Building Credibility with Google's EEAT Principles
With AI changing how search engines rank content, we need to make sure we’re incorporating EEAT principles—Expertise, Experience, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness—into our content. These principles are key to building trust and credibility with our audience, especially in the legal tech sector, where trust is everything.
Google's recent updates make this even more important. In March 2024, Google rolled out a core update that included its helpful content system, aiming to cut down unhelpful content by 40%. These changes are designed to bring up the most useful and high-quality information while filtering out content that’s just trying to game the system. This means our content needs to help and inform our audience genuinely.
With these changes, focusing on EEAT is more important than ever. As search engines get smarter, legal tech marketers must ensure their content shows real expertise, relevant experience, recognized authority, and solid trustworthiness.
Importance of EEAT in legal tech
In legal tech, our audience relies heavily on trust. Legal professionals are looking for accurate, reliable content created by experts who understand their specific challenges and needs.
With the recent Google updates, the spotlight on EEAT has intensified.
For our industry, this means we need to step up our game. By embedding EEAT principles into your content, you can ensure that our articles, blog posts, case studies, and other materials meet the high standards that both Google and your audience expect.
What is EEAT?
I’m not great at acronyms, so let's break this down.
Expertise
Expertise is all about showing that you know your stuff in legal tech. Dive deep into your subject matter with detailed insights and comprehensive case studies, and showcase the qualifications of your team members. When you discuss a new software feature, bring in insights from your developers or legal experts to explain why it’s valuable and how it works.
Experience
Experience means sharing your real-world successes and client testimonials. Legal professionals want proof that your solutions work. Highlight case studies where your software solved specific problems for clients. Include detailed accounts of how it was used and achieved outcomes, showing that your solutions are tested and effective.
Authoritativeness
Authoritativeness is about being recognized as a leader in the legal tech field. You can achieve this through external links from reputable sites, media mentions, and industry panel participation. Get your content published on high-authority platforms and collaborate with well-known industry figures. The more you’re seen as an authority, the more trust you build.
Trustworthiness
Trustworthiness is the cornerstone of EEAT. Your content needs to be honest, accurate, and transparent. Always cite reliable sources, provide clear and factual information, and be upfront about any potential biases or conflicts of interest. Maintaining high transparency, like clearly explaining your data security measures and privacy policies, is crucial to building trust with your audience.
Practical applications of EEAT in content creation
Real-world examples and expert insights can further strengthen your EEAT-focused content. Highlight how other legal tech companies successfully implemented EEAT principles and showcase detailed whitepapers and expert blog posts that led to increased trust and higher conversion rates. Featuring quotes from industry leaders about the importance of EEAT in building a trusted legal tech brand adds further credibility.
Whitepapers and in-depth guides are perfect for showcasing your expertise. Use them to dive deep into specific challenges lawyers or paralegals face, detailing how your product has helped clients overcome challenges. Blogs and articles should be regularly updated with insights from industry experts to establish your authority. Discuss practical applications and benefits of your solutions for legal professionals.
Videos and detailed case studies are great for sharing real-world success stories and allow you to show how your product solved problems for law firms or in-house counsels and the positive outcomes they achieved, conveying both experience and trustworthiness.
Integrating EEAT into existing content
To build credibility in your blogs, cite authoritative sources, include expert opinions, and link to relevant case studies. Your landing pages should feature certifications, expert endorsements, and detailed product information to build trust and authority with potential clients.
Measuring content performance
Measure conversion rates to determine how well your content turns visitors into leads or customers. Keep an eye on SERP rankings to gauge the effectiveness of your content. Tools like Google Analytics can help you track engagement and conversions. At the same time, SEMrush or Ahrefs can monitor your search engine rankings.
Maintaining EEAT over time
Regular updates are essential. Continuously update your content to reflect the latest legal tech trends and compliance standards. Periodically review and revise existing content to ensure it still aligns with EEAT principles.
Here’s a straightforward process using three key methods in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to identify underperforming pages.
Check Engagement Rates
Open your GA4 property and navigate to the "Reports" section.
Go to "Engagement" and select "Pages and Screens."
Look for pages with low "Average Engagement Time" and "Engagement Rate." These metrics indicate that visitors are not spending much time on these pages, suggesting they may need better content to retain user interest.
Analyze Bounce Rates
In the "Pages and Screens" report, examine the "Bounce Rate" for each page.
High bounce rates can signal visitors are not finding the content useful or trustworthy. Sort the "Bounce Rate" column in descending order to identify pages with the highest bounce rates. These are prime candidates for EEAT updates.
Review Conversion Data
Navigate to the "Conversions" section of GA4.
Identify which pages are leading to conversions and which are not. Pages with low conversion rates might lack the necessary trustworthiness or authority, indicating a need for improvements.
Focus on updating these low-converting pages with more authoritative and trustworthy content to boost performance.
Have Your Cake and EEAT It Too
Looking ahead, legal tech is getting more competitive (and sophisticated). As AI continues to influence search algorithms, the importance of producing high-quality, trustworthy content will only grow. Embracing EEAT principles is not just a strategy for today, but a long-term investment in your brand's credibility and authority.
To stay ahead, keep refining your content, leveraging the latest tools, and continuously gathering feedback to improve. The future of legal tech marketing will belong to those who prioritize trust and expertise in their content.
If you need help incorporating EEAT principles into your content, don't hesitate to contact me. Let's work together to ensure your content not only stands out but also builds lasting trust with your audience. Reach out today to start elevating your content strategy!
