For marketers, the term Google Authorship is something we should all know at least something about. However, if you are not in marketing and this term doesn’t ring a bell, don’t worry. We’ll fill you in. When set up properly and linked in with a Google+ account, Google Authorship can improve the search results and rankings of your content, and improve the click-through rate for highlighted pages. Understanding the importance of Google Authorship and its link to Google+ is critical in today's changing search engine landscape.
What is Google Authorship?
Google created the concept of Google Authorship to give credit to authors. Google Authorship is a special markup that writers can use to link their content to their Google+ profile. That, in turn, links it to their online identity or reputation. If one of your content pages, such as a blog, comes up in search engine ranks, it will display your Google+ profile picture next to it. A picture is worth a thousand words, and that old adage is so true for Google (Search Engine Result Pages) SERP Pages.
What’s the Big Deal about Google Authorship?
Google Authorship will give your content an advantage over your competitors who don’t use this tool. If you create and publish content online, you want to be considered a credible author and you want your content to be visible. Google Authorship helps you do just that.
Studies have shown that adopting Google Authorship for your content has several benefits. Here are four central ones:
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Enhancing Your Brand - With your picture beside your content, you will naturally enhance your personal brand. People will start associating quality content in your niche with you. This set you up as an expert they can come back to for their future content needs.
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Staking Claim to Your Content - Plagiarism is a major problem with Internet content. By establishing Google Authorship over a piece, you have a better chance of staving off others using the content for their own use. Also, you have a byline which allows your readers to click-through to read more content.
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Build Trust in Your Product - People like to see a person's face when they are doing business. Seeing your face next to your product builds a viewer's trust in what they are reading.
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Increased Click-Through Rate - When an entry on a search engine page has a Google Authorship picture next to it, viewers' eyes naturally go to that entry. That significantly increases the visibility of the content and the chances of it being read. When the viewer selects that entry, you have a click-through.
Google Authorship is still fairly new, and not everyone has capitalized on this amazing tool. Only 17 percent of search results show a verified writer in the top 100 results. However, as Google Authorship becomes more understood, that number is only going to increase, so it's important to pay attention.
The Circle of Trust
If you have not set-up your Google Authorship yet, you don't want to wait much longer. Google is slowly making noticeable changes to the way they rank web pages and the information becoming available to marketers. Staking your claim to your Authorship early will give you the advantage when others are struggling to catch up. The effort of Authorship and good original content will gain you trust, followers and credibility.
Of course, you don't have to do all the work yourself. A professional Internet marketing agency will know how to use Google Authorship and Google+ to your advantage. Google is always changing, and it’s hard to keep up. But that’s the job of an internet marketing agency, to stay on top of ever-changing technology of Google to return the best results possible.
Questions and Final Thoughts?
Are you familiar with Google Authorship, or do you feel completely lost? If you’ve set yours up, have you found it to be successful?
