Google Authorship and You: It’s Not About the Rank

Google Authorship isn’t a new phenomenon; it was actually announced back in 2011 by Google’s web spam guru, Matt Cutts. Its purpose? To easily attribute and connect authors to the content they create across the web. Since its release, the authorship process has evolved and changed numerous times. If you Google around, you’ll find boatloads of posts sharing the ins and outs of setting up your own authorship, and before you know it, you’ll be able to confidently proclaim, “There is my content, hear it roar!”.

But that’s not what we’re going to talk about today. This week, we’ll discuss how authorship can change both the way you approach content creation as well as how it affects your overall strategy for digital marketing.

First Things First

It’s not all about AuthorRank. There, we said it. It’s neither what this post is about nor authorship itself. Many resources out there have discussed this elusive metric as both the key to a higher search engine ranking and as Google’s sick and twisted way of making the SEO world even more complicated. The real marketing value, both of Google Authorship and your individual AuthorRank, boils down to one thing—valuable content.

You may be wondering what this means, but think about it. Grabbing hold of the notions that a) implementing authorship throughout your business’s marketing will boost your overall search ranking and b) AuthorRank is the only thing about Authorship that matters, sounds like a pretty narrow (and risky) approach to content marketing and SEO.

With these two marketing powerhouses, it’s vitally important to keep in mind that each takes a certain level of devotion and that each is a process. These campaigns evolve and change as your business’s goals do. They reflect the marketing efforts of top competitors, and most of all, they must be able to account for changes and updates from Google.

So, What’s the Reward?

So what’s the honest-to-goodness value of Authorship? Let’s break it down:

• Authorship allows content you’ve authored to be attributed directly to you and sites you’re affiliated with. Generally, this leads to more site traffic, CTR’s, and conversions, not to mention a major boost in your credibility
• Authorship affords additional link building opportunities and more visibility due to the direct tie it shares with social media
• Authorship will create major opportunities for more specific measurement tactics and better analytics tools in the future
• Above all, Authorship can play a huge role in crafting a more effective content marketing strategy and reinforces the connection between all digital marketing campaigns

And, of course, there’s always that SERP ranking and increased organic traffic. But now we know it’s so much more than that, right?

How has your experience with Authorship shaped your marketing strategy? Give us a shout in the comments below!