John Mueller of Google downplays the author bios for all the sites. But, the author pages are helpful for the kinds of content.
Google’s John Mueller answered via Google Webmaster Central Hangout the worth of spending time to create author pages. It explains how helpful author pages are for a site’s ranking. Mueller stands that author pages are just nothing. In Search Engine Journal, it explained where it matters.
The author pages on YMYL and New sites
Some people believed in the importance of expert authors and author pages for ranking.
But, it is not what Google has said. Many companies had come to Mueller asking for help after an update. Many have tried adding author pages, yet it never solves their problems because the author pages are not the ranking factor.
Mueller answered that it is not something you must do.
Are author pages essential?
A question asked to John Mueller: A question about YMYL and E-A-T. Here are the questions listed:
What tips to get about the indications of content authors?
Is it essential to create pages for every author and provide info with photo and bio links to their social networks?
Does it really matter that much work should be done elsewhere?
John Mueller responds to the use of Content Author Pages
John answered by noting the E-A-T and YMYL from the QRG (Quality Raters Guidelines).
E-A-T (Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness)
YMYL (You Money or Your Life content)
These terms are from the GRG (Google Raters Guidelines).
QRG is used as a guide for third-party raters, which intends to help raters use a consistent standard for rating the search results. It is important because the raters use their own subjective opinions.
Google recommends using QRG for the publishers to judge their sites for quality. Google never said that their ranking algorithms are reflected by QRG.
QRG is only a standard to rate a website.
Mueller shares the importance of author pages as a real necessity. By using an author page, you can build trust with the readers, Mueller explained. Yet, the statement doesn’t mean about the ranking, but building trust with the readers.
Mueller deemphasizes using author pages as an SEO factor:
It is not about the same as removing the no-index meta tag on a page as it is an on-and-off switch. Mueller comments to improve the website content and to prioritize content improvement with author bios. When improving the content of a site, it must work well for the users and Google as well.
Are the author bios necessary?
Author bios don’t affect the site’s ranking. The idea of author bios as important originated from the QRG encouragement that quality raters are looking for such. QRG explains that the author bios give the raters the standard to verify the site’s quality, and not as a part of Google’s algorithm.
Site visitors who trust a particular site recommend a web page to trust it and determine if the author bios build credibility for the content.
Now is the right time for the SEO community and publishers to view author bios as having nothing to do with the ranking factor.