In part I of this summer series, we used our imaginations to go back in time to recall how we researched information before the internet. We found points of reference that we considered authorities on a subject and got our information from them. We also discussed how authority played a roll on how page links were evaluated by Google and in part II of the series how they were given relevance within searches on the Internet. In part III of our summer session for SEO Foundation, we will delve into how Google manages trust of these components.

 

The Concept of Trust

There are many discussions around the role of trust in search rankings and in assessing link quality. In case you hadn’t heard, Google has stated they don’t share a concept of trust that is applied to its rankings. So read the rest of this bearing that in mind 😉

 

So, Yahoo obtained this patent on the concept of what is being called TrustRank. The idea was a seed set of highly trusted sites would elevate a site if it only took a few clicks to reach it through them. Google has long claimed not utilize this type of metric (clears throat). However, this past April 2018, Google was granted a patent related to the evaluation of link trustworthiness (raises eyebrows with a slight smile).

 

One might suggest, if you would like to assess the trustworthiness of a webpage as a source of a link, the trusted links model pertains.

 

Google does discourage and sometimes reprimands anyone retrieving links artificially such as purchasing, hacking in or offering discount codes. Obviously, this is not trustworthy and highly unrecommended.

 

Who is Trustworthy to Link?

The first key is to interpret is who would want to link content that you produce. The people linking to content are visionaries and writers for blogs and media sites and in turn they might add links to your site. If you produce a particular niche content, you could add entire genres of populations that link to your sites as their own trustworthy blogs of information.

 

Create Top Notch Content

Becoming familiar with who potential linkers could be means you can move on to your next step which is to create content to which they want to link. The issue? The internet is a vast galaxy so your content better be top notch. If you can accomplish this, your chances of getting people to link to you increases exponentially.

 

People want to share expert content` with online friends and followers. Elite Content or “10X Content” (which is actually a thing – content that is supposed to be 10 times better than anything else ever published) elevates your content and your writers as thought leaders and it’s the best type of content to craft to enhance your online status, visibility and SEO stature. Produce this type of content and you are sure to create back links and thus rank for your topics.

 

Summary of Trust

Don’t forget, publishing great content is not enough. If the online community does not trust you, if you are not considered relevant and an authority on what you are writing about, you won’t obtain lift off.

 

The marketplace represents an ecosystem. If people see you as a contributing part of the community, they’ll appreciate and support you. Always find ways to work with the ecosystem. Respond to comments in your social media feeds and on posts that you publish online. It builds trust.