If you are a writer or someone who oversees the creative aspect of the business, you have likely wondered about the absence of something in ChatGPT-generated content. The English is flawless, and the pattern is consistent, but there’s just something missing.
The something that you notice missing in a ChatGPT-generated content is what is mostly the E-E-A-T factor (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) or Google’s silent parameter to analyze a written piece of content.
It is not just an SEO checklist that you need to adhere to, but a real-time Google litmus test that dictates the quality of your content. But how much does E-E-A-T actually matter? And why should digital marketers and writers pay attention now more than ever?
Let us find out!
What is E-E-A-T? And Why is There an Extra “E” Now?
Before we begin, you should know that initially, Google used to focus only on E-A-T or Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, and added an extra E in its 2022 update.
But before you think it’s just some technical jargon that your developers need to know, you are wrong. E-E-A-T is the basic foundation of content creation or writing if you wish to see your work get recognized by Google.
Think about it this way, E-E-A-T is the standard quality you have to achieve if you wish to have a better impression in the search results. Google itself is a product that is dedicated to giving the best to its users, and hence has the E-E-A-T quality assurance testing in place. So, long story short, your content needs to pass the E-E-A-T test to see a better position on the search results. It is less about ranking for Google and more about offering exactly what the user needs.
The thing is, Google uses E-E-A-T as a framework to evaluate content quality, and its algorithms look for signals that reflect those standards. As in, it scans whatever content is uploaded on your website based on E-E-A-T to determine if it’s worthy of the first page. This is how it’s done:
Experience
The newest addition to the checklist, Experience, is when Google assesses whether the author who is writing the post has any lived experience with the product. For example, when you review a tool, Google wants to know if you have actually used it or are just curating your viewpoint with the available reviews.
For example, a travel blog about “7 Hidden Cafés in Japan” should be written by someone who has actually visited each spot, taken photos, interacted with locals, and so on.
You have to remember that Google has no preference for any brand or website other than its users. If your blogs or content are enriching in experience and offer helpful guidance to the readers, you will see them on the first page. It’s as simple as that.
Expertise
Google wants to know if you know what you're talking about, as getting a hands-on with the tool is not enough. It prefers that you have the required knowledge to explain why a certain tool works in a given setup and what doesn’t.
If you think about it, it’s a simple concept. Google will prefer an actual manager writing about a management tool compared to a ChatGPT narrative. Or an actual doctor writing on a medical blog rather than AI-generated answers of a given ailment.
The situation is not as complicated as it seems. Since, even you would like to read a blog on“ How to manage anxiety” by an actual therapist who has established experience.
Authoritativeness
This is always the tricky part and why the entire concept of SEO exists. It is you convincing Google that you are genuine. Now, building authority is a time-consuming process as you don’t get recognized by Google instantly.
You need to continue posting and ensure your site is quoted by others or mentioned by experts, which triggers the trust signal with Google.
This is where SEO helps and is also one of the many reasons why Search Engine Optimization is so important. But as a writer, what you can do is make sure whatever you put out there is genuine and is coming from a place of experience. This will automatically help you build authority when your readers realize you are backed by facts.
Trustworthiness
Google is extremely particular about accurate and honest information. So, the sources that you cite or the facts you present need to be up-to-date. Google doesn’t care about how many words you write or what design you put up. All it focuses on if your facts are credible or not.
In hindsight, this makes a lot of sense, as no one would like to read something that isn’t backed by credible facts.
Whether it's a health article or a product review, readers (and Google) need to know they can trust what they are consuming. If you are not credible and citing proper sources, your content will likely be overlooked. No matter how well-written or visually appealing it is. Trust isn't just a ranking factor; it's the foundation of your brand’s reputation online.
To sum it all up, imagine that you are bungee jumping; there are certain checks you have to pass before you are allowed to jump. Well, E-E-A-T is something like that. It’s Google’s safety harness for content.
Before your content is allowed to “jump” onto the first page of search results, it needs to prove that it’s secure, credible, and is pushing for proven facts and solutions.
How Google Uses E-E-A-T to Evaluate Content
You must understand that E-E-A-T is not a score that you need to aim for in order to rank. It is more of a framework that you need to follow if you wish for Google to push your content. Not only that, you can say it is a standard set by Google that it uses itself to understand how to evaluate the tons of work that’s produced every hour.
YMYL
The most critical aspect of space where Google relies on E-E–A-T is on YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) content. As in the topics that affect people’s health, finances, safety, or well-being. For these, Google is extra cautious and prioritizes trustworthy sources.
✅ So, a financial advice site needs to be backed by someone with a credible financial degree.
✅ Even a product review site needs real user experiences and transparency.
Human Quality Raters Use E-E-A-T to Review Pages
Google is known to employ human readers who review search results to see if Google’s systems are working well. They don’t influence your ratings directly, but assess how well crafted your work is as per the set standards.
This helps Google improve its algorithm and assures that the content has expertise and isn’t just surface-level. The bottom line is that they help Google understand what good content should look like.
Google’s Algorithms Look for E-E-A-T Signals
Google’s algorithm is equipped to look for signals that adhere to the E-E-A-T principles. In simpler terms, the content that you find on the first page has all the necessary qualities to appease all the E-E-A-T factors. All that the algorithm does is it looks for indirect signals like the following to pick up the cue:
- Author Bylines and Bios: This helps the search engine to understand why the person is qualified to write on the given topic.
- Backlinks: Linking with other trustworthy sites boosts authority.
- Citations and outbound links: Linking to reputable, up-to-date sources and research.
- Up-to-Date Information: Google favors content that reflects current facts, trends, and data.
- Site Security (HTTPS) and Others: A non-negotiable factor in establishing trust with both readers and Google.
Where AI-Generated Content Falls Short
Now you know that there’s a lot that goes behind your back the moment you hit Publish. It was never about who wrote the piece, but it is always about how the piece is written. This is exactly why relying on content that’s solely written by AI is a risky bet.
ChatGPT and any other writing tool are no doubt powerful, but all they offer is a shared experience. This is where the conflict with AI-generated content vs. Google’s algorithm begins. An AI-generated content lacks lived experience, emotional nuance, and genuine trust signals. Here’s a quick breakdown:
- Lack of Personal Insight: Google looks for content that offers expertise, ideally from someone who has lived what they’re writing about. But that’s where AI falls short. It can mimic the tone of experience, but it can’t feel it. There's no personal story, no trial-and-error journey.
- Experience: Artificial intelligence cannot deliver trust and experience from real stories. It can’t walk you through an actual case study or reflect the emotions that result in a big gap from an E-E-A-T perspective.
- Citation Gaps: It is often seen that most of the AI writing tools fail to cite sources that are authentic. This weakens the trust signals Google looks for and raises a red flag, especially for health, finance, or legal advice topics.
- Generic Tone: There is no space to form a genuine connection with the readers in AI-generated content. AI typically writes in a polished but soulless voice.
Plus, people are quick to identify AI-generated content these days with the obvious use of phrases and the same old rigid narrative. This once again creates a gap in trust and authenticity. Not only that, but robotic content typically results in higher bounce rates because it has nothing more to offer.
Readers leave quickly, engagement drops, and that eventually leads to SEO repercussions. And yes, Google notices.
How to Align Your AI Content with E-E-A-T
We need to accept the fact that letting go of AI at this point is letting go of an upper hand willingly. Even though it tends to trigger the red flags for E-E-A-T, AI is swift and saves a lot of time and money.
We needed to find a middle ground where AI-generated content can coexist with the set of standards expected by Google. Well, thankfully for us, it was not much of a hassle. All we needed to do was follow a few things:
✅Adding anecdotes, personal observations, or real examples for the AI-generated outline or content to make it more trustworthy for Google.
✅Add links to trusted sources and fact-check all the statistics to assure Google and your readers that your content is credible.
✅Clearly mentioning who wrote the content to highlight the merit of their credentials so that the readers and Google know that the information is coming from a trusted, knowledgeable source.
✅Relying on a tool like Humanize AI to actually shape your AI content into something that feels human and meets the E-E-A-T standards. It is not only about editing and making a few fine adjustments, but giving a personalized voice to your content that assures Google it is coming from a place of trust and authority.
How Humanize AI Helps You Align with E-E-A-T
Before anything else, Humanize AI helps you build brand authority with its strong voice, unique POV, and professional credibility. Not only that, it ensures that in doing all this, the uniqueness of your brand is always intact. With Humanize AI, you won’t have to struggle to prove your expertise, as it knows how to weave a story with authority.
Be it the expert framing, industry nuance, and thought leadership, Humanize AI knows how to be mindful of the non-negotiables and maintain a unique voice for your content.
From tone calibration to adding citations and rewriting AI hallucinations, Humanize AI lets you produce content that works with Google and keeps your brand voice intact too.
Turning AI into an E-E-A-T Power Tool: Final Thoughts
If you want people to know about your brand, you have to adhere to the E-E-A-T principles. But you can’t really give up on AI, either, or it will derail you from the competition altogether.
But there is relief in all this brainstorming for the right fit for your content. It is in understading that the trick isn’t to choose one over the other; it's about finding the balance. AI gives you speed, structure, and scalability. E-E-A-T gives you credibility, trust, and long-term visibility.
You will find that the numbers tell the same story as well. A 2025 report by Ahrefs suggests that 80% of marketers manually review AI content for accuracy, showing that human oversight remains central to maintaining credibility.
This is also where a tool like Humanize AI comes in and helps bridge the gap between what AI can produce and what Google (and the readers) will actually trust.
At the end of the day, it's never about who writes faster or who uses a better sentence structure. It's way intricate than that. It is always about who writes with experience, expertise, and with a heart that instantly connects.