Authority Site SEO Term Definition
An authority website means that it’s a website that is clearly regarded as having authoritative content on the subject of the website.
Examples of Authority Websites:
Niche: Social Networking
Authority Site: Facebook.com, Twitter.com, LinkedIn, Google+ (maybe?)
Niche: Shoes
Authority Site: Zappos.com, Shoes.com, Shoebuy.com, Payless.com
Niche: Movie Database
Authority Site: IMDB.com
Now that we’ve set the bar for what an authority website is, let’s get into some of the FAQ’s of authority websites…
Can there be more than one authority site in a niche?
Yes, in fact most niches have several authority websites ranging from one or two up to 5. This is similar to real life, where just because Pepsi isn’t as popular as Coke, it doesn’t mean it’s not a major player in the game.
What defines an Authority Site in terms of Search Engines?
Generally speaking authority sites rank well for the major keywords in the niche as well as the long tail keywords in the niche. When you Google any related term to a niche, you expect to see the authority site pop up. Authority websites are trusted that they deliver top notch content and have an enjoyable user experience. That is to say when you Google something and you see an authority website, you don’t feel as though you’re about to roll the dice. You know what you’re going to get when you click through.
Is my website and Authority Website?
A lot of newcomers to SEO – and I don’t mean to be condescending at all – often think that they’re website that ranks on page 2 for their main keyword is an authority website because they’ve worked hard on it. Generally speaking if you can throw up a new page on your website and have it rank on the first page of Google as soon as it’s indexed in a low competition SERP, then your site is probably an authority site.
How do I make my website an Authority Website?
There are several important factors to making your website an authority and it’s one of the goals of the overall SEO method preached here at Upzee.com. If you’re truly interested in making your website an authority, we would recommend you check out all of the pages on this site and develop a deep understand of SEO. If you’d just like a quick run down of what it takes to be an authority, the short answer is… a) Top notch content. Make sure you provide the best content, the best deals, the best user experience compared to any of your competitor’s websites. b) Get lots of links and a lot of link diversity. Your reach on the web needs to be wide and can’t resemble anything like a footprint. c) Brand your website so that the people who are influential within your niche are fully aware of your website and consider it a go-to resource.
Hey, my name is Adam Chioua and I’ve been doing SEO for about 10 years now. Up until about a year ago I was running eCommerce stores. One day I decided I didn’t like what I was doing for a living and sold all of my sites. I LOVE doing SEO. I founded Upzee.com to help people learn how to do SEO, for free. I am also offering SEO services, SEO Consulting and other stuff like SEO Coaching.
