Google’s ranking systems prioritize content designed primarily for people, not just to game search engines. The best content is useful, trustworthy, and created with real users in mind.
Self-Assess Your Content with These Key Questions #
- Originality & Depth
- Does your content offer original info, research, or unique analysis?
- Is it comprehensive and detailed, beyond the obvious?
- Does it add substantial value beyond simply rephrasing other sources?
- Does your content offer original info, research, or unique analysis?
- Clarity & Quality
- Is the main heading clear, descriptive, and not clickbaity?
- Would you bookmark, share, or recommend this page?
- Is your content well-written, free from spelling or stylistic errors?
- Is the content thoughtfully created, not mass-produced or rushed?
- Is the main heading clear, descriptive, and not clickbaity?
- Expertise & Trust
- Does the content clearly show who created it, with evidence of expertise?
- Would a user researching the site see it as a trusted authority?
- Are there no factual errors?
- Is content written or reviewed by real experts or knowledgeable enthusiasts?
- Does the content clearly show who created it, with evidence of expertise?
Deliver a Great Page Experience #
- Ensure your site loads well, is easy to navigate, mobile-friendly, and visually pleasant.
- Good page experience is a ranking factor alongside content quality.
Focus on People-First Content (Not Search Engine-First) #
Ask yourself:
- Is this content created to help my existing or intended audience?
- Does it reflect genuine first-hand knowledge or experience?
- Does it fulfill a clear purpose and satisfy user needs?
- Will readers leave feeling informed and satisfied?
Avoid creating content that: #
- Is primarily aimed at attracting search engine traffic only.
- Covers many unrelated topics hoping some perform well.
- Uses automation to generate lots of content without care.
- Summarizes others without adding meaningful value.
- Focuses on trends unrelated to your audience or expertise.
- Promises answers to unanswerable questions.
- Manipulates dates or content freshness just for ranking.
What About SEO? #
- SEO is useful when applied to people-first content.
- Follow SEO best practices to help search engines discover and understand your content, not to trick the system.
Understand E-E-A-T: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness #
- E-E-A-T is not a direct ranking factor, but signals related to it help Google identify quality content.
- Trustworthiness is the most important aspect.
- Particularly critical for “Your Money or Your Life” (YMYL) topics affecting health, finances, or safety.
- Search Quality Raters evaluate E-E-A-T to provide feedback on algorithm performance (but don’t affect rankings directly).
Ask “Who, How, and Why” About Your Content #
Who created the content? #
- Is it clear who the author is?
- Are bylines or author bios present and credible?
How was the content created? #
- Is the content process transparent? (E.g., how product reviews were conducted)
- If automation or AI helped create the content, is that disclosed and explained?
Why was the content created? #
- Is the primary goal to help people and meet their needs?
- Or is it mainly to attract search traffic or manipulate rankings?
- Content created mainly to game search rankings can violate Google’s spam policies.
If you keep these principles at the heart of your content creation, you’ll build a site that serves your audience well and performs strongly in Google Search — no shortcuts required.