Content without credibility is just noise. But how do you prove your content is credible to both your readers and to search engines like Google?
The answer often starts with something simple: your author byline.
Getting your byline right is more than just a formatting choice; it’s a foundational piece of your website’s authority and a key signal for E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness). This guide breaks down everything you need to know.
Where to Place Your Author Name: The Golden Rule
Let’s start with the basics. The standard and most professional location for an author’s name is directly below the title of the article, essay, or blog post.
This is called the byline. Placing it here gives immediate credit to the creator and instantly tells the reader who is responsible for the information. While you might sign off at the end of a personal letter or email, for published content, the byline always belongs at the top.
Correct
The Future of Renewable
Energy Dr. Jane Smith
The Exception: A Signature at the Bottom
You might sometimes see a name at the end of a piece of writing. It’s essential to recognize that this serves a distinct purpose. Placing a name at the bottom functions more like a signature than a formal byline.
This format is common for:
- Personal letters and emails
- Informal forum posts
- Some stylistic opinion pieces where the author is “signing off”
However, for any professional article, blog post, or report where establishing SEO authority is the goal, the byline always belongs at the top, directly under the title.
The Big Misconception: “Google Authorship” vs. E-E-A-T
A common point of confusion is the old “Google Authorship” program. Yes, Google officially discontinued that specific program (which used rel="author" tags to show author photos in search results) back in 2014.
However, the idea behind it—identifying and rewarding expert authors—is more important than ever. It has evolved into a core part of E-E-A-T. Google now looks for a collection of signals to verify an author’s expertise, making a clear and credible byline essential.
Text vs. Image: What’s Best for Your Byline?
So, what should your byline be? Just text? An image? The ideal solution for both users and SEO is to use both.
Text is for Google (SEO)
Your author’s name must be in plain HTML text. Search engines read text to understand who the author is and connect them to the content.1
- It’s Essential for SEO: This text is how Google builds an “entity” for your author, recognizing them as an expert on the topics they write about.
- Don’t Worry About Repetition: Having the same author name on hundreds of articles is a good thing. It’s not duplicate content; it’s consistent branding that reinforces their authority.
- Required for Schema: You need the name in text to use
Authorschema, which is a technical way to explicitly tell Google who wrote the article.
Images are for People (User Trust)
An author’s headshot is for your human readers.
- Builds Trust: Seeing a real person’s face makes your content instantly more credible and less anonymous.
- Improves User Experience: It adds a professional and human touch to your page.
The Perfect Byline: An Actionable Checklist
To maximize the benefits of your bylines, follow this best-practice structure.
- Use a Text Byline: Place the author’s name in text directly under the article title.
- Add a Photo: Include a small, professional headshot next to their name.
- Link to a Full Bio: The most crucial step is to make the author’s name a clickable link that leads to a comprehensive author bio page on your site. This page should detail their experience, credentials, and qualifications, serving as the ultimate proof of their expertise.
By combining these elements, you create a seamless experience that fosters trust with your readers while sending all the right signals of authority to search engines. Mastering your author bylines is a simple but powerful way to improve your site’s credibility and is a fundamental part of any successful SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategy.