In healthcare, trust isn’t optional—it’s everything. When someone searches for symptoms, treatment options, or provider information, it’s because they need information.
They need content that’s not only clear and accessible but also credible and accurate. That’s why Google treats health-related content with an especially critical eye.
Enter E-E-A-T: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. These are the pillars Google uses to evaluate content quality—especially for what it calls “Your Money or Your Life” (YMYL) topics, which include health, finance, and safety.
If your content helps people make decisions that could impact their wellbeing, E-E-A-T is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s a baseline requirement.
In this post, we’ll break down what E-E-A-T really means, why it matters so much for healthcare organizations, and how you can start building it into every piece of content you publish.
What Is E-E-A-T and Why Does Google Care?
E-E-A-T is a framework outlined in Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines, used by human evaluators to assess whether web content is trustworthy, helpful, and well-qualified to appear in search results.
While E-E-A-T isn’t a direct ranking factor in Google’s algorithm, it influences how the algorithm is designed and refined.
In short: the higher your E-E-A-T, the more likely you are to perform well in search results—especially for sensitive health topics.
Here’s what each component means:
- Experience: Does the content reflect first-hand knowledge or real-world use? For example, a nurse sharing advice from the frontlines of patient care or a physician sharing their experiences treating a particular condition.
- Expertise: Is the author a subject matter expert? In healthcare, this often means licensed professionals like physicians, pharmacists, or registered dietitians.
- Authoritativeness: Does your brand or website have recognized credibility in its field? This is where backlinks come into play. Backlinks from trusted sources, mentions in the media, or affiliation with professional organizations can build your brand.
- Trustworthiness: Is your content accurate, transparent, and free of misleading claims? This includes clear sourcing, up-to-date information, and visible authorship.
Google cares about E-E-A-T because its goal is to deliver the most reliable, helpful content to users.
Inaccurate or low-quality health information can be harmful or even dangerous. That’s why YMYL content is held to a much higher standard than, say, a recipe blog or product review.
The Risks of Low E-E-A-T in Health Content
Low E-E-A-T doesn’t just lead to poor search rankings—it can damage your reputation, undermine patient trust, and even pose legal or compliance risks.
When people turn to your site for health information, they assume what they’re reading is accurate and backed by clinical insight. If it’s not, the consequences can be serious.
Take the recent controversy surrounding the MAHA report, where a government-linked health policy document included fabricated citations—likely the result of unchecked AI-generated content.
The backlash was swift, with public trust eroded and media scrutiny following. It’s a cautionary tale for healthcare organizations: if your content isn’t verifiably accurate, it can backfire.
For healthcare companies, wellness brands, and clinics, low E-E-A-T can also result in:
- Search visibility losses from Google algorithm updates targeting low-trust content
- Legal exposure potentially, if medical misinformation is published under your brand
- Loss of credibility with patients, partners, and referring providers
- Lower conversion rates due to skepticism about the quality of care or advice
In short, if your content doesn’t signal quality, patients and algorithms alike will look elsewhere.
How to Build E-E-A-T in Health Content
E-E-A-T isn’t built with a single byline—it’s earned through consistent practices across your entire content strategy. Here’s how to strengthen each element:
1. Demonstrate Real-World Experience
- Share stories and perspectives from actual clinicians, patients, or caregivers.
- Use case studies, practitioner quotes, or “from the field” commentary to show hands-on knowledge.
2. Showcase Professional Expertise
- Have licensed healthcare professionals author or review every piece of clinical content.
- List their credentials prominently (e.g. Reviewed by Jane Smith, PharmD).
- On the author pages, link out to their LinkedIn or other website.
- Ensure content aligns with current clinical guidelines and professional scope of practice.
3. Establish Authoritativeness
- Link to high-quality, peer-reviewed sources, like PubMed, CDC, NIH, or WHO.
- Mention awards, certifications, accreditations, or affiliations that enhance your brand’s authority.
- Create “About” and “Medical Review” pages that highlight your content team’s qualifications.
A word of caution: It is critical to be sure your phone number, address, and clinic information is published and correct. Here at Experts Ink, we’ve had clients that have accidentally listed accreditations they did not have. That is a serious risk, both legally and from a trust perspective.
4. Build Trustworthiness
- Include clear citations, “last reviewed” dates, and editorial transparency.
- Avoid sensationalist headlines or exaggerated health claims.
- Add privacy policies, contact information, and other trust signals throughout the site.
What Low E-E-A-T Looks Like
According to Google, pages that fall short typically:
- Have no identified author or medical reviewer
- Make exaggerated health claims without evidence
- Reference vague or untraceable “studies”
- Include spammy ads or product pushes that undermine objectivity
- Lack basic editorial structure, like proofreading or clear organization
In other words, even one missing E-E-A-T element can drag down the entire page’s perceived quality.
Bottom Line: E-E-A-T is Quality Control for Health Content
Google’s goal is to deliver accurate, safe, and helpful content to its users. For healthcare brands and content creators, that means treating trust not as a marketing buzzword, but as a measurable, buildable asset.
And for health sites that get it right? The payoff isn’t just better rankings—it’s better relationships with the people who matter most: your readers and patients.
How Experts Ink Builds E-E-A-T Into Every Piece
At Experts Ink, we’ve built our entire model around content that ranks because it earns trust.
- Every article is reviewed by licensed healthcare professionals: physicians, pharmacists, nurses, or other qualified experts.
- We reference peer-reviewed journals, government sources, and leading clinical guidelines. Only reliable sources are used, while also avoiding linking to potential competitor websites.
- Our editorial process includes fact-checking and authorship, including the use of headshots and portfolio or LinkedIn pages.
We don’t believe in fluff or filler. We believe in building content that earns patient trust and drives real business outcomes.
Ready to strengthen your site’s E-E-A-T?
Let’s create content that’s accurate, credible, and designed to rank.
Contact us today to get started.