The Importance of Content Authorship on the Internet

by Damian Davila

Here’s why Google matters to publishing Web content

 

Back in November 2011, I wrote that the introduction of Google+ was an interesting attempt in bringing user-generated content through social media closer to the Google search engine. Now in 2013, given the Panda and Penguin updates on Google and the integration of Facebook with Bing, there is no doubt that Google is making sure you can link the content you publish on a specific domain to your Google+ profile. Here is why it is important to the future of your content on the Internet.

The Current Problem With Content

The Mountain View, Calif., giant is constantly looking for ways to improve the quality of searches. While arriving late to the social media party, Google is now showing signs of introducing user-generated into the search algorithms. However, the approach is different this time.

The current problem with content is that anonymous users generate it. SEO experts have been able to exploit the Web for their advantage. For example, if you are looking for an answer to a question about basketball, you are going to find lots of answers.

But how do you tell apart the good ones from the bad ones? Taking a cue from Quora, Google is trying to leverage power users to provide more relevant answers. Consider this: If Michael Jordan gives an answer to a question about basketball, that means something really different from someone who has never played the game giving an answer.