What Makes Good Content, According to Google - Proofed (2024)

As one of the leading search engines and something of a household name, Google’s opinion on content quality carries immense weight. It influences how millions of websites are discovered, ranked, and consumed by users worldwide. To make sure you’re at the top of the list, it helps to wordsmith your content for SEO – but that’s not always enough.

With billions of search queries every day, Google rewards one thing above everything else: helpful, quality content. But what exactly does that mean? This comprehensive guide will dive deep into what makes good content, according to Google. We’ll explore the various facets of content quality, from relevance and intellectual depth to authenticity and engagement. We’ll also look at practical steps you can take to create content that aligns with Google’s helpful content updates and guidelines, ensuring that your content not only ranks well but also serves your audience.

Keep reading to begin your journey into understanding what truly makes content stand out in the vast sea of online information.

What Is Quality Content?

People are always talking about quality and making judgments in relation to it, such as whether something is “good quality” or “poor quality”. While it might be easy to assess the quality of some things, the definition of what can be considered quality content is always evolving and changing. Quality online content is no longer just about well-written text or visually appealing graphics; it’s also about creating value while aligning with search engine guidelines, particularly those set by Google.

Consumers have a lot of choice in what content they enjoy, and more choices mean they have increased authority when it comes to determining what is considered quality content. Generally, high-quality content will provide information that’s valuable, intellectually stimulating, and emotionally resonant to its intended audience. That means content that not only answers questions but also provides comprehensive insights, demonstrates expertise, and builds trust. This aligns closely with Google’s increasing focus on the E-E-A-T framework: Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness.

Google’s emphasis on E-E-A-T is a response to the changing preferences of internet users who have become more discerning about the content they want. They’re no longer satisfied with surface-level information; instead, they seek out content that offers depth, credibility, and relevance to their specific needs.

This shift in user behavior has prompted Google to refine its algorithms to prioritize user-centric content. The search giant now places a premium on content that matches search intent and provides substantial value.

This is where Google’s helpful content update comes in. The update not only replaced or removed all low-quality and outdated content, but it also targeted content created with the sole intention of just ranking high in search engine result pages (SERPs). These updates are designed to increase the visibility of updated content that’s more beneficial to the reader, meaning that creating high-quality content is more crucial than ever.

Google's Helpful Content Guidelines

It’s important to understand how Google’s updates affect your content. The helpful content guidelines serve as a roadmap for content creators aiming to produce high-quality, user-focused material. They’re also designed to ensure that content meets internet users’ evolving needs and expectations while aligning with Google’s mission to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

To ensure you’re making great content that Google, and your intended audience, will find helpful, it should be:

  • Highly relevant
  • Intellectual and thought-provoking
  • Authentic
  • Emotionally engaging

Highly Relevant

Google prioritizes content that aligns closely with user intent, recognizing that the users are the ones who have supreme control over what content they choose. This means that you must go beyond simply addressing a topic; you need to understand and cater to the specific needs, questions, and motivations behind a user’s search.

Here are five tips for creating highly relevant content:

  1. Understand search intention: Try to understand why users are searching for a particular topic. Are they looking for information, trying to make a purchase, or seeking a solution to a problem?
  2. Provide comprehensive coverage: Offer in-depth information that covers all aspects of your chosen topic. Anticipate and answer any and all related questions consumers might have.
  3. Stay current: Keep your content up to date with the latest information, trends, and developments in your field. Google values fresh, timely content that reflects current realities.
  4. Localize when necessary: If your content is targeting a specific geographic area, ensure it includes relevant local information and context.
  5. Use appropriate language and tone: Match your language and tone to your target audience’s expectations and level of expertise.

By focusing on relevance, you’re not just appealing to Google’s algorithms – you’re creating content that genuinely serves your audience’s needs and interests. This user-centric approach is at the heart of Google’s content quality assessment.

Intellectual and Thought-Provoking

Anyone can jump on a computer or smartphone, do a quick search, and find a multitude of answers to any query; basic information is readily available everywhere. Google’s guidelines support content that goes beyond surface-level facts. Thought-provoking content that challenges ways of thinking and provides novel insights is increasingly valuable when users are seeking personalized and enriching content experiences.

To create content that is intellectually stimulating and thought-provoking, follow these steps:

  1. Offer unique perspectives: Provide fresh angles on familiar topics or explore under-discussed aspects of your subject matter.
  2. Incorporate expert opinions: Include insights from industry leaders, researchers, or professionals to add depth and credibility to your content.
  3. Analyze trends and patterns: Go beyond just reporting facts by interpreting data, identifying trends, and offering meaningful analysis.
  4. Encourage critical thinking: Pose thought-provoking questions or present scenarios that challenge your readers to engage more deeply with the topic.
  5. Provide context: Help your audience understand the broader implications of the information you’re presenting. How does it fit into the bigger picture?

By creating content that promotes intellectual engagement, you’re not only meeting Google’s quality standards but also fostering a more informed and thoughtful audience. This approach to content creation can help you establish yourself as a go-to resource for substantive, valuable information.

Authentic

Authenticity is another crucial factor when it comes to creating high-quality content. Google’s guidelines implicitly support content that feels genuine and relatable, recognizing that users are drawn to stories or information that’s relevant to their personal experiences or aspirations.

Authentic storytelling involves:

  1. Sharing real experiences: Incorporate personal anecdotes, case studies, or user testimonials to make your content more relatable and trustworthy.
  2. Being transparent: Be open about your sources, methodologies, and any potential biases. This transparency builds trust.
  3. Using a consistent voice: Develop a unique voice that reflects your values and resonates with your target audience.
  4. Addressing audience pain points: Show that you understand and empathize with your audience’s challenges and needs.
  5. Avoiding overly promotional content: Focus on providing value rather than pushing products or services aggressively.

Authentic content helps build connections, encourage engagement, and foster loyalty. This fits with Google’s goal of promoting content that truly serves user needs and interests.

Emotionally Engaging

Building on authenticity, engaging storytelling takes content a step further by creating an emotional connection. This approach reflects the fact that users are increasingly drawn to content that not only informs but also evokes feelings and aligns with their values.

Try to follow these five steps in order to create as emotionally engaging content as possible:

  1. Use narrative techniques: Structure your content as a story with a beginning, middle, and end to keep readers invested.
  2. Incorporate vivid descriptions: Use sensory details and descriptive language to make your content more immersive and memorable.
  3. Address universal themes: Connect your content to broader human experiences or emotions that your audience can relate to.
  4. Use multimedia elements: Incorporate images, videos, or infographics that complement your text and evoke emotional responses.
  5. Encourage interaction: Include elements that invite user participation, such as questions for reflection or interactive features.

By focusing on emotional engagement, you’re creating content that meets Google’s quality standards and has a lasting impact. This can lead to better website traffic metrics such as increased sharing, longer time spent on page, and higher rates of return visits – all factors that can positively influence your content’s performance in SERPs.

How to Create High-Quality Content

Now that you understand exactly what people are looking for in terms of high-quality content, here’s a step-by-step guide to help you produce material that aligns with Google’s guidelines, ranks well in SERPs, and provides genuine value.

1. Research User Intent

Understanding user intent is the foundation for creating high-quality, relevant content. It’s about diving deep into why people are searching for certain information and what they hope to achieve.

By finding out everything you can about user intent, you’ll be able to create content that directly addresses your audience’s needs and expectations, aligning with Google’s focus on user-centric content.

This is how you can effectively research user intent:

  1. Look at what people search for: By analyzing search queries, you’ll find out what words and phrases people use when searching for topics related to your content.
  2. Study search results: Tools like Ahrefs can examine the top-ranking pages for your target keywords. That can help you understand what type of content Google considers most relevant.
  3. Use social listening: Monitor social media conversations to understand the questions, concerns, and interests of your target audience.
  4. Conduct surveys: Ask your audience directly about their needs, preferences, and pain points.
  5. Analyze user behavior: Google Analytics can help you understand how users interact with your existing content.

2. Focus on Expertise and Authority

Google places a high value on content that demonstrates expertise and authority. This is particularly important in light of the increasing emphasis on the E-E-A-T framework in Google’s quality guidelines.

By following these five tips, you’ll improve your content’s quality in Google’s eyes and build credibility:

  1. Showcase credentials: If you’re an expert in your field, make sure your qualifications and experience are visible.
  2. Cite reputable sources: Back up your claims with references to reputable studies, reports, or expert opinions.
  3. Provide in-depth analysis: Go beyond surface-level information to offer insights that demonstrate a deep understanding of the topic.
  4. Update regularly: Keep your content fresh and current, especially for topics that evolve rapidly.
  5. Engage with your community: Participate in industry discussions, respond to comments, and show active involvement in your field.

3. Structure and Accessibility

High-quality content isn’t just about what you say – it’s also about how you present it and how easy it is to read. It’s important to follow certain principles to create accessible content.

Well-structured content not only ranks higher in SERPs, it also provides a better user experience, ensures that your content is easy to enjoy across various devices, and encourages return visits.

To improve structure and accessibility:

  1. Use clear headings and subheadings: Organize your content logically with H1, H2, and H3 tags to improve readability and SEO.
  2. Incorporate bullet points and lists: Break down complex information into digestible chunks.
  3. Optimize for mobile: Ensure your content is easily readable on mobile devices, with responsive design and appropriate font sizes.
  4. Use descriptive alt text for images: This improves accessibility for visually impaired users and can boost SEO.
  5. Include a table of contents for long-form content: This helps users navigate to the sections most relevant to them.

4. Maintain Accuracy and Relevance

With the sometimes overwhelming amount of information we’re presented with online, accuracy and relevance are becoming more important than ever. People quickly abandon anything that feels outdated or misleading, and Google’s algorithms are designed to detect and demote such content.

Make sure your content is accurate so you can provide the most helpful and trustworthy information possible. Here’s how:

  1. Verify all information: Fact-check rigorously before publishing. If your time is crunched, there are professional content fact-checkers who can easily help you out. Also, make sure to provide links to reputable sources where possible.
  2. Update content regularly: Review and update your content periodically, especially for topics that change rapidly.
  3. Remove or redirect outdated content: If content is no longer relevant, either update it significantly or remove it entirely to maintain site quality.
  4. Stay informed about industry changes: Keep up with the latest developments in your field to ensure your content remains current.
  5. Encourage and address user feedback: Allow comments and be responsive to user input, which can help you identify areas for improvement or update.

5. Avoid Common Pitfalls

The process of creating high-quality content isn’t just about what to do; it’s also about what to avoid. Google’s guidelines implicitly warn against certain practices that will diminish their idea of quality.

By steering clear of these five common mistakes, you can ensure that your content remains valuable and highly ranked:

  1. Keyword stuffing: It’s important to know how to set keywords properly. Focus on natural language use rather than forcing them unnaturally into your content.
  2. Thin content: Avoid publishing short, superficial pieces that don’t provide substantial value to the reader.
  3. Duplicate content: Ensure each piece of content on your site is unique and original.
  4. Clickbait titles: While attention-grabbing titles are important, they should accurately reflect the content of the article.
  5. Over-optimization: Don’t sacrifice readability and user experience for the sake of SEO tactics.

The Future of Content Creation According to Google

Google’s focus on quality, relevance, and user experience will only intensify as the process of content creation continues to evolve. Generative AI tools and new search algorithms are constantly being developed. Couple these innovations with changing user expectations and it’s not hard to envision a content landscape where value and authenticity are vital.

When developing your content strategy, make sure you prioritize user needs and preferences above all else. Focus on quality over quantity. Create fewer, more comprehensive pieces rather than a high volume of shallow work. This approach can help you stay flexible and ready to adapt to new developments.

People want to hear from someone they can trust, so make sure your content is as honest and insightful as possible. Continue to build authority and network with like-minded people to build a strong, transparent reputation.

Producing the Highest Quality Content

By aligning your content creation efforts with Google’s helpful content updates and the evolving digital landscape, you can position yourself for long-term success. At the heart of Google’s approach is a simple principle: create content that truly helps others. By focusing on this fundamental goal, you’ll not only satisfy search algorithms but also build a loyal and appreciative following.

But producing the highest quality content starts with having the highest quality source material, and we can help with that. Proofed’s marketing and advertising editorial services will make sure every word you write counts and that your message is accurate, authentic, original, and thought-provoking. We have a large team of experts and specialize in editing content in line with Google’s E-E-A-T framework so that it resonates with your audience.

Book a demo with us today to see how we can help.

FAQs

1. How does Google define helpful content?

Google defines helpful content as original, accurate information that provides value to users. It should demonstrate first-hand expertise, answer users’ questions comprehensively, and offer unique insights beyond basic facts.

2. What are the common mistakes in content creation?

Common mistakes include keyword stuffing, creating thin or duplicate content, using clickbait titles, neglecting mobile optimization, and failing to update content regularly.

3. How often does Google update its content guidelines?

Google doesn’t have a set schedule for updating its guidelines, but it makes frequent adjustments. Major updates are typically announced, while minor tweaks happen continuously. It’s important to stay informed about SEO news and Google’s official communications.

4. Can multimedia content affect SEO positively?

Yes, multimedia content can positively impact SEO when used appropriately. Images, videos, and infographics can improve user engagement, increase time on page, and provide additional ranking opportunities through alt text and video SEO.

5. What is the role of keywords in quality content?

Keywords remain important for SEO, but their role has evolved. Instead of focusing on keyword density, the emphasis is now on using keywords naturally within high-quality, relevant content that matches user intent.

6. How do I align content with my audience's needs?

To align content with audience needs, conduct thorough research including keyword analysis, social listening, surveys, and studying user behavior data. Create buyer personas, engage with your audience directly, and continuously gather and analyze feedback on your content.

What Makes Good Content, According to Google - Proofed (2024)
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