theater-ziefen-website/.agents/skills/seo-aeo-best-practices/references/eeat-principles.md

EEAT Principles

Google's EEAT framework (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) guides how content quality is evaluated. This applies to both SEO rankings and AI answer selection.

The Four Pillars

Experience

First-hand or life experience with the topic.

Signals:

• Personal anecdotes and case studies
• "I tested this" content
• Real-world results and screenshots
• User-generated reviews

Implementation:

• Include author bios with relevant experience
• Add "About the Author" sections
• Feature customer testimonials
• Show real examples, not just theory

Expertise

Knowledge and skill in the subject area.

Signals:

• Credentials and qualifications
• Depth of content coverage
• Technical accuracy
• Citations to authoritative sources

Implementation:

• Display author credentials
• Link to primary sources
• Cover topics comprehensively
• Keep content technically accurate and updated

Authoritativeness

Recognition as a go-to source in the field.

Signals:

• Backlinks from respected sites
• Mentions in industry publications
• Social proof and follower counts
• Brand recognition

Implementation:

• Build thought leadership content
• Contribute to industry publications
• Maintain consistent publishing
• Develop recognizable brand voice

Trustworthiness

Accuracy, transparency, and legitimacy.

Signals:

• Clear authorship and contact info
• Accurate, fact-checked content
• Secure website (HTTPS)
• Privacy policy and terms

Implementation:

• Display clear author attribution
• Include publication and update dates
• Provide contact information
• Use HTTPS and maintain security

Sanity Implementation

// Author schema with EEAT signals
defineType({
  name: 'author',
  type: 'document',
  fields: [
    defineField({ name: 'name', type: 'string' }),
    defineField({ name: 'role', type: 'string' }),
    defineField({ name: 'bio', type: 'text' }),
    defineField({ name: 'credentials', type: 'array', of: [{ type: 'string' }] }),
    defineField({ name: 'image', type: 'image' }),
    // sameAs: used for schema.org Person structured data output
    defineField({ name: 'sameAs', type: 'array', of: [{ type: 'url' }],
      description: 'Canonical profile URLs (LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) for schema.org Person'
    }),
    // socialLinks: used for display purposes (platform icons, labels)
    defineField({
      name: 'socialLinks',
      type: 'array',
      of: [{ type: 'object', fields: [
        defineField({ name: 'platform', type: 'string' }),
        defineField({ name: 'url', type: 'url' })
      ]}],
      description: 'Social links for display in the UI. Use sameAs for structured data output.'
    }),
  ]
})

// Content with EEAT metadata
defineType({
  name: 'post',
  fields: [
    defineField({ name: 'author', type: 'reference', to: [{ type: 'author' }] }),
    defineField({ name: 'publishedAt', type: 'datetime' }),
    defineField({ name: 'updatedAt', type: 'datetime' }),
    defineField({ 
      name: 'reviewedBy', 
      type: 'reference', 
      to: [{ type: 'author' }],
      description: 'Expert reviewer for fact-checking'
    }),
    defineField({
      name: 'sources',
      type: 'array',
      of: [{ type: 'url' }],
      description: 'Citations and references'
    }),
  ]
})

YMYL Considerations

"Your Money or Your Life" topics (health, finance, legal, safety) require extra EEAT rigor:

• Medical content reviewed by healthcare professionals
• Financial advice from certified experts
• Legal content reviewed by attorneys
• Clear disclaimers where appropriate