n<p>Sometimes, a user wants to hear from others who have used the product or service rather than reading content from a licensed professional.<\/p>\n<p>So, how can a local business make the customer experience more accessible?<\/p>\n<p>Local reviews<\/p>\n<p>Google Business Profile posting<\/p>\n<p>Employee bios<\/p>\n<p>Customer photos<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Local_reviews\"><\/span>Local reviews<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Local reviews overlap significantly with trust (the most important factor of E-E-A-T) and are primarily covered within that section of this article. <\/p>\n<p>But a business\u2019s reputation is vital to a consumer\u2019s decision-making process.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Google_Business_Profile_posting\"><\/span>Google Business Profile posting<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>By regularly posting on Google Business Profile (GBP), an organization connects directly with users who want to understand the company\u2019s day-to-day culture.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<em>This Denver pizzeria posts a monthly \u201cCocktail for a Cause\u201d on GBP, sharing its culture of goodwill and community with potential customers.\u00a0<\/em><\/div>\n<p>Customers can more readily grasp their potential experience with a business when they see what\u2019s going on behind the scenes. <\/p>\n<p>Posting regularly on GBP might not be a direct ranking factor, but it establishes a human element.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Employee_bios\"><\/span>Employee bios<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>When users are looking for a service, they want to know about the human beings who will provide that service. Employee bios contribute to a culture of transparency and communication.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Do people care more about Acme Plumbing, the company, or Doug, the plumber with two kids and a passion for sump pumps?<\/p>\n<p>By learning about the team, the user can envision their potential experience. Employee information should be accessible to users \u2013 either posted on GBP or placed directly on location pages.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Customer_photos\"><\/span>Customer photos<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>A culture of documentation means there is nothing to hide. An organization should share imagery that accurately represents the customer\u2019s experience. <\/p>\n<p>By asking users for permission to repost their images and reviews, an organization takes ownership of its value in a local community.<\/p>\n<p>For example, a local renovation company might include an \u201cExamples of our work\u201d section with \u201cbefore\u201d and \u201cafter\u201d pictures on its website.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Experience_cant_be_simulated\"><\/span>Experience can\u2019t be simulated<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Users care about their experience when choosing an organization. They want to know they\u2019ll receive quality products or services without hassle. <\/p>\n<p>Show the local community that your business values its customer experience with live, unpolished representations of that experience.<\/p>\n<p><!-- START INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<div class=\"nl-inline-form border py-2 px-1 my-2\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-3 col-xl-4 pe-md-0 pb-2 pb-lg-0\">\n<p class=\"inline-form-text text-center mb-0\">Get the daily newsletter search marketers rely on.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-7 col-xl-6  pe-lg-0\">\n<div class=\"form-nl-inline\">\n<div class=\"row g-0\">\n<div class=\"form-group col-12 col-lg-8 mb-0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-4 col-xl-4 mb-0\">\n<div class=\"d-none\">\n<p>Processing\u2026Please wait.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"btn btn-dark inlineButton w-100 rounded-0 font-weight-bold\">SUBSCRIBE<\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-2 col-xl-2 ps-1\">\n<p class=\"text-center mb-0\"><a class=\"nl-terms\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/termsofuse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">See terms.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- END INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Expertise_Why_are_you_qualified\"><\/span>Expertise: Why are you qualified?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>An organization brings value to its community when its employees have extensive backgrounds and skill sets. <\/p>\n<p>Google recently <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/google-launches-perspectives-about-this-author-and-more-ways-to-verify-information-394920\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">emphasized the importance<\/a> of expertise for users when it <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.google\/products\/search\/google-search-new-fact-checking-misinformation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">added several new features<\/a> to search results, including &#8220;About this author,&#8221; &#8220;Perspectives,&#8221; and more prominence for &#8220;About this page&#8221;:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;As we surface new voices and perspectives, we want to ensure that people can easily learn more about the authors behind the content they are reading and discover new voices they can trust.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<em>Google features information about the author when a user clicks &#8220;More about this page.&#8221; Additionally, a new feature with more extensive author information is rolling out.<\/em><\/div>\n<p>An organization leverages its expertise through its content, particularly:<\/p>\n<p>Local service pages.<\/p>\n<p>Blog posts.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Local_service_pages\"><\/span>Local service pages<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/optimizing-local-landing-pages-for-search-best-practices-393396\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Location pages<\/a> are a commonly used local SEO tactic, but they often don&#8217;t offer enough content to rank. A single location page doesn&#8217;t have space to go into depth about its products or services.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>With local service pages, a website builds upon its local expertise by offering detailed information about its services to a specific community. <\/p>\n<p>Substantial content about a local service proactively shows the user and the search engine that the business is knowledgeable.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If a dentistry center has opened six locations across the Houston area and wants to rank for &#8220;cosmetic dentistry,&#8221; a single location page might not cut it. <\/p>\n<p>By publishing a service page for specific suburbs like Sugar Land and Katy, the dentistry practice further emphasizes its expertise.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<em>A page dedicated to specific services in a specific community establishes deeper expertise around that offering.<\/em><\/div>\n<p>Other examples of informative content on local service pages include a troubleshooting section, a resources section linking to blog posts and customer testimonials specific to that service.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Blog_posts\"><\/span>Blog posts<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Many local websites have a blog. Few of them connect their blog&#8217;s editorial calendar with the customer experience. <\/p>\n<p>What is the customer team receiving complaints about? <\/p>\n<p>What information would educate and empower the customer? <\/p>\n<p>What topics are rarely covered by other local blogs?<\/p>\n<p>A local criminal defense lawyer might write a commonly published piece of content &#8220;when you need a criminal defense lawyer,&#8221; but is this accomplishing anything? <\/p>\n<p>Search results for this keyword will be highly competitive.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<p>What&#8217;s a more specific situation that hasn&#8217;t been written about?<\/p>\n<p>For example, if your location recently faced a national disaster, did people break into local buildings for shelter or to help each other? Was there tension with the law in that scenario? <\/p>\n<p>Providing general information about how to approach those legal troubles might attract local attention and rankings.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/how-to-write-a-blog-post-391760\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">blog post<\/a> only builds expertise if it&#8217;s relevant to the customer. It should be well-researched, localized, easy to read, and backed by an author with expertise. <\/p>\n<p>Look beyond keyword research into content opportunities that will make content stand out and provide thought leadership.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Expertise_drives_quality\"><\/span>Expertise drives quality<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>A website&#8217;s on-page SEO strategy should prioritize expertise above all other tactics. <\/p>\n<p>Most websites have leveraged SEO elements like title tags, meta descriptions, and headings in a <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/local-seo-competitive-analysis-387666\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">competitive marketing environment<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>An organization will be awarded for its expertise when its content proactively addresses its user base.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Authoritativeness_What_are_you_known_for\"><\/span>Authoritativeness: What are you known for?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Authoritativeness is an earned concept \u2013 third-party entities must vet it. <\/p>\n<p>A local business could publish the industry&#8217;s most comprehensive and impactful content. But if nobody references that content, it doesn&#8217;t matter.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>As for authoritativeness, Google&#8217;s rater guidelines advise raters to &#8220;consider the extent to which the content creator or the website is known as a go-to source for the topic.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The phrasing &#8220;is known as&#8221; emphasizes that others should have previously recognized the website. <\/p>\n<p>An organization must be publicly recognized for its content, quality products\/services, and local relevance to build authority around a target keyword. <\/p>\n<p>In local SEO, <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/local-links-how-to-earn-390131\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">several types of local links<\/a> should be considered:<\/p>\n<p>Citations<\/p>\n<p>Community Involvement<\/p>\n<p>Knowledge Sharing<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Citations\"><\/span>Citations<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The most basic tier of authoritativeness relates to the consistency of a local business&#8217;s name, address, and phone number (NAP consistency). <\/p>\n<p>Have you ever tried to visit a business listed on Google Maps only to discover that its location is completely incorrect? <\/p>\n<p>Accurate contact information is crucial to lead generation! Google&#8217;s information is only as good as the online consensus.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>When building online citations, a local business lists its basic information across dozens of websites. <\/p>\n<p>Rather than relying on the website as a single resource for NAP, search engines can validate the information through multiple online listings.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Community_involvement\"><\/span>Community involvement<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Beyond validating its own existence through NAP consistency, a local business should amplify its relevance within the community. <\/p>\n<p>It takes more than a Google Business Profile to become recognized for nearby quality products and services.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In my hometown of Fort Collins, CO, we have about 10 fried chicken restaurants (it&#8217;s a trendy food!). But only one of these chicken restaurants regularly stands out in the community as the best. <\/p>\n<p>Music City Hot Chicken is described by locals and travelers alike as the best fried chicken restaurant because:<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s won awards.<\/p>\n<p>It regularly hosts community events.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<em>By applying for awards and connecting with the community, Music City Hot Chicken amplified its authoritativeness on the topic of local fried chicken.<\/em><\/div>\n\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Knowledge_sharing\"><\/span>Knowledge sharing<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Local websites should not be limited to content around basic services, troubleshooting, or commonly asked questions \u2013 everyone is working on those types of content! <\/p>\n<p>When competition is tight, innovation is one of the best ways to stand out.<\/p>\n<p>Can your organization use its expertise to conduct a local survey and publish that data? <\/p>\n<p>Is there an employee who transformed the industry landscape with new or innovative technology?\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Local media outlets, industry publications, and social media users often recognize original data and innovation. <\/p>\n<p>When links from trusted third-party organizations are achieved at scale, an organization&#8217;s authoritativeness is amplified.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Authoritativeness_drives_recognition\"><\/span>Authoritativeness drives recognition<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>From the simplicity of an address citation to the publicity of a news story, authoritativeness can only be accomplished through dedicated effort and skill.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Trust_Why_are_you_the_best\"><\/span>Trust: Why are you the best?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Described by Google as the most important factor in E-E-A-T, trust is supported and upheld through the elements of experience, expertise, and authoritativeness.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<\/div>\n<p>While the factors of E-E-A all speak to trust, one tactic stands above all others \u2013 reviews are the most important element of local E-E-A-T.<\/p>\n<p>A mountain of evidence supports the value of reviews as a trust element:\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightlocal.com\/research\/local-consumer-review-survey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">98% of consumers<\/a> researching local businesses will &#8220;occasionally&#8221; read online reviews\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/moz.com\/local-business-review-survey-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">86% of consumers<\/a> say that reviews are either &#8220;the most&#8221; or &#8220;somewhat&#8221; important factor when choosing a business<\/p>\n<p>Since 2015, the local SEO industry&#8217;s perception of review signals as a ranking factor has increased by 100% (from <a href=\"https:\/\/moz.com\/blog\/local-search-ranking-factors-2015\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">8%<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/whitespark.ca\/local-search-ranking-factors\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">16%<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>Local reviews can be classified into two categories:<\/p>\n<p>Third-party reviews<\/p>\n<p>GBP reviews<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Third-party_website_reviews\"><\/span>Third-party website reviews<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>While local SEO represents a wide variety of industries, some occupations encounter significant local demand and competition:<\/p>\n<p>Medical providers<\/p>\n<p>Home service providers<\/p>\n<p>Legal professionals<\/p>\n<p>Real estate<\/p>\n<p>Restaurants<\/p>\n<p>Each of these providers is associated with specific local review websites. For example, people will review their experiences with local attorneys in Justia.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<em>Justia, an attorney review website, frequently tops attorney-based search results in almost every major city.<\/em><\/div>\n<p>In most major local SEO verticals, reviews on Google Business Profile are no longer a sufficient Trust strategy. Additional effort must be applied to trade-specific review websites.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Google_Business_Profile_reviews\"><\/span>Google Business Profile reviews<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Ah yes, GBP, the ubiquitous review space for all local businesses \u2013 the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.brightlocal.com\/research\/local-consumer-review-survey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">use of Google for reviews is up<\/a> from 81% in 2021 to 87% in 2023. <\/p>\n<p>If a business serves local customers, it probably has a GBP, which likely has reviews.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Getting users motivated to leave reviews is a significant challenge for local businesses. <\/p>\n<p>Many resources are available to help organizations <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/get-reviews-local-seo-383712\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">improve their local reviews<\/a>, from hiring a reputation management company to promoting reviews with an email marketing strategy.<\/p>\n<p>My primary recommendation with reviews is communicating their value across all levels of operation. Marketing materials, customer service, and day-to-day operations should all consider review generation.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Trust_is_invaluable\"><\/span>Trust is invaluable<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Google places trust above all other factors because its user base depends on reliable, high-quality search results. <\/p>\n<p>Reviews are the difference between saying, &#8220;you can trust me,&#8221; like some sketchy back-alley mobster, versus overhearing your mom tell another mom how proud they are of you for getting all As in the third grade.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Local_E-E-A-T_strategy_is_challenging_but_worth_it\"><\/span>Local E-E-A-T strategy is challenging but worth it<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Individually, the pieces of local E-E-A-T are ineffective. <\/p>\n<p>The journey to achieving E-E-A-T is similar to a notorious video game called &#8220;Dark Souls,&#8221; in which players must overcome ridiculously hard puzzles and boss fights. <\/p>\n<p>When people complain about the game&#8217;s challenging nature, other players will respond with a single expression \u2013 &#8220;Git Gud&#8221; \u2013 which translates to\u2026<\/p>\n<p><strong>Get good.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>All E-E-A-T tactics consolidate into this singular expression. <\/p>\n<p>People don&#8217;t complete a video game by winning one boss fight, and a business doesn&#8217;t get rankings from executing a single tactic. <\/p>\n<p>It all comes together through months of effort, testing, and improvement.<\/p>\n<p>E-E-A-T in local SEO is a compilation of multiple tactics into a larger strategy. It accomplishes growth for a business through its collective emphasis on quality and user experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If you want to improve your local E-E-A-T, prepare for a tough battle, but understand that your toils will make your victory that much sweeter.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/local-seo-e-e-a-t-strategy-395449\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to build an E-E-A-T strategy for local SEO<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Search Engine Land<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While many SEO practitioners will smirk at the term \u201cE-E-A-T\u201d and immediately the ink about what\u2019s for lunch, they aren\u2019t necessarily wrong. To achieve E-E-A-T, various crucial \u201cingredients\u201d must seamlessly come together and result in quality.\u00a0 This article explores how to incorporate local SEO tactics into an E-E-A-T strategy. So what is E-E-A-T? SEO practitioners laud E-E-A-T as the cornerstone of long-term organic growth. Developed as part of Google\u2019s search quality rater guidelines, E-E-A-T stands for experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. Whenever a Google algorithm rolls [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"h5ap_radio_sources":[],"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8989","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-seo-blogs"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":false,"author_link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/author\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8989","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8989"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8989\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}