Kersa Haughey is Director of Marketing + Business Development at INK Communications Co.
As you delve into annual planning for the coming year, you’ll want to take a little extra time to update your SEO strategy and the marketing communications activities that feed into and flow from it.
The culprit for this growing need is, predictably, Google. Over the past few months, the company has released a series of updates closely tied to the emergence of generative AI. The updates are aimed at increasing high-quality content, including the Search Generative Experience (SGE)the Outlook filterthe Useful content update and October 2023 Basic upgrade.
These advancements are improving the Google Search user experience, placing SGE at the top of the page to answer queries and adjusting the results section to provide more detailed information from individual experts and industry leaders. thought In other words, Google is significantly changing the way people access information and discover brand content, setting the stage for a more nuanced and people-centric SEO strategy in 2024.
These changes don’t mean you need to do a total overhaul of your SEO strategy, but rather a reprioritization of tactics. Based on Google’s recent moves, domain authority and quality content are emerging as the likely cornerstones on which to base your program strategy.
Domain authority reimagined
Domain Authority measures a web domain’s ranking on search engine results pages. It’s not a new concept, but the road to achieving it has some new twists and turns.
While backlinks were once an important factor affecting rankings, Google confirmed last month that they are losing importance. This stemmed in part from the manipulation of search results using paid backlinks. However, it is more tied to technological advances such as machine learning, natural language processing and generative artificial intelligence, along with increased engagement between brands and people through social channels and forums, which makes Google now consider many other ranking signals.
Even the inventor of Domain Authority, Moz, recognizes that the elements that influence ranking are increasingly complex and intrinsically tied to a company’s broader marketing communications program. In response, Moz has recently developed Brand authority, a new score that measures the overall brand strength of a domain. While Domain Authority measures your ability to rank in search engines, Brand Authority measures your influence in marketing channels.
Achieving both Modern Domain Authority and Brand Authority is deeply tied to creating high-quality content. Great content helps increase your site’s domain authority by providing valuable information that people want to share and discuss. Having a high domain authority tells people and search engines that your site is a place to find reliable information, helping your content get the attention it deserves.
Quality content defined
Google has long said that quality content is the #1 signal for ranking, crawling and indexing. But as low-quality AI-generated content has saturated the Internet this year, Google’s emphasis on accurately identifying and prioritizing high-quality content has increased significantly.
What is included in Google’s definition of quality can be a bit fuzzy. The company tends to be coy about sharing the exact factors it uses to judge content, but some key posts about Google Search Central give solid indications of what matters most.
The first is the EEAT framework. Google’s original framework for evaluating the quality of its website content was EAT: Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. Late last year, Google added a new “E,” Experience, which considers whether the content was produced by someone who has actual experience with the topic they’re writing about.
EEAT serves as the basis for the next useful resource, that of Google Content self-evaluation, which includes a long list of questions you can use to assess the quality of your content. Based on the questions included, here’s a breakdown of the key factors Google uses to judge quality:
originality – Provides unique insights, reports, research or analysis.
Exhaustiveness – Demonstrates a deep understanding of the subject and first-hand knowledge.
Accuracy + confidence – It is factually correct, has a clear source and is well produced with no spelling or stylistic problems.
User experience – Provides a good page experience beyond text, including images, video, layout, presentation and page speed.
transparency – Disclosure of authorship.
User-centric – Prioritize delivering real value to readers over search engine manipulation.
Steps to take now
There is a clear synergy between domain authority and quality content. As you strengthen one, you inherently strengthen the other, creating a virtuous cycle of increased visibility and credibility. Here’s how you can align your marketing communications strategies to feed both:
Increase thought leadership – The thought leaders in your organization are most important to the success of your program than ever. Their insights and feedback are your key to creating the kind of authentic, experience-based content that Google is looking for. Centering your content around the voices of your subject matter experts also increases your chances of ranking in the Google Insights filter.
Quickly address emerging topics: Google wants the most up-to-date information. Being able to respond quickly to growing narratives will give you an edge in the rankings, especially over larger, slower-moving competitors.
Clean up your website – Keeping old blogs on your website can hurt you, but there’s an easy fix. Cleaning up outdated and low-quality content can improve Google’s overall perception of a site and positively influence how it crawls and indexes the remaining pages.
Treat your content like investments: Shift your focus from producing mass content to creating fewer, higher-quality pieces. Treat every piece of content as a long-term investment, continually updating and redistributing it in new ways to stay relevant and generate continued value. A great way to update existing pieces in line with Google’s changes is to bring in the perspectives of your thought leaders.
Deepen your understanding of your audience: Make sure you have a complete and current understanding of your audience’s search intent and needs. This will help you create content that effectively matches their queries and provides real value.
Expand your channels – Expand your brand and thought leader presence across multiple digital channels, especially on social platforms and discussion forums. Engagement on these platforms can signal content quality to Google, and posting on platforms with higher brand authority can increase your visibility.
Explore partnerships + collaborations – Collaborate with relevant experts and influencers outside of your company to diversify your content, reach new audiences, and increase your brand’s credibility and trustworthiness.
People-centric SEO is the way to go
Due to the deluge of AI-generated content, the value of unique, insightful and useful content written by industry experts is skyrocketing, especially in the eyes of Google. This is a remarkable change that is here to stay, and its rapid impact on SEO underscores the importance of staying up-to-date with algorithm tweaks, understanding what makes the experience, and content focused on the ‘user are authentic and explore how your program should respond.
As we head into 2024, try taking a people-centric approach to your SEO, using domain authority and content quality as your north stars. Focus on building your digital presence around what really makes your brand stand out, the different ideas of your thought leaders, and how you can bring these pieces together in a way that addresses the current needs of your groups of interest This approach not only aligns with Google’s latest preferences, but will help you create more meaningful and lasting connections with your audience in the year ahead.
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