Topical authority in SEO: What is it and how to build it?

Everyone wants to be an authority, but not everyone’s sure how. Below are strategies to develop a robust topical authority that will pay off in higher rankings, user trust, and brand prestige.

1. Do thorough keyword research

Creating authoritative content requires covering all relevant subtopics. A well-planned keyword research phase can unearth essential angles, from high-level definitions to more detailed issues.

• Seed keywords: Choose a good seed keyword as it sets the foundation of your topical research. It is better to select seed keywords that represent an entity in Google's Knowledge Graph. You can do it by simply going to Google Images, dropping in a broad topic, and checking out the image filters.

• Expand and refine: Use Ahrefs’ Keyword Explorer to get an overview of the topic. Move to the top-ranking page for the target keyword. You will see the number of keywords this single page is ranking for. You can use those keywords as key subtopics you can cover directly or at least provide an indication of.

• Questions around the topic: On the Overview panel, you can also see the top questions being asked around the topic. And if you want to get more SEO data, you can find it on SERPs. You can expand the list further to see the top 100 ranking pages and pick low DR sites ranking for a good number of keywords.

You should also check the report traffic shared by domains to find domains with the most organic traffic based on the input of your seed keyword. You can also see your major competitors. Once you have a list of topic keywords, you can arrange keyword data.

2. Create topic clusters

Topic clusters give a clear indication to search engines that there is useful content for searchers on specific topics. They also indicate that your content is more authoritative than your competitors. These are usually interlinked pages about the same subject, grouping relevant content together to make it easier for users and Google to find it.

• Along with your keyword research, organise a list of terms into clusters based on search intent. You should also consider traffic potential, which should be good and have informational intent.

• Choose a topic relevant to your site's target for your cluster or pillar page that has sufficient depth to explore through subtopics. Once you have done this, you will need to select the most suitable content format to create for the cluster.

• You can go for guides that are an evergreen format of content that fully covers a specific topic, or what or how to format it. Make sure to structure these pages properly with enough data to be valid as stand-alone articles and link to more detailed articles within the topic.

After nailing down your topic pillar, go to “more niche” to see more potential subtopics to target. Try to keep these pages comprehensive, link to other topic pages and cluster content for topical authority. Doing this will prove advantageous for building a semantic relationship between those URLs that will show Google that these pages are topically related.

3. Write authoritative content that matches search intent

You can use your keyword research and topic cluster to create some high-quality content to establish topical authority. It'd be better to start with your main pillar content pieces.

• Pinpoint the purpose: You can have a pillar page for every type of service or product you provide, or you can choose a main area of the subject on which you want to be seen as an authority.

• Match your format: Focus topics should be broad enough to have subcategories to target. It should also be specific enough that a visitor landing on your page will find it relevant. Writing about a general topic is not wise, but being specific will be more rewarding. Also, the supporting pages should perfectly match user intent.

• Keep an eye on E-A-T: To create authoritative content, always consider E.A.T guidelines, cover as many topics and subtopics as possible, internally link to different topics, and update it continuously over time.

4. Plan your link-building strategy

Though you can't fully control who links to your content, you can gain quality backlinks using some simple techniques.

• Outreach: You can use outreach to contact relevant websites and request links to your website. To create an impactful pitch, elaborate on what makes your proposed content unique and valuable. Make sure to be specific, as you might want those site owners to clearly see what benefits they will get by linking to you.

• Broken link building: It involves finding broken external links on other websites and offering them working links from your site as alternatives. As dead links halt the user experience, many website owners prefer to replace them.

• Unlinked mentions: You can also try an unlinked brand mention tactic, which is when a website mentions the name of your brand without including a link to your website. It sometimes happens because the writer forgets to add one. You can contact them and explain the benefits of linking to your content for amendment.

5. Update content regularly

You might not want old and outdated content on your website, as it will just look like mouldy bread on your website. Google prioritises fresh, updated information, and your users also want that type of content. Using Google Search Console, you can find old content and fix it. Visit the Performance section to find Search Results and compare the last six months to the previous six. While doing this, also turn on Position, Clicks, and Impressions. Then switch to Pages view and sort by Position Difference to find pages lagging behind. Search for high-performance but low-click ones, and add new information, sections, stats, visuals, and insights to update content. You can also rewrite titles and descriptions and monitor content after a month to see the improvements in results.