Google E-E-A-T

E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. The concept comes from the guidelines that people use to assess the quality of search results on Google’s behalf. It describes how a trustworthy, helpful page can be recognised. For online stores it is particularly important, because customers spend money and provide personal data there.

Where E-E-A-T comes from

Google employs thousands of so-called quality raters worldwide. They assess search results according to a public set of rules, the Search Quality Rater Guidelines. Their ratings don’t feed directly into the ranking of individual pages, but help Google check whether its automated systems deliver good results. E-E-A-T is the standard the raters apply.

Originally the concept was called E-A-T. In December 2022, Google added another E: Experience, i.e. first-hand experience with the topic.

The four components

Trust is at the centre. Google describes it as the most important of the four components: a page with a lot of expertise that can’t be trusted still has low E-E-A-T.

Is E-E-A-T a ranking factor?

Not in the narrow sense. There is no E-E-A-T score that Google calculates for a page. But Google uses many individual signals related to these qualities, such as links and mentions, reviews, content quality or company information. Taking E-E-A-T seriously therefore improves exactly the qualities that Google’s systems are designed to reward. How Google assesses pages overall is described in the entry on Google SEO.

Why E-E-A-T matters especially for online stores

Google applies particularly strict standards to topics that can affect people’s health, finances or safety. In the guidelines these topics are called “Your Money or Your Life”, YMYL for short. Pages where customers pay and provide personal data have traditionally been considered especially trust-critical. This applies in particular to stores with products from areas such as health, food supplements, children’s products or safety.

How Google and customers recognise E-E-A-T in a store

Trust

• complete legal notice, reachable customer service with phone and address

• clear information on shipping, delivery time, returns and payment

• secure connection, well-known payment methods, independent reviews and trust seals

• honest product information that matches what is delivered

Experience and expertise

• own product photos and videos instead of only manufacturer images

• own product descriptions instead of manufacturer texts; more on this under duplicate content

• buying advice and guides that answer real questions, with a visible author

• notes on who reviewed content and when, like the review note at the top of this page

• an “About us” page that shows who is behind the store and since when

Authority

• mentions and links from trade media, manufacturers, test reports and associations; more on this under link building

• presence on review platforms and in industry directories

• a clear representation of the company with structured data, so that Google can reliably identify brand, company and people. More on this under entity SEO.

Who, how and why

In its guidance on helpful content, Google recommends three questions that every piece of content should answer:

• Who created the content? Is this recognisable for readers, for example through names, author information and background?

• How was the content created? Were products tested first-hand, data collected first-hand, was AI used and if so, for what?

• Why does the content exist? Mainly to help people, or mainly to attract search engines?

Content created with AI isn’t fundamentally a problem. What matters is whether it is helpful, correct and reviewed by people. Mass-produced content without added value, on the other hand, violates Google’s policies. More on this under AI content SEO.

E-E-A-T and AI search

AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot and Perplexity also choose which sources they trust and cite. Similar signals count: clear company information, mentions on other websites, reviews and content with recognisable expertise. Strong E-E-A-T gives a store a good chance of appearing as a trustworthy source in AI answers too. More on this under Generative Engine Optimization and in the article on Google’s guide to AI search.

Typical weaknesses in stores

• Anonymous content: guides without an author, category texts without recognisable expertise.

• Manufacturer texts and manufacturer images: nothing shows that the store knows the products.

• Hidden mandatory information: returns, shipping costs or contact details hard to find.

• Bought or fake reviews: destroy trust as soon as they are noticed; more on this under negative SEO.

• No traces outside the store: no mentions, no reviews on independent platforms, no presence in the industry.

Frequently asked questions

What does E-E-A-T mean?

Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness.

Is E-E-A-T a ranking factor?

Not directly. There is no E-E-A-T score. But Google uses many signals related to these qualities.

What is the most important part of E-E-A-T?

Trust. Google describes it as the central component without which the others are worth little.

Does every product text need an author?

No. For guides, buying advice and comparisons, however, authors and review notes are a strong signal. On product pages, own images, own descriptions and reviews count more.

How do I improve E-E-A-T fastest?

Make mandatory information complete and easy to find, create own product images and descriptions for the most important products, give guides an author and collect independent reviews.

How arboro supports online stores with content backed by real expertise is described on the page content for online stores. How this affects AI search is shown on GEO for online stores.