Instructed by Chad Pollitt and Steven Shattuck.

1. Why AuthorRank is
the future of SEO

2. Introductions »
CHAD POLLITT
Director of Marketing, Slingshot SEO
@ChadPollitt
STEVEN SHATTUCK
Community Manager, Slingshot SEO
@StevenShattuck
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

3. Agenda »
» The Evolution of SEO
» Agent Rank & AuthorRank
» History
» SEO Implications
» Predictions
» Google Authorship
» Impact
» Benefits
» Setup Instructions & Best Practices
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

4. The Evolution of SEO
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

5. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

6. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt
SEO YESTERDAY

7. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt
SEO TODAY

8. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt
SEO TOMORROW?

9. AuthorRank
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

10. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

11. AuthorRank » brief history
“The identity of individual agents responsible for
content can be used to influence search ratings.”
“Assuming that a given agent has a high reputational score,
representing an established reputation for authoring valuable content,
then additional content authored and signed by that agent will be
promoted relative to unsigned content or content from less reputable
agents in search results.”
- “Agent Rank” patent, 2005/2009
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

12. AuthorRank » brief history
“We know that great content comes from great
authors, and we’re looking closely at ways this
markup could help us highlight authors and rank
search results.”
- Othar Hansson (Software Engineer, Google)
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

13. » AuthorRank is a desired
ranking factor
» Google plans to take content
quality and writer authority
into account
» Content without established
authorship may be at a
disadvantage
this means »
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

14. AuthorRank » this means
“Within search results, information tied to verified online
profiles will be ranked higher than content without such
verification, which will result in most users naturally clicking on
the top (verified) results.
The true cost of remaining anonymous, then, might be
irrelevance.”
- Eric Schmidt (Executive Chairman, Google)
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

15. AuthorRank » who will it hurt
» Outsourced authors / content
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

16. AuthorRank » who will it hurt
» Outsourced authors / content
» Pseudonyms / pen names / ghost writers
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

17. AuthorRank » who will it hurt
» Outsourced authors / content
» Pseudonyms / pen names / ghost writers
» Plagiarizers
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

18. AuthorRank » who will it hurt
» Outsourced authors / content
» Pseudonyms / pen names / ghost writers
» Plagiarizers
» Anonymous / corporate publishers
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

19. AuthorRank » who will it hurt
» Outsourced authors / content
» Pseudonyms / pen names / ghost writers
» Plagiarizers
» Anonymous / corporate publishers
» New bloggers
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

20. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

21. AuthorRank » will it come true?
Probably.
» Google already considers other similar ranking signals
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

22. AuthorRank » will it come true?
Probably.
» Google already considers other similar ranking signals
» AuthorRank is a natural evolution of the social graph
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

23. AuthorRank » will it come true?
Probably.
» Google already considers other similar ranking signals
» AuthorRank is a natural evolution of the social graph
» Authors who publish regularly and are seen as
authoritative deserve to be rewarded
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

24. Google Authorship
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

25. Authorship » what is it?
» Google Authorship ties
authors to their content
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

26. Authorship » what is it?
» Google Authorship ties
authors to their content
» Established Google
Authorship is a requisite to
building AuthorRank
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

27. Authorship » quick setup guide
1 » Add blog to Google+ “Contributor to” field
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

28. Authorship » quick setup guide
1 » Add blog to Google+ “Contributor to” field
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

29. Authorship » quick setup guide
1 » Add blog to Google+ “Contributor to” field
2 » Add rel=author tag to blog
Test using the Structured Data Testing Tool:
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

30. Authorship » rich snippets
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

31. Authorship » benefits
» Increased visibility in SERPs
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

32. Authorship » benefits
» Increased visibility in SERPs
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

33. Authorship » benefits
» Increased visibility in SERPs
» Higher CTR?
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

34. Authorship » benefits
» Increased visibility in SERPs
» Higher CTR?
» Socializes content
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

35. Authorship » benefits
» Increased visibility in SERPs
» Higher CTR?
» Socializes content
» AuthorRank (someday)
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

36. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

37. Authorship » encourages production
» Places ownership over content
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

38. Authorship » encourages production
» Places ownership over content
» Helps build author’s personal brand and authority
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

39. Authorship » encourages production
» Places ownership over content
» Helps build author’s personal brand and authority
» Creates content champions
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

40. Authorship » author stats
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

41. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

42. Authorship » concerns
» What if an employee leaves?
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

43. Authorship » concerns
» What if an employee leaves?
» Multiple authors?
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

44. Authorship » concerns
» What if an employee leaves?
» Multiple authors?
» Other search engines?
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

45. What You Need
To Do About It Now
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

46. Action Steps »
» Establish Google Authorship for all authors
» Even former employees and inactive contributors!
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

47. Action Steps »
» Establish Google Authorship for all authors
» Even former employees and inactive contributors!
» Create high-quality content
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

48. Action Steps »
» Establish Google Authorship for all authors
» Even former employees and inactive contributors!
» Create high-quality content
» Monitor SERPs for authorship rich snippets
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

49. Action Steps »
» Establish Google Authorship for all authors
» Even former employees and inactive contributors!
» Create high-quality content
» Monitor SERPs for authorship rich snippets
» Encourage internal contributors
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

50. Action Steps »
» Establish Google Authorship for all authors
» Even former employees and inactive contributors!
» Create high-quality content
» Monitor SERPs for authorship rich snippets
» Encourage internal contributors
» Analyze author stats in Webmaster Tools
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

51. To Summarize
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

52. To Summarize »
» AuthorRank isn’t here yet, but it will be
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

53. To Summarize »
» AuthorRank isn’t here yet, but it will be
» AuthorRank won’t be a magic bullet
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

54. To Summarize »
» AuthorRank isn’t here yet, but it will be
» AuthorRank won’t be a magic bullet
» Google Authorship is not the same as AuthorRank
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

55. To Summarize »
» AuthorRank isn’t here yet, but it will be
» AuthorRank won’t be a magic bullet
» Google Authorship is not the same as AuthorRank
» Google Authorship can benefit your marketing
efforts today and prepare you for AuthorRank
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

56. Resources and Authorities »
» AJ Kohn
“AuthorRank could be more disruptive than all of the Panda
updates combined.”
» Mike Arnesen
How to Prepare for Author Rank and Get the Jump on Google
» Slides
Why AuthorRank is the Future of SEO - bit.ly/slingshotauthorrank
@StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt

57. @StevenShattuck | @ChadPollitt