- November 18, 2014
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Why Google Authorship Still Matters
When Google launched its Google+ social network, the everything-search giant also rolled out Google Authorship, a new way to link digital writers to their content. In addition to boosting a writer’s personal brand through search results, Authorship became another direct connection between the social network and Google search results.
Many of those in digital marketing called Google Authorship the single-most important SEO tool for content marketers. We even published a primer to help you get started.
If there is a lesson to be learned about Authorship, it is this: Everything on the web changes.
Over the summer, Google stripped its search results of author pictures, names and the number of G+ circles the authors inhabited. Then came the death blow: Google removed author names, as well.
No picture? No byline? Then what’s the point?
A very good question, Andy Crestodina, writing for MarketingProfs, admits. He is the author of, “Content Chemistry, An Illustrated Guide to Content Marketing.”
But wait!
Before you drop your use of Google Authorship, Crestodina maintains there are three valuable reasons for integrated marketers to continue using the tool – each related to the all-important quest for personal brand visibility and relevancy.
- Author pictures remain in personalized results. People who have you in their G+ circles will continue to see your picture and bylines in their search results.
- Drive traffic to your Google+ profile. You don’t want to turn down another way to create a path from Google search to your social profile, do you?
- Your content may affect rankings. In 2005, Google patented “Author Rank,” the ability to use author information as a ranking factor, and the company continues to release statements that it is committed to connecting authors to content.
“Authorship is a digital signature,” Crestodina writes. “If you’re interested in personal branding or thought leadership, then you’ll want to keep signing your name. It’s good for visibility, which is good for networking. Google Authorship is simply best-practice for any writer. And it’s not difficult to set up.”
Given Crestodina’s advice, it might be a good time to revisit our tips on how to set up your Google+ Authorship.
Maybe everything on the web doesn’t change after all.
