Guides · trust signals
Say who wrote it, and why you can be trusted.
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Two pages can say the same thing and only one gets quoted. The difference is often visible trust: a named author, a clear About page, honest dates and links to the original source. Six steps to add them.
Why a named author beats an unsigned page
When two pages say the same thing, a reader trusts the one with a person behind it. Machines that choose what to quote are built to imitate that judgement, so the same signals help in both places.
None of this is a trick. It is a way of showing, plainly and truthfully, who you are and why you know the subject.
1 Show real, checkable facts. Never invent credentials or reviews.
Put a byline and a short background on every article
Add the author’s name at the top and a two-line background at the foot: what they do, how long, and what they have worked on. Link the name to a fuller author page.
Keep it specific. “Ten years running a bakery” says more than “passionate about food”.
2 Specific, verifiable detail is the point; adjectives are not.
Make the About page do real work
An About page should name the business, say where it operates, how long it has existed and how to reach a human. Add a postal or email address that works and links to official profiles you control.
If you are a one-person business, say so. That is not a weakness; it is a clear answer to “who is behind this?”
3 Consistency matters: use the same business name everywhere it appears.
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Show dates, and keep them honest
Show when each page was published and when it was last updated, and update that date only when you have actually changed something meaningful. A date that is always “today” looks automatic and earns no trust.
When a page covers something that changes, such as prices or rules, review it on a schedule and note the review.
4 A quarterly review of your top ten pages is enough for most small sites.
Link claims to the original source
Where you state a figure, a rule or a quote, link to the document it came from. Prefer the original publisher to a blog that summarises it, and write the link text so it says what the reader will find.
If you cannot find a source for a claim, soften it or remove it. A page with fewer, better-supported claims is the one worth quoting.
5 Check each link still works when you update the page.
Keep markup in step with what people can see
If you add structured data, describe only what is visibly on the page: the real author, the real date, the real price. Markup that claims more than the page shows is a risk, not an advantage.
Add it after the visible signals are in place, not instead of them. Our page-structure guide covers the content side.
6 Visible first, markup second.
Keep reading: Write the page around the question
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