Back in August 2018, Google rolled out a major update that caused many websites to suddenly lose traffic and rankings in search results. Primarily affected were resources in the medical niche. This was due to a significant overhaul of Google's algorithms, making the system more stringent towards sites that, in any way, could impact users' well-being. Although quite some time has passed since that update, the implemented factors continue to evolve. With each new update, these algorithmic elements gain more "weight." The rules for sites that can influence users, their health, or well-being are tightening.
If your website falls into this category and you want to avoid losing traffic, you need to comply with these new requirements. Search engines now perform rigorous trust checks on sites. Ignoring these changes risks being left "behind." Conversely, by embracing these rules and adapting your site accordingly, you will gain advantages over competitors who decide not to change.
In today's article, we will discuss which sites belong to the YMYL category, what the Google E-A-T factors are, and how to earn the search engine's trust.
What Are Google’s E-A-T Algorithm and YMYL Sites?
Most SEO specialists have already encountered the acronyms E-A-T and YMYL in their practice. However, site owners may not realize that their website belongs to this category. Let's clarify this now.
- E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is a Google algorithm concept that comprises three factors defining a site's expertise, authority, and reliability of the information presented.
- YMYL sites (Your Money or Your Life) are resources providing information that can affect a user's health, financial well-being, or even life.
We will discuss the algorithm and its principles below. First, you need to understand whether your site falls under its scope.
The term YMYL first appeared in 2015—in Google’s guidelines for evaluators, a list of resource types falling under this definition was provided. According to Google, YMYL sites include:
- News portals covering technology, science, politics
- Legal and law-related resources
- Medical portals
- Official government websites
- Resources containing information about taxes, finance, etc.
- E-commerce stores selling various products
- Websites offering different services
If the information, products, or services you provide can somehow affect a person’s life, your site is categorized as YMYL.
If your site processes financial transactions (such as online payment for goods or services), it also falls under Google’s YMYL rules.
You can find more information directly in Google's Quality Rater Guidelines.
Principles of the E-A-T Algorithm
Google’s E-A-T algorithm evaluates page information based on three parameters:
- Expertise. The content author must have a proper level of knowledge on the topic, supported by credentials such as diplomas, certificates, etc. In other words, an expert should write the information. To confirm author expertise, create dedicated pages for authors with detailed info proving their knowledge and experience, and list their authored articles.
- Authoritativeness. An authoritative author is someone known and cited by others. Many positive reviews strengthen authoritativeness, which is especially important for new authors/sites. Provide visitors the ability to leave comments under articles or on the author’s page.
- Trustworthiness. Information on your site must be truthful and useful so that the search engine considers it a reliable source. Positive reviews also help: the more positive feedback your content receives, the more favorably Google will treat your resource.
E-A-T factors are key but not the only quality parameters. Each type of site has more detailed requirements, some of which are summarized in the infographic below.
How E-A-T Factors Influence Google Rankings
Expertise and authority cannot be measured as simply as, say, page loading speed, so it is not entirely accurate to place them alongside other ranking factors. Possibly, in the near future, Google specialists will find ways to convert these parameters into numerical ratings. For now, these factors have no explicit value but show signs that help the search engine assess content for E-A-T compliance.
How does the system decide which sites to trust? Currently, evaluators—a group of experts—review sites based on specially developed guidelines. Their assessments train neural networks that will eventually allow the system to automatically judge the expertise, authority, and trustworthiness of a site.
Today, practice shows that young YMYL sites rank worse due to a lack of authority and experience. Content without authorship, written by in-house copywriters, also ranks lower. You can verify this by analyzing search results, for example, medical query results typically show articles written or co-authored by doctors in the top 10.
SEO specialists consider E-A-T algorithms not as an obstacle but as an opportunity to grow and stand out among competitors. This requires paying sufficient attention to content and its quality. If finding experts to write content is difficult, a compromise can be made by having experts review and edit texts. This approach is better than competitors who do not involve experts at all.
Another advantage of expert content is the ability to secure authorship. Google Authorship allows you to claim rights over published content and quickly address theft issues with Google support.
By putting in the effort, you can regain and even improve metrics lost after updates. But what if you do nothing?
YMYL Filter
You can choose to leave things as they are and ignore updates, but sooner or later, your site will fall under the YMYL filter.
If the evaluators give a negative rating to your site, Google will take measures. As a result, you will lose rankings and organic traffic.
Recovery may take some time, requiring the creation of genuinely high-quality content and proving your site’s authority and trustworthiness.
Idea Digital Agency’s Experience
Idea Digital Agency’s internet marketing studio has extensive experience working with YMYL sites affected by filters after updates. Check out our case studies on the website to learn more about our successes.
How to Improve E-A-T on Your Site
How to increase trust for YMYL sites? Here are checklists to help your site please the search engine.
Checklist for news/informational sites
- The article title should be clear to users and reflect the content accurately, avoiding misleading headlines.
- The article should fully answer the user's query.
- The text must include facts confirmed by reliable sources or the personal experience of an authoritative author.
- Authors should have dedicated pages listing credentials (diplomas, certificates, etc.)
- News sites should have a transparent editorial policy and review process.
Checklist for medical portals
- Content must be accurate: articles about diseases and treatments should be written or at least reviewed by doctors specializing in the field.
- A professional style is welcome, but complex terms should be explained to patients.
- Allow users to leave feedback on authors—positive reviews enhance authority.
- Google authorship is crucial for medical topics; each author should have a page listing qualifications, education, and certifications.
Checklist for e-commerce sites
- Complete product cards highlighting competitive advantages and features so users understand what they will get.
- Clearly state delivery, payment, return policies, and guarantees.
- Regularly update product price and availability information.
- Use a secure HTTPS protocol, especially if online payment is available, to protect user data.
General Recommendations for YMYL Sites
SEO specialists must carefully optimize and manage YMYL sites. From a technical perspective, fix errors (404 pages, duplicates), set up redirects, microdata, robots.txt, and sitemap.xml. Do not neglect mobile responsiveness and site speed.
Analyze your competitors’ sites to understand their content expertise. Learn from their mistakes and note interesting solutions. Read more on competitor site analysis in our previous articles.
Our recommendations for YMYL sites:
- Display contact information clearly (footer, header, separate “Contacts” page, product cards).
- Support claims with links to authoritative sources.
- Regularly clean your backlink profile; remove spammy links and attract reputable references.
- Monitor reviews about your site or business. Manage negative feedback and encourage satisfied customers to leave positive reviews.
Conclusion
Google’s trust and truthfulness checks can cause traffic loss, but with the right approach, you can regain users and multiply your achievements.
Remember: E-A-T is only one of many ranking factors. If your site is inconvenient, poorly structured, or error-prone, investing in authoritative content alone won’t help.
To understand your site’s condition, conduct a full audit. It’s best done by specialists who know where to look for problems—for example, experts at Idea Digital Agency. You can order full SEO promotion with us: we will not only identify issues affecting your site’s performance but also help fix them.
