Google E-E-A-T Part 1: Experience

In late 2022, Google updated its Quality Rater Guidelines. The QRG is a document used by human raters to determine the relevance and quality of a page in relation to search terms. These ratings are one factor in page rankings (which determine where in the search results a page falls).

The QRG can also be mined for helpful search engine optimization information by businesses, including deathcare firms.

Google actually updates the QRG multiple times every year, but the late 2022 update includes an important addition to previous E-A-T guidelines. Previously, Google stated that for a page to be considered high-quality, it must be expert, authoritative, and trustworthy (E-A-T). Now, there’s an additional “E” in that acronym, which stands for “experience.”

What Does Experience Mean in E-E-A-T

Google asks, “Does the content also demonstrate that it was produced with some degree of experience?” The search engine giant uses the example of product reviews: a review written by someone who has used the product in question is backed by more practical experience than a review written by someone who has not used the product and only read about it.

What Does It Mean for Deathcare Firms?

The great news is that most deathcare firms are already positioned to create content that meets the requirements of this new “E.” In fact, you’re probably already doing this.

For example, a funeral home may publish content on its blog related to planning a funeral. This could include tips about preplanning, writing and giving eulogies, or what type of documents you might need in an at-need situation. In all these cases, the experience behind the content should be evident to readers. There’s an assumption that the content on a deathcare site has been written by—or at least read and approved by—deathcare professionals with practical experience with such matters.

A Few Tips for Increasing the “Experience” Behind Content

When publishing content on your deathcare website, you can go a bit further to ensure the “experience” behind the content is obvious to site visitors as well as Google.

• Byline content and include author bios. Publish blog posts as written by your funeral director or other experienced professionals. Include a bio (a few sentences is enough) letting readers know who the person is and why they have experience on the topic.
• Beef up your About Us page. Ensure your firm’s About Us page appropriately highlights your team’s experience.
• Include personal anecdotes and experience. When it’s appropriate, include the actual experience of you or your team. For example, a deathcare firm that offers urns might publish a blog post titled “21 Urns to Consider for Your Loved One’s Remains.” Suppose you have personally chosen one or more of these urns for your own loved ones’ remains. That speaks to additional experience with the product, and you can reference those experiences to enhance the content.

Need more information on how E-E-A-T impacts your deathcare marketing content? Check out the Tuesday Ring Ring Marketing blog posts for the rest of May 2023 for more.