You crafted the perfect article, nailed the keywords, and did everything “right.” So why is it still not ranking?
The problem is no longer just about what you say. It’s about who Google believes you are.
Google now judges the quality and credibility of your content using a framework called E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness). If Google doesn’t see you as a trusted expert, your content will struggle.
This guide gives you a simple, 10-step checklist to fix that. We’ll show you exactly how to build that crucial trust with Google and your readers.
For businesses ready to master these techniques, working with an experienced SEM agency like Digital Hitmen is the fastest way to get that top-ranking, trusted spot.
What is E-E-A-T and Why is it Your New SEO Priority?
E-E-A-T is Google’s way of asking four crucial questions about your website. It stands for:
- Experience: Have you actually done the thing you’re writing about? It’s the difference between a travel blogger who just lists facts from Wikipedia and one who shares a personal story of getting lost in Rome. Google now heavily favours this real-world, first-hand experience.
- Expertise: Do you have deep knowledge in this area? This is your proven skill. A certified financial planner writing about retirement savings shows expertise. Someone without credentials doing the same does not.
- Authoritativeness: What do other people say about you? Are you recognised as a leader in your field? This is your reputation, built when other reputable websites link to you and mention your brand.
- Trustworthiness: Is your website secure, honest, and transparent? Do you have clear contact information? A privacy policy? Is your content accurate and free of errors? Trust is the foundation upon which everything else is built.
So, why should this be your top priority?
Simple. E-E-A-T is the core of modern SEO.
Google’s primary goal is to provide its users with helpful and reliable results. By prioritising E-E-A-T, you are directly aligning your site with Google’s mission.
You don’t just please an algorithm. You build real trust with real people. This leads to the outcomes you actually care about: higher rankings, visitors who stay longer on your site, and most importantly, more customers who buy from you because they believe you’re the real deal.
The Ultimate 10-Step E-E-A-T SEO Checklist
Follow these ten steps to build a website that Google and your customers will trust.
Checklist Item 1: Conduct a Comprehensive “Trust Audit” of Your Website
Look at your website with fresh eyes. Imagine you are a potential customer visiting for the first time. What is your gut feeling?
Do you feel confident? Or are you a little unsure?
You need to review everything critically. Here is what to check:
- Is your contact information easy to find? If someone has to hunt for a way to contact you, trust evaporates. Make your phone number, email address, or contact form easily accessible.
- Do you have a clear Privacy Policy and Terms of Service? These pages are not just legal boxes to tick. They show you respect and protect your visitors’ data. This is a fundamental trust signal.
- Is the site design professional and modern? A messy, outdated design makes your business look forgotten. A clean, modern website suggests a professional and active operation.
- Are there broken links or errors? Nothing says “abandoned here” like a “404 Page Not Found” error. Broken links frustrate users and hurt your credibility.
Pro Tip: Use a tool like Google Search Console for a technical health check. It will automatically flag crawl errors, security issues, and other problems that you might miss.
Checklist Item 2: Build Authoritative “About Us” and “Contact” Pages
Stop thinking of these as standard pages. They are your secret weapons for building connection and trust. Let’s transform them into E-E-A-T powerhouses.
Your “About Us” page needs these must-haves:
- Your company’s story and mission. Why do you do what you do? People connect with purpose, not just products.
- Photos and bios of key team members. Put faces to the name! Highlight their experience and real-world expertise. This builds the “Expertise” and “Experience” pillars directly.
- Client logos or testimonials. Social proof is incredibly powerful. Showing that other reputable businesses trust you instantly boosts your own authority.
Your “Contact” page must be a foundation of trust:
- A physical address. This is crucial for local businesses in Australia. It proves that you are a real entity.
- A phone number and a working contact form. Make it effortless for people to reach you. Transparency is the key to trustworthiness.
An experienced SEM agency based in Australia, like Digital Hitmen, understands the local nuances that make an ‘About Us’ page resonate with both Google and Australian consumers.
Checklist Item 3: Create Detailed Author Bios for All Content
Never, ever publish content without an author byline. Anonymous content feels generic and untrustworthy. A detailed author bio solves this.
For every article, include:
- The author’s name and a clear, friendly photo. A face builds an immediate human connection.
- Their specific expertise and credentials. Why are they the right person to write this? Mention their job role, years of experience, or specific skills.
- A link to their LinkedIn profile or a dedicated author page. This allows readers to verify your expertise and establishes a connection to a broader professional profile.
Why does this work so well? It directly satisfies Google’s need for “Expertise” and “Experience.” It moves your content away from a faceless, generic tone and anchors it in real human knowledge.
Checklist Item 4: Master the Art of Sourcing and Citation
You make a claim in your blog post. How does your reader know you are telling the truth? You back it up.
Your action is to link out to reputable sources that prove your points.
How do you do it right?
- Link to established industry publications, academic studies, and government websites. For Australian audiences, .gov.au domains are the gold standard for trust.
- Avoid citing questionable or unvetted sources. A random blog post from an unknown site does more harm than good.
This demonstrates you have done your homework. You are not just adding to the noise online; you are contributing to a trustworthy, reliable web ecosystem. It shows respect for your reader’s intelligence.
Checklist Item 5: Showcase Real-World Results with Case Studies
Anyone can say they are great. But can you prove it? Case studies are your proof.
Create a dedicated “Case Studies” or “Results” section on your website. Don’t hide your success stories – showcase them.
In each case study, highlight:
- The specific challenge your client faced. Be honest about the problem.
- The strategies you used. For example, talk about the “tailored SEO strategy” you implemented.
- The tangible results. Use real numbers, like “increased organic traffic by 150%” or “generated 50% more leads.” Concrete results are undeniable.
This is where the value of a partner like Digital Hitmen becomes clear. Their portfolio of results provides concrete proof of their expertise, directly building their own authority and, by extension, that of their clients.
Checklist Item 6: Implement Schema Markup to “Speak Google’s Language”
Sometimes, you need to talk directly to search engines. Schema markup (also known as structured data) is a technical code that you add to your site, making its meaning crystal clear to Google.
Your action is to implement this code to explicitly inform Google about your organisation, authors, and reviews.
Examples include:
- Organisation schema: Tells Google your official business name, logo, and contact details.
- Author schema: Connects articles to their authors, verifying their identity and profile.
- Review schema: Clearly displays your product or service star ratings in search results.
The benefit? This helps Google parse and display your E-E-A-T signals more accurately, often leading to richer, more informative search results that users trust.
Checklist Item 7: Actively Manage and Respond to Online Reviews
Your reputation is what people say about you when you are not in the room. On the internet, that is your online reviews.
Your action is to actively solicit and manage reviews on platforms like your Google Business Profile.
But here is the critical part:
Best Practice: Respond professionally to all reviews—both the glowing positives and the constructive negatives. How you handle criticism is a significant indicator of trust.
A thoughtful, professional response to a negative review often builds more trust than a dozen positive ones. It demonstrates that you value customer feedback and are an engaged, transparent business that cares about making things right.
Checklist Item 8: Produce “Experience-First” Content Formats
To truly stand out, you must go beyond simple “how-to” articles. You need to create content that only you can create, because it is born from your direct experience.
This is the ultimate signal of first-hand Experience, setting you apart from competitors who only rehash existing information.
Content Ideas that showcase experience:
- Case Studies: We covered these in Item 5. They are the ultimate proof.
- “We Tried It” Tutorials: Document your process of using a product or applying a strategy. Show the real-world results, not just the theory.
- Original Data and Research: Conduct your own surveys or analyse industry data from a unique angle. Publish the unique results. This is content that no one else has.
Checklist Item 9: Build a Robust Backlink Profile from Authoritative Sites
Think of backlinks as votes of confidence from other websites. When a reputable site links to your content, it tells Google, “This is a valuable resource.”
Your action is to earn links from other trusted, relevant websites.
How can you do this?
- Guest posting on industry blogs. Share your expertise with a new audience.
- Digital PR. Get featured in news outlets or industry publications.
- Creating truly exceptional “link-worthy” content. This is the best way. Create content that is so amazing, people naturally want to link to it as a reference.
Why does this work? Google sees links from other authoritative sites as direct boosts to your own Authority. It is a powerful way to show that you are a recognised leader in your field.
Checklist Item 10: When to Bring in the Experts
Let’s be honest. Mastering E-E-A-T across technical SEO, content creation, and digital PR is a significant, ongoing effort. It is a full-time job.
It requires a strategic, integrated approach that many businesses lack the time or internal expertise for.
This is where a strategic partnership with a specialist agency pays for itself.
Digital Hitmen, as an experienced SEM agency based in Australia, doesn’t just understand this checklist – we live and breathe it. We build formidable E-E-A-T profiles for their clients as a core part of their tailored digital marketing solutions.
We transform these 10 steps from a daunting task into a systematic process for dominating search results.
Trust is the New Ranking Factor
E-E-A-T isn’t a single switch you flip. It’s the entire foundation you build for your business online. You are demonstrating to Google and your customers that you are a credible, knowledgeable, and trustworthy source.
Ready to build that unshakeable foundation of trust and authority for your website? Contact Digital Hitmen today and let us demonstrate how our expertise can drive your growth.
