Understanding the Importance of Content in SEO
Why Is Content So Important in SEO?
Content is at the heart of SEO success. Search engines like Google strive to provide relevant results to users during their online searches. Search engines evaluate the content of web pages to determine their relevance to user queries and search intent.
High-quality content enhances relevance, ranking, authority, user experience, and the ability to generate backlinks, all of which contribute to attracting qualified organic traffic to a website.
Quality Over Quantity
Although publication frequency plays a role in your content strategy, quality remains the primary factor for achieving good organic positioning. Search engines have gradually refined their algorithms over the years to detect and favor high-quality content. Therefore, having a few exceptional articles is often more advantageous than publishing frequently but with mediocre quality. The quality of your content is closely tied to your ranking in search results.
The Concept of E-E-A-T
E-E-A-T, the acronym for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, was developed by Google. It is not a ranking factor itself but is included in Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines (SQEG). These guidelines help Google’s quality raters assess whether search results provide relevant and high-quality information. Although E-E-A-T is not a direct ranking signal, incorporating its principles into online content can help website owners ensure they meet the quality and relevance criteria defined by Google.
The History of E-E-A-T
On August 1, 2018, Google rolled out a major core update to its algorithm, which ended up having a significant impact on the rankings of many sites, including numerous leading brands.
When the dust settled, SEOs noticed a significant shift towards content demonstrating higher levels of expertise, authority, and trustworthiness—E-A-T, as it was known at the time.
The “E” for experience was added in late 2022 to expand the concept of “expertise” to include first-hand experience, thus completing the E-E-A-T acronym.
On August 1, 2018, Google had already deployed a major core update to its algorithm that had a significant impact on the rankings of many sites, including numerous leading brands.
Content Is Becoming Increasingly Important for Search Engines
Search engines consider many factors when ranking websites, including on-page optimization with strategic keywords and a well-organized site structure. Authority and quality of backlinks, user experience with easy navigation and mobile compatibility, and page loading speed—along with core web vitals—also play crucial roles. Site security via HTTPS, social signals, structured data usage, and content update frequency are important as well. Finally, user interactions, such as click-through rates and repeat visits, also influence rankings. By combining these elements and applying quality SEO practices, websites can improve their positioning in search engine results.
Despite the numerous factors considered for search engine rankings, including core web vitals, content is becoming increasingly important and is emerging as one of the primary ranking factors. By combining these factors and implementing high-quality SEO practices, sites can enhance their positioning in search engine results.
Google’s Core Update in 2024
The Google March 2024 Broad Core Update was launched on March 5, 2024, at noon (Eastern Time) and was fully rolled out 45 days later, on April 26, 2024, around 4:09 PM (Eastern Time). This update targets all types of content and does not act as a penalty but rather as a promotion or reward for high-quality web pages. It has a global impact, affecting all regions and languages.
According to Google, this update led to a 45% reduction in low-quality, non-original, and unhelpful content in search results. It also affects Google Discover, featured snippets, and other features. For those impacted by this update, it is recommended to review and improve their content following Google’s advice on core updates. Google will continue to make periodic updates to this algorithm, though not all may be announced in the future.
The update aims to enhance the quality of search results by promoting relevant and high-quality content. Webmasters are therefore encouraged to continually evaluate and improve their content to ensure it is useful, original, and of high quality.
How to Know If the Core Update Has Impacted Your Website
Many websites have observed a drastic drop in their organic traffic through Google Search Console. Using the Semrush Sensor tool, we notice significant volatility in search engine results, indicating changes in these results. In June, the average volatility is 5.5/10 across all categories, with particularly high volatility of 8.8/10 in the Arts and Entertainment category in the United States.
Responding Correctly to Search Intent to Rank Well
At Bloom, we closely monitor changes in search engine algorithms and continually adjust our content creation strategy to ensure high-quality content that consistently meets user search intent.
Looking back, there have been significant upheavals in the SERPs, but they are not always negative. For those committed to creating quality content, this is good news. Low-quality sites that held high positions despite mediocre content are being replaced by those offering real value to users.
This also benefits Google users, who have complained about the decline in search result quality. In the long run, gaining the trust of our valued visitors is essential. With the advent of AI, unscrupulous SEO practices are losing their effectiveness, rewarding those who prioritize quality.
It is important to remember that SEO strategy is a long-term approach. Stable positions always bring more benefits than fleeting results. Need expert support? Contact us.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Célia Delourme
Célia is one of Bloom's SEO specialists.
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