Entities in SEO

Understanding Entities: A Key to Successful SEO

Flow

July 15, 2024

Definition

An entity in SEO is a singular and well-defined concept, person, place, or thing visible – or searchable- on the web by its specific characteristics, such as name, type, attributes, and relationships to other entities. This is a key digital representation to increase your rankings on search results since optimizing an entity for SEO goes beyond traditional keyword-focused methods, including Google’s new patents and machine learning basics.

In other words, this means Google is no longer focused specifically on how brands describe themselves, but also how they are described across the web. This approach ensures consistency and alignment so that search results are relevant and the “entity” gains recognition. 

Today, brands influence how search engines and language models perceive and rank them. Hence, an SEO entity is achieved by controlling the narrative across the web, including websites, social media profiles, review sites, and digital PR. To maintain a strong and consistent online presence, becoming an entity should be one of your top priorities.

What is the importance of Google’s Knowledge Graph?

The Google Knowledge Graph is a repository of information containing entities, with descriptions and attributes, and structures them through different connections. It enables Google to provide fast and relevant search results by understanding the context and relations behind the search queries. It includes information from various sources, such as websites, public databases like Wikipedia, or content claimed by verified owners. 

The Google Knowledge Graph’s key position lies in its ability to deliver precise and contextual information for a greater search experience, displayed in the knowledge panels or the overall results. Plus, their misinformation and spam policies further solidify their trustworthiness. For users, this means more reliable results, while brands and content creators can ensure their entities are represented and easily found.

Examples of relevant entities

  1. People: An entity that represents a person, such as a celebrity, politician, or public figure. 
Entity Explosion is here to rescue you!Google currently launched a plugin that can help you test entities, called Entity Explosion. This plugin obtains the information about a potential entity and all the links to other websites that connect to this entity. With just a change of color (green or black), you’ll obtain the information required for any website!

(search: Viola Eva)

  1. Places: An entity that represents a physical location, such as a city, country, or landmark.

(search: Berlin, Germany)

  1. Things: An entity that represents an object, such as a product, service, or concept.

(search: construction)

  1. Events: An entity that represents a one-time or ongoing occurrence, such as a concert, festival, or sporting event.

(search: Coachella)

  1. Organizations: An entity that represents a business, non-profit, or other type of organization.

(search: Clockshark)

Google’s approach to entities in 2024

E-E-A-T

After Google AI Overview updates, the focus on how to rank on top positions changed. Now, their approach to entities in SEO emphasizes the principle of EEAT (Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness). It’s all aligned!

These four elements are integral to Google’s Search Quality Raters Guidelines. So, as a brand that aims to establish itself as an entity, following an E-E-A-T path will be key to demonstrating your credibility and expertise in your field, which will then influence how Google interprets and ranks your content.

YMYL

Your Money or Your Life (YMYL) sites contain content that can impact a user’s health, financial stability, or overall well-being. While this criterion is primarily used by human quality raters, entities should also maintain impeccable credibility and reliability, plus, protect users from misleading or harmful information, to provide authoritative and well-researched content.

Certifications, school, degrees, and overall professional experience are crucial to talking about any topic with authority. A secret?  Add these to your schema profile to ensure Google has the data!

Structured data

Structured data plays a crucial role in Google’s presentation of entities. By using schema markup, websites can provide explicit information about their content, helping Google to accurately classify and display this data in search results.

Structured data can win you visibility, and if done right, result in rich snippets or knowledge panels! 

Backlinks 

Backlinks serve as indicators of an entity’s authority and relevance. Quality backlinks from high DR (domain rating) sources enhance an entity’s signal to Google that the content is trustworthy. These links help Google understand the entity’s importance within its niche. 

And after all, a strong backlink presence also supports E-E-A-T principles!

How to know if Google recognizes your business as an entity

You can start by conducting a brand audit using a Branded Search checklist. This audit will help you review and update your web properties, including your website and social media profiles. Also, being mentioned in authoritative spaces, such as industry-specific review sites and popular listicles, will alter entity recognition.

Here are specific signs that Google recognizes your business as an entity:

  • Presence of a knowledge panel with detailed information about your business.
  • Inclusion in the “Sources from the Web” feature.
  • Consistent appearance in diverse content types (e.g., images, videos, and featured snippets) in search results.
  • Appearance in AI Overview results or People Also Ask sections.
  • High visibility in review sites like G2, Capterra, and TrustRadius.
  • Mentions and features in authoritative blog posts, listicles, and industry discussions.
  • Participation in multimedia content and discussions on platforms like Reddit.
  • Strong alignment and consistency across all web properties, including social media and third-party sites.

How to become recognized as an SEO entity in Google

There are several ways that you can help Google to recognize you as an entity:

Structured data in your key pages

Implementing structured data markup on your key pages, using Schema’s validator, will always increase your ranking chances. This would include:

  • Adding tags to your HTML that define the content types and relationships, making it easier for Google to understand and categorize your information
  • Ensure you include comprehensive details such as your business name, address, contact information, product descriptions, and professional credentials
  • Regularly update and validate your structured data using tools like Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool 

At Flow, we recently changed our brand name from Flow SEO to Flow Agency. One of our priorities, after modifying the website’s front end, was to update our homepage schema, to ensure Google acknowledges the switch from “SEO” to “agency”, and that it aligns with all our updated profiles (such as social media, review sites, etc).

Consistent branding

Consistent branding across all your web properties will reinforce your entity status. For example, using the same logo, color scheme, and messaging on your website, social media profiles, and other digital platforms will ensure your business’ presence is equal across the web.

Also, aligning name, address, and contact details will guarantee identical views across directories and review sites. Plus, your regular audits to align your brand’s narrative, update outdated information, and address inconsistencies. 

Simpro’s knowledge panel was recently outdated since it included the old logo (called “SimPro”). Even though the update to Simpro had been done various months ago, the knowledge panel was still old. But we discovered the secret! By contacting Wikipedia, and asking for an update in Simpro’s profile, we could modify the mistake. And the results were the best!

Getting backlinks and mentions

You want people to talk about you. Develop a strategy that includes guest blogging, collaborating with industry influencers, and securing mentions in reputable publications. Also, if you create valuable, shareable content that naturally attracts links, and engage in digital PR, you’ll gain potential coverage in news articles and industry reports. 

Check out our holistic approach to this topic. In this map, we included every consideration, from a marketing perspective, you should have in mind when focusing on backlinks. Connecting all of these could take your website to its best potential!

You can monitor your backlink profile using tools like Ahrefs or Moz to ensure the links are from credible sources.

Now, you have the keys. 

Focus on structured data, consistent branding, and quality backlinks to achieve the online and brand presence you aim for, recognized as authoritative and trustworthy by search engines and users.

You can stand out from the crowd aligning your purposes and actions across the web and finally becoming an established entity.

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