How to Build Topical Authority—Faster Than Your Competitors (And Drive Predictable Revenue Growth With Content That Ranks And Converts).

Topical authority is essential to any successful SEO and B2B content strategy. However, establishing this authority can be challenging, especially in a competitive landscape and ever-changing algorithms. In this Predictable B2B Success podcast episode, content marketing expert Jeff Coyle delves into the critical aspects of building and maintaining topical authority.

Jeff, co-founder and chief strategy officer for MarketMuse, brings over twenty-one years of experience in the search industry. He shares valuable insights about the repercussions of neglecting topical authority, such as diminished internal trust and poor organic search performance. Moreover, Jeff emphasizes the necessity of a documented content strategy, practical competitive analysis, and meaningful differentiation through unique expertise.

Whether you’re a marketing novice or a seasoned professional, these strategies are crucial for scaling your content operations without sacrificing quality. Read on to discover actionable tips that can transform your content strategy and help you dominate your niche.

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About Jeff Coyle

Jeff Coyle is a seasoned expert in search engine optimization and content strategy, with a career spanning over two decades. Beginning his journey in the late nineties, Jeff honed his skills in the B2B technology sector at renowned companies such as KnowledgeStorm and TechTarget. His early work primarily focused on generating leads and delved into areas like consumer electronics through the TechnologyGuide network.

Throughout his career, Jeff has been an advocate for documented content strategies and achieving topical authority, recognizing their critical importance in content success. He has championed these approaches at MarketMuse for over ten years, urging businesses to adopt strategic content methodologies. In recent years, Jeff has relished seeing the industry embrace these concepts as content quality assessment and the manifestation of authority have evolved, aligning with the principles he’s long promoted.

Understanding Topical Authority in Modern SEO

In today’s competitive B2B landscape, establishing topical authority through SEO isn’t just about rankings—it’s about driving sustainable revenue growth. According to research cited by Jeff Coyle, co-founder, and chief strategy officer of MarketMuse,

“80% of marketers find it difficult to create content that resonates with their target audience, and nearly 70% report challenges in maintaining a consistent brand voice across platforms.”

The stakes are even higher when you consider that:

“62% of B2B companies lack a documented content strategy, leading to missed opportunities for building authority.”

This comprehensive guide will show you how to establish and leverage topical authority to drive measurable business results.

The Evolution of Content Quality and Authority

The concept of topical authority has evolved significantly over the past decade. As Jeff Coyle explains:

“The evolution of quality in the last few years has been amazing. The first wave was somewhat what I call tail wagging the dog—you look at the stuff that’s performing and say that must be high quality. That only goes so far.”

Modern topical authority encompasses multiple layers:

1. Page-level expertise demonstration
2. Site-section authority
3. Overall domain expertise
4. User experience quality
5. Comprehensive topic coverage

The Five Pillars of Content Quality Assessment

According to Coyle, there are five essential components to evaluating and building topical authority:

1. Competitive Analysis: “Is my page competitive?”
2. Expertise Demonstration: “Does it exhibit expertise?”
3. Site Coherence: “Does it fit within the puzzle of my site as my site tells the story of expertise?”
4. User Experience: “Will the reader have a great experience when it reads the page?”
5. Learning Outcomes: “Have I told the person all the things I want them to learn?”

Common Misconceptions About Topical Authority

Several misconceptions can hinder B2B companies from building true topical authority:

1. Single-Page Focus
   Coyle emphasizes: “Businesses don’t know, especially in B2B because there’s a lot of misinformation in SEO. They think they should have one page for each word they’re targeting. Sometimes you gotta have lots of pages for that word or topic.”
2. Conversion-Only Metrics
   “You should not decide what content to have and what content not to have based on the conversion rates of those landing pages. You need the entire funnel coverage,” states Coyle.
3. Content Cannibalization Fears
   “For it to be true cannibalization, those two pages have to have almost the exact same intent, even if they’re for a different audience, it’s a good thing, especially in B2B,” explains Coyle.

Building Comprehensive Topic Coverage

Content Strategy Development

To build genuine topical authority, organizations need to:

1. Cover the entire customer journey
2. Address multiple audience segments
3. Integrate expertise across all content types
4. Maintain consistent quality standards

As Coyle notes:

“You need as much content as you need to attack all aspects of your clusters, all the concepts that you’re covering. All the ways that an expert would exhibit expertise in all stages of the funnel that matter to your business.”

Expertise Extraction and Content Creation

A key aspect of building topical authority involves what Coyle calls “expertise extraction”:

“The marketer, put the burden on themselves or on their writer… unless they’re working with all the people in your organization, now you’re a journalist, and your sources for that journalism are your experts, the subject matter experts, the people with the real experiences.”

Measuring and Attributing Success

Attribution Challenges

One of the biggest challenges in B2B content marketing is attribution. Coyle provides a memorable analogy:

“If you go out and have a long night of drinking and the first thing you have is a glass of wine and then 25 beers, and you wake up in the morning and you go, ‘man, that wine really hit me.’ That’s first touch attribution. If after those 25 beers, you have a glass of champagne and you wake up in the morning and you’re like, ‘oh, man, that champagne must have done it.’ That’s last touch attribution. Neither of them are right.”

Holistic Performance Measurement

Instead of focusing on individual metrics, companies should:

1. Assess each channel’s contribution
2. Track omnichannel performance
3. Measure topic-level authority
4. Monitor brand representation quality

Adapting to AI and Search Evolution

Impact of AI Search Platforms

With the rise of AI-powered search, topical authority has gained new importance. Coyle advises:

“If you build amazing content and have comprehensiveness, you’re putting yourself into a situation where… you’ve gotta fight to get in discussions and forums so that your business is appropriately mentioned.”

Content Distribution and Citation

To maintain and grow topical authority in an AI-first world:

1. Ensure presence across multiple platforms
2. Build relationships with authoritative sources
3. Focus on unique, differentiated content
4. Maintain consistent quality across all channels

Practical Implementation Steps

Quality Assessment Framework

Implement a systematic approach to content quality:

1. Competitive analysis
2. Expertise verification
3. Site coherence check
4. User experience evaluation
5. Learning outcome assessment

Content Investment Strategy

Coyle emphasizes the importance of smart content investment:

“If I’m doing a ton of investment to build one page and then I don’t turn that one page into many things, I’m not getting the biggest bang for my buck… Turn that one page into multiple campaigns, turn it into social cam, turn it into email, figure out how to use AI to your benefit to repurpose.”

Future-Proofing Your Topical Authority

Differentiation Through Unique Content

The key to lasting topical authority lies in differentiation. As Coyle states:

“The value of getting your subject matter expert to tell you something unique that only you can… building content nobody else could build. How do you do that? Maybe you use your own data. If you’re a B2B company, maybe use the data from your SaaS software to create unique one of a kind.”

Continuous Quality Improvement

To maintain and grow topical authority:

1. Regularly audit content quality
2. Update existing content strategically
3. Invest in comprehensive topic coverage
4. Focus on unique value proposition

Conclusion

Building topical authority in SEO requires a comprehensive, strategic approach beyond traditional content creation. By focusing on quality, expertise demonstration, and comprehensive topic coverage, B2B companies can establish lasting authority that drives revenue growth.

Remember Coyle’s crucial advice:

“If I am ashamed of any parts of my website and it is not representing my business well with high quality, I need to take that action tomorrow. It’s probably hurting you. It’s probably a sandbag and you don’t even know it on your hot air balloon.”

Success in building topical authority comes from consistent quality, comprehensive coverage, and a commitment to providing unique value that competitors cannot replicate.

Some areas we explore in this episode include:

• Challenges B2B brands face in establishing topical authority and driving revenue growth.
• The role of AI in enhancing content efficiency and providing data-driven insights for content creation and strategy.
• The cost and consequences of not achieving topical authority in a company’s niche.
• Jeff Coyle’s personal area of strength in making the right decisions about content creation and updates.
• The importance of having a documented content strategy and the risks of not having one.
• Steps businesses can take to ensure content quality and differentiating themselves through unique content.
• How to justify budget for content activities in relation to sales and revenue growth.
• Building relationships with third parties to enhance topical authority.
• The role of PR and citations in improving one’s authority and visibility in AI-driven platforms.
• The importance of omnichannel strategies and fighting battles across multiple platforms to enhance content visibility and authority.
• And much, much more…

Listen to the episode.

Related links and resources

Connect with Jeff Coyle

• LinkedIn

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