What are YMYL sites and how does it affect SEO promotion on Google?

Many website owners, especially those in the medical, legal, and other specialized niches, have noticed a drop in search rankings and traffic. These changes are due to changes in Google algorithms that were introduced several years ago, in particular the introduction of the concepts of YMYL and EAT. In this article, we'll explain what these acronyms mean, how they affect SEO, and how it can affect your site.

What is YMYL?

YMYL is an acronym that stands for “Your Money – Your Life”, which means “Your Money – Your Life”. This term was coined by Google to refer to sites whose information can significantly affect the user's financial well-being, health or life.

Sites that fall under the YMYL category include:

• Medical sites
• Legal portals
• News and information resources dedicated to politics, technology, science
• Government websites
• Tax and financial information resources
• Online stores
• Websites offering services

A complete list of these sites can be found in Google Help.

For sites falling into the YMYL category, Google introduces additional requirements that relate to the quality of the content and the reputation of the sources. These requirements, in turn, became the basis for the concept of EAT.

EAT ranking factors

EAT is an acronym made up of three words: expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness. It is important that sites in the YMYL category meet these criteria:

• Expertise. The content writer must have relevant knowledge and qualifications in the field. For example, medical articles must be written by doctors or medical specialists with relevant diplomas and certificates.
• Authority. The author must be a recognized expert in his field. This may manifest itself in the fact that his work is cited by other authoritative sources or publications. Reviews, mentions, and citations are indicators of authority.
• Credibility. Information on the site must be confirmed by verified sources. For example, medical materials should cite reputable medical journals or scientific studies, and legal information should cite official laws and regulations.

How does EAT affect site rankings?

When Google generates search results, its algorithms evaluate how well a site adheres to the EAT guidelines. Depending on the topic of the site, the weight of these factors may differ. For example, for medical sites, expertise and reliability are of particular importance, while for financial and legal sites, the authority of the sources and the accuracy of the information provided are of particular importance.

Thus, following the EAT principles helps improve the site's ranking in Google search results, especially if the site is classified as YMYL. Understanding and implementing these criteria is important to achieving successful SEO and increasing user trust.

You can contact the SEO studio "SEO COMPUTER" with any question by writing to email: info@seo.computer.

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